VICHY is famous for two things: its
World War II puppet government under Marshal Pétain, and its curative
sulphurous springs, which attract thousands of ageing and ailing
visitors, or curistes , every year. There's no mention of
Pétain's government in town, but the fact that Vichy is one of France's
foremost spa resorts colours everything you see here. The town is
almost entirely devoted to catering for its largely elderly, genteel
and rich population, which swells several-fold in summer; they come
here to drink the water, wallow in it, inhale its steam or be sprayed
with it. An attempt is now being made to rejuvenate the image of Vichy
by appealing to a younger, more fitness-conscious generation.
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