AURILLAC , the provincial capital of the Cantal, lies on the west side of the mountains, 98km east of Brive and 160km from Clermont-Ferrand. In spite of its good mainline train connections and the fact that its population has almost doubled in the last forty years to around 30,000, it remains one of the most out-the-way French provincial capitals. It was until recently a major manufacturer of umbrellas, though that seems doomed to eventual extinction, like its older traditional lace-... [More]