Traveling in German-occupied France is not easy. A young person, even with the best documents, is always suspect, and you are frequently stopped and interrogated. You constantly explain that you are a nurse, hired to care for elderly people at a nursing home in Cannes. You have a letter from the home (provided by Mother Marie) which looks authentic. Despite some frightening moments, you pass along, moving constantly away from Paris.
Distance from the center of the German forces is important because the farther you are away from Paris, the less intense are the searches for Jews. The Vichy government of Pierre Laval has not been interfering with the deportation of Jews to concentration camps, and the Germans are pleased. Therefore, there is less pressure on the average person to cooperate with anti-Semitic actions. It's not that the people love Jews; they privately hate the Nazis and their Vichy puppets. Anything they can do to hinder collaboration seems good to them.
It takes you eight days to travel from Paris to Vichy. Now, you must decide whether to continue toward the Riviera or to some other path.
To learn what happens to you in Vichy France, continue to page 32.