The small coastal town of Cap-d'Ail is located on the shores of the Bay of La Napoule, near Monaco. Its atmosphere is strikingly different from the bustling Nice and Monaco. The pine scent that fills the cape helps to forget everything and enjoy the majestic nature.

The name Cap-d'Ail translates from French as "garlic cape," although there is no smell of garlic here. According to one legend, the name originated from Cap d'Aglio, which means "bee tower." It is said that there once stood a tower that served as a storage for beekeepers. The city’s coat of arms depicts a tower with three bees, reminding us of this story.

Cap-d'Ail holds many stories and legends about its residents who have left their mark on the history of this place over time. Among them was the Russian ballerina Matilda Kshesinskaya. In 1912, being the wife of Prince Andrei Vladimirovich Romanov, she danced in Monte Carlo in Diaghilev's troupe and rented the villa "Morla" in Cap-d'Ail. She liked the house so much that during her next visit she wanted to rent it again, but the villa was occupied. Eventually, Kshesinskaya was persuaded to buy her own house. For 180,000 francs, she acquired the villa, which she named "Alam." Kshesinskaya's name in French sounded like Mala, and reading it backward resulted in the name of the house.

After the February Revolution, Kshesinskaya was forced to leave Russia and found refuge in France. The great ballerina wrote memoirs, dedicating a chapter to her life in Cap-d'Ail and her emigration. She recalled how on March 12, 1920, she returned to her beloved villa "Alam" after six years of absence. Although she was happy to be home, she had to mortgage the villa to pay the staff and gardener who had awaited her return. She also needed to update her wardrobe, as she and her son had almost no clothes.

On the French Riviera, Kshesinskaya met many friends who had also left their homeland, including Diaghilev, who offered her a chance to perform in his season. However, she declined, as she did not want to perform anymore after the closure of the Imperial Theaters.

Kshesinskaya lived in Cap-d'Ail until 1929, when she officially married Andrei Romanov and received the title of Princess Romanovskaya-Krasinskaya. They then moved to Paris and sold the house in Cap-d'Ail for financial reasons. In Paris, Kshesinskaya opened a ballet school, which soon became well-known in France. After that, the villa "Alam" was rented by many celebrities.