FRANCE : On a leisurely weeklong drive across the French countryside from Paris to Nice, travelers were rewarded with the discovery of uncharted little villages and fine restaurants

After six days of exhilarating but hectic sightseeing in Paris, we were looking forward to a soothing week driving through the French countryside to Nice.

Seasoned by the Los Angeles freeways, we figured that driving in France would be a piece of gateau once we left the big city and headed south into the provinces.

It turned out that driving on the highways and byways of France was more difficult than we had expected, but it provided unforgettable experiences we would have missed if we had flown south to the Mediterranean coast.

By charting our own course and traveling at our own pace we were able to stop and smell the flowers that abound in French country gardens and fields. We pulled to the side of the road to pick wild blackberries and to take pictures of sunflowers and vegetable gardens. We paused to read the names inscribed on village memorials to youths who perished in World War I.

We experienced a sense of discovery in finding towns not listed on the map. We got to see scenes of everyday village life, the marketplaces and the shoppers scurrying home with flutes of freshly baked bread tucked under their arms.

At night we rested in picturesque country inns so far off the beaten track that sometimes we had trouble finding them.

One thing is sure: We learned a lot about the perils and pleasures of driving in France during this eight-day, 1,000-mile odyssey.

We reserved our rental car before we left home. Because cars with automatic transmissions cost about $150 more a week, we chose a standard-transmission Peugeot 205, the next-to-smallest car available through Avis. It cost 1,829 francs a week ($305 at the dismal mid-September exchange rate of about 6 francs to the dollar), plus 261 francs ($43.50) for one extra day, including the whopping 33% French luxury tax.

We had insurance at home so we did not buy coverage at 57 francs ($9.50) a day or road service at 19 francs (about $3) a day. It’s best to check your coverage before you leave home.

One of us drove and the other navigated. This turned out to be a pretty fair division of labor because it took the full attention of two people to drive and find our way. And at our most tired and frustrating times, it also took an unflagging willingness to be patient with each other’s abilities to deal with unfamiliar driving customs and road directions.

We began our journey by leaving Paris on a blessedly quiet Sunday morning when the city streets were lightly traveled. From a beltway around the city we followed the distinctive blue signs to the A6 piage or toll road heading south. This divided superhighway is known as the Autoroute du Soleil because it leads to the sunny provinces to the south.

Although we drove at 110 to 120 kilometers an hour (68 to 74 m.p.h.), cars whizzed by us at hair-raising speeds of 90 to 110 m.p.h. The speed limit on the piage is 130 k.p.h. (about 81 m.p.h.), but you would never know it. We felt as if we had unwittingly entered the Indianapolis 500.

By contrast, travel on the country roads was slow. In fact, if we had not used the toll road part of the time we might still be somewhere between the lavender fields of Provence and the topless beaches of the French Riviera.

The toll roads enabled us to travel long distances quickly. A fringe benefit was that they provided frequent rest stops with fairly clean restrooms, an amenity uncomfortably scarce on country roads.

The piage rest stops also have gas stations, coffee shops and mini-markets to supply travelers’ needs. Gas was about $2.65 a gallon. Be sure to check on the grade of gas you need when you pick up your car. We filled up three times for a total of about $75.

In an effort not to overdose on rich French food we usually planned simple picnic lunches of bread, cheese and fruit. We carried a bottle of water, refilling it each morning. We packed leftover croissants and bread from the continental breakfast (coffee, rolls, butter and jam) normally served in the hotel room. The plastic utensils we received on the plane lasted us practically the whole trip for our picnics.

We learned the hard way that village grocery stores and shops typically close at noon for a long midday break, so we made it a practice to stop early in the day to replenish our supplies. The piage stores are open all day, but do not carry perishables such as fruit.

After an hour or so on the toll road south of Paris, we were anxious to get out on the country roads. As we drove toward the town of Sens we were puzzled as we passed village after village that did not appear on any of three maps of France we had obtained from the French Government Tourist Board, the (British) Automobile Club or Avis. We kept wondering if we were lost.

The anxiety made us hungry. We studied our invaluable red “Michelin Guide” ($15.95), containing what would become one of our best sources of restaurants--a map that shows towns where really good food is available at moderate prices. Many of these restaurants are in smaller towns accessible only by car, and are noted with a red capital R in the Michelin book.

These “red-R” restaurants provided us some of the best meals of our trip, and even with an unfavorable exchange rate they were affordable. For example, at the congenial Auberge Rabelais in Malay-le-Petit near Sens we had a four-course Sunday dinner including tarragon salmon with saffron sauce, roast leg of duckling, a selection of delectable cheeses and a homemade ice cream dessert with pureed raspberries and peaches. This meal, including half a bottle of wine, was 301 francs for two (about $50).

Thus refreshed, we drove on to Tonnerre and the Abbaye St.-Michel, a former 10th-Century monastery that would be our base for two days while we explored the Burgundy region, the Morvan Nature Park and the medieval town of Vezelay. The hilltop abbey overlooks the countryside and our cozy room had windows opening onto a rain-washed garden. It cost about $100 a night including a lovely breakfast with croissants, jam and fragrant honey.

On our maps Tonnerre seemed to be just a stone’s throw from the picturesque village of Vezelay. This was important because we called ahead from Los Angeles to make a dinner reservation at the celebrated Michelin three-star restaurant Esperance, near Vezelay, and wanted to be sure we could get to chef Marc Meneau’s place quickly from our lodging.

We learned that driving even short distances on country roads can take a long time.

From Tonnerre we set out on what we thought would be a leisurely drive through the scenic Morvan park with its exquisite forests and lakes. We took along our dinner outfits so that in case we ran late on our sightseeing, we could change clothes without having to go back to the hotel.

The kilometers stretched on and on, and by mid-afternoon we decided we would have to cut our planned itinerary in half. In a hilarious rags-to-riches experience, we changed from jeans to silks in a campground’s outdoor restroom for what would be our most epicurean--and most expensive--meal of the trip. It cost $100 a person for dinner (half a bottle of wine was $30 extra), but we agreed that it was money well spent.

Then it was time to find our way home on those country roads that were confusing even in daylight. That nerve-racking 45-minute ride--in the rain--taught us the value of eating at or near the hotel where one is staying. Driving at night on the back roads of France was no fun.

Medieval Walled City

Our next destination, the medieval walled city of Perouges (population 650), was a considerable distance, so we drove on the piage until we neared our lodging. Only then did we allow ourselves the luxury of meandering along the side roads.

Through trial and error we learned that signs that point weakly to the right or left mean that drivers should go straight ahead.

Signs for vital turns were posted on the sides of buildings rather than up ahead as we expected. Some turnoffs were so narrow that we thought they were alleys, and in one case we were right: A cobblestone street in Perouges stopped abruptly at a flight of stone steps, and we had to back up the car and start over.

When we reached the Ostellerie de Vieux Perouges we were glad we were having dinner at the hotel, especially when dessert turned out to be a fabulous tart topped with fresh raspberries and gobs of thick cream. Our very pretty room in the hotel annex, including dinner and breakfast for two, was 973 francs (about $162).

More Detail Needed

Awakened by church bells, we tackled the problem of how to get to our next night’s hotel, a delightful-sounding place called Les Hospitaliers in Le Poet-Laval, a village near Dieulefit that was nowhere on our maps. We decided that it was high time to buy the minutely detailed Michelin regional maps that show every road, town and point of interest. They cost about $2.50 apiece, are widely available in France, and are an absolute necessity for driving the country roads.

Armed with three new maps, we drove south on the piage and then headed east on local roads into the towns of Crest and Die in the unspoiled Drome region.

We took what appeared to be a shortcut to Dieulefit and ended up on an isolated road that snaked through the mountains and offered spectacular views of the countryside.

Smug in the conviction that few tourists would pass this way, we were surprised to find a solitary bench that seemed to have been put on the side of the road just for weary travelers like us. For a long while we saw no other cars, and we became a bit uneasy with all that remoteness. We were glad when Dieulefit finally came into view.

Stormy Weather

At Les Hospitaliers, grateful to get out of the car, we loafed by the pool overlooking scenic countryside. Later we had a memorable dinner-by-thunderstorm in a restaurant that was open to the terrace, where we sat with an English couple and had conversation in our own language. A small room, dinner and breakfast for two cost 836 francs ($139).

Rain pursued as we drove south, but because we had our own car and were not bound to a tour schedule, we skipped rainy Avignon and pressed on instead to our comfortable room at the Castelet des Alpilles in St.-Remy-de-Provence.

This moderately priced hotel was our headquarters for sightseeing for two days. Our pleasant room had a balcony overlooking the hotel garden and the Alpilles hills. The bill for two days, including dinner one night and breakfast both mornings, was 819 francs ($136.50).

From St.-Remy we visited the spectacular medieval ghost town of Les Baux-de-Provence and had dinner at the lavish three-star Oustau de Baumaniere.

Courageously, we flexed our French language skills and ordered a la carte. In France the fixed-price dinners called menus are usually a bargain, but here the cheapest one would have cost $65, plus the standard 15% service charge and wine, and it included a main dish we did not particularly want.

A Princely Meal

Instead, we ordered a lobster souffle appetizer, turbot with pine nuts and a once-in-a-lifetime dessert with fresh berries enfolded in a soft meringue that was browned in the oven and topped with ice cream. This princely meal cost 718 francs for two ($120). Half a bottle of local wine was 45 francs ($7.50).

We visited Arles, and again took the Michelin guide’s recommendation for good regional food at a moderate price. On a pleasant patio at Hostellerie des Arenes, across the street from the historic Roman arena, we had a hearty lunch with a green salad, roasted local Bresse chicken, vegetables and a cream caramel dessert for 48 francs ($8) a person. Wine was 10 francs ($1.70) for half a liter.

Leaving St.-Remy, we headed for the A8 piage for a few hours’ drive across Provence and the Cote d’Azur to the town of St. Paul, near Vence, where we saw the Maeght Foundation and its wonderful collection of modern art and sculpture.

With growing fatigue we drove the back roads to Fayence where we spent the night at the lovely Moulin de la Camandoule. At this picturesque inn that was once an olive mill, the hospitable English-speaking owners, Wolf and Shirley Rilla, helped us confirm our return flight from Nice.

Desire to Linger

Again we were glad that meals were included. Moulin de la Camandoule cost about 600 francs ($100) for a spacious room, dinner and breakfast for two. As tired as we were, we wished that we could stay another day enjoying the grounds and the pool, but we wanted to be closer to the Nice airport for our morning flight.

After a spectacular drive through Cannes we spent our last night in Cap d’Antibes at La Gardiole, which cost 346 francs ($58) for a room with balcony and breakfast.

We drove to nearby Antibes to see the Picasso Museum in the Grimaldi Castle overlooking the Mediterranean and, on the way back to our hotel, got lost. Once we finally found our way to our lodging, we decided it would be prudent to walk to a nearby restaurant for dinner. We got lost again, showing that if you are tired enough you can get lost anywhere, driving or walking.

We heaved a sigh of relief the next morning when we checked in our car at the airport. But when we got home and saw our photographs, we began to realize what a rich tapestry of the French countryside we had seen by driving those rural roads.