Day Breaks

The plane from Paris to Nice sweeps low over the Rho^ne River, twists left over northern Provence, descends over the maze of massifs and canyons, then banks left again over the Mediterranean. Finally, it drops lower as it soars past the rocky coast, by Cannes, by Saint-Tropez, past the wing-like buildings at Cap d’Antibes.

The plane continues to descend and the space between it and the water diminishes. The passengers begin to wonder: Are we in some Edgar Allan Poeish shrinking space? And then, miraculously, sand appears and the plane touches down at the Nice-Co^te d’Azur airport on the beach. Passengers leave the plane while it is still on the runway and are instantly engulfed in the brilliant Mediterranean sun.

The effect is exhilarating. There are palm trees bouncing sun off their leathery leaves, tanned ladies with little dogs, tanned men in loafers and no socks--in all, an aura of well-being and happiness.

Welcome to Nice.

Certainly there is much for the tourist to see and do in Nice itself. But most travelers neglect what is around Nice--some of the most dramatic country in all of Europe: sudden massifs, straight drops into narrow valleys so far down that you think you are looking through the wrong end of a telescope, roads that double back on themselves like drapery folding down a mountain slope, viewpoints that simultaneously offer staggering vistas of both the dry hills of eastern Provence and the turquoise Mediterranean, villages so remote and perched so precariously on the tops of rock that one wonders how they were built--and why.

For the traveler who is able to rent a car, here are three day trips out of Nice: La Croix-sur-Roudoule, Sospel and St. Paul/Grasse. Each outing will take up the hours between breakfast and dinner back in Nice, though the temptation to linger will be strong.

La Croix-sur-Roudoule is truly a village that time has forgotten. Established as a base camp by the Crusaders, it is perched on top of a peak in the remote Gorge de la Roudoule and offers an eagle’s eye view of the gorge and connecting valleys and surrounding peaks. A stone structure built on top of a stone mountain, stone on stone, would be the simplest way to describe it.

To get to La Croix-sur-Roudoule take N 202 west, then north along the Var, a splendid river that has its source near Gap, high in the Alps.

Turn north at Puget-Theniers, 58 kilometers (36 miles) from Nice, and follow D 16 through the Roudoule River gorge to La Croix--about five slow and winding kilometers (3 miles). The road narrows so dramatically that it barely accommodated my tiny Renault. Overhanging rock covers the entire road like a canopy, and the curves are breathtaking, as is the view to the left, straight down into the dramatic Gorge de la Roudoule. At the narrow gorge bridge, which seems to be suspended, unattached, like a bird hovering over the valley, there is a parking area and viewpoint.

We followed the sign directing us to a road looping around to the right for the last twisting 600 feet or so, and found a stone village that gave no hint of its existence until we maneuvered that last curve in the road.

A lovely stone portal welcomed us to the village. After the portal, more stone--bright, clean, old--there was a maze of narrow streets connected by stairways, a church and a telephone booth. The village was full of dogs and cats, and most of the villagers (the village population is about 75) like to spend a good deal of their time sitting on wood benches along the narrow alleys and in the square in front of the church.

The village itself has an enigmatic history, having been first established by the Knights Templiers on their way to Jerusalem. But why did these Crusaders, coming down from Troyes in Champagne, take this treacherous route through the mountains instead of the more logical water route, the Rho^ne, or the traditional avenue through Germany and Hungary? Perhaps there are some answers in this mysterious stone village perched on an outcropping above a remote gorge in La Croix-sur-Roudoule--country as inaccessible as any in Europe.

Not a trip for the timid, but well worth it for the view, the adventure and a sense of historical mystery, the drive to La Croix-sur-Roudoule will, at the least, fill up a carousel of slides.

*

The trip to Sospel is equally dramatic but in a dramatically different way. En route to Sospel the road does not follow rocky cliffs and gorges or wind under canopies of stone. Rather, it follows a traditional mountain pass route. But it is not a traditional route--not, that is, quite like the passes in the Cascades and Rockies.

Clinging to the walls of the two passes--the Braus and St. Jean--the road to Sospel is stitched with 180-degree cutbacks, one literally on top of another. So while the distance from Nice is only 25 miles, the trip takes about an hour and a half.

Along the way there are extraordinary alpine vistas: rolling hills, peaks, valleys, steep drops into evergreen-walled valley floors with serpentine rivers lying lazily at their bottoms. There’s also a bonus for the history-minded traveler. The road passes by part of the famous Maginot line--a system of heavy fortifications built before World War II on France’s eastern border with Germany. Fragments of the line, in the form of protective bunkers, are still visible today, although, as history has taught us, they failed in the end to keep out the Nazis.

Sospel is a warm, charming village (1,931 inhabitants) that does not want to let you go once you are there. It straddles the Bevera River, and its two arched bridges--the older dating from the Middle Ages--and the stone houses along the river, with laundry hanging generously from their balconies, give it an Italian feel. The main square, just to the south of one of the bridges, is circled with cafes--a delightful spot for lunch or just cafe-sitting over a citron.

Apart from the view while driving through the mountains, the town’s lovely setting along the river, the beautiful old bridge and the joy of being there, the main attraction in Sospel is its 17th century church, St. Michael’s. Famous for its baroque choir--a profusion of colored marble--the church is also known for its elaborate corniche and golden dome.

Sospel is northeast of Nice, only six miles from the Italian frontier at Olivetta. In fact, the car radio will pick up several Italian radio stations, including at least one dedicated to opera.

To get to Sospel from central Nice, take Avenue de Verdun, east of Ruehl Casino by the Promenade des Anges, onto Avenue Felix Faure running north of the wide park with the elaborate fountains. This will eventually turn into the Route de Levens and then D 2204--direction La Trinite and Drap/--which follows the Paillon River for a while, then branches northeast into the mountains, where the road narrows and begins to twist. From then on it’s all uphill.

The third day trip from Nice should appeal more to the shopper. This itinerary includes the village of Biot, the faience and ceramics center. It continues on to Grasse, the perfume capital of France, then to Saint-Paul, a pleasant village of artisans, crafts shops and restaurants, and finally to Vence, a town in which many artists live and work.

Biot is about seven miles west of the Nice-Co^te d’Azure airport. Take N 98 west and go north at the Biot/La Brague exit, D 4. The road twists easily up a slight rise into Biot, where there is ample tourist parking. Once home to the artist Fernand Leger (and now home to the excellent Fernand Leger National Museum), Biot is a village of traditional Provencal homes made of bright buff and rose-colored stone. It seems bathed in light. In addition to shopping for ceramics, it’s important to visit the museum, which houses more than 300 works by Legar. (By the way, there is a shop, Fayences de Moustiers, 18 Rue Marche, in Old Town Nice that sells ceramics from Biot, especially white porcelain with blue lettering and trim.)

*

More adventurous travelers can continue northwestward from Biot on D 4, a narrow, twisting road that in about 15 kilometers (nine miles) will meet N 85, the Route Napoleon and the road to Grasse. Timid travelers will have to backtrack to A 8 or N 7 and go west for 7 kilometers (4 miles) to the Grasse exit, above Cannes (the direction is toward Grasse/Mougins). There will be ample time for a side trip to nearby Vallauris, one of the many places in the south of France where Pablo Picasso lived. Vallauris contains museums and art shops. Those who are more adventurous and stay on D 4 will be well rewarded, however. The road offers spectacular vistas, and the beautiful ancient abbey at Valbonne is well worth a visit.

The thing to do in Grasse, of course, is to visit the perfume museums. There are several, including the Musee International de la Parfumerie, each more fascinating than the other. The museums contain not only displays of old perfume-making equipment, but all have extraordinary collections of perfume bottles, from ancient times to the present.

The bonus in Grasse is Fragonard--not the perfume, but the artist after whom the perfume was named, Jean-Honore Fragonard, Grasse’s most famous native son. Those who were fortunate enough to see the Fragonard show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, in 1988, understand that Fragonard was a great artist, indeed, and not just a Rococo painter of frills and lace. The small but charming museum in the Fragonard Villa-Museum houses several Fragonard self-portraits and some of his paintings of the surrounding lavender fields.

It is possible to drive across the hill country to Saint-Paul and Vence rather than come back down toward N 7 and pick up the road to Saint-Paul/Vence at Cagnes-sur-Mer, a crowded resort town. Travelers who take D 2085 and then D 7 and D 6 toward Saint-Paul will come across some amazing vistas in the neighborhood of the Loup river, especially in the Col-sur-Loup.

Saint-Paul is one of the many beautiful villages perched on the top of cliffs in the south of France. You must park your car below and walk up to the village, which seems to be partially embedded in its rocky setting, like a late Michelangelo sculpture. The cobbled streets are lined with artisans’ shops, restaurants and stores dealing in Provencal specialties, from clothing to food.

About six miles away, Vence is the companion village to Saint-Paul, though it is a more traditional French village, with an old section, a large central square, several superb restaurants, markets and art studios. The main business of Vence is art: painting, sculpture and ceramics. Though Henri Matisse lived in Nice, he did a considerable amount of important work in Vence, and his name is still associated with the town. His ceiling decorations, frescoes and stained glass in the chapel of Rosaire, the main tourist attraction in Vence, represent a culmination of sorts in his search for simplicity in color and design.

Vence is also famous for its excellent restaurants. I have gone out of my way more than once while driving around Provence to have lunch at La Farigoule in the old town. Sitting on the terrace, in the spangled shade of the arbor, before a dish of truite meuniere and a bottle of chilled Provencal white wine, I understand yet once more that lunch in a fine restaurant is the earned indulgence of our travels and why I keep returning to this part of the world.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

GUIDEBOOK: Nice Trips

Getting there: There are no nonstop flights from Los Angeles to Nice, though Delta flies nonstop daily from New York. The fastest connections from L.A. are via Paris on Air France, via London on British Airways, Geneva on Swiss Air, Amsterdam on KLM or Frankfurt on Lufthansa. Advance purchase, round-trip fares begin at about $1,060.

Where to eat: Cha^teau St. Martin, Avenue Templiers, Vence; tel. 9358-0202.

Chez Maximen, 689 Chemin de la Gaude, Vence; tel. 9358-9075.

Le Moulin des Paroirs, 7 Avenue Fabreries, Grasse; tel. 9340-1040.

Le Saint Paul, 86 Rue Grande, Saint-Paul; tel. 9332-6525.

--S.R.