{"id":1619,"date":"2015-06-20T18:59:12","date_gmt":"2015-06-20T10:59:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/?p=1619"},"modified":"2019-02-03T15:57:30","modified_gmt":"2019-02-03T07:57:30","slug":"cote-dazur-escape-the-hordes-head-for-the-hills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/2015\/06\/20\/cote-dazur-escape-the-hordes-head-for-the-hills\/","title":{"rendered":"Cote d’Azur – Escape the Hordes, Head for the Hills"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Cote d’Azur is much more than just the resort beach towns of Cannes, Nice or St Tropez. So, if you need to escape the hordes, the hills above the shoreline contain\u00a0scenic medieval hill towns which can be easily visited in a day trip. Must sees here include the towns of St Paul de Vence and\u00a0Gourdon and Matisse’s Chapelle du Rosaire in Vence. The winding roads may also be familiar to 007 movie fans.<\/p>\n

We were lucky enough to be staying in St Paul de Vence so it was a handy base for us to take a drive through the Gorges\u00a0du Loup. Firstly, St Paul de Vence is a must visit. The town is pretty – situated on top of a hill and filled with art galleries, wine bars and various cafes. It is also home to the Maeght Foundation, a fine collection of contemporary art. I think it’s a great place to end a drive in the area so that you can enjoy a good dinner and sunset views.<\/p>\n

\"Cote<\/a>
A view of St Paul de Vence at dusk<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Matisse<\/a>
Exterior view of the Chapelle du Rosaire<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We\u00a0actually started our drive with a visit to the Chapelle du Rosaire in Vence. This is a chapel created by Henri Matisse in the last years of his life. It’s a special place – one that evokes reverence in the simple tranquility of the chapel. Matisse’s touches are evident in his abstract rendering of nature, the lightness of form and use of colour. The chapel has been known to bring visitors to tears in the purity of the beauty of the place and Matisse’s devotion.<\/p>\n

\"Matisse<\/a>
Matisse detail above the entrance to the chapel – courtesy of Steven Wong<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After leaving the chapel, we headed eastward in the direction of Tourettes-sur-loup on the road D2210. We didn’t stop in this town but parked at a scenic lookout to take some photos.<\/p>\n

\"Cote<\/a>
View of Tourettes-sur-loup<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Gorges<\/a>
A closer up view of Tourettes-sur-loup – courtesy of Steven Wong<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After passing Tourettes-sur-loup, the road heads north towards Courmes and Greolieres. Our aim is to get to the Saut du Loup waterfall for a short stop to take a look at the waterfall there. While the falls themselves are no big deal, the setting is beautiful. It’s convenient as there’s a car park here but you do have\u00a0to buy a ticket to get in to see the falls, which you walk down some stairs to approach.<\/p>\n

\"Cote<\/a>
Saut du Loup’s ancient forest<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Cote<\/a>
A closer look at the “falls” at Saut du Loup<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After Saut du Loup, you have a choice of going onto Gourdon ( a sharp hairpin turn left on the D3) and perhaps lunch or continue northward to Greolieres. The main reason for driving up the D3 to Greolieres is to actually drive a bit past the town along the D2 – this is the bit that may be more interesting for James Bond fans. The stretch of D2 beyond Greolieres is where they filmed\u00a0the car chase in GoldenEye between the Aston Martin DB5 and the Ferrari 355 (minus the view of Monte Carlo at the end). This diversion will probably take around 30 -45 minutes depending on how 007 your driving skills are. However, if you’re hungry and not a James Bond car chase fan, you may as well go to Gourdon.<\/p>\n

Check this link for a clip of the chase scene from GoldenEye:\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?hl=en-GB&v=ACwkQP6q1QQ&gl=SG<\/a><\/p>\n

Gourdon is the highest of the hill towns in the area and commands a great view of the valley below. It’s also a quaint town to walk around. \u00a0 We grabbed a bite at one of the cafes. My first choice eatery was full unfortunately but the lunch\u00a0we had at one of the other places was fine.\u00a0I recommend the lavender ice cream at the artisanal ice cream store near the entrance to Gourdon.<\/p>\n

\"Gorges<\/a>
Looking up at Gourdon on our approach to the town<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Gorges<\/a>
View of the Vallee du Loup en route to\u00a0Gourdon<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Gorges<\/a>
Momentary rain cloud over Gourdon<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Gorges<\/a>
Gourdon’s bell\/clock\u00a0tower in the background –\u00a0love the sky blue shutters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After a couple hours in Gourdon, we had a nice drive back to St Paul de Vence (along D3 and D6\/7). The roads wind their way back down the hill from Gourdon and we could see the Mediterranean Sea in the distance. On a clear day you can see along the coast and in particular, the town of Cannes.<\/p>\n

\"Cote<\/a>
Looking out toward the sea and Cannes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Parking around St Paul dV is challenging (you can’t drive into the village) so it will inevitably involve finding a slot and walking to the village. If you want to visit the Maeght Foundation, it’s best to park along Chemin des Gardettes or at the Maeght’s parking lot itself and then walk to the village.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It’s difficult anyway to find parking close to the village.<\/p>\n

\"St<\/a>
The Maeght Foundation through the trees on approach<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We had a couple of casual meals in St Paul dV at Le Tilleul, which sits to the left of the pedestrian entrance to the town. It has a nicely shaded patio with a nice view of the surrounding hills. There are a quite a few places to eat including the well known Le Colombe d’Or, which used to have some great paintings hanging in the restaurant although its glory may be fading somewhat. Some of the places I wanted to try include Le Toile Blanche (another good view of the valley – great for sunset drinks) and Le Artiste.<\/p>\n

\"Cote<\/a>
There’s a market just outside the entrance to the town in the morning<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Some will say that St Paul dV is a little pricey but given its pristine location and quaint, artsy vibe,\u00a0it’s still a pleasant place to unwind. I’d recommend a walk around the perimeter of the town. It’s also just nice to wander along the narrow lanes.<\/p>\n

\"Cote<\/a>
Dancing lady just outside the turn toward St Paul de Vence<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Cote<\/a>
Town fountain<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Cote<\/a>
Get lost along the lanes in St Paul de Vence<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Some website links to places mentioned in the blog:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Maeght Foundation:\u00a0http:\/\/www.fondation-maeght.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Chapelle du Rosaire:\u00a0http:\/\/vence.fr\/la-chapelle-du-rosaire-chef-d?lang=fr<\/a><\/p>\n

Le Tilleul:\u00a0http:\/\/www.restaurant-letilleul.com\/en\/restaurant-le-tilleul-st-paul-de-vence.html<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Cote d’Azur is much more than just the resort beach towns of Cannes, Nice or St Tropez. So, if you need to escape the hordes, the hills above the shoreline contain\u00a0scenic medieval hill towns which can be easily visited in a day trip. Must sees here include the towns of St Paul de Vence […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1627,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[152,18],"tags":[84,43,101],"class_list":["post-1619","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-europe","category-france-europe","tag-cote-dazur","tag-featured","tag-france","latest_post"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1619","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1619"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1619\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1647,"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1619\/revisions\/1647"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1627"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1619"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1619"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gazeandgraze.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1619"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}