Ascending Beauty: Exploring Cagnes-sur-Mer's Charming Heights
Cagnes-sur-Mer, France
The long, steep climb up to our Airbnb in the medieval town of Cagnes-sur-Mer robs the breath from my lungs and puts a fire in my legs. Our little apartment is near the summit and is surrounded by blooming plants and cozy bistro seating, but all I can focus on is putting one foot in front of the other.
The downhill hurts my shins, but the views make up for it. We aren’t fighting for air, so we can take time to soak in the stunning landscape that surrounds us. From the top of our hill, the street drops below the sea in the distance, blanketed by the azure sky. Each house has its own shade of earthen color that’s a backdrop to wooden shutters of green, blue, and brown. Some homes forego the painted matte exteriors of their neighbors and are built with stones of assorted shapes and sizes to add character to the street. I swoon over the wavy Mediterannean tiles that dot the roofs. The heady fragrance of roses and white jasmine infuse the air and cause Kevin to sneeze. Flowering vines are climbing the face of some of the homes and potted flowers, bushes, and trees are everywhere. Not to be left behind are wrought iron bars and flower boxes. Each house outdoes the next in its unassuming beauty. The road curves to allow alleyways and side streets to veer off and add another layer of interest. Vespas park alongside some parts of the route and cars and shuttles squeeze by, forcing us onto higher temporary ground alongside the street while they whiz past. We’re grateful that the shuttle operates every 15 minutes and is a free way to bypass the uphill climb on days we have luggage or shopping bags or are just plain lazy or tired after a long and speedy stroll along the water’s edge.
After living among some of the highest hills in San Francisco for over eight years, I’d grown weary of the extra effort that hills required. It was never easy to just take a walk. You had to pay for it with your body in one way or another. So it wasn’t a surprise that when we visited Lisbon and Porto in Portugal that I wasn’t a fan of the landscape there. Napoli at least had a convenient funicular to offset much of the climbing up to the Spanish Quarter, where we were located. Although Assisi charmed me, I muttered under my breath at each uphill step, and there were many.
Six months on the road seems to have softened me and my negative attitude. As convenient and easy it is to walk on flat roads, they aren’t nearly as interesting most of the time. Sure you might get to enjoy a walk along the seashore, but the most majestic mountaintop views and charming pathways are reserved for those who are willing to earn them.
