Page 172 - Lonely Planet Europe’s Best Trips (Travel Guide)

with its arcaded passages the Riviera once looked free.fr; av St-Jacques; adult/
and stairways carved like, before the high child €6.50/5; h10am-
out of rock – is the rises, casinos and prop- 12.30pm & 3.30-6.30pm Wed-
most impressive. Scurry erty developers moved in. Mon May-Aug, 10am-12.30pm
upwards to find architect It’s ripe for wandering, & 2-5pm Wed-Mon Sep-Apr),
Le Corbusier’s grave at with peaceful gardens where terraces overflow
the cemetery at the top and belle-èpoque man- with fruit trees, and the
of the village (in section sions galore, as well as beautiful, once-aban-
J, and, yes, he did design an attractive yacht-filled doned Jardin de la Serre
his own tombstone). harbour. Meander the de la Madone (%04 93 57
historic quarter all the 73 90; www.serredelamadone.
The Drive »Continue along
the D52 towards the coast, way to the Cimetière du com; 74 rte de Gorbio; adult/
following promenade du Cap- Vieux Château (montée du child €8/4; h10am-6pm Tue-
Martin all the way along the Souvenir; h7am-8pm May- Sun Apr-Oct, to 5pm Jan-Mar,
seafront to Menton. You’ll be Sep, to 6pm Oct-Apr) for the closed Nov-Dec), overgrown
there in 10 minutes, traffic best views in town. with rare plants. The
permitting. Menton’s miniature tourist office’s garden
microclimate enables website (www.jardins-
exotic plants to flourish menton.fr) has a list and
7 Menton here, many of which you opening times.
Last stop on the coast can see at the Jardin Spend your second
FRANCE 12 RIvIERA CROSSING
before Italy, the beautiful Botanique Exotique du night in town.
seaside town of Menton Val Rahmeh (%04 93 35
offers a glimpse of what 86 72; http://jardinvalrahmeh. 54 p173

PERFUME IN GRASSE
Up in the hills to the north of Nice, the town of Grasse has been synonymous with
perfumery since the 16th century, and the town is still home to around 30 makers –
several of which offer guided tours of their factories, and the chance to hone your
olfactory skills.
It can take up to 10 years to train a perfumier, but since you probably don’t have
that much time to spare, you’ll have to make do with a crash course. Renowned
maker Molinard (%04 93 36 01 62; www.molinard.com; 60 bd Victor Hugo; 30min/1hr
workshops €30/69; h9.30am-6.30pm) runs workshops ranging from 30-minute
sessions to two hours, during which you get to create your own custom perfume
(sandalwood, vanilla, hyacinth, lily of the valley, civet, hare and rose petals are
just a few of the potential notes you could include). At the end of the workshop,
you’ll receive a bottle of eau de parfum to take home. Galimard (%04 93 09 20 00;
www.galimard.com; 73 rte de Cannes; workshops from €49; h9am-12.30pm & 2-6pm) and
Fragonard’s Usine Historique (%04 93 36 44 65; www.fragonard.com; 20 bd Fragonard;
h9am-7pm Jul & Aug, 9am-12.30pm & 2-6pm Sep-Jun) offer similar workshops.
For background, it’s also worth making time to visit the Musée International de
la Parfumerie (MIP; %04 97 05 58 11; www.museesdegrasse.com; 2 bd du Jeu de Ballon; adult/
child €4/free; h10am-7pm May-Sep, 10.30am-5.30pm Oct-Apr; c) and its nearby gardens
(%04 92 98 62 69; www.museesdegrasse.com; 979 chemin des Gourettes, Mouans-Sartoux;
adult/child €4/free; h10am-7pm May-Aug, 10am-5.30pm mid-Mar–Apr & Sep–mid-Nov, closed
mid-Nov–mid-Mar), where you can see some of the many plants and flowers used in
scent-making. Needless to say, the bouquet is overpowering.

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