Even an afternoon refreshment can easily become a photo model. In one of the countless cafes we ordered some drinks. After a few re-arrangements the glasses, bottles and spoons became their own piece of art on the two-colored tablecloth.
(Cannes, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-14)
Autumn trees traffic light - Photo painting
Even though we travelled the "Route des Grandes Alpes" in the mid of summer, some trees already wore their autumn outfit. One of my personal photo highlights is this natural traffic light of three different trees with the usual colors of our most important road signal. And no, I didn't change the colors in Photoshop. The credit for this piece of art goes to Mother Nature!
Moon rising above colorful red rocks and pine trees - Photo painting
Later in the evening, I took this photo from a different angle and perspective. The moon nicely rises above the red colored rocks and some pines still illuminated a little bit by the sun.
(Cote d'Azur, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-17)
Pont du Gard aqueduct on a misty rainy summer day
The final attraction on our road trip was a historic one. The Pont du Gard, built by the Romans in the first century, is one of the best preserved aqueducts. With almost 50m, it is also the tallest, and has been added to the UNESCO World Heritage sites. Unfortunately, there were no blues skies and sunshine for our visit. But we could still enjoy the magic of this impressive monument, and walk over it to the other side.
(Pont du Gard, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-24)
Verdon gorge with lake of Sainte-Croix
One of the most famous destinations in the area is the Verdon gorge, sometimes also referred to as the "Grand Canyon of Verdon". This spectacular gorge is up to 700m deep, and around 25km long. At the end, the river with its fresh turquoise water feeds the artificial lake of Sainte-Croix.
(Gorges du Verdon, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-22)
Idyllic and densely forested river valley
Moving away from the Cote d'Azur, there are a number of very scenic natural parcs with lots of well maintained and signed hiking trails. We made full use of this opportunity, and explored a number of picturesque river valleys.
(Southern France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-19)
Threatening storm clouds over the Mediterranean
After several days in high mountain areas of the Route des Grandes Alpes, it was nice to finally arrive at the sea. However, the Mediterranean welcomed us with quite a threating dark sky and thunderstorms.
(Cote d'Azur, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-10)
Window plus window reflection on a yellow wall
During our walk through the streets of Cannes, I spotted this interesting and colorful wall with a painted single window. Thanks to the afternoon sunshine, there was an interesting reflection of another real glass window right next to it.
(Cannes, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-12)
Mountain peak with moon in the afternoon sun
The colorful rocks of the mountains alone have a lot of potential when it comes to nature photography. We were lucky enough to have a beautiful moon rising early in the afternoon that added this little extra to the images.
(Cote d'Azur, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-16)
Scenic view of Monaco from above
The best place to get an overview about Monaco and its beautiful surroundings is definitely from the steep mountains rising quickly from sea level. We also visited the city itself to get a feeling for one of the smallest and richest countries in the world.
(Monaco view, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-11)
Groups of tourists exiting the Aiguille du Midi ice tunnel
To access the most spectacular viewpoint, upon exiting the cable car, visitors had to pass a tunnel through the ice. Not sure if this tunnel still exists with all the climate change and meltdown of the alpine glaciers. At that time, I truly enjoyed this unique experience.
(Aiguille du Midi, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-02)
Siesta time - Cat chillout
On the way towards the Cote d'Azur, we passed a lot of mountain villages, where we also stayed over, and bought local products. As usual, I went to explore the area, and found this beautiful cat taking a relaxed afternoon nap.
(Route des Grandes Alpes, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-05)
Aiguille du Midi alpine peaks panorama
From the Aiguille du Midi, one can enjoy a breathtaking panoramic views over the French and Swiss Alps. At the time of our visit in July, there was quite a lot of snow. Together with the intense sunshine and the deep blue sky, this place felt quite magic.
(Aiguille du Midi, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-01)
Mountain stream on the Route des Grandes Alpes
You might have heard the saying: "The journey is the destination". This is particularly true when travelling the "Route des Grandes Alpes". This epic roadtrip from the Lake Geneva to the Cote d'Azur crosses 16 mountain passes with an incredibly diverse landscape. Streams and waterfalls are regular companions on this trip.
(Route des Grandes Alpes, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-03)
Route des Grandes Alpes - Above the clouds !
One of the benefits of crossing six mountain passes at altitudes above 2.000 meters is that sooner or later one may end up above the cloud cover, or at least some individual clouds. Watching them slowly rising with the thermal winds is quite relaxing. With a bit of sunlight, lots of photo opportunities arrise...
(Route des Grandes Alpes, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-08)
Refreshing alpine mountain stream close-up
Zooming in on the fresh and clear cascades of one of the mountain streams reveals the beauty of the untamed alpine nature. I especially like the contrast between the smooth texture of the flowing water and the hard sharp rocks.
(Route des Grandes Alpes, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-04)
Rural village windows - Closed vs. Open
On the way towards the Cote d'Azur, we passed a lot of mountain villages, where we also stayed over, and bought local products. As usual, I went to explore the area, and discoverd a lot of colorful walls and windows making the houses a very picturesque experience.
(Route des Grandes Alpes, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-06)
V-shaped pine tree in misty mountain area
Theoretically, as a photographer one could stop a few hundreds times, since the "Route des Grandes Alpes" has so many amazing natural treasures to offer just next to the road. Obviously, this would require a lot more time than we had available. So I focused on the most attractive models, such as this V-shapes pine against a misty mountain background.
(Route des Grandes Alpes, France, July 1993 - Image ID: 199307-FR-07)
