Beuil

Beuil sits where the Tinée and Cians valleys meet, at around 1450 metres. It's higher than most of the villages we stopped at and more open, the landscape wider around it. Less dramatically perched than Roubion, but the altitude is there in the air and the light.

We weren't following a plan here. Just driving, stopping where something looked worth stopping for. We found a hill above the village and sat on it for a while, reading. The valley below was wide and quiet.

There was a wedding somewhere in Beuil that afternoon. For a stretch, one corner of the village was unusually lively. The rest of it stayed calm.