In die Sonne, in die Ferne

Already planned by Napoleon, they begin at "Point Zero", a brass mark on the square in front of Notre Dame in Paris: the French national roads that stretch from the capital to the corners of the Grande Nation. The "N7" is the longest and most beautiful of these: it runs for around 1,000 kilometers from the island in the Seine to the south to the Italian border, from Paris to Menton. The road is legendary: millions of European motorists and their families, hitchhikers and troubadours, artists and street performers were also on the road, following their longing for the south and the sea - the "N7" was a synonym for sun and holidays, the lightness of existence and the happiness of a temporary freedom, sung not only by Charles Trenet. Michael O. R. Kroeher and Wolfgang Groeger- Meier are in their book on this route of longing and.