Grenoble, France

Today I took my second day-trip out of Paris to Grenoble - a city in Southeastern France surrounded by snow-capped mountains and the beautiful Rivière Isère. It has been coined by the French as the capital of the Alps. I was excited for my trip to say the least...

I caught the 7AM train at Gare de Lyon and arrived in Grenoble at 10AM. My first impression of the city didn't really meet my high expectations. The clouds were hovering over us giving the city a gray, bleak feel and it was freezing! Even with my four layers and mittens, the wind still got to my bones and I was worried it would last the whole day. I made my way towards the City Centre not really having any idea what there was to see or do, and then came across a sign pointing to La Maison de Tourism - my one-stop shop for all of today's activities. I got myself a map of the city and Mme. Tourism at the help-desk provided me with a walking path to see all of Grenoble's main sights and attractions. I was all set to go!

Saint Laurent Footbridge and Bastille

By the time I got a good feel for where I was and where I wanted to go, the sun had broken through the clouds and burnt them all away. It turned out to be a beautifully sunny and warm day. My first stop was La Musée de l'Ancien Evêché that my lady friend at the Tourism Centre recommended. It wasn't open until the afternoon so decided I better make my way up the mountain while the sun is high and bright. I started the hour long hike up to Fort de Bastille from the Saint-Laurent footbridge over the Isère River. There are three main paths to get up the mountain; I took the middle one, but it proved to be a lot more confusing then expected. There were a bunch of stairs going up and up so I figured that was the right way, and if not then oh well - I'm really not in any rush. So I climbed and climbed, taking picture after picture, until I hit the end of the paved road and saw a sign blocking the entrance of the dirt path saying (translated into English) "Dangerous. Enter at your own risk." So I entered. At this point I knew I had taken a wrong turn somewhere because this obviously wasn't the correct way up to the Bastille; but I was still going up and the view was still getting better so I didn't care.
The dirt path was lined with naked Aleppo pine trees and from time to time you could sneak a peak of the city view through the branches. I finally got to an opening and hoped for a path to lead me back on track, but all I came to was the edge of the cliff and a pair of locked wooden doors that led to nothing. I was pretty much at the top of the mountain though and the view of Grenoble and the surrounding Alps were breathtaking. I decided to park myself there. I was all alone so I was able to play around with my camera and I just laid there in the sun for a an hour or two enjoying the tranquility and the view.
Next up was my city walking tour. I walked back down to the river and across the bridge, then began sight-seeing. I started with the Saint André Cathedral and surrounding medieval area, then walked to the City Gardens where many of Grenoble's famous authors and artists would spend their days writing and/or reflecting, past Place Victor Hugo to see the hotel that Napoleon stayed at for two nights in 1815, back up and into la Musée de l'Ancien Evêché, across to the Place Notre Dame and then finally to Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau to see the house where Stendhal, the famous romantic author, was born in 1783. Pretty cool!

Stendhal's Home in 1783

It was now 4PM and I wanted to find some food to relax for a bit and read. Of course in France all restaurants close between the hours of 3PM and 6PM to get ready for the dinner crowd so I was out of luck. Instead I found a cute café and ordered a glass of wine, hoping that by the time I finish my wine they'll be open again for food. It felt great to sit down after six hours of being on my feet. One glass of wine down and still no food, so I paid my bill and went to the Irish bar next door to kill my last hour with a beer, some Jack Johnson and NBA highlights on the big screen TV. It was awesome :) I caught the 7:30PM train back to Paris and slept the whole way home.

Tomorrow I'm going to get myself ready for my upcoming week in London and Dublin. You'll all get to meet one of my favorite girls in the world, Nimmy, who I will be staying with in London.

Love from Paris,
xoxo
Alexis