Pictures of Grenoble, France

Here's the car we rented in Geneva for our day trips. It's a Daihatsu Sirion which is a Japanese car about the size of a Geo Metro. It worked well and was easy to park in small parking spots--which all were. Driving anywhere took 100% of both of our energies. As I dodged trams, mopeds, delivery trucks, and bicyclists, Stephanie read our map, translated the road signs, guided us through roundabouts, kept an eye out for the inattentive pedestrian, and negotiated with the surly French tollbooth personnel. It was great fun.




















Here's a square filled with cafes in Grenoble's old town. You can see the Alps in the background as well as their Christmas decorations, which are evidently a perennial adornment.




















In this park, you can see a statue of Composer Hector Berlioz above the tulips.















Here's a view of La Bastille. These ancient fortifications were built across the river high in the granite bluffs.















This is Grenoble's Little Italy. There are exclusively Italian restaurants and shops on this street.















Here's the gondola station that leads to La Bastille, framed by the old town's cathedral and the Alps.















We rode the gondola to La Bastille to get this view of Grenoble. You can see the old town located around the river with new development extending beyond that. There are 500,000 people living in Grenoble today.















Here we are enjoying a "light breeze" at La Bastille.