Lyon and the Alps

As the noble Rhône courses down from Switzerland, flowing out of Lake Geneva and being nudged west and south by the flanking Jura Mountains and the Alps, it meanders through France at its bracing best. Here you can find the pretty towns and fruity purple wines of Beaujolais, the brawny, broad-shoulder cuisine of Lyon (and its nouvelle adaptations), the extraordinary beauty of the Alps, and friendly wine villages sitting high on the steep hills bordering the Rhône as it flows to the Mediterranean. It's time to relax and dig into the terroir, the earth. Strike up a flirtation with saucy Beaujolais, the region's pink-cheeked country lass-in-a-glass, blushing modestly next to Burgundy, its high-toned neighbor. The very names of Beaujolais's robust wines conjure up a wildflower bouquet: Fleurie, Chiroubles, Juliénas, St-Amour. Glinting purple against red-checked linens in a Lyonnais bouchontavern, they flatter every delight listed on the blackboard menu: a salty chew of sausage, a crunch of bacon, a fat boudin noir bursting from its casing, a tangle of country greens in a tangy mustard vinaigrette, or a taste of crackling roast chicken.

If you are what you eat, then Lyon itself is real and hearty, as straightforward and unabashedly simple as a poulet de Bresse. Yet the refinements of world-class opera, theater, and classical music also happily thrive in Lyon's gently patinated urban milieu, one strangely reminiscent of 1930s Paris—lace curtains in painted-over storefronts, elegant bourgeois town houses, deep-shaded parks, and low-slung bridges lacing back and forth over the broad, lazy Saône and Rhône rivers. Far from the madding immensity of Paris, immerse yourself in what feels, tastes, and smells like the France of yore.

When you've had your fill of this, pack a picnic of victuals to tide you over and take to the hills—the Alps, to be exact. Here is a land of green-velvet slopes and icy mists, ranging from the modern urban hub of Grenoble and the crystalline lake of Annecy to the state-of-the-art ski resorts of Chamonix and Megève. The grand finale: awe-inspiring Mont-Blanc, at 15,700 feet Western Europe's highest peak. End your day's exertions on the piste or the trail with a bottle of gentian-perfumed Suze, repair to your fir tree-enclosed chalet, and dress down for a hearty mountain-peasant supper of raclette, fondue, or cheesy ravioles, all in the company of a crackling fire.

Grouped together in this guide solely for geographic convenience, Lyon and the Alps are as alike as chocolate and broccoli. Lyon is fast, congested, and saturated with culture (and smog). It may be the gateway to the Alps, but otherwise the two halves of the region could be on different continents. While in the bustling city, it's hard to believe that the pristine Alps are only an hour's train ride away from this rich metropolis. Likewise, while in a small Alpine village you could almost forget that France has any large cities at all. Everything you imagine when you hear the name of the Alps—soaring snowcaps, jagged ridges, crystalline lakes—is true. Their major outpost, Grenoble, buzzes with Alpine talk, propelling visitors away from city life and into the great Alpine high.

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