Through Switzerland to the Alps and Mount Blanc

July 9-10, 2015.
Leaving our hotel in France, we drove on some very small roads through rural French farms.  Notice we did not drive past these farms, we were literally driving through them.  It felt like we were on someone's private driveway, but actually it was a small road.

Because we are not driving a straight road, we are winding our way in and out of several countries. We rode through Switzerland for most of the day, before heading back into France.  We stopped at Fribourg, with some very old Roman buildings.  We could see the historic Old Town from above, but could not find a way to get there through the traffic.  Nevertheless it was a beautiful place to be on a beautiful clear day.

Fribourg

Fribourg's Old Town

All over Switzerland, fountains are available with drinking water

The roof over the road prevents rocks from falling off cliff onto the road.

We drove on to Gruyere, the town from which the cheese gets its name.  We walked around the town but it seemed a bit touristy for us.

Town of Gruyere

The sky was clear and it was a perfect day to drive toward the Alps.  As we crossed the valley, the mountains grew taller and taller.  The views we saw were some of the most spectacular we have ever seen before.  It is hard to describe and hard to take a picture of the full panoramic view.  Gorgeous!  We drove up a very windy road through some grape-vines and homes to view Mount Blanc from up high.

After enjoying this awesome view, we rode through the Rhone valley on this gorgeous day to our hotel in Talloires, France with a view of Lac D'Annecy from our room's balcony.  Here is the view from our hotel room balcony:

In the morning we enjoyed a French breakfast buffet.  Now we are off to see the town of Talloires.  It is market day!