BEAUJOLAIS AND MACONNAIS The hills of Beaujolais at the very edge of the beautiful Massif Centrale mountain range, carpetted in vines with villages and chateaux, some dating back to the 11th and 13th centuries, perched on hilltops and nestling in green valleys, was the setting for the atmospheric and hilarious tales of Clochmerle. The famous Beaujolais villages, Fleurie, Morgon, Chiroubles, Chenas, Julienas, Moulin a Vent etc are all in the immediate vicinity of RH03, RH05 and RH06, scattered across the steep hills. We suggest that you drive to Lyon taking the scenic route through the vineyards - and what a scenic route. The Maconnais by contrast is a region less intensely planted with vines but of exquisite pastoral beauty (top picture on this page). Of equal import to the Beaujolais villages is the world famous wine commune of Pouilly Fuisse, which is also within 20 minutes drive of your accommodations. This is a place for hill walking, for bird watching (birds of prey over every field and wood), mountain biking in the truest sense of the definition and pony trekking.

LYON Lyon, France's second city and famed for its wonderful restaurants lies 40 miles to the south of the Beaujolais villages. The two brasseries (Le Sud and Le Nord) and the restaurant of Paul Baucuse, rated by some as the greatest living chef in France, are worth a visit for their entertainment value but at some considerable cost. By contrast, the Brasserie Georges (pictured below left) on the Presqe Ile between the two rivers of Lyon, near the Gare Perroche, is a large truly French dining room, where good regional cuisine at reasonable prices seems to be the sole aim.  "Bouchons", named thus since medieval times because the bill for wine was calculated by the number of wine bottle corks on the table, serve ridiculously good value wine and food (the famous one is La Meuniere on the Presque Ile in Rue Neuve, just off Boulevard La Republique, but there are also many others in the old city on the west bank of the Rhone).  The price of eating out here is genuinely a fraction of the price, that you will pay in Paris or on the Cote d'Azur, as well as being of a broadly higher standard - it is not uncommon to find a 3 course menu for 70 francs. Lyon's museums: Musee des Beaux - one of the largest collections of French, Italian, Spanish, Flemish and Dutch fine art from the middle ages to modern times in France, housed in the old abbey of St Peter.  Musee d'Art Contemporain, Quai Charles-de-Gaulle - modern art from the 60's to the present day. Others:  Gallo-Roman Civilisation, rue Cleberg, Fourviere. Fabrics and Decorative Arts, rue de la Charite. The French Resistance, ave Berthelot. Natural History, Bld des Belges. Living History of Lyon and Puppet Museum, pl du Petit College. Printing and Banking - rue de la Poulaillerie. Puppetary and Dolls, Dommaine de Lacroix-Lavel. Transport - Chateau de Rochetaillee. Religion, Fourviere Basilica. Miniatures, rue Juiverie. Film, rue du 1e Film. Lyons markets: Art, Quai Romain Rolland - Sunday mornings. Crafts, Quai Fulchiron - Sunday morinings. Flea Market, 1 rue de Canal, Villeurbanne (east of the city) - Thursday, Saturday and Sunday mornings. Books - Quai de la Percherie, Saturday and Sunday all day. Lyon history: Inhabited by prehistoric man, evidence has recently been discovered in the cave paintings of Chauvet. Lyon was the capital of the Three Gauls, founded by the Romans in 43 BC. Visit the amphitheatre where early Christians were martyred or the odeon and amphitheatre at Fouviere on the hill overlooking old Lyon. Just south at Vienne, there is the Temple of Augustus and Livia, and, at St Romain-en-Gal, the remains of Roman villas.

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