Faverges, France

I depart the beautiful Chamonix, France in order to head Southwest on the D1212 to Faverges, France. The fact that the journey is only 70km doesn't mean that it will be easy. I will be travelling through the Alps towards the Massif Central. It is a locale known for volcanic activity and inclement weather, which is perfect for a ski fiend like myself.

Along the way I will pass through Notre-Dame-de-Bellecombe, where it will be extremely difficult for me to continue on; they have quite a few ski resorts that're notorious for powder. Another French town that lives and breaths skiing and/or all things snow. It seems like a pretty awesome place since everything seems to be skiing related. See the picture below:

I also pass Ugine along the D1212, another quaint town of about 8,000 year-round inhabitants. Another gem along the way to my destination.

I arrive at Faverges, the valley below the Alps, a welcome change to the mountainous terrain of days past. Strangely enough, Faverges is a region famous for its archaeology:

Faverges, also known as Haute Savoie, is the neighbor to the Viuz and Le Thovey digs, both of which have provided valuable insight to researchers regarding the Gallo-Roman times (http://www.sav.org). Yet another exemplification of France's rich cultural heritage. So, naturally, I visited the above pictured museum, to nerd out and acquire more Jeopardy! knowledge. I'm coming for you, Alex Trebek. I could go on and on about how the Roman-ruled Gaul serves as a point of reference for the other Roman ruled communities of Antiquity since it is one of the more known (thanks to the likes of Viuz and Le Thovey). Though I feel as though I am losing my readership, so I digress.

According to sav.org, Lake Annecy used to extend right up to Faverges during the Ice Ages, so I feel it is only logical to give it a visit. I took pictures:

Now that is a panorama. This is a tourist trap, and it makes sense considering the scenery, swimming, and water sports playground that Lake Annecy is. Lake Annecy is predominantly glacial melt, so I brought my wetsuit (it's also winter). This lake is also rumored to be the "cleanest lake in Europe", primarily due to strict environmental regulations.

Lake Annecy also inspired (or should I say impressed?) Cezanne in 1896:

After a day packed with tourism, I go back to Faverges to sleep on one of the 16,455 couches available for surfing in the Rhone-Alpes region (http://www.couchsurfing.org/search/in/map/45.8619,6.45147,45.6319,6.13561,10/mode/L). Before sleep I get an authentic French cooking lesson while I taste local wine.