Rising in the Swiss Alps and flowing through Lake Leman the River Rhône then crosses into France where it gives its name to the "Rhône-Alpes" region. Between Savoie and Lyon the Rhône meanders through tamer landscapes until, powered up by the Saône, it becomes the serious river to reach the final stretch known as the Côtes du Rhône.
The river, now wide and strong, pulls all the attention southward, where the sky, for the first time, anticipates the heat of southern France.
Descending the Rhône Valley becomes incrementally more sensuous. But there is more here for the senses than a gastronomic binge. Twenty miles south of Lyon, Vienne shows little sign of its Roman past. Yet here was one of the largest theatres of Roman Gaul, as well as a temple specializing in orgiastic celebrations of the goddess Cybele.
The Rhône Valley allowed the Romans to penetrate the heart of the Continent, and so permanently acquaint the dour north with licentious Mediterranean habits. The Rhône is also the alimentary canal of France, figuratively and actually.
The types of countryside, the micro-climates and the crops along the river's course give the region its distinctive character. One crop is omnipresent - the vine. From almost all points along the river's course, hills and mountains are in view.
The life of the uplands has been shaped by the grazing of herds and flocks, and by the slow rhythm of hill farming with its cheese-making and seasonal transhumance. On the fertile flood-plains however, the growing of fruit and vegetables is an activity which is more closely connected with the valley towns and their populations.
