What to do in Grenoble, France on a Sunday

If you are not from France you will be surprised by the fact that basically everything is closed in Grenoble on a Sunday. So don't expect a nice shopping day because the city will be sleepy and silent. These are the recommendations on how to spend a day in Grenoble on a Sunday.

• Food. Do you need to visit the grocery store? They have open in the mornings and close by lunch. The absolute biggest one is Monoprix located in the mall Caserne Bonne. The Monoprix located at Rue Lafayette is also good but smaller. 
• Food market. A nice activity can be to visit one of the food markets, I recommend you to go to the one located under the train rails at Rue Joseph Rey. Here you can find local farmers selling their harvest but also more international foods, grilled chickens, olives etc. Come here early! 9 am is OK, at noon its already closed. 

Local farmer selling at the market

• Brunch or breakfast. There are a few places for brunch or breakfast but the nicest one is Pain et Cie, lots of people and you will feel like you are having a normal Sunday in any European city. 
• Museum. The museum of Grenoble should be good ( I have not been there myself) in presenting art but please be aware that basically everything in the museum is in French. That they are open on Sunday's is a plus. 

The entrance of the museum

• Cinema. To go to see movie is a good option on a Sunday! There are a few places but the cinema located at Chavant is the biggest. You don't have to book a ticket online, there are usually seats left over. Especially if you want to see the movies that don't have s voice cover in French. The English speaking movies has the note "VO". 
• Have a walk. The city is very nice and as a newcomer you can fill you memory card in your camera during one day. I recommend to have a walk up to the Fort de la Bastille that is located on the hill above Grenoble. If you are sporty you walk/run the way up and if you are more convenient you take the "eggs". It's an amazing view from there over Grenoble.

 Houses of "Little Italy" and the eggs leading up the Fort Bastille

• Go skiing. Grenoble is just 20 minutes away from the closest ski resort. The absolute easiest way to go skiing if you don't have a car is to buy a ticket that includes the bus ticket and ski pass with a reduced price. I found a really good website summarizing the options with all the links you will need. You can also visit skiligne directly. You purchase the ticket online, preferably in a few days in advance, Saturday's and Sunday's are popular ski days, and you print the ticket and bring it to the bus station where you pick up your ski pass before getting on the bus. Be there well in advance, sometimes there is a 30 min q to just pick up the ski pass, and you don't want to miss your bus. 

Me at Les Deux Alpes

So these where a few recommendations on how to spend a Sunday in Grenoble! If you have additional recommendations, please leave a comment for sharing! 

Enjoy!

Back to the main post about Grenoble

What to see and do in Grenoble, France

"Little Italy" in Grenoble 

Grenoble is a very diverse city in France, unlike any other city it's one of the more international cities with the universities and global companies with offices there. Each month new people visit and move to Grenoble, but surprisingly there is very hard to find information what to see and do.

View up on fort Bastille 

I have been one of those, I lived there for 6 months and had to learn the hard way. Here comes a Grenoble guide to help you out:

What to do in Grenoble on a Sunday
Best restaurants in Grenoble (link soon to be activated)
Grenoble city guide (link soon to be activated)
What to see and do outside or close to Grenoble  (link soon to be activated)

View over the river passing through Grenoble 

How to find friends in Grenoble? If you are searching for friends in Grenoble I can recommend Happy People 38 that announce their activities on Facebook or  Internations that is a global community active in many cities and countries. Click the links to reach their sites. I can highly recommend both of them!

Local food market 

If you have additional recommendations about Grenoble that you would like to share just leave a comment to this post!

Snapshot from Pont en Royance, France

Saturday

Make your favourite cup of coffee or tea, relax and feel the calm on this Saturday in late April.

This picture is taken in Pont en Royance, a small village in south of France. I walked the alleys of the village and passed this lovely old man, dressed very neatly, and he was smiling, he was relaxed.

He stood in the opening of his door, I gave him a smile back, we exchanged no words but our smiles was a silent greeting.

I continued walking and I heard voices behind me, the old man stopped 4 others, for a conversation. Obviously he knew that I, in my leather jacket and converse was not likely someone that was speaking French, so the smile was sufficient to spread his positive energy. But the group of 4 was French so he invited them for a conversation.

I don't know what he was telling them, but they stayed for a while. Often there is a charm in the unknown, what you don't understand.

Be curious, pay attanetion to the small events in life, they will become big memories for you.
I like this picture, capturing the unknown, the man nicely dressed, talking to strangers in this classic French village, this picture in France in a nutshell.

Top 3 Bonifacio Corsica

Soon 2 years have passed since I visited Bonifacio, located on the south tip of Corsica. Actually me and a friend did a long trip that summer that consisted of Sardinia- Corsica- Northern Italy - France with several stop on each location. It was an amazing trip with a lot of laughter and fun. Since summer is arriving in the Mediterranean I will share the best snapshots with you for inspiration.

Anyway, if you are visiting Corsica you need to visit Bonifacio. It's a charming small village with amazing view. Actually we came by boat from Sardinia so we could see the top of the city while arriving to harbour.

Speaking about the harbour, the private boats stopping by at this harbor are size mega-enormous. I have never ever seen such large boats ever before. This indicates that Bonifacio is a popular stop for people that want to enjoy their super-mega-large boats and spend some money on fancy dinners and drinks. However there are plenty of options for you with a normal traveling budget too, so don't worry.

Top 3 Bonifacio is:
-Go on top of the city and have a look down at the harbour and all mega-super-size boats
-While on top of Bonifacio, park you car and visit the absolutely amazing cemetery
-Have a stroll in the old village and enjoy a nice lunch or why not try some Italian ice cream

Spotting Bonifacio while arriving by boat from Sardinia

 

 

 The beautiful cemetary on top of the hill of Bonifacio

So beautiful

 

Harbour view

 

Pictures from inside the village

 

One thing about Corsica in general is that there is a complete lack of taxi cars, and if you manage to get one it will cost you quite a lot. So make sure to rent a car and discover the island your own way.

When it comes to Bonifacio there is parking in the harbour and on the top of the hill.