Yvoire, Lake Geneva (Léman)

The first photograph is obviously not Yvoire, but the view of la Dent d'Oche gives an idea of the kind of scenery to expect around Lake Geneva, or Lac Léman. La Dent d'Oche is the highest peak in this picture, peeping through the cloud, inviting you to explore the alpages and the delightful Savoyard villages on the other side of the mountain. Our lakeside journey, however, takes us westwards towards Geneva.

The French town of Evian les Bains on the south shore of the lake is directly opposite Lausanne in Switzerland, and there are regular ferries between these two popular centres. The crossing takes about half and hour; watching the ferry making its way across the lake, diminishing or increasing in size depending on the direction, is one of the delights of taking meals on the terrace of le Centre International (Ethic Étapes).

East from here brings you quickly into Switzerland, and Italy can be also be reached quite easily either through the St Bernard tunnel, or over the pass of the same name. The three towns, Chamonix (F), Martigny (S) and Aoste (I) make up le Triangle de l'Amitié (the Triangle of Friendship), originally created to put an end to the "War of the Tunnels."

Over the Rhône, against a backdrop of snow-capped mountains, is the justly famous lakeside Château de Chillon, but this will have to wait for another time, as we are going in the opposite direction.

From Evian head for Thonon on the D1005, drive through the town, then take the D25, signposted Excenevex and Yvoire. The journey time should be between 30 and 45 minutes.

You can't help being intrigued by the unexpected shape and colour of the spire. The church of St Pancras probably dates from 11th century, but the steeple is dated 1894; the onion shape is characteristic of late 19th century Savoyard church architecture. The original tin plate covering was replaced by stainless steel and gold leaf as recently 1989. Whatever you think of the design, it certainly adds something to the atmosphere of the place.

The next few photographs were taken one misty May evening when most of the tourists had gone. This had the advantage of not having to wait too long for clear shots of the streets, but it meant that some of the attractions were closed, including the Garden of the Five Senses, for which see the tourist office website.