PARIS
MODANE 378 98 [VOIRON], 939 ft., pop. 12,000. Hotels: Louvre; Cours; Poste. Coaches and gigs await passengers for the [Grande Chartreuse], 15 m. distant by the village of St. Laurent-du-Pont, which is 9 m. from Voiron and 6 from the Grande Chartreuse. Fare, 5 frs. Voiron is a busy town on the river Morge, with important silk, linen, and cloth manufactories. Here the monks of the Grande Chartreuse have large premises for the sale of their famous cordials, which they distil, not in the monastery itself, but in a large building a little beyond St. Laurent. The road from Voiron to the Grande Chartreuse joins the road from Voreppe just before reaching the village of St. Laurent-du-Pont, distant from both stations 9 m., 1344 ft., pop. 2000. Inns: Princes; Nord. After leaving St. Laurent we pass on our right the distillery of the monks, and then ascend by a narrow gorge, among fine woods and perpendicular cliffs, to the convent, consisting of an immense square building, garnished with pavilions, situated on a narrow plateau 3200 ft. above the sea-level, at the base of the Grand Som, which towers 3460 ft. higher, easily ascended from this place in about 3 hrs. This monastery, the head establishment of the Carthusian friars, was founded by St. Bruno, the originator of the order, in 1084. At first it consisted only of a small chapel, with six poor cells, the habitations of St. Bruno and his followers, built in what was then an almost inaccessible spot among rocks and forests.
The Grande Chartreuse now contains from 70 to 75 monks, each provided with a suite of three small upper and two lower chambers, and a small garden. They pray 3 hrs. every day, the rest of their time being occupied in cultivating their gardens and working at any of the handicrafts they understand, and in the preparation of their simple vegetable fare. On Thursdays they take together a 3 hrs.
walk in the surrounding woods, during which time they may converse; and on feast-days they all dine together, when also they may converse. Animal food and linen clothing are prohibited. At 7 A.M. they attend mass, excepting on Sundays, when the hour is 8 A.M. Vespers are said at 4 P.M., and matins at a quarter to 12 midnight. Visitors who wish to see the monks should endeavour to be at the chapel-door at any of these hours. For gentlemen guests there is ample accommodation in the convent, clean beds, three large dining-rooms, good wholesome food and excellent water. The men-servants, of whom there are 59, inhabit the top story; the wives, however, of these servants, not being allowed to enter the convent, dwell in a house a few yards distant kept by nuns. It is in this house also that ladies who accompany gentlemen must lodge, as no female is allowed to enter the monastery.
Their principal revenue is derived from the sale of the liqueurs they distil at St. Laurent, and which are sold both wholesale and retail at Voiron, at the following prices:—Liqueur verte, 8 frs. the litre bottle; liqueur jaune, 6 frs.; liqueur blanche, 4 frs.
From the monastery the ascent is made of the Grand Som, 6660 ft., in about 3 hrs. It is necessary to make a considerable detour before commencing the ascent. The first point reached is the Chapelle St. Bruno, erected on the supposed site of the Hermitage. The view from the top, though limited, is very beautiful. Coach to Grenoble, 17½ m. S., 5 frs. Guests in the monastery should pay 6 to 7 frs. per day.
Moirans. Voreppe. Grenoble.
PARIS
MODANE 381½ 94½ [MOIRANS], pop. 1000. Inn: H. de Paris. Junction with branch line to Valence, 50 m. S.W., passing, at about half-way, [St. Marcellin], pop. 4000. Inns: Poste; Courriers. From St. Marcellin a coach runs daily to the picturesque village of Pont-en-Royan, on the Saône, 11 m. S., whence another coach runs to Die by the Grands Goulets and Chapelle. (For [Die], see p. 47.)
385 91 [VOREPPE], pop. 3000. Inn: Paris. Passengers for the Grande Chartreuse may alight here also, from which it is 15 m. distant.
PARIS
MODANE 394 82 [GRENOBLE], pop. 46,000, and 702 ft. above the sea, beautifully situated on the Isère, by far the greater part being on the left bank, while on the other there is a mere strip hemmed in between the river and the steep declivities of the Bastile. Hotels: in the Place Grenette, the *Monnet; Europe; the two principal hotels. Fronting the promenade, in the Rue Montorge, is the Trois Dauphins, frequented by commercial travellers. Napoleon I. on his way from Elba lodged in this house from the 7th to the 9th March 1815. He slept in room
No. 9. Among the cheaper second-class houses are the H. des Alpes; Marseille; *Bayard; all near each other and to the Place Grenette. Of the small houses at the station, the best is the H. Savoie. Temple Protestant at the W. end of the Rue Lesdiguières. Pleasant excursions for a very small sum may be taken to all the important places in the neighbourhood by means of the rail and the diligences and omnibuses which start from the Place Grenette. On the road to the railway station is a large and handsome hospital, founded in the 11th cent, by St. Hugues. A little way down, on the other side of the river, is the Esplanade, a very large oblong square, 430 yards by 120, surrounded by trees, much frequented on feast-days. The band plays in the Jardin de Ville, off the Place Grenette.