Fodor's Expert Review Isérables

High up in the bluffs and valleys to the south of Sion are scores of isolated eagle's-nest towns, including Isérables. Set on a precarious slope that drops 3,280 feet into the lowlands, the town has narrow streets that weave between crooked old stone-shingle mazots. Since the arrival of the cable car, Isérables has prospered and modernized itself. Yet the inhabitants of this village still carry the curious nickname Bedjuis. Some say it's derived from "Bedouins" and that the people are descended from the Saracen hordes who, after the battle of Poitiers in 732 AD, overran some of the high Alpine valleys. Excursions to the sights and villages of this haute vallée (high valley) can be accomplished in a day, with a little time to hike and explore before returning to Sion.