INTROD
	Introd is a commune half-way way up the mountains, 15 kilometres away from the city of Aosta. It is located in the lower part of the Rhêmes and Valsavarenche valleys, right at the start of the Gran Paradiso National Park. The geographical position of its main town (880 metres above sea level), which lies between the Dora rivers in the two valleys, gave rise to the place-name, Introd (derived from the French "entr eaux": between the waters). It was a feud of the Seigneurie of Châtel-Argent and belonged to the House of Bard. After 1292 Marco di Bard changed the family name to Sarriod. The castle of Introd was completed in around 1260. At the end of the last century the manor-house was damaged by a fire and was restored in 1910. Pope John Paul II is a famous guest of this commune and in 1989, 1990 and 1991 he spent his summer holidays in Les Combes. Introd is an ideal place for a quiet mountain holiday and visitors can walk or ride along its many paths. Monuments worth admiring include the castle and nearby wooden granary (an interesting example of medieval architecture). Near the castle is a splendidly harmonious building in wood and stone, known as the Ola, which was once used as a hay-loft and stable for the castle. On entering the main town, across the bridge over the Dora di Rhêmes river which was built in 1915-16, it is worth gazing down between the spectacular rock walls of an 80-metre deep ravine.