Day 3 of France and Spain by Train

We woke quite early and rushed to pack our bags before making the short walk to Gare de Lyon station. We headed for Hall 1, where our train was due to depart from. Dad grabbed some breakfast from a stall – I had a few pain au chocolat we had bought the previous day. Before we knew if our platform had been announced – Platform A. We were greeted with a bright red bullet nosed train. Did you know that bullet nosed trains were actually inspired by the kingfisher bird? Japanese engineers were amazed how kingfishers could dive into the water without making a splash and this inspired the bullet nose on most modern trains. Before we knew it we were watching the suburbs of Paris rush past. For the first hour of the journey, we passed a myriad of agricultural land, before the landscape evolved into acres of forest. Going at speeds of up to 290km/h the tilt of the train as it ran through valleys was quite spectacular. We passed through several small villages with similar distinct churches. As we pulled closer to Lyon the scene became hillier with vineyards dotted all around. The hills became more frequent and loomed over the train going through the valley below.

We arrived at Lyon Part-Dieu and made the 30-minute walk to our hotel. From first impressions Lyon seemed a lot more relaxed than Paris, people gently milling around compared to the rushing that dominated Paris. Lyon is the 3^rd largest city in France, the city sits where the rivers Rhône and Saône meet, and is a World Heritage site. After checking in to our hotel we had a little rest before eagerly heading out in search of a ceramics exhibition we had heard was on. Les Tupiniers du Vieux Lyon is a ceramics exhibition that has run every September since 1986, gathering the 120 best ceramists in the Place Saint-Jean. There were many stalls to explore and admire, I was particularly enamoured by a lovely stoneware yellow and green cup. After visiting all of the stalls we went to the nearby metro station that had a funicular up the hill to the Basilica Notre Dame Fourvière which was as grand as its name, with lovely paintings on the ceiling adorned with gold. Stopping to look at the view over the city, and a quick visit to the gift shop we were soon back of the funicular in search of Vieux Lyon – the renaissance quarter of Lyon. During the renaissance era Vieux Lyon was an area of great political and religious power. Walking through the area was full of hustle and bustle with cafes spilling out onto the street and several crepe stalls which I treated myself to as a late lunch. There was a large variety of shops, from stores selling honeys to truffle and olive oils. We roamed the streets searching for a quiet place to stop and have a drink. We found one and soaked up the atmosphere before heading back to our hotel for a rest.

A few hours later we emerged ready to experience Lyon by night. We found the old town vibrant, bursting with life and with people coming and going from all directions. Lyon is famed for its gastronomy with food critic Curnonsky branding Lyon the “gastronomic capital of the world”. It was certainly true that we were spoiled for choice with traditional French restaurants also known as “bouchons”.  We decided to eat a bouchon called Fiston. I had bone marrow and garlic toasts, calf’s head and mash and a chocolate souffle to finish. I highly recommend Fiston as an authentic Lyon eatery. Walking back to the hotel across the river we saw Lyon in all its glory with all the main monuments aglow against the velvety blue darkness. Back to the hotel for some rest ahead of a busy day tomorrow.