We stayed one night in Lyon on our way from Geneva to Sophie’s parents. It is a beautiful city rich with history. It has been an important city for over 2000 years. Its location at the confluence of the Rhône and Saône rivers made it a strategic trading hub and cultural center. In fact, the Romans made it one of their capital cities in the 1st Century BC.
One of the most impressive sites in Lyon for me were the Roman ruins of both an amphitheater and an odeon up on a hill above the old city. It was rare for a city to have both, reinforcing the significance of the city. The amphitheater was built in 20 BC and accommodated more than 20,000 spectators. It was primarily used for gladiator contests and similar spectacles. The scale of it was huge, and you could imagine the multiple tiers of stands giving everyone a good view like in todays sports stadiums. This one featured a retractable roof (seriously) made of canvas that could be unfurled quickly in the event of rain (by a mere 150 workers or so).
The Romans built a smaller theater called an odeon right next to the amphitheater around the end of the 1st Century AD. This space accommodated 3000 people and was more appropriate for poetry, speeches and governmental proceedings. One of its features was a mosaic floor on the stage made from marble from all around the Mediterranean, representing the reach of the Roman Empire. There were marbles from Italy, Greece, Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia arranged in beautiful patterns. It is one of the most remarkable pavements in the world.
Near the ruins was the imposing Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, perched on top of the hill overlooking the city. This was built in the late 19th century and featured beautiful artwork and decorations inside, including a crypt under the altar holding many of its relics and treasures. The views over the city from here were impressive. To reach the sites on top of the hill, Lyon’s metro system includes two funiculars that climb the steep hills. The first started operation in 1878 and the other in 1900. One car goes up at the same time as the other car goes down, taking advantage of the weight distribution.
Lyon’s old town was quaint and charming, like so many other French towns. We enjoyed the old cathedrals, winding streets and many stores and restaurants.
Lyon is known for its gastronomy and little restaurants called “Bouchons” that serve traditional local foods from the region. We ate supper at a cosy little one in the old town. For our entrées, I had onion soup and Sophie had a terrine of homemade pork pâté that was served in the large casserole it was baked in. She cut as much as she desired before they took it to another table to be shared with others. For our mains, Sophie had “quenelles,” a poached creamed fish dish. And I tried tripe for the first time. Tripe comes from the lining of the stomach, typically from cattle. I found it pretty rich and strong in taste. I was told it was an acquired taste, which I might not have acquired yet after one meal. 😉
Lyon is France’s second largest metro area after Paris. We found the city center to be charming and nicer than we expected. It was easy to get around, and we were so impressed by how accessible the historical sites were. Everything we visited was open and free – including the Roman ruins which surprised me. We were able to walk about freely and enjoy the sites even later in the evening.
The next day we continued our route towards Sophie’s parents. All of our drive from Geneva as we cut southwest across central France was mountainous and hilly. We started in the Alps, went near the Jura mountain range to Lyon, then the Massif Central, and finally the Causses du Quercy, a limestone plateau with many gorges, winding river valleys and steep bluffs. It was very pretty as the spring wildflowers were blooming and the new leaves of the trees were many shades of light green mixed with the darker green of the pines.
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