In the village, the peaceful village
The lion sleeps tonight
In the village, the quiet village
The lion sleeps tonight
- Solomon Linda, The Lion Sleeps Tonight
Saone River, Lyon. Photo RGH
We made it to France! This is a symbolic waypoint. It means that we have finished our swing through Eastern Europe and have turned to the West. It also marks the half-way point in our extended holiday. From here on out, we have fewer days ahead of us than we have behind us.
So far in our travels, we have had a very smooth ride and few difficulties. As we headed west and made for Lyon, we encountered our first hiccup. Prior to embarking on this part of the trip, our biggest concern was a tight train connection in Stuttgart ... 9 minutes to disembark from one train, change platforms, and board another. We had talked about being ready to step off as soon as the train stopped. That meant being packed up and standing at the doors as it pulled into the station. We looked online so we would know which track we were pulling into, and which track we needed to get to. One thing we generally do not do well is speed, but in this instance we were on the ground and moving right away.
We were at our connecting train with several minutes to spare. Our ticket said Strasbourg, but the list of stops for our train did not include Strasbourg. The train number was correct, and the other stops were correct, but no Strasbourg. We noticed this discrepancy early on our train from Munich to Stuttgart. When we asked the attendant on that train, he checked but said that he didn't think our train would be stopping as scheduled. "Usually, it does" he told us. Unfortunately, we were to discover that our suspicions were correct. Due to track maintenance/construction, our train would not be stopping in Strasbourg as scheduled. Our choices for making connections to Lyon were Mannheim or Paris. The former offered a more direct route to Lyon, but would involve multiple train transfers, while the latter was a little more out of the way, but would involve a taxi or subway ride to change train stations before a straight shot to Lyon. At first, we decided to disembark in Mannheim, but we got cold feet ... if we missed a single connection, we were screwed. In the end, we went to Paris, hopped a Metro train from Gare de l'Est to Gare de Lyon and took the TGV to Lyon.
Roman amphitheater, Lyon. Photos RGH
Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourviere, Lyon. Photos RGH
Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Lyon. Photos RGH
Lyon is another city that surprised us. It is old Europe ... in fact, it is ancient Europe. Founded in 43 BCE by the Roman Empire, it was originally known as Lugdunum and was a major cultural and economic centre. There are Roman ruins dotted throughout the city, and one of the original Roman amphitheaters is still in use for live plays to this day. As Rome turned to Christianity, so too did Lugdunum. The Lyon of today is another city of churches. Lyon is also a city divided. On the east side of the Saone, it is massive and sprawling, much bigger than we expected. And on the west side, it is the old city. Cobblestone streets, ancient walls and ruins, steep hills, and narrow alleyways. Kari's observation was that it looks like a movie set.
The streets of old Lyon. Photos KAH/RGH
The transition from Eastern Europe to the West was initially planned as gap days. We intended to go to the south of France and spend a couple of days laying on the beach. Because of Munich, that plan was scrapped (Link: Heroes and Ein Prosit). My mother decided to join us for Paris and London, and meeting us in Lyon was convenient for all of us. She got there before we did and had welcome bottle(s) of wine waiting for us. We skipped the walking tour and explored the city on our own.
Fun with Grand-mere/Gruyere/Grey Hair. Photos RGH
We have been pretty lucky with the weather so far. Days have been mostly overcast and grey. On the plus side, the cool temperatures make it ideal for walking. When the sun is out, dining al fresco has been the order of the day. We have had a little bit of rain, but that has just been an excuse to linger over coffee. We are adding another person to our travelling troup for the next few days; it is sure to change the dynamic somewhat. It has also forced me to slow down a little. That's not a bad thing.
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