Thanks to the Italian influences and the city’s ties to Italy with its Rennaissance-era silk trade, Lyon’s architecture represents an interesting blend between French and Italian influences, which is still pretty evident in their buildings today. Here’s a map of the historically-relevant locations of the city:
Located across the Saône (east) from the Place is the town’s historical district, Vieux Lyon. Walking the streets certainly makes it feel like the oldest part of town, as the alleyways are narrow and the streets cobblestone. Old restaurants and shops line the streets and and it’s pretty easy to get lost in the maze of old buildings.
Wandering the streets of Vieux Lyon is something that you can do for days. There are hundreds of little passageways that appeal to your inner-child (you know, the one who always swore up and down that you’d have a hidden passageway behind a bookcase when you grew up). Exploring the old part of Lyon really gives you a feel for the culture of the city, too. Restuarants line the street and smells waft out from the open doors. On my first day in the city, Natalie and I stopped at a small street cafe. Inside, a man was playing the accordion, which drifted out into the avenue and filled it with lovely music. Sipping my cafe creme out on the street and hearing the music, I couldn’t help but think to myself, “This is what Europe feels like.”
the food
France is typically regarded as the gastronomical capital of the world and Lyon is often called the gastronical capital of France. Needless to say, the food was absolutely amazing. Whether you go out to a small cafe or bakery (one can be found on practically every block of the city) or a ritzy, upscale restuarant, the food is excellent. It’s incredibly flavorful and, in spite of its fattening nature, doesn’t really make you feel fat (although it certainly will make you that way if you’re not careful).
The portions are comparable to what you’d find in most nice restuarants in any American city–they’re not gigantic, but they’re more than enough to fill you. The menus, however, are unlike most in America. On nights when you go out, you’ll order an entire meal for a flat price, which is composed of an entree, a “plat”, and a dessert. The most difficult part of ordering is choosing something–even for someone competent in French, discerning the exact way a dish is prepared can be challenging. The culinary vernacular in Lyon is extensive. Regardless of what you end up with, though, it’s always quite good. I was satisfied with every meal I ate.
On weekends there is a market along the Saône, where merchants will line up for about two city blocks and sell every food imaginable–breads, cheeses, fresh vegetables, meats–along with flowers and potted plants. The food itself is incredibly cheap: 6 avocados for 2 euro (approximately $2.50), a freshly-baked baguette for 80 centime (approximately $1.00), etc. Natalie and I went to the market on the second weekend I was there, spent 10 euro, and came out of it with enough food to feed several people. Then we cooked it:
Even in supermarkets and corner stores (like the small quickie-marts you find in the US attached to gas stations) the bread is fresh and tasty. Baguettes approach the status of a national symbol and you find people roaming the streets munching on one everywhere you turn. The cheese sold in markets is also incredible and the selection of goat cheese puts to shame anything I’ve ever seen in the US. Chocolate–even Snickers bars–taste like the expensive chocolate you find in stores.
getting around and the murals
Lyon also has countless murals that are painted across the sides of buildings. Some of them are small, others take up the entire side of buildings, but all of them are incredibly intricate and detailed.
Certain things stuck out while I was visiting Lyon. I couldn’t help but wonder if they spoke to some deeper cultural differences between France and my own native country.
The most prominent difference is the focus on public works and beautification. Lyon has a huge park, easily accessible via the metro and within walking distance of most of the city. Murals and other public art projects are around every corner. And there’s a certain approach that permeates the entire city, where function co-exists and does not trump aesthetics. I couldn’t help but wonder if the apparent lack of beauty in most US cities is somehow correlated with our depression rates, which are significantly higher than France’s.
Along similar lines, graffiti is everywhere. Public dollars really aren’t spent on covering up the graffiti and, by and large, the taggers are respectful or private property and other public works (you won’t see graffiti on public statues, for example, or on a wall surrounding someone’s house). For the most part, graffiti is only found on “blank” public areas, like rail depots. Perhaps it’s a byproduct of this non-combative attitude towards graffiti that has allowed it to develop as an art. Nearly everywhere that there is graffiti, you’ll see amazing work that could easily qualify as “art”. It’s beautiful–perhaps the artists are more willing to make it that way when they know it won’t be painted over in a week.
Also worth mentioning are the verified stereotypes: French people do, in fact, stink–actually, very few of them actually stink. But I don’t think a lot of them wear deodorant (Natalie has been less-than-impressed by the selection of anti-perspirants in France). It’s noticeable, but not really bad, either. French service, however, is terrible. This may be due in part to the fact that tipping is virtually unheard of in the country. In addition, there’s an implicit expectation that when you sit down to have a meal in a restuarant, you want to actually spend some time there. It’s still culturally aggravating to have to wait for your bill 20 minutes after you’ve finished your food, but you just end up visiting more with your companions, so nothing is really lost. Leisure culture at its best.
And yes, practically everyone smokes.
Finally, a word on fashion: the French are reputed to be some of the most fashion-savvy people on the planet. And walking the streets verifies this–most people looked incredibly well-dressed. At the same time, you see a number of what we would call fashion faux pas: brown belts and black shoes, mismatched tops and bottoms, poorly fitted pants, etc. In spite of this, the people still manage to look fabulous. I think this has more to do with their attitude than anything. I noticed when shopping with Natalie that the stores don’t advertise the “hottest fall fashions!” and none of there weren’t a whole lot of fashion magazines on the stands in the grocery stores. It’s not necessarily apathy, but a general inattention to trends and what’s popular. You wear what you like and think looks good and, thusly, you are stylish. This is something that I wish America could pick up on.
do it
This was my first experience in Europe. I hadn’t travelled abroad before, excluding a road trip through Canada when I was young and various minor crossings into Mexico. I don’t regret doing it for a minute, in spite of the fact that I’m in school right now and had to put a lot of effort out to make up work. I’m also in a state of quasi-unemployment and financially unstable. Still, it’s well worth it. Every moment of it. It is amazing and enriching and insightful. If you haven’t done something like this and are at all tempted to, do it. Do it now. Who knows when you’ll die or your relatives will become sick or you’ll have a kid on the way? Go do it. There’s no better time than now.
More photos of Lyon, as well as higher-res versions of the ones shown above, can be found here. In addition, I’ve also uploaded photos of our trip to Geneva.
One Comment
i just skimmed this and it made me miss christmas with you two. a lot.
remember the night you got in, when we all went out for pizza (mmm, salmon and creme fraiche), and that enormous candle fell on my head? hah.
i wish it hadn’t been so cold. i think it kept us from exploring a bit more.
Post a Comment