Sep 07

More Paris vs. Lyon Smackdown

Here are a few more comparisons we noted between the two cities:

Security: We encountered much fewer grifters and panhandlers in Lyon. It could be because of the lower numbers of suckers… I mean tourists. I’m sure that more must appear during big events, such as the Fête des Lumières in December and the current film festival. We felt safe walking around, even after dark.

Transit: Lyon’s trams, subways, and buses put Paris (and Seattle) to utter shame. They are clean and reasonably new. Both Paris and Lyon use the same carnet system if you don’t have a refillable card. We had an easy time negotiating the system.

Dogs: We saw fewer dogs getting walked, at least in the neighborhood of our hotel.

Cats: We only saw one loose on the streets. We saw two in carriers. Maybe the swans got the other strays.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/09/07/more-paris-vs-lyon-smackdown/

Sep 05

Let there be Lumiere

(Lumière is the French word for light.)

Yesterday’s outing included a trip to the Lumière Museum in Lyon. The Lumière family, particularly brothers Auguste and Louis, were instrumental in the early days of cinema. While Edison’s kinetoscope showed movies to individuals (similar to a peep show), les frères Lumière pioneered cameras and projection equipment so the masses could see films. They sent cinematographers around the world to film scenes of everyday life. Not only were the Lumières key to cinema, their company produced still photography supplies and cameras well into the 20th century. The factories were centered in Lyon near the family home. In addition, the brothers were issued patents for medicine-embedded bandages and the precursor to membrane hi-fi speakers.

Every year the Lumière Institute holds a festival and awards one artist for lifetime achievement in film. Last year’s awardee was Martin Scorcese; this year’s is Catherine Deneuve. Alas, the festival starts on Wednesday, the day after we leave Lyon.  We highly recommend visiting the museum. It’s away from downtown, but worth the subway ride.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/09/05/let-there-be-lumiere/

Sep 05

Foodie Day in Lyon

Since most of the museums were closed today, this was our day to do foodie stuff. The first stop was the Galeries Lafayette at the Part Dieu shopping center. Unfortunately, the Galeries Lafayette here does not have the killer food hall that the one in Paris has. We found another store called the Cook Me Shop that had a variety of herbs, spices, and teas. I bought a couple of selections that I hope make it through Customs. We also found an electronics store called Danty that had a wide selection of kitchen appliances and gadgets. Julian said, “I think we found the French equivalent of Fry’s.” My response:”No, I can hear myself.”

All the spices you can eat at the Cook Me Shop in Lyon.

All the spices you can eat at the Cook Me Shop in Lyon.

We timed our visit to Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse to be around lunchtime. This building is supposed to be foodie paradise. Alas, the vast majority of the stores and restaurants in it were closed. What was open was outrageously expensive. I wonder if the high vacancy rate is due to the European economy and the fact that this building is off the tourist beaten path.

As we were walking out of Les Halles, I noticed a pho restaurant across the street. The price was right: Lunch for 10 € or less. So I got my fish sauce fix, even if I had to go to the other end of town for it.

 

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/09/05/foodie-day-in-lyon/

Sep 04

The Local Soundtrack

I’ve noticed some very unusual music choices in restaurants and in our hotel dining room. It must be a local radio station that plays predominantly American popular music. We’ve heard everything from disco to Cab Calloway. In one restaurant we heard Louis Armstrong’s version of La Vie en Rose. Quelle sacrilège! No Edith Piaf? No Johnny Halliday? The Chinese restaurant we ate at tonight was playing The Eagles’ Greatest Hits album. I was surprised not to hear any British music (i.e., Beatles or Rolling Stones). Maybe this is their way of protesting the Brexit vote.

Yesterday as we were wandering around Vieux Lyon, I heard a brass band playing Jungle Boogie. We investigated further and found this motley crew playing in a park near the Cathedral of St. Jean.

From disco to klezmer, this band was hot.

From disco to klezmer, this band was hot.

After Jungle Boogie, they broke into a long klezmer tune staged as a gang rumble. The trombonist on the far right “killed” the clarinetist lying on the ground. (She lived to play another day.) This was by far the most fun street music I’d seen in quite a while. They earned our contribution to their open chest.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/09/04/the-local-soundtrack/

Sep 04

Peking Duck in Lyon

La Cuisine Lyonnaise is pretty heavy on the cream and pork fat. After several days we were in need of a soy sauce fix. We found a Chinese restaurant on the east side of the Rhône called Engimono. It’s a small place with more tables on the outside than inside. We ordered the menu for two.

The menu started off with the house cocktail, plum wine with a lychee on the bottom. The first course was a spinach and cellophane noodle salad with a sesame dressing. Then came two types of steamed dumplings. The main courses were a steamed bass with lots of ginger and Peking duck. The duck arrived sliced and deboned, with the pancakes, hoisin sauce, and shredded leeks and cucumber. Everything was well prepared, and came out at the appropriate temperatures. The buns were right off the boiling water in their bamboo steamers.

The restaurant was quite busy, as most establishments close on Sundays. Perhaps later this week we’ll satisfy my fish sauce fix. It’s hard on the waistline (and liver) to eat Lyonnaise food alone. This week we head into Provence, where I hope to eat lots of veggies and fruit as an antidote of sorts to our conspicuous overconsumption.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/09/04/peking-duck-in-lyon/

Sep 04

Swan One, Dog Zero

Swans are known to be quite territorial. My pre-grad school boss used to be terrorized by the swans on the lake abutting his property while he was mowing the lawn. Last night as we were walking on the quay back from dinner, we saw a Jack Russell Terrier (resembling the late Uggy of The Artist) attempting to go after a swan. Said bird, which was about twice the size of the pup, was having no part of this insolence. Finally the dog’s owner had to intervene before violence ensued.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/09/04/swan-one-dog-zero/

Sep 04

Equal Time

Cute shoes for men. Don't ask how much they cost.

Cute shoes for men. Don’t ask how much they cost. 

It occurred to me that there may be male readers of this blog who count themselves in the Cult of Cute Shoes. Granted, none of you has fessed up, but I’m posting this just for you. This is the display of a shoe store around the corner from our hotel in Lyon.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/09/04/equal-time/

Sep 04

More for my Cronies in the Cult of Cute Shoes

Don’t drool over these too much, ladies. These are 1/3 to 1/2 scale models that reside in a museum of miniatures and film.

Miniature shoes.

Miniature shoes.

On our way back to the hotel last night we passed a store with these boots for sale:

These boots are made for...damned if I know.

These boots are made for…damned if I know.

Note the relatively diminutive heel on the furry ones. You can tell this shop is in Lyon.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/09/04/more-for-my-cronies-in-the-cult-of-cute-shoes/

Sep 03

Paris vs. Lyon Smackdown!

Our previous two visits to Lyon were only two days each. Now that we’re in the midst of spending five days here, we can start to compare and contrast Lyon with Paris. Here we go:

Rivers. Paris has one, the Seine. Lyon has two, the Rhône and the Saône, which meet at the southern end of town.

Traffic: No contest. You’re much less likely to wind up as a hood ornament in Lyon than in Paris.

Dress: Parisians dress up to get the mail. Les Lyonnais are a more casual lot.

Footwear of choice (for my friends in the Cult of Cute Shoes): Parisian women wear heels to walk the dog. Women in Lyon wear sensible shoes; flats, sneakers, flip flops. You will occasionally see a woman wearing platforms, but rarely will you see someone in spike heels. Let’s face it: Who wants to risk their ankles and Christian Loubouttin pumps on the cobblestones in Vieux Lyon?

Cuisine: Paris is all about très haute cuisine. Lyon, even though Paul Bocuse is a major presence here, is a bit more working class. The keepers of the flame for cuisine Lyonnaise are the bouchons. These restaurants are known for snout to tail cuisine, particularly of pork. You’ll get Salade Lyonnaise with bacon, lentils with sausages, and assorted offal (liver, kidney, chitterlings, tripe).

Tourists: Sometimes you’ll meet more tourists than natives in Paris. Lyon has much fewer tourists, and many of them are French.

Now lest you think Lyon has it won over Paris, there are a few drawbacks. Paris has only one ugly skyscraper, the Montparnasse Tower. Locals say it’s the box the Eiffel Tower came in. Lyon has several ugly skyscrapers in the city. One is a Radisson Hotel that is known as “le crayon” (the pencil) for its shape. I’ve also noticed some modern buildings that don’t integrate well with their older neighbors, especially up on Croix Rousse. Just goes to prove that no place is perfect.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/09/03/paris-vs-lyon-smackdown/

Sep 02

Lollygagging around Lyon

We landed in Lyon mid-day on Thursday and successfully negotiated the trains from the airport to the rental flat. Once we dropped off our luggage, it was time to explore.

The city is very walkable, in some ways even more so than Paris. On the Presqu’Ile (the peninsula between the Rhône and Saône Rivers where we’re staying) and in Vieux Lyon, there are very few two-way or three-lane streets. Several streets have been converted into pedestrian and bicycle boulevards, such as the Rue de la République.

Rue de la République.

Rue de la République.

Other streets are barely big enough for a Fiat to pass through.

Yesterday’s travels were concentrated around the apartment. We located the local Monoprix (supermarket) and found assorted cafés and shops. We got dinner at a traiteur (takeout deli) of duck à l’orange terrine and green beans. Today we took the Metro up to the Croix-Rousse neighborhood and walked downhill. The way down from Croix-Rousse is where we saw the Star-Wars-related plaque. We had lunch at a nice little North African restaurant. Julian had the grilled sardine special, while I had the mechouia salad. We were both happy with our choices.

On our way over to Vieux-Lyon, we saw a fresco on a building that depicted luminaries of Lyon history. Chef Paul Bocuse was represented, along with the Lumière brothers, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, and the Little Prince. If Julian’s photo comes out, I’ll post it; in the meantime, you can go to the above link.

Walking can build up an appetite. We stopped at a gelato stand in Vieux Lyon to have some sorbet. Both of us had a scoop of pink grapefruit sorbet; Julian had a second scoop of mango, while I had a second scoop of white peach. As it happened, the outdoor eating area of this gelato stand was the exact spot where the below photo was taken last year:

Julian, hard at work in Lyon,

Julian, hard at work in Lyon,

On our previous trips, we went to the Basilica of Notre Dame de Fourvière. It’s a relatively modern church that got built with contributions from local silk industry barons. The Cathedral of Saint John (St. Jean) is much older, but has more historical significance.

The Cathedral of St. Jean in Lyon.

The Cathedral of St. Jean in Lyon.

Two historic church schisms were reconciled in this church. In addition, the cathedral holds the heart of St. Vincent de Paul. As with the church of Saint Gervais in Paris, St. Jean got damaged by war; in this case, World War II. This is a panel of stained glass that replaced the earlier window damaged in the war.

Modern stained glass, Cathedral of St. Jean.

Modern stained glass, Cathedral of St. Jean.

In a side space of the church, there’s a mini-museum of tapestries, chalices, censers, and vestments from church history. Here’s a sample of the clerical apparel:

From the collection of the Cathedral of St. Jean.

From the collection of the Cathedral of St. Jean.

Tomorrow we start museum-hopping.

Permanent link to this article: http://ediblethoughts.com/2016/09/02/lollygagging-around-lyon/

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