France Day 5 - Lyon

Saturday

Breakfast was from 7 to 8:30 am. It's the only "rolling" meal. To the other meals you are supposed to be punktual when they start. All meals are very nice. We had a bit of a late start and when we were back at the room we heard the alarm we had forgotten about. We had been told that there would be the mandatory safety drill this morning. We had our lifevest on in no time and were soon on deck. The whole thing didn't take long.

And then our two groups were assembling outside the ship for our tours.

Assembly is always at the "Flower Tree" statue.

There are one trip metro tickets (which one can buy in bundels of 10) or all day tickets. Sophie gives us what we need.

It is busy in front of the Lyon Cathedral. There was some kind of an artist's market. All the stands had handmade ceramics. At least one we past was from Spain.

The Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Lyon is impressive. There is plenty of info in the link about this building which was finished in 1476. 

Unfortunately the light was such that the photos do not show the beautiful colors of the windows.

The above link has info about the two organs ...

... and the astronomical clock.

Outside we couldn't miss seeing the Camino trail sign. 

A major highlight of this walking tour were the secret passages in Lyon. These labyrinths of the silk workers are called "traboules" and they were very fascinating. 

We went through 2 traboules but you can find a lot more information on the internet.

This is a mechanical clock with the puppet figure Guignol moving but we were not at the right time. 

What about this photo? Do do see the red dot in one of the upper windows? That is so the fire brigate knows in case of a fire which window to brake first.

And what is this contraption? Sophia explained that this hopes to prevent man from peeing in the corner. It seems to be a problem in France. This would make their feet wet.

At this "boulangerie" (bakery)  Sophie bought something very special for us to try: Brioche aux pralines rouges. It is quite sweet and nice. After we ate she told us that the pink coloring is the natural dye of cochineal (bugs). 

The heart of Lyon is on a peninsula between the Rhone and the Soane rivers. We walked over one of the bridges...

... and there was a Saturday market going on. Sophie challenged us to buy something we didn't know. We went with another couple to find something.

We ended up getting 5 Euros worth of these "cheese buttons"(bouton de culotte ?) - Sophie said: good choice.

And for 1.50 Euro we bought "herbe à chat" for her cat (catnip). 

After dinner we enjoyed a recital by local piano artist Cynthia Caubisens.

And then it was time to go night, night. It was already rather late. But what a great day it has been.      Thank the Lord!

France Day 4 - bye Paris

Friday the 13th - we have to be careful that nothing goes wrong  (would one say if one would be superstitious). No, we just need to set the alarm clock. Suitcases have to be outside the room no later than 7 am. 

The first photo is from last night of course. A fellow traveler had taken it and shared it with me this morning. 

Yes, suitcases were out at 7 am and we made it to breakfast in time. We were supposed to be in the lobby ready to leave at 8:50 am. 

Our luggage was all taken care off. And we left the hotel in a bus. The traffic was heavy and Sophie explained different things we were passing. I can't remember the name of this building but obviously it is very different and unique.

And so was this one with the mosaic at the very top.

It took about 40 minutes until we were at the river Seine. 

We were having a Seine River Cruise this morning.

I don't know whether it was because it seemed to be the first cruise of the day or what but the boat was quite full. Also, the seats/benches on the top deck was all still wet from the previous rain.  After deciding on one bench and trying to get the most wet off we settled and watched what was floating by.

Needless to say I took a lot of photos. Some turned out to look nice, some not so much. All goes so fast. Sometimes you miss the best moment. 

There are so many great and famous buildings in Paris. We really enjoyed this all.

Of course my iphone would identify the names of the buildings but it is really not that important.

Notre Dame of course was not a happy sight to see. The first photo does not project too much damage though.

This police boat at the bottom of the steps makes you wonder what the divers were looking for. One of our fellow travelers told me later that he called out to them asking what they were doing. Supposedly they answered that they were looking for a body.     ???

When we were floating closer along side Notre Dame we could see though that there was still a lot of damage to see. So sad.

Just for fun I had to look were exactly we were on the map (the blue dot with the white circle around). I find it interesting because I love maps.

There were also some joggers (police?) alongside the river...

... and a lonely person with a dog.

We floated a little past the Eifel Tower and then turned around.

That was really fun.

It was a bit after 12 when we were back at the bus and the bus snaked along towards Gare de Lyon where we were half an hour later. We didn't have to wait long and could enter as a group onto the platform were our high speed train was already standing to be boarded.

We all knew our seat numbers and were looking for them. Somehow they were not in order like you would expect in running order and it was almost fun finding them.

We all had a picnic lunch and since it was 1 pm by now we all enjoyed it as soon as the train left the station.

Watching the countryside go by was fun. 

Short after 3 pm we riched our destination. First glimpse of the Rhone river.

A bus brought us all to the river where the ship was tied up.

We were welcomed, shown to our cabins by our steward and tried to settle a bit. A cabin is very small a bit but we found solutions where to leave our stuff. 

At 6 pm we were supposed to be in the bar area and the captain gave his welcome speech. The staff were all introduced etc etc. The typical introductions.

Something about safety of course and the mandatory talk about safety. The drill will be tomorrow morning since the ship is not leaving yet.

Promptly at 7 pm was dinner time. OMG, the food was really lovely. As cold appetizer I selected the "Salade de Caneton Rōti, Mangue et Vinaigrette de Framboises" (Roasted Duck Salad with mango and raspberry vinaigrette served with home made brioche). I would have been happy if that hat been my whole meal.

Next came a hot appetizer "Crevettwes Sautée et croustillant de Pommes Mousseline" (Sauteed prawns with mashed and crispy potatoes served on leek julienne and lobster sauce). The lobster sauce was really special.

After that I really got to busy being social and enjoying my food and wine. It all was really fancy ending with Crème Brûlée.

I must say that the crew and the servers are very friendly and helpful. Somehow they give you the feeling that they are happy to spoil you. 

It was an interesting day, even if it was a bit on the cold side. But we will be going south. Lets hope that it will get warmer again.

And lets hope for a good nights sleep. Night, night.