Une introduction à Lyon

Bonjour à toutes et à tous ! Je m’appelle Emma et je suis étudiante en francais et en espagnol à l’Université de Strathclyde à Glasgow. I’ll be using this blog to keep you guys au courant with my adventures on mon année à l’étranger en France. This academic year, au lieu d’étudier, I am working as an English Language Assistant in un lycée professionnel* in a town 40km from Lyon called Rive-de-Gier. The days I work at school, I take le train but there are many other modes of transport available to me to explore Lyon, for example: le bus, le métro, le tram, le vélo, la trottinette et bien sûr la marche !

However, you guys can enjoy Lyon from the comfort of your classroom as I’m going to give you a quick virtual tour.

Tout d’abord, je voudrais dire que j’adore vivre à Lyon parce qu’il y a tellement de choses à voir et à faire ! Lyon is the 3^rd most populated city in France and is the gastronomical capital of the country. You will find lots of restaurants called « bouchons ». They serve traditional lyonnaise cuisine such as « Salade Lyonnaise » for a starter, « Quenelles de brochet » et « Andouillette » for main et « La tarte praline lyonnaise » for dessert.

Don’t worry if traditional, hearty Lyonnaise food isn’t your thing though as there are so many other great restaurants in Lyon offering a wide variety of cuisines, it would take a lifetime to try them all. You will also find daily markets on the streets of Lyon selling fresh produce at reasonable prices and there is also une boulangerie on practically every street – c’est vraiment le paradis des gourmands.

Another thing which can be found on streets across the city is les fresques en trompe-l’œil, elles sont vraiment cool !  Voici deux de mes fresques préférées :

La fresque des Lyonnais représente 30 personnalités lyonnaises tells que Paul Bocuse, Le Petit Prince and Antoine de St-Exupéry.

Le Mur des Canuts – C’est la plus grande fresque d’Europe !

Vieux Lyon

Vieux Lyon has got to be one of my favourite parts of the city, il est pittoresque, charmant et plein de mystère.

This part of the city is riddled with a unique system of hidden passageways, known as « traboules » , which link buildings together. Lyon was once l’épicentre du commerce de la soie en Europe and the traboules were built to protect the silk when being transported. They were later used during WWII to hide and escape from the Gestapo. Nowadays, they are a part of people’s flats, hidden behind closed doors, but you can visit and admire them freely. 

Located on the la colline above the streets of Vieux Lyon you can discover arguably le monument le plus emblématique de Lyon, La Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière.

L’intérieur de la basilique est tout aussi extraordinaire, sinon plus, que l’architecture de l’extérieur, as it is richly decorated with mosaics, stained-glass windows and marble.

Beside the Basilica, you can find Lyon’s own mini Eiffel Tower, la Tour Métallique de Fourvière.

You can get a breath-taking panoramic view of the city from the top of la colline de Fourvière.

Le moyen le plus simple de monter sur la colline est le funiculaire.

Whilst in this arrondissement, which is classified UNESCO world heritage site, you should also take the opportunity to see l’amphithéâtre gallo-romain, c’est très impressionnant !

Parc de la Tête d’Or

The name of the park originates from a legend that says treasure with the “head of Christ” could be buried somewhere in the park. C’est le plus grand parc urbain de France et c’est l’un de mes endroits préférés de la ville pour se promener, se détendre et réfléchir. It has un magnifique jardin botanique, a large boating lake in which you can hire pedalos, un chemin de fer miniature as well as a zoo which you can visit gratuitement !

Les flamants roses du zoo

Jardin Botanique

Les girafes du zoo

Le chemin de fer miniature

Confluence

I live near the Confluence area of Lyon, this is a very creative and trendy part of the city, it is also where le Rhône and la Saône, the two rivers that flow through the city, meet. This area used to be très industrialisé as it was previously un port however it has been completely transformed and nowadays it is a residential area and cultural hub which features many bars, clubs et restaurants au bord de la rivière, ainsi qu’un centre commercial et des espaces verts. En plus, it is an eco-district and a WWF sustainable area. Contrairement à l’architecture renaissante du Vieux Lyon, the buildings in Confluence are inspired by modern architecture. They are very cool to look at, surtout the futuristic looking Musée de Confluence – which I would recommend visiting inside as well! 

Le Musée des Confluences

Voilà, that’s the end of our visite virtuelle de Lyon, I hope you enjoyed it!

• Aimeriez-vous vivre à Lyon ?
• Dans mon post j’ai mentionné que Lyon est la 3ème ville la plus peuplée de France, pouvez-vous dire les 2 villes qui sont plus peuplées que Lyon ?
• J’ai aussi parlé un peu de la cuisine lyonnaise, quels aliments français avez-vous essayé ?

J’ai hâte de lire vos commentaires !

*Le lycée professionnel is a high school that prepares students for jobs, whereas le lycée général et technologique prepares students for higher education.