Downtown

The last two days we've spent in the center of Lyon, which is between the rivers Rhone and Saone. It's really quite beautiful in the classic, old world style. Bellecour is an open park where the tourist center is, and some sort of world art fest this weekend. One can see the art tents in the park and the basilica in the backgroud.


And here is the grand, old theater Cellistine:


There were so many photo ops, I just got burned out... Sorry, I should have so many more sites to show you. Here is just one plaza we ran across (can't remember the name):



Lyon means lion, of course. So I guess you should see one shot of the city symbol. Here's a modern, stylized statue from the tourist center:


And we were nearly run over by another form of public transport, the Lyon light rail. Way cool train!


And we also ran across a tribute to someone near and dear to my electronic heart, the father of all things made possible through the discovery and development of electricity, Mr Ampere:


After returning to the apartment for a Leffe (16% alcohol, I almost didn't make it to dinner! Thanks, Willis, for the warning!), we walked down to a little street about 100 yards in length and with about 20 outdoor cafes all crammed in together. Kinda cool, just cruise along checking out the menus until you find something that sounds particularly good. And since there are so many of them, the prices are reasonable. I went for the chicken in a cream/curry sauce, Lacey had a steak to try out the bernnaise sauce (excellent!). Another great meal... Here we are:




The white coated waiter/chef in the background really added ambiance. He was quite fun!

And something explained patiently by Lacey, who's pretty hip to the "French way". We've been ordering house wine at meals, it's easier, cheaper, and really good! Often we just let the waiter bring his recommendation, and it's worked out well. But, as a matter of protocol, ordering water is not done the same way as ordering wine... a carafe of l'eau is served similarly to a pichet du vin. Got it... carafe for water, pichet for wine... same bottle! OK, that's your French lesson for today...

And what's outdoor dining in France without a strolling accordianist!


That's it for now. Dress up dinner tonight, looking forward to more formal French dining.