Our First Visitors

When we first announced that we were moving to France for a year, we heard from both family and friends about planned visits. Well, there’s a huge difference between plans and reality, and we understand that “life” just got in the way. Over the period of seven months, several planned visits fell through, and no one came. Then we got a note from a friend saying his daughter and her roommate were spending their spring school break travelling around Europe, and we jumped at the chance to be their hosts in Lyon.



We already knew Leighanna through her parents, but we didn’t know her well. And, we had never met Gillian, her roommate. I think it’s safe to say there was a tad bit of nervousness on all sides at the prospect spending several days together and sharing our little apartment (with one WC and one Salle de Bains). We would all either enjoy the visit or count the minutes until it was over – there really wasn’t any middle ground. Fortunately, we all hit it off and had a great time.


Both girls were perfect guests – offering to help at appropriate moments and magically transforming their bedroom (our living room) back into a living room/dining room first thing each morning. The weather was lovely so we spent as much time as possible outside. They were genuinely interested in seeing and experiencing as much as possible in Lyon – and we did our best to squeeze as much as we could into their visit. We spent a good deal of time exploring Roman ruins since this is an area of particular interest to them, but we also shared other favorite spots, including our corner boulangerie, with them. We sampled every kind of public transportation available (bus, underground metro, tram, electric bus, and funicular) and wore out a good bit of shoe leather. Needless to say, we all slept very well at night.


We are sharing some pictures with you, with their permission, to give you an idea of the time we had. Our apartment seemed much too quiet when we returned from putting them on the bus for Italy!


We hope the remainder of their trip was a great success, and wish them luck with their exams.

Checking out Roman workmanship on an aquaduct.

Leighanna, Gillian, and David in a Roman amphitheater.  The girls each tried standing "center stage" and talking normally - and could be heard from where we sat in the upper rows! 

 In front of the Bartholdi fountain in Place des Terreaux with Anna.

Breakfast at our corner Boulangerie.  The fruit smoothies were a big hit, and we now know Gillian has a weakness for Pain au Chocolat!