Just wandering around Lyon

On Friday, the 25^th, we decided to take a nice walk and check out Vieux Lyon, the oldest section of Lyon, to see what might have changed in our absence.  It’s such a pleasure to wander down those narrow cobble streets and enjoy the old and not-so-old sights.  

We window shopped and bought cards to send to our grandkids and neice and continued along past the very impressive Cathédrale Saint Jean, which was built between 1175 and 1480. 

Cathédrale Saint Jean

We continued our walk across the street since one of the places we definitely wanted to check on was La Ficelle, a café we have been visiting since one of our earliest trips to Lyon.  

La Ficelle 

As we walked by, Anna recognized the son of the owners.  He is fluent in English and has always liked to stop and chat.  He recognized us and soon gave us an update on what he's been doing for the last two years.  Then his mother came out, saw us, waved, and hurried back in to get his father.  We exchanged greetings, elbow bumps, and a bit of conversation about what's happening in their world and ours.  It so nice to see that the same family still owns and operates the café.  We had lots of catching up to do along with a nice carafe of rose.

Our bottle of rose in a very Lyon bottle.

And, David enjoying enjoying a glass at one of their outside tables.

It's so nice to be back in lovely Lyon!

Lots happening since our last posting!

In some ways it seems like we never left - has it really been two years?  Of course, this is partly because we stay in touch with our French "family" and friends, though mostly via email and FaceBook.  But, the coast is finally clear to come in person, so here we are...diving right back into our life in Lyon! 

Estelle our French (exchange) daughter invited us to be surprise guests at her older son, Paul’s, 22^nd birthday celebration on Sunday, June 20^th.  This was a typical family celebration with grandmother, aunts, uncles, cousins, lots of little kids, and a sprinkling of friends, but it was the first such gathering since Covid hit.  Needless to say everyone was in a very celebratory mood and happy to be freed from confinement.  We showed up, a bit jet-lagged and bleary eyed, with Anna’s potato salad (per special request) to  very surprised and happy greetings. (The typical first comment was, “I’m vaccinated.”  Then, “So glad to see you again!”)  It was amazing to see how much the children had grown up in those two years!  Laurent, Estelle’s husband, was manning the barbecue with chicken and merguez (those yummy, spicey sausages) on the grill when a major rain storm hit.  He soldiered on through the rain and got thoroughly soaked.  When he finally was able to deliver the last of the meats to the dining room, he was greeted with cheers and an ovation.  We all enjoyed lots and lots of food, wine, soft drinks, and, of course, celebratory Champagne as well as conversations and catching up. We have missed these lovely people and their amazing celebrations!  It is really wonderful to be welcomed back into our French family.  (Sorry - no pix.)

Did we mention rain?  Lyon does get periodic thunder showers in the summer.  But, Sunday was just the beginning.  On Wednesday, the 23rd, at around 7 PM the skies darkened, and we were in for it. How about torrential rain, thunder and lightening, wind, and hail?  Streets flooded, sidewalks became rivers, and cafe owners and patrons scrambled to take down tables and chairs and rush inside.  And, it just kept on coming.   According to the local newspaper, three weeks of rain fell in 40 minutes. Here's a photo (shamelessly copied from the web) showing a street in Lyon during that storm.

But, the rain is gone, the sun is shining, and other than a few lingering problems for businesses due to the deluge, life is pretty much back to normal.

Back in Lyon!

 Greetings from lovely Lyon! 

As you may have noticed, [or not, if your life does not revolve around this fabulous publication], we were not in France last year!!

Getting here was a bit of an adventure.  The French government has not exactly been welcoming to Americans.  When France finally decided to open its doors to us, it was with the proviso that we be able to prove that we were fully vaccinated against Covid, could prove via a PCR test that we didn’t have Covid now, AND sign an “Attestation Form” confirming that we didn’t have Covid symptoms and hadn’t been in contact with anyone with Covid.  Whew!  So getting “our” apartment reservation in Lyon, plane tickets, and TGV (train) tickets in advance of France’s welcome was a bit of act of faith.  Obviously, all went well, and we are happily ensconced  in the apartment on rue Moncey.  

So, what have we been up to since arriving last Wednesday?  Well, we have to admit that we have been mostly getting over jet-lag along and dealing with a bit of a heat wave.  However, we’ve made some forays out to check on some of our favorite places to make sure they are still the same/in business. After all, it’s been two years and a Covid epidemic since our last visit. We have been recognized and welcomed by the folks at our favorite boulangerie.  They actually remembered the kind of coffee we order(!), and also gave us one of their yummy baguettes as we left.  And, our favorite MonoPrix security guard recognized us and greeted us with bonjours and ça vas.  

It is just really great to be back in our second home, lovely Lyon!