Tag: Lyon

Lyon 9.5.26

10 May 2026 / admin

Lyon Funicular F2 9-5-26

A return to more mundane territory today, indeed a slightly bigger drop than we had wished in some respects. Our first target today was to visit the two funiculars which I suspect I traversed on my previous visit to Lyon in 1982 but my memory of that is dimmed by time. Both funiculars commence at Vieux Lyon Cathedrale Saint Jean Metro station in the old town. We take the F2 line first which goes up to St Just with an intermediate stop for the Roman ruins. It is very warm in Lyon today so we do not feel like walking around Roman ruins and return to the starting point.

Lyon Funicular F1 9-5-26

There are significant queues for the second funicular – it all seems busier than I had anticipated. At the top of this funicular is the Cathedral named in the metro stop from which our journey commenced.

Cathedral St Jean 7-5-26

This photograph shows the Cathedral from the river level when we were walking around earlier in the week as none of the photographs taken up there actually demonstrated the full majesty of the building – it looks far more impressive from a distance as it is an elevated position over the city.

Lyon City 9-5-26

However from the elevated position the city can can be seen with the Saone river in the foreground and a little further back is the Rhone.

We had planned to walk down through the adjacent gardens but the route appears closed. We are walking as our destination is allegedly 5 minutes – although as it is steep and indirect it is a lot further before we reach La Table de la Villa Florentine which has recently re-opened following extensive refurbishment. However despite a Michelin recommendation our view was that it was slightly disappointing and unlike yesterday not really value for money.

In the evening we get to eat some of that cheese we bought and drink some more wine.

We travelled home on 10 May 2026. No fuss over getting through passport control (we go out on an early tram just in case there is a disaster) and as it is there we have a Burger King in the airport. Once back it is then pod to the car park and home with very little to report.

Lyon 8.5.26

9 May 2026 / admin

Paul Bocuse 8-5-26

Today was the intended highlight of the trip. Paul Bocuse was one of the leading chefs of nouvelle cuisine and as a result of his name and fame Lyon has become renowned as the food centre of France. His long career is covered in the linked article and I do not intend to repeat it.

The restaurant is L’Auberge du Pont de Collonges and whilst it might have lost one of the three Michelin stars it once held it remains a place of legend and our high hopes for an excellent meal were delivered in full.

The menu required two photographs:

Menu 1 Bocuse 8-5-26

Menu 2 Bocuse 8-5-26

The highlight is the chicken served in a pig’s bladder and this is impressive and a very tender piece of chicken.

Chicken in Pig’s Bladder Bocuse 8-5-26

All absolutely stunning and it was a superb meal and the waiting staff are also incredible. A lovely place and we could understand (and overhear) comments from other tables about return visit.

Jackie had arranged taxis both ways so it was an easy journey in both directions which meant that even though I could see trains through the window it is definitely the way to come and go.

I should also note that being food related ALL of the photographs in this post were taken by Jackie Whitbread and she retains copyright in all of them and any requests for use should be made to her.

In summary all excellent and it was indeed the highlight of the trip. If only it were a little closer!

Lyon 7.5.26

8 May 2026 / admin

Alien Lyon 7-5-26

Today we have an outline and it all just about works out. Metro to the main tourist information office where we book a river tour for this afternoon and then meander over into the old town to see the main part of the flat part adjacent to the river to find the Museum of Cinema and Miniatures. This is in the middle of the old town and is a fascinating collection.

The Alien moves in a threatening way with threatening noise leading Jackie to leave that particular room rapidly!

Gremlin Lyon 7-5-26

There are a wide range of models used in various ways, given my addiction to transport this model of a subway train caught my eye.

Subway model Lyon 7-5-26

Four floors and I would have thought something for everyone including Batman in various guises and a Hoverboard with much else. A goodly hour or so wandering around the exhibits.

Lunch is a pizza in the old town and we then wander back across the river to catch our boat for the afternoon trip along the river.

River View 1 Lyon 7-5-26

Our journey is along the river Saone which meets the Rhone (hence the name of the tram from the airport) a little downstream. We initially head upstream past the old town on our left with old warehouses now converted to housing on the river front. At Pont Koenig we swing round and start the journey downstream.

L’Homme de la Roche Lyon 7-5-26

Given its size and no doubt cost the absolute history of the statue appears to be shrouded in mystery with several explanations existing, the most likely being that it celebrated a hermit who lived in the cave where the statue now resides.

Our trip extends along the Saone to its confluence with the Rhone with the space between the two rivers having been extensively redeveloped in the recent past with a collection of buildings of modern designs.

Euronews HQ Lyon 7-5-26

There is also a bright orange building and also a modern conference centre.

Pont Kitchener-Marchand Lyon 7-5-26

On our return we pass under Pont Kitchener-Marchand which is a modern bridge but the original was named after Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener and Jean-Baptiste Marchand who together were responsible for peaceful settlement of the Fashoda crisis. The bridge is adorned with the pictured metal sculptures depicting the spirits or allegories of the Rhône and Saône rivers.

We wend our way to a shop to obtain some local cheeses to eat later on the holiday as we are having a heavier meal tomorrow (the hotel wine was also consumed) by a different metro route as Lyon is well served by a variety of public transport.

Dinner this evening is at an excellent restaurant Table et Partage which is within walking distance of the hotel and the quality here was superb. Strongly recommended.

A much better day today.

Lyon 6.5.26

7 May 2026 / admin

Empty l;ocker space 6-5-26

Having spent a fortune on her Amex card we became entitled to a companion voucher on BA and whilst they have made these less attractive and usable over the years they do enable an almost free flight to European destinations so when it arrived last year we determined that we would visit Lyon. Hotel booked, Restaurants booked and hopefully a few pleasant days would ensue, which looked even better when a previously unavailable dining location re-opened bookings to co-incide with our time in the City. All good news.

Off to Heathrow and as usual into a pod from the pod parking to the terminal. Convenient even if a little expensive and of course our second trip using this route in a short time.

We have both packed with two cabin bags – Jackie with her new cabin bag as acquired in Den Haag and me with a black case I had for short trips at work. We also have a second bag all in accordance with BA guidance. At the gate we are minding our own business when a BA employee asks to see our boarding passes and then tells us that our bags are going in the hold. He had walked around the waiting passengers and we were the only ones he approached. Apparently the plane was full and the luggage had to go in the hold. When we pointed out that this was not right we were told we would be offloaded and could not fly. There was none of the usual – can you help us please or any politeness – it was his way or the highway. The lack of customer awareness was unbelievable.

So at Lyon I checked the overhead locker – it was completely empty. In other overhead lockers we could see cases with luggage labels indicating they were destined for the hold. Put simply there was no need for it. One bag each would have gone in the overhead and the other one under the seat in front. It was handled so badly that it put us off completely – this is not the BA that once claimed to be the world’s favourite airline.

The next nightmare is border control. They have three open booths (of 6), no-one is managing the queue and it takes two hours, no seats, no water and no-one keen on actually welcoming us to the country. No instructions on how to use the electronic gates or even information on if they could be used (as we registered on the new system entering the Netherlands). When we do reach the border person she and her adjacent colleague are discussing the next night out and Jackie is pretty sure she does not even look at her to compare the photo taken. Absolutely awful.

Rhone Express 6-5-26

The airport is adjacent to the TGV station to which we walk. On the far side of the station is a platform for the “tram” known as the Rhone Express into Lyon which terminates adjacent to the main station and also our hotel as Jackie wanted a short walk from tram stop to the hotel – which is just as well as it actually raining at this point.

Now I can offer some advice. Nothing wrong with the hotel. However the area on this side of the station is less than attractive. We wander around some adjacent streets in the hope of a little bar or similar but nothing appeals and at one point there are some less than welcome drunks lying in the street. Not appealing at all. To save going out again we cancel the restaurant booking this evening and decide to eat in the hotel. The wine is good even if the food is slightly lacking.

In summary not a good start to this particular trip.