Our Blog - Lyon, FranceWe spent a long weekend (Wednesday - Saturday) in Lyon, taking the train. There was an advertisement for a "weekend card" for the trains that gave 25% off for weekend travel on the trains within France over 50 km from where you lived .. and it was on sale. We thought it was a good deal and this was one of the trips that we used it on. We probably haven't taken as many as we SHOULD have, but it has definitely paid for itself so far. I'll start (like always) with a bit of history and information about the city itself. Lyon is the 3rd largest city in France, after Paris and Marseille, and just ahead of Toulouse. It is in East-Central France, so a bit further North and East than Toulouse. It is known as the gastronomic capitol of France now, although historically, it was known for its' silk production. Economically, it is a major center for banking, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and the biotech industry. It has a large software industry, specifically around video games. Lyon hosts the international headquarters of Interpol, Euronews, and International Agency for Research on Cancer. The city dates back to 43 BC when a group of refugees encamped here, at the confluence of the Saône and Rhône rivers. The Roman foundations were at Fourvière hill, and the city became known as Lugdunum (Gaulish for Desired Mountain). It quickly became the main city of Gaul under the Roman Empire. It finally came under French control in the 14th century. During the French Revolution, the city was sieged for 2 months before surrendering to the Revolutionary army (they supported the Girondins). As the Renaissance hit France, the city had strong ties with Italy as it was a key supplier of silk. It continued to grow as an important industrial town, in part thanks to the silk trade. In 1831 and 1834, the canuts (silk workers) of Lyon staged two major uprisings for better working conditions and pay. The 1831 uprising had one of the first recorded uses of the black flag as an emblem of protest. During World War II, Lyon was a centre for the occupying German forces, as well as a stronghold of resistance. The traboules (secret passages) through houses enabled the local people to escape Gestapo raids. More on the traboules later, as they are part of a walking tour we took. A couple trivia points:
From a food point of view, it has been called by some the gastronomic capitol of the world! They have several things that are very traditional here. First is the traditional Lyonnais restaurant, called a bouchon (also means cork and traffic jam) where local dishes and local wines are serviced. They also have "mâchons", which are made of local charcuterie and usually accompanied by Beaujolais red wine. Mâchons were the customary meal of the canuts, the city's silk workers, who ate a late-morning meal after they finished their shifts in the factories. Other traditional local dishes include Rosette lyonnaise (a cured dry pork sausage, served sliced thinly, and is popular in sandwiches) and saucisson de Lyon (non-dry sausage); andouillette (a sausage of coarsely cut tripe); pistachio sausage; coq au vin; pike quenelle; gras double (tripe cooked with onions); salade lyonnaise (lettuce with bacon, croûtons and a poached egg); among others. Cervelle de canut (literally, silk worker's brains) is a cheese spread made from fromage blanc, seasoned with chopped herbs, shallots, salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar. Needless to say, we ate at many bouchons, but I (personally) did not be partake in anything that contained tripe! Each day has its own page, and each day will link to the next at the bottom. You can also go to each page directly from here. |