Arriving in Vieux Lyon and a taste of Lyonnaise Cuisine

The French do go on strike. Landing in Paris, we found Air France workers on strike, forcing us first to deplane down steep stairs, and then rent a car for the five-hour drive to Lyon — train workers also were on strike so there were no high speed trains that make the trip in two hours.

We dropped the car and took a taxi to our apartment in Vieux Lyon, the charming area built in the sixteenth century during the Renaissance. We climbed four flights to our apartment and then headed out for lunch and a walk along the Rhone River to enjoy the sunny, 75-degree day. Phyllicia arrived and we walked to the famous L’Ourson qui boi for a spectacular taste of Lyonnaise cuisine.

We had a quiet second day that began at Cosy Corner, a cafe below our apartment, and explored our immediate neighborhood in Vieux Lyon, strolling through the cobblestone paths and learning a bit about the traboules (walkways) through buildings once used by the silk trade to transport goods and later by the French resistance to elude Nazis. Our trip was just beginning, but we’re in love with Lyon already, its beauty, size, people, wine and of course the cuisine.