My travel companions were: a good friend from high school (who is studying in Madrid), and 2 Californians from my program (good friends as well, just for the record.) We came in 3 waves, my high school friend arriving a full day ahead of me. One of the Californians went before me, but after my friend from high school, and the other travelled with me. It was all a little bit of an adventure.
Day 0.5:
Getting to the airport. Our flight was delayed, so we were worried we would miss the last bus from the airport to the hostel. We decided to take a taxi. It was expensive, and the taxi driver was a little bizarre. He was the kind of guy that tries too hard at a bar, is a little greasy, a little slimy, and just a little too insistent. During our 40min taxi ride, we heard him call the same woman 5-6 times. Each time it ringing a few times and then going to voice mail. He also was texting her. Because I'm terribly nosy, and trying to decipher his texts was a very good distraction from his terrible driving, I decided to snoop. After 4 calls or so, he received a text that said "laisse tomber." Meaning, "drop it." To which he replied, "I want to see you. You haven't mentioned where you are. Please, call me." (but, en français, biensûr!) And then he called her again; 1 ring, then to voicemail. Ouch. Then he texted again "I'm about to drop off some clients, then I'll be free. You still haven't said where you are. I want to see you. Call me, now." And then he dropped us off, so, yeah. It was pretty weird, though because his phone was hooked up to the speakers, so we heard him repeatedly get rejected. We made it to the hostel, though, it was on a hill, and the view was spectacular.
Day 1:
Walking. Rain. Sunshine. Bao.
The weather was not so awesome at the beginning of the day, so we promptly headed to the Musée des Beaux-Arts. Pretty things, and shelter from the showers. A win-win. Also, it was free for students! WIN. It had some really pretty paintings, and then some really weird paintings, but also, there were a ton of school group tours there. Some of them were teenaged kids that really didn't want to be there. And then there were ADORABLE elementary school aged children that had to wear bright neon yellow vests. I wanted to steal them. Slash, I wanted that curator's job:
ADORABLE. (I love this picture! It makes me über-excited to be back at UCLA working with children)
After the museum, we had a really tasty lunch. (Lyon is the gastronomic capital of France!) The place we ate at was super adorable, and the owners were really nice. And when we came out of the restaurant, there was sunshine! And we walked around, saw the rivers, and went to Notre Dame de Fourvière, and then walked around looking for coffee. We found a Chinese café with "Asian patisseries", like, brioche au porc lacqué (aka char siu bao or also steamed pork buns). They were delicious. We ate them quickly and in silence in the sun by the quai. The silence was punctured with happy food noises, and then after finishing, one of my friends giggled, and said, "I just ate a bao!" It basically sums up that experience. It was so unexpected, but so very cool. It was authentic and tasty and perfectly reminded me of home. After that, we went for coffee, and then we walked along the Rhône, then sat along the quai listening to a jazz band. It was all very picturesque and beautiful.
A view of the Saône, and a bridge
Le Cathédrale St. Jean, right at the base of the hill to our hostel
Notre Dame de Fourvière, at the top of the hill past our hostel
Me in front of it.
The beautiful interior
A closer look at the ceiling
A view of Lyon, taken just outside Fourvière.
The infamous, ever so tasty bao.
A view of the quai on the Rhône.
We were sitting here, listening to the jazz, enjoying the sunshine, it was fantastic.
Day 2
Geneva. So we actually bought our tickets to Geneva on a whim the first full day we were all in Lyon. It was all very spontaneous and spur of the moment. We were all super excited. "We're going to SWITZERLAND, guys!" But then, moments after buying the tickets, the wave of spontaneity subsided and we were faced with a few thoughts/questions:
1. Does Switzerland use the Euro?
2. Is Switzerland a part of the EU?
3. What even is there to do in Geneva?
We scurried to a book store to browse the guide books. And here's what we found:
1. Switzerland has its own currency, the Swiss Franc. But, because it is surrounded by EU countries, most establishments accept the Euro. (This is true, but it doesn't mean things aren't expensive. Also, all prices are listed in Swiss Francs, which are not equal to the Euro, so, yeah, math abounded.)
2. Switzerland is not part of the EU. (There were a lot of swiss flags everywhere, and there were also a lot of Chinese flags on this one bridge. We aren't quite sure why, though....)
3. John Calvin did a lot of things in Geneva. There is a Protestant Cathedral in Geneva that John Calvin frequented/was at the middle of the Protestant reformation. Also, like in all of Switzerland, there is chocolate and watches. Geneva also has a lake with a large jet d'eau, the second strangest town emblem, after Manneken Pis.....
We ended up walking around and sheltering ourselves from the misty/damp conditions, but there were some nice photos. And we went up the tower at the Protestant Cathedral (aka Cathédrale St.-Pierre), the views were amazing.
A view from St. Pierre Cathedral, jet d'eau and all
After coming back from Geneva, we had an amazing meal at a very cute restaurant. It was artist-themed, the menus were on paint palettes, and the servers wore smocks. The food was really tasty, and they gave us free champagne! After a lovely dinner, we walked around Lyon at night and took a few awesome night photos!
A bridge in Lyon by night
A photo of Cathédrale St.-Jean (foreground), and Notre Dame de Fourvière (up the hill more)
The façade of Cathédrale St.-Jean by night
Overall, an amazing trip! We all left wanting to visit again and potentially live there in the future. It was awesome. More to come! Lunch time now.
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