Yay! I have something interesting to write about! Its not
that I don’t like my museum research, but it is sometimes a bit tedious to live
it once let alone write about it again while trying to make it sound
entertaining. Luckily though, I took a trip to the lovely city of Lyon this
week and have lots to share!
I got a ride to Dijon on Wednesday and then took a two
hour train ride to Lyon. In my train cabin I sat with a woman from Morocco who
had been living in France for eight years. She was nice enough and patient
enough to let me practice my French and I helped her with some English language
questions she had. It was a nice ride overall and it was nice to spend it with
a very smiley person! As we were leaving the train I somehow ended up talking
to a French girl who was looking for a map like I was as it was the first time
in Lyon for both of us. We found the information area, got our maps, and then
went our separate ways.
The first thing I do when I arrive in any European city
is to find the center of the town. From there it is possible to orient oneself,
find a map (if you did not find one at the station), and find something to eat
because, at least for me, I am typically hungry after my trip. I found a road
on the map that went from the station to the center of town and followed the
other signs which got me to my destination. While on my way, I crossed the
Rhone River. I think this was my first time seeing it in person and it was
quite large! The center of town was typical – a big square of some sort, a big
statue, lots of shopping and lots of restaurants. I flipped through a tourism
book that I got at the station and found something to do as I had some time to
kill.
I chose to visit the Musee des Tissus/Musee des Arts
Decoratifs de Lyon first. It was a fantastic museum that had a lovely and
varied collection of textiles from all places and times. It starts with ancient
textiles from Egypt which included lace, fine hair nets, detailed patterns and
scenes (many with peacocks!). Later periods also have a wide variety of
textiles and some complete costumes from various parts of the Near East,
Turkey, Spain, and so on. While all of these were fantastic, the best part may
have been seeing the fantastic dresses and garments 18th century
France and England! Oh my goodness! The style of the dresses, the fabric – this
would have been my era! There were beautiful cuts and designs that flattered
nearly any form. I loved it! The second part of the museum includes walking
through various re-constructed rooms with objects and décor that dated to
around the 17th and 18th centuries as well. This was
quite lovely and it was nice to have a change of subject than my normal
archaeology museum!
After the museum I walked around for a while and then
headed toward the ruins of the Roman theatre. I had no concept of the layout or
topography of Lyon prior to my arrival so I was quite surprised I had to cross
yet another river, this time the Saone, to get to the bottom of a hill. The
ruins were on the top of this hill and so I started working my way up. Ooo la
la! This was a tall and steep path and I was sweating almost instantly! My
hips, rump and thighs thanked me for the exercise!
I planned on looking at ruins in more depth the next day,
but when I arrived I heard a warm-up for a concert that would happen later that
night. I basically got to see a free concert while others later in the night
would have to pay 30euros for the same show. It was a good deal and a nice way
to conclude the afternoon.
Around 5:30, I headed toward my evening’s destination. I
am not sure if I have talked about the website Couchsurfing.org yet on the
blog, but I shall briefly describe it here. In a nutshell, this is a website
for people who would rather stay in someone’s home than at a hotel. While it is
typically used by young people, older people are joining the site more
frequently because there are some great benefits to this idea. For students its
great because you stay in someone’s home, so it is free. The main reason I like
it, and the appeal for many others, is that it gives you a chance to meet
people who live in the area and they can tell you good places to see or eat, or
just basic things to know about traveling in the city. It gives you an
opportunity to be a diplomat for your country and allows you to meet people
from all around the world. You get to learn about a place and about people from
these places. You give them a face to associate with your country and you also
have a face to associate with theirs. It is an amazing opportunity to foster
friendship and understanding.
I described all this because I have used it in the past
and used it again in Lyon. It was a bit funny because I stayed with a German
girl in France. She was very nice and hospitable and took me in at the last
minute for three days! That night she had a friend coming over, another German
girl, and the three of us made pizza which ended up being incredibly yummy! They
suggested we go out for a little while after dinner. I never go out in the
evenings because I am typically alone and because I am not really one who likes
to go out often. It is incredible though to see a city at night; it can look so
different. We walked by the opera house, which was beautiful all lit up and
there was music going on as well. We went to a bar near there which was
incredibly tiny and was decorated like the inside of a pirate ship inside! The
floor was even the funny sort of wooden grates that you see in movies that
someone is inevitably trapped under/inside. There were wooden kegs all around,
wooden planks for the walls, and all sorts of funny things stored in jars
behind the bar. It was loud and I was far too old to be there, but it was
amusing nonetheless since I never go any place like that while in Europe.
Well, that certainly seems long enough for one entry. I
shall describe the rest of my trip in another one tomorrow.
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