Lyon June 20-21, 2014

Our side trip on the way to Lyon was rather a surprise. We had no idea what to expect from “The Palais Ideal” classified as a monument historique; certainly not what we found. The place was built by a postman in his spare time from found rocks and stones and quite a deal of cement. It is perhaps a bit like a smaller scale of Gaudi but without the mathematical formulations behind that architecture. Consider it naive art and the expression of one man’s philosophy and mental images, as he inscribes quotes and thoughts in various places, names some of his figures to represent great men and embraces different cultures and religions. The whole is like a gigantic and fantastic sandcastle 12 metres high and 26 metres long.

The whole, with video and sound crew moving in	The terrace
A procession along the rooftop	The giants

Apart from being visited as an attraction, the palace now acts as a backdrop for music festivals, especially the more avant gard and noisy it appears, at least from the posters. Probably one of our stranger visits.

Coming into Lyon was a long traffic jam along the river where the Saone and Rhone join. And right htere, at the confluence, they are building the Confluence Museum. I thought it must be a Frank Gehry  titanium place again, but no! it is by the Austrian firm Coop Himmelbau and is in stainless steel and glass, representing a floating crystal. Here it is with the basilica high on a hill in the background.

Lyon was one of those places where we said “Must see, but not much time” remembering we have committed the cardinal sin of visiting too many places in too short a time. So we booked a cheap Ibis Styles which had parking, and a walk with a Lyon Greeter to get the most out of the town in two nights. We loved it, especially our walk with Jean Claude who showed us all the hidden little bits of Lyon.

The hotel was nothing flash, as expected, but clean and predictable. The Mercure next door had a good restaurant, remembering that hotels in France may actually have very decent or better restaurants. This was very decent. Because we were a bit out from the centre, we ate there both nights.

Now some of you may not know about the world wide city greeters program. Basically some places have volunteers who live locally and who delight in showing you their city. The service is free and you are not allowed to tip or pay the greeter, though you can and should make a donation to the program in the city you visit. You state your interests and they attempt to match you with a greeter who can show you around. So it was that we were put in contact with Jean Claude, first by email and then in person.

We met in a central square and quickly dived into the traboules, the passages that link, internally, parts of buildings that grew together over time in the Renaissance era. So the interiors are often lovely and reflect the proportions and styles of the time, with beautiful curved staircases, old wells, Renaissance windows and joining elevated passageways. The lower areas are public thoroughfares so anyone can enter, (if you know what lies behind the closed doors) which must drive the residents mad. These places have, of course, progressed from grand mansions that grew in size back from the street, to eventually become very large mansions connected by ground and higher level corridors, to gradually disintegrate into seedy housing and then to experience a renaissance, to become (or be in the process of becoming) desirable apartments. It is kind of odd to see modern post boxes inside or even an elevator.

Huge square for marshalling the troops, with basilica in the background	Traboule information
Stairs and connecting runways	Ground level passageways

After this we walked back over one of the many (26) bridges of Lyon, through the Saturday markets along the river (we bought raspberries to share) and took the funicular up the hill to the  Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, built about the same time as Sacre Coeur in Paris for deliverance from the Franco Prussian war. The style is said to be neo-Byzantine but there seem to be many foretastes of Art Nouveau in the outside carvings and the interior mosaics. A most interesting building, but a major service was in progress, so just a quick peek inside which is mainly in blue and gold mosaics and rather lovely from what I could see.. The view over the city from the hilltop was marvellous, though strangely, it was the chimneys of all the houses and apartment blocks that struck me first.

Metro station	Mural of a traboule	The basilica
Up we go in the funicular	Markets in the foreground and chimneys behind	The very beautiful mosaics in the basilica

Up in the Croix Rousse area were the houses of former weavers. Lyon was famed for its cloth, especially silk. The lower floors of the house were strangely tall to accommodate the height of the looms. The weavers lived and worked in these houses which these days are quite grand and desirable residences. Lovely views and another good market. Also a sight of the most famed Trompe l’Oeil wall in the town which is quite extraordinary and well worth a visit.

Maison des Canuts mural

Jean Claude tries to get money

Stop chatting her up Jean Claude, it won’t work

We farewelled Jean Claude with a good beer before having lunch to fortify ourselves for the afternoon.

First the Museum of Fine Arts,with some very beautiful works. This is truly a major museum with paintings from Monet, Degas and Gauguin and a lovely Rodin sculpture of a young man that we were to meet several more times in Paris. I sort of don’t get the multiple castings and multiple sizes of Rodin’s work. Maybe some more discussion of that in Paris. The museum was a delight.

Rodin, the Age of Bronze

A charming portable altarpiece

I find it difficult to see this as a 17th century work. It looks so modern. Virgin and child by Jean Tassel

Jean Claude advised visiting Lyon Les Halles, Paul Bocuse. He is the three star chef of the town and this market place is a jewel, full of the finest food shops and ingredients, from truffles  to pork to chocolate, cheese, wine and pastries. and cafes and restaurants to taste them all. It was closing for Saturday evening and Sunday so no dinner amongst this magnificence, though I did treat myself to a one person cake from Seve, whose creations are a symphony of fruit and ganache and creams and icings and chocolate and glazes and even gold leaf. I truly have never seen anything so magnificent in a cake display. Good luck the this enterprising young pastry chef. As for the rest of the market, well here you are…a sampling in the right order to make a good dinner (and my take home treat as well).

Antipasto	Foie Gras	Veal, ready prepared for cooking
Cheeses	Dessert cakes	Chocolates

My personal cake: Le Sinjita : Crème aux vanilles du monde, rubis de gelée de framboises, biscuit aux éclats d’amandes.  Doesn’t even begin to describe it

And a selection of celebration cakes. That one in the foreground left has real gold on it.

 

Next visit: Return to Dijon.

L’isle sur la Sorgue part 2. (June 17 to 19)

 
I had so looked forward to spending some time eating a good meal under the plane trees at Gigondas. The town was just as I remembered with the shady trees, the restaurants, the various wine shops, the creepers covering the walls of houses. Beautiful!

Under the plane trees	A window
Scene in the town	Water drips in the fountain

Then we chose the wrong restaurant! A bit put off by the apparently small menu at L’Oustalet we went instead to the Du verre à l’assiette. While the menu looked quite good (asparagus and ecrivisses salad for example) what I got was tinned asparagus and I suspect preserved ecrivisses, tiny, poor little things with no taste. The salmon pave was unboned but otherwise quite tasty. Meanwhile, across the road, the others were being treated to fine dining. We compensated by buying some nice Gigondas wine and a bottle of Beaumes de Venise. I suggest others choose more wisely than we did.
We hadn’t heard about the Parting of the Waters at L’Isle before, so went there first thing the next morning. Very pretty and calm where the Sorgue River splits to encircle L’Isle. Lovely parkland, a few nice cafes, some people fishing and a very pretty drive back along the canal into the city, looking at the houses that border the waters. A lovely situation to live in and the location is perfect for picnics, families and lazy luncheons as well as a gentle walk from town.

The Sorgue

Black dragonflies

Water flowing right

Off to Fontaine de Vaucluse. Last time we visited the spring was in full flight and that would have been in mid-June also. So it was somewhat a different experience to see it very low and just the huge cavern where it had been, with the rocks from the water course dry and the moss on them all brittle and brown.

The well is dry, at least for a long way down mid June 2014

But in mid June 2008 the water covered where people are standing. See the line on the wall

Lower down the river, the huge rush of water from under the rocks and bubbling up through the pools was still amazing to us, this fierce flow of water apparently right out of the earth, so once more we sat in Philip’s restaurant and had delicious ices while contemplating the white water gushing up changing to green, clear water just a few feet further on.

The local church is very old. Once again the hollowed out rectangular altar though this time with a more modern altar stone set in (Catholic altars have a stone set in them supposedly holding the relic of a saint). Old Roman columns with Corinthian capitals hold up the area around the altar and very old statues adorn the almost windowless walls.

Recessed altar top

Old Roman column put to new use

Then to Rouissillon where, in several fields as we drove, we saw lavender in full bloom. That made the trifecta, poppies, sunflowers (unphotographed, nowhere to stop the car) and lavender (well lavandin actually).


Then sitting on a café terrace looking out at the coloured soils and the roofs of the houses it seemed we could almost have been alone in the world, until a glance over the village showed tourists toiling along in the heat. Carpaccio and Café Gourmand at the Bistro de Rouissillon in the mid afternoon; don’t mind if I do. Once more we chickened out on the actual walk to the ochres; too hot, too steep and too far. But we did get lovely photos of the pink and orange village basking in the sun, punctuated by the exclamation marks of cypress trees.

Pretty Rouissillon, all pink and orange	Some of the ochre cliffs	Steps to the church bell tower
	A rather charming door

And as usual, we paid our respects to the church, this time finding a most unusual baptismal font, a half circle bowl set into the wall under lovely stucco work of the baptism of Christ

Half round font on wall

A good day, finished off at home with some beef bourguinone and little ratte potatoes from the boucherie/traiteur on Rue de la Republic.

Last day we first needed to check the wifi at the Tourist Office. Orange is not coming to the party re getting the line fixed. It is amazing how much we have come to rely on the internet, from communication with family back home to checking on a restaurant or the difference between lavender and lavandin. Then a wander through the Thursday morning market where the flowers were magnificent, bunches of roses and the gorgeous flowering artichokes in all their purple, spikey glory. Too late! We move on tomorrow. The market seemed to be mainly clothes and local produce and was much smaller than Sunday.

Off to some small villages just to explore. First Saumane de Vaucluse; perched up on its hill with charming windows and shutters with vines and flowers, but their church was shut and the chateau was being restored with much chuting of stones and dirt, raising clouds of dust, so not much action for us.

Next, St Didier which has a clock tower and arch over the road as part of the ancient church, facing the chateau. A long main street lined with linden trees, a lime and moss encrusted fountain, pleasant cafes already attracting customers at mid-day. These villages are easy to love and we love that the old, old churches are still in use.

The church clock tower

Weird accretion of calcium growing moss in the town fountain

Then to Venasque. It came into view as a bell tower and golden stone way up the hill, but was easily reached. The Planette is a sweet flat square with a fountain, some seats, some gorgeous windows that indicated various ages for the different houses backing the area; it was all just lovely. There was an outlook from La Planette over Mt Ventoux, sitting brooding over the landscape and making its own weather. Truly, it was providing the clouds as the moisture laden winds were pushed upwards by its bulk.

Medieval window opening	Hollyhocks and vines

We visited the very old Roman style church with unusual flat stones for a roof, like large flag stones, and sturdy triple arches inside with a dome over the crossing. There is a quite famous Roman baptistery but it was closed.

The church

This is in one corner of the dome supports. Two others have angels. What is it?

A bit further on we found another square with a fountain, cafes with outside seats favoured by the intrepid bicyclists in their Lycra gear, and for us, a fabulous lunch spot under a green leafed archway on the top of the village, at Les Remparts.

Cafe	Place for lunch

Well it was lunch time, the menu was attractive and we had no real plans except to meander. A complete meal on one plate; a salad and various cold meats and terrines, a slice of a superb tomato tart, a piece of very good camembert and a petit crème brulee flavoured with lavender. Plus some Ventoux rose of course. Nick had civette of pork; I didn’t tell him till after he had demolished it that civettes are usually made with the blood from the beast, which explained the dark sauce. But he loved it.

After that any further exercise seemed unnecessary so we returned to L’Isle. Afternoon nap times sometimes feature in our days now.
Next: Lyon