Candice comes to stay!

One of my best friends, Candice, came to visit for a week in November and we got to spend our time together eating cheese, drinking wine, chatting about life and taking in beautiful scenery and cityscapes. We were big fans of these things in Toronto so it was pretty amazing to have her come to Lyon since it had been six months since we'd seen each other. She arrived on a Wednesday afternoon and when I got home from work that evening we shared quite a moment. Candice was napping in the bedroom and without any hesitation or concern about waking her up I opened the door, she sprung out of bed and we hugged and jumped up and down for a good, solid minute. Reunited! Then we were off to the grocery store to buy a fancy selection of food to feast on. We got gourmande. Four types of cheese, a mix of italian meats, saucisson (a dried sausage), fig confit, duck terrine, dates, walnuts, baguettes and lots of wine. It was glorious, and we stayed up talking nice and late.

I finished work at 2pm Thursday so Candice came to have lunch at my cafe before we headed out on a Vieux Lyon discovery by foot. I work in the 2e arrondissement so we headed to the Saone and walked along the river a bit to the pedestrian bridge linking us to Vieux Lyon and the area called St-Georges, named for the church right at the bridge. We walked through the streets and towards St-Jean and got to look at some of the remains of the earlier church built on the site before checking out the inside of the massive cathedral. Unfortunately they are in the midst of a massive interior renovation and a lot was covered by scaffolding and sheets. We then headed up the slanted streets of the 5e arrondissement to reach the Roman amphitheatres, the Musée Gallo-Romain which houses incredible and entirely intact floor mosaics, and the Fourviere cathedral for a city panorama. We randomly ran into my roommate on the way up to the top - my first random encounter in Lyon! (It used to happen all the time in Toronto and I loved that feeling of a massive city feeling like a small town.)

Thursday night we had a quiet one finishing the leftovers of our feast from the night before. I had to work on Friday so Candice roamed the city and visited many museums. For dinner we headed out to the very touristy rue Mercière so Candice could try something lyonnais style, and I had been craving seafood, so we settled on the Winch. Very ocean-themed so it seemed appropriate. I forgot my camera so I stole these shots from Candice's phone! While sipping Côtes du Rhône I ordered a dish that covered all the bases with salmon, prawns and scallops while Candice went for the French onion soup and the classic quenelles that I wrote about in the summer. Then we shared a tarte aux pralines which is a standard Lyon dessert.

Next we were off to see a Magik Markers show at a place called Sonic that I'd never been to, but for which I had the address and directions. The one thing my coworker failed to mention to me was that Sonic is a boat and not a building - something which Candice and I only discovered after walking around for ten minutes feeling extremely confused. But in the end we made it and it was good to see a live show together again!

Saturday we were off to Cluny for a day trip, but I'm dedicating an entire post to that day trip so we'll skip Saturday. Sunday we had a nice long sleep in and then went to check out three nearby markets: the book market, the artisan market and the fresh food market. Unfortunately I got sick on the Saturday and on Sunday I was a write off, so Candice kept me company in bed in the afternoon before she checked out the contemporary art museum.

On Monday we planned to walk up to Croix Rousse before walking along the Rives Saone which is a redone portion of the Saone river heading north. We made a quick stop at an ATM for Candice but it turned out that that machine wasn't working and her debit card got stuck in the machine and was just barely sticking out. Panic! After trying unsuccessfully with our finger nails I ran home to grab my trusty tweezers and after persistence I managed to pull the bank card out and we all rejoiced. We headed up the hill stopping at a few points of interest for Candice to see though it was a super foggy day. We sat down for lunch at Brasserie des Croix Roussiens where Candice got choucroute and James and I got some delicious slabs of beef before our trek along the river. 

Les Rives de Saone (http://www.lesrivesdesaone.com/) is a project along several kilometres of the river that has infused art and design into the public walkways along the Saone and while parts of it are complete, other parts are still in progress. It never ceases to amaze me how Lyon really supports beautifying public spaces even though there is no financial reward. The investment is made just to bring citizens out to different parts of their city and to allow people to enjoy their environment. Come on Toronto! Try it!

Our final destination on our walk was Ile Barbe which is a little island in the Saone in the 9th arrondissement. It was quite a hike to walk there but we made it and it was worth it. So pretty on a grey day with fall colours! The information board said the Ile Barbe Monastery is in records going back to the 5th century and that even though it was destroyed at least three times over the centuries it was rebuilt each time. However it was completely dismantled during the French Revolution. Today there is a very top-end restaurant there called l'Auberge de l'Ile as well as some park space. The north end of the island is privatized but you can creep on it from Google Maps!

We caught the bus back home and then made a very crucial stop that one must do when one is visiting France: a patisserie. As Candice is a pastry chef she was ready to dine on the sweet treats offered by Maison Debeaux. We picked six different desserts and were quite pleased with them I must say. Did I mention this was our dinner? You can't go wrong.

Tuesday was Candice's last full day in the city and I had to work, but that evening we went out to a well-recommended Bouchon Lyonnais just around the corner from the apartment. It's called La Meunière and it is quite traditional in how it delivers its dishes. There were complimentary gratons (pork rind) and there is a communal table full of salads in giant bowls that the servers bring to your table where you serve yourself as much as you'd like before it is placed back on the table. We both had some lentil salad while Candice tried museau (ox) and I chose the beef as our starters. For the mains we got really French: gâteau de foie de volaille (poultry liver cake in a tomato and olive sauce) for her and boudin noir aux pommes (blood sausage with baked apples) for me. It was very soft and light, almost mousse-like, and paired amazingly with the apples. A bit strange at first but I really enjoyed it. We also had a joint plate of gratin de pâtes which is essentially mac and cheese. Always a winner!

For dessert we went with the cheese options, cervelle de canut for Candice and fromage blanc à la crème for me. Cervelle de canut is a standard Lyon plate made of fromage blanc with herbs and shallots and literally translates to 'silk worker's brain'. We both sampled each of one another's plates and were very satisfied at the end of that meal. 

It was so awesome having her here and I was bummed out when she left, but it was a fabulous week together. Only a few more months until we reunite again, dearest wife!