Emily's March break visit - spring comes early!

A month has passed since my last blog - time flies! Don't worry you haven't missed anything; nothing too special has been going on of late. But in early March my cousin Emily came to stay with us for a week and man, she really picked the best time to come in terms of weather. She left behind a ton of snow and freakishly cold winter temperatures in Canada and was welcomed with unseasonably warm, sunny weather in Lyon! Right off the bat we stated that we would attempt to eat cheese at pretty much every meal and so we got our raclette machine out and introduced Em to the delight of melted cheese on meat and potatoes. After satisfying our hunger we went out for a nighttime stroll and were shocked to find magnolias in full bloom! On March 7th! Pretty amazing. After lots of chatting we hit the hay to get ready for a weekend of wonderful weather.

On Saturday morning we started the day off right by hitting up the boulangerie for some fresh and delicious croissants and from that point on we maximized being outside for hours, in our Birkenstocks no less! We meandered around the river and up through the slopes of Croix-Rousse through a winding park pathway to take in the views and soak up the rays at Place Rouville, one of my and James' favourite spots in Lyon. From there we went to the plateau of Croix-Rousse and stopped at a little cafe for some refreshment before Emily and I explored the neighbourhood further. We went into the silkworkers' museum, stopped for more pastry snacks, found a lovely little courtyard to sit in in the sunshine, came across one of the major hospitals and then stumbled upon a giant mural I'd read about in several books but had never seen in person. It is enormous!

No coat! Loving it!

Having walked around for three hours were pretty hungry so we made a quick stop at another boulangerie to pick up a baguette before walking down the slopes back to the apartment. Sandwiches were prepared and eaten and a much needed rest followed. The sun was still up though so we headed back out towards Vieux Lyon and we walked straight up to Fourvière so Em could see another view from the top. The funny thing about being at the basilica is that it's so busy right in front of it but just a three-minute walk around the corner for another great view there's no one. So I took her to the place where James and I went on my birthday as well. (I admit I forgot to take pictures with Em so I'm using the old ones with James...) Next we walked over to the Roman amphitheatres before slowly making our way down to Vieux Lyon and back to the apartment where I made homemade mac'n'cheese with Roquefort and sliced pears on top. And of course some wine :)

On Sunday we prepared ourselves for another spectacular day of being outside. In the late morning Em and I went to the markets where I brought Candice in November: books, crafts and food. She was also witness to a gentleman tending to nature's call in broad daylight on the banks of the Saone river - sorry about that! At the food markets we picked up some fresh bread, oranges, cheese and other snacks for the picnic we planned with friends in the big park in Lyon, parc de la tête d'or. We borrowed our friends Finnish lawn bowling game called Molkky (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%B6lkky) and set up some blankets and just relaxed with what seemed like half of the city. It was quite busy but so great to see so many people out and about making the most of le beau temps. And a lot of people were very interested in our game! If you can find it in Canada or the UK, it's a great game for outdoors.

Sunday evening we went out for dinner to L'épicerie which serves tartines or open-faced sandwiches. They have a variety of cold ones but we went with the warm ones, all of which were covered with cheese, naturally. Emily got mozzarella, tomatoes and pesto, James had chèvre and honey and I had fourme d'ambert with prunes. Each of us sampled all three and we ordered a bottle of cider from Brittany or Brétagne. It's a small little bistrot where you might be sharing a table with another group of people, but I think that adds to its charm. It has a warm atmosphere and although it's in a super touristy area it's not at all pricy, so I would definitely go back to try some more of their tartines.

Monday we planned a little trip outside of Lyon to a walled medieval city called Pérouges. We took an interdepartmental bus which cost only slightly more than a normal city bus and that way we got to take the scenic route before getting dropped off just outside the village which is on a hilltop. We walked along the road and then up the pedestrian pathway before coming to a stone archway. As soon as we walked in it struck us how quiet it was and that there was almost no one else around which was pretty cool. However we also quickly realized that everything was so quiet because everything was closed, it being a Monday in France. Nevertheless we took our time walking around the tiny streets appreciating the stone buildings and trying to imagine living there long ago as well as what it'd be like today. It was kind of strange to see the juxtaposition of modern cars parked in these gorgeous hundreds-of-years-old stone laneways. 

We were keeping our eyes peeled for the bathroom when we saw a sign that said it was by the outer parking lot. At first all we saw was a wooden stall that didn't seem sufficient for what would generally be numerous tourists, however after inspecting the stall and ensuring that it was indeed not a toilet we fortunately found the actual toilets down some stairs! We then went into the church and when exiting the opposite end we got a great countryside view.

We ate our packed lunches in a quiet courtyard and then since everything was closed we made the decision to walk to the next town of Méximieux to catch the train back to Lyon instead of waiting around for an hour and a half for the bus. Of course we made sure to stop at a boulangerie and get some more pastries to snack on while waiting for the train! Back in Lyon we tried to go to an indoor food market but of course it was shut - Mondays in France I tell you! So we settled for a drink on a terrasse in the sun. Not bad at all. We got peckish so we picked up some snacks and a couple more drinks and made our way to the banks of the Rhone where people were out in droves hanging out, some playing music. Safe to say over three days we got a substantial amount of vitamin D!

I had to work on Tuesday and Wednesday so during those days Em got to go to a couple of museums and explore the area I work in and then she and James rented bikes and went along the Rhone to the park and around the zoo. On her last night she and I went out for dinner at a place not too far from our apartment and she got to enjoy a gratin - and with that I think we succeeded in having cheese at almost every meal! Well done :)

And then like that, her week was up and she was off to the winter wonderland back home. But at least she got some sun and heat (and cheese) on her vacation!