Thursday, July 26- We departed the Amadagio in Lyon at 9
in the morning and made our way to the town center and proceeded to a Lyonnaise
cooking demonstration held at "In Cusine", an interesting kitchen
equipment and bookstore with the demonstration area behind under some typical
French skylights. Hands on class, we
made a simple three dishes suitable for a light summer luncheon. Boeuf sauté a la Lyonnaise, Roule de Saumun a
la cervelle de Canut, and Poires a la Beaujolaise. So French!
Hands on cooking
More hands on cooking
We boarded our buses for the short ride to "Lyon Perrache", the local train station. We has assigned seats in car #8, but moved
around a bit, only to find at the next stop we were in other passengers
assigned seats. So confusing. We rode the
"fast train" (TGV) to Paris,
reaching speeds of up to 200 miles an hour.
Some of played bridge with encouragement from those around us and others
watched the French countryside fly by our windows.
Playing Bridge on the train
Not our train (but this was the Gare Montparnasse that we pulled into with more successful results)
After checking into our hotel, Pullman Montparnasse,
on the left bank side of Paris, we had only a few minutes to wash up, and again
board our bus for our trip to Montmartre (a quaint neighborhood way up on a hill) and the Basilicia du Sacre-Coeur (Sacred Heart), whose white dome is a highly
visible landmark above the city of Paris.
The Basilica was built in 1876 to honor the victims of the French
victims of the Franco-Prussian war. Just
below the basilica the local artists set up each day under the colorful
umbrellas that surround the Place du Tertre.
Salvadore Dali, Pablo Picasso, Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, Suzanne
Valadon, Edgar Degas, and Vincent Van
Gogh were among the artistes that lived and studied in this artist
community. Cindy was fortunate enough to
find "just the right painting" to hang in her home, and we can't wait
to see it in place!
Basilicia du Sacre-Coeur
Neighborhood of Montmartre
We chose among the
countless cafes around the Place du Tertre and enjoyed a lovely French
meal. After dinner we descended by
funicular to the Pigalle area, known as the naughty district of Paris (referred to as Pig Alley by some), passing
the famous cabaret Bal de Moulin
Rouge (below).
Our driver, Willy, then took us
on an illumination tour of Paris at night. Our
guide, Edith, who loves her city and was so proud to share it will us, took us
around Opera Square, St. Germaine de pres, Vendome Square, along the River Seine, Place du Concorde, Rue de Rivoli,
Pont Neuf, Les Invalides, Le Champs Élysées with the Arc de Triumph ablaze in
lights at the opposite end. We finally
arrived at the most recognized landmark in all of France (and probably the world). I'll let you guess- but here are some hints. It stands 300 meters high and was erected in
1889 at the entrance to the World's Fair held that year. We embarked at the Champ de Mars, where we
were able the watch in awe as on the hour it comes alive for exactly 5 minutes with an additional 1000
sparkling lights. One couldn't help but
be awed, even at this late hour of a long, long day. Back to the hotel, hopefully with the
twinkling lights still in our minds as we peacefully fall asleep! Bon nuit!
A demain...........
Pont Neuf bridge on the River Seine
Mysterious, unidentified Tower by night
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