Notre Grande Aventure, Partie 1

We’re off on another grand adventure; this time we’re visiting some of the grand cities in Europe, with additional time in Italy and Croatia. Our vacations almost always start in Paris. We drive to the train station in neighboring Flers, where there is free long-term parking, hop on the train, and two hours later we’re in Paris. From there we have a plethora of options for whatever destination we have in mind.

We arrived in Paris last Thursday and visited two neighborhoods we hadn’t seen in many years – the Latin Quarter and Montmartre.

The Latin Quarter is famous for its universities, Les Jardin des Plantes, the famous bookshop, Shakespeare and Company, which always has a long wait to get in, just to name a few. This time we found an equally charming bookstore without the long wait, called The Abbey Bookshop.

In business since 1989, this bookstore catering to Canadians and Americans, has a huge variety of new, used, and antique books. We spent most of the afternoon here side-stepping through the narrow passageways lined floor to ceiling with books, and enjoying the immense collection.

Et, bien sûr, we enjoyed wandering and eating in this interesting neighborhood.

The next day we hopped on the Metro and headed to Montmartre, a bohemian neighborhood with narrow, cobbled lanes, street artists, and of course, the famous cathedral, Sacré Coeur.

We hadn’t visited either neighborhood for many years and found them both drastically changed, mainly due to the huge numbers of tourists filling the streets. We chose not to go into the cathedral since we have visited before, and the line was massively long (it’s only March – what will it be like in July and August?) so we were fine just wandering the streets. But as we worked our way through the massive crowds, we agreed it would be quite frustrating to live in this neighborhood, packed to the gills with tourists. Things certainly change over time.

After two days in Paris, we took the train to Lyon. Known as France’s second city, it is located in the central-eastern part of the country, at the confluence of the Saone and Rhone rivers. Also known as the gastronomic center of France, it has well over a dozen Michelin rated restaurants. Wandering through the tree-lined streets, visiting the stunning cathedrals, sitting in an outdoor cafe sipping a coffee or a glass of wine, or strolling through the market stalls along the river will confirm why France is the top tourist destination in the world.

The Romans settled here in 43 BC, and there are numerous ruins throughout the city. The Ancient Theater of Fourvière is an amazing place to see. theTravelsketcher and I throughly enjoyed climbing around on the ancient stone steps and were amazed by the stunning views of the city below.

Cathedral Saint-Jean-Baptiste located in Vieux-Lyon, is a must see when visiting the city. We attended a service here and were blown away by the acoustics.

La Basilique Notre Dame Fourviere is another beautiful church to see. Construction began in 1872 with private funds, and was finished in 1884 – amazingly quick for that time period. Perched high on Fourviére Hill, it appears to be keeping watch over the city below.

Lyon is famous for its Bouchons, a type of restaurant found in the city that serves hearty, meat forward dishes. Originally established by displaced women who had worked in the grand houses and mansions of Lyon, these women opened their own restaurants in order to survive. Their clientele back then were mostly silk workers, and today, they continue strong with hearty fare for the stressed office worker and the hungry tourist.

Le Merciere, in business since 1890, is one such place. We enjoyed a delicious lunch here and a nice chat with the couple sitting next to us who, ironically, live in Montmartre. We mentioned that we had just visited their neighborhood and commented that it would be difficult to live there with the huge crowds. They agreed, and added that there are ways to work around the crowds.

We also enjoyed a food tour and wandering through a street market while in Lyon. More on these in the coming weeks. At the moment, we are in Geneva, sitting in an outdoor cafe, enjoying the warm spring day and the activity of this amazing, bustling city.

Tomorrow we’re off to Milan, then Tuscany, Umbria and more stops along the way. We’re thoroughly enjoying notre grande aventure, and are looking forward to sharing more with you in the coming weeks.

Je te souhaite de grandes aventures,

Tricia