Lyon, 3 December 2025

We had a comfy night in the bedroom niche next to the living room, and had some yogurt and granola for breakfast. Davidson then took us to the metro and onward to the funicular, always a fun thing to do. Up we went to the Basilica Fourviére at the very top of the hill overlooking the river and the older part of Lyon, known as the Presque-Ile. The view from the terrace outside the church was magnificent, greater Lyon and the two rivers down below. We walked through the church which was covered in gorgeous mosaics, with the filtered light streaming in the tall stained glass windows. We went into the small chapel next door, which was the original 16th century church and lit a candle; the large church was built next to this in the 19th century. A story about a storm delaying the opening, only to be rescued by the townspeople bringing lighted candles, is the source of the current Fete des Lumierés, which brings a quarter of a million people to Lyon on the coming weekend. Davidson and Edwin are preparing for more guests then.

We had lunch at Bulle, the wonderful restaurant that Kristen recommended to us, which had the same spectacular view as from the church terrace, and wonderful food. An amuse-bouche followed by duck ravioli, lamb chops, and a beautiful caramel dessert with a traditional pattern on the plate. Mr. Darcy (their dog) was with us, and he had a water bowl and a tiny bit of cheese. In the middle of the dining room was a half-life-size polar bear model.

We then walked down to the Roman ruins of an amphitheater and an Odeon, in a heavy mist. We visited here almost 30 years ago with Madeleine and Barney's parents; we were walking by the theater when a painted flat nearly fell on Barney while he had Madeleine on his shoulders. Keeping up my tradition, and since it was a Roman amphitheater, (and few people around in the rain) I sang "Porgi amor."

We headed back to the metro and the apartment, as we had done a lot of walking that day. we saw some of the preparations for the upcoming fete, with beautiful lights everywhere, and we strolled through the Christmas market again. Since everyone was a bit tired, I dug around in the refrigerator  and was able to make a nice salad and we had some frozen paella. Somehow we managed feed the five of us, including Falas, their Lebanese friend who lives there while awaiting his French citizenship.