Leapfrog

The ride from Strasbourg to Lyon was very smooth, even though I had to change trains twice. I love how interconnected European cities are, and that I haven’t had to pull out my passport since Iceland. Thanks EU! When I first got into Lyon I went straight from the station to the metro, sure in my screen-shotted hostel directions. I got off at the right stop, but couldn’t find the road mentioned in the directions. I started asking around, but no one on the street had heard of the road I was looking for. One extremely kind French lady suggested I head into a nearby grocery store and ask the staff there, which I did. The first lady I asked did not know, and neither did the second, but she opened the question up to the entire grocery store, and one man in line knew where to look. The secret was that my directions said the first street on your left, but in reality it was the second. Thanks French grocery store man!

I really enjoyed my first full day in Lyon. I woke up and leisurely got ready for the day, stopping in the hostel lobby for some delicious breakfast of coffee and croissant and pancakes. I then walked from across the river and through old town to The Musee des Beaux Arts, the main art museum in Lyon. It did not disappoint, I would call it The Louvre’s more fun little brother. Not quite as much sustenance, but much more fun to spend time with– that’s not to say that the Lyon version is light on sustenance, I spent hours in that museum, but The Louvre is a major force. The Musee des Beaux Arts had a wonderful exhibit on artist’s self portraits, spanning in time from Rembrandt to Ai Weiwei and including pieces by Klee, Beckmann, and Foujita. It was fascinating and totally worked as an exhibit.

Then I walked back to the hostel via a great ice cream place and Vieux Lyon. I also spent some time in the main square enjoying the sun and the people watching.

Unfortunately I forgot my camera, so a quick shot snapped on my phone will have to do.