Introduction |  |
Dirty, sprawling, fast, sexy, Lyon is like Paris waking up after a hard weekend. It has its beautiful parts – what better place to build a city than at the confluence of two of France’s most graceful rivers, the Rhône and the Saône – and its history stretches back to Roman times, but France’s second city is best loved for the here and now: for food, fashion and culture. In addition to its Renaissance architecture, Lyon has a thriving arts scene, a fine opera house, a slew of museums and monuments, superb shopping and, best of all, some of the country’s true gourmet tables.
Although ordered into numbered arrondissements, and subdivided into quarters, Lyon and its two rivers, 28 bridges and numerous hills can be difficult to navigate. The centre, or Presqu’Ile, is a thin strip of land where the Saône and the Rhône meet. To the west lies Vieux Lyon, to the east the Rive Gauche and the new business districts.
There is a Florentine influence around Vieux Lyon, now designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its narrow cobbled streets buzz with bistros and boutiques. Look out for Lyon’s trademark traboules, alleyways used by silk workers and, later on, the Resistance during World War II.
From place St-Jean, with its huge, 16th-century Gothic cathedral and an astrological clock, take the funicular (6 rue de l’Antiquaille) to the landmark Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière, topped by twin turrets. Also in the old town is the Roman amphitheatre.
Downtown, the grandiose place Bellecour, with its equestrian statue of Louis XIV, is the hub of smart Lyon, with large apartments and elegant shops. Beside the Hôtel de Ville, the Opéra National de Lyon (1 place de la Comédie, 04 72 00 45 45, www.opera-lyon.org) is an 18th-century building with a glass-roof extension by Jean Nouvel, emitting a purple glow at night.
La Croix-Rousse is the historic centre of Lyon’s silk industry, now crammed with enticing shops and restaurants. The Maison des Canuts (10 rue d’Ivry, 04 78 28 62 04, closed Mon) provides a good introduction to the silk trade.
Across the Rhône, chic shops line the northern end of rue Cours de la Liberté. Nearby, the Institut Lumière (25 rue du Premier Film, 04 78 78 18 95, www.institut-lumiere.org, closed Mon) is in the house where the inventors of film, the brothers Lumière, grew up. It contains a cinema, early cameras and photographs. To the north, the sleek Cité Internationale contains the Musée d’Art Contemporain (81 quai Charles de Gaulle, 04 72 69 17 17, www.moca-lyon.org, closed Mon, Tue).
• Tourist information: place Bellecour (04 72 77 69 69, www.lyon-france.com).
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