IntrepidFromDC

Not too many bars but they're spaced well. Watched the guy create this sign from scratch while enjoying 4 whiskies, then suggested he should replace all the euro pricing with $ because the pic is going on cruisecritic.

Meandering to the hotel I found a place I remembered from TripAdvisor for lunch. It was good, far from great.

Once again I found a hotel with great basics (bed and shower) thanks to TripAdvisor and great location for $90 or less per night.

Small town train stations between Lyon and Avignon, and Gare (train station) Avignon. The train from Lyon to Avignon hugs and criss-crosses The Rhone and at times the river looks more like a tidal bay.

Avignon is a preserved walled city. For most of the 14th century, the Pope lived here instead of the Vatican, mostly for political reasons as the French King had power and Rome didn't. The beautiful palace that looks like a cathedral is the papal palace. 7 popes resided here before the papal residence returned to Rome.

And one not so great...

12 typical sights on the train from Lyon to Avignon...

I really missed some amazing pics of the French countryside from Paris to Dijon and Dijon to Lyon, sorry. Here's some good ones from today...

Remy! It's you!

Which reminds me, there was a yellow building with faux windows I shared a photo of today. The story told by our fantastic walking tour guide was that one of the King Louie's decided to tax properties based on window count, so homeowners began filling in windows with stone and builders built homes without windows on entire exterior walls like the pic of the yellow building with mural windows. Remember the movie Ratatouille? The famous French chef from Lyon named Paul xxxxx refused to open a restaurant in Paris because of his pride, but the year after he died in 2018, his son saw the kerching on the wall and opened a restaurant in Paris. The chef, Paul is featured in the a mural bottom right of building. Also see the Lumeiere brothers and other famous from Lyon.

To me the biggest difference was the preparation and sauces. Last night's duck was delicious, but tonight's duck tartare was moreso. Last night's duck liver was amazing! Tonight's monkfish and the avocado cream were WOW. Last night's restaurant was in the middle of charming Vieux Lyon, tonight's venue out of the way, darkened streets. But the asparagus tonight tasted no better than what I enjoy back home. So far, the dish I keep thinking back to is the asparagus starter I had my Montmartre day. But overall Lyon experience was on par or slightly better than Paris.

I had to Google Bellecour because nobody on any tour mentioned it, but it is actually about 6 blocks from the busy nightlife area. Dates back to Roman Empire when it was used for military purposes according to wikipedia. First pic is the Bellecour subway stop.

Oops. Wrong pics...

Bittersweet last meal in Lyon.

Oooo so close but it's bourbon.

My hotel and most of the history in Lyon is west of the Rhone River, either in Vieux Lyon (medieval part west of both rivers) or the peninsula between the rivers. Lunch at Agastache was my first time east of The Rhone since getting off the train. These pics are from walking from Agastache to my hotel, including crossing The Rhone. All the other river photos were from the smaller river west of The Rhone. Kids learning lacrosse in the schoolyard.

Not sure why, but I didn't get the Plat/Diam email reminder from Carnival 16 days ahead of time so I just logged in 13 days prior to embarkation and earliest available was 12 noon. Next they'll have me rowing with steerage if I don't stay more alert, I signed up for text messages.

LOL, stairs to the left of me, just outside the pic.

I think I walked about 6 or 7 miles between yesterday and today in Lyon, and I still have a one-mile walk across the Rhone River back to the hotel. A double cappuccino is needed! Tomorrow morning I have an early train to Avignon for two more glorious, culture-rich days as I count down the days until Carnival FUN!

Lunch was a 5-course tasting menu from Agastache, the #1 rated and Michelin starred restaurant in the heart of Lyon, the gastronomic capital of France. I tried to make a reservation for dinner three months ago, but alas, only lunch was available. All five courses were, of course, SUPERB, but the Dorado and the arugula sorbet stole the show for me. Highly recommend!

Statue of Liberty!

My walking tour today was SUPERB! The medieval well in the courtyard tells us it is wealthy community. Less affluent would have to go to the river for water. Photo of our great tourguide. The fountain by Bartholdi has an interesting history and is his second-most famous sculpture. His first famous? Guesses?

Dijon was charming and I'm glad I visited. One day is enough to see the entire town with some depth. Not on my list of "return-to" places, but Lyon is!

So generously magniloquent of you, Emperor Highness.😁 🏴‍☠️