Lyon sits where two rivers — the Rhone and the Soane — meet.  Apparently, there have been settlements here since B.C. days (to be precise, since 43 B.C. according to wiki).  These days, it is the third largest city in France.  We spent just a few days there, and it was rainy for about half of our visit so we didn’t see nearly as much as we would have liked to have seen.

Pretty river view near our hotel in Lyon.

The old part of town is full of narrow, cobblestone streets and is absolutely beautiful.  We spent hours wandering the streets, peering into boulangieries and patisseries. and drinking coffee and hot chocolate.  And, of course, we wandered by the Cathedral.  I mean, it is kind of obligatory in Europe, right?  The Cathedral in Lyon was completed back in the 1400’s.  It wasn’t all that impressive from the outside, but it was actually pretty impressive on the inside.

Cathedral St. Jean-Baptiste-de-Lyon.

We wandered around the ruins of two Roman Amphitheaters.  And, they are even free to visit!  They also make a pleasant place to sit and enjoy the view on a nice day.

The bigger of the two ruins in Lyon.

We even went to the Basilica (and neither of us got struck my lightening…).  It is pretty new as those things go, and was completed in 1884.  It was beautiful inside, but the outside views were better from a distance than from up close.  Thankfully, there is a funicular so we didn’t have to climb up the hill.

Basilica de Notre-Dame de Fourviere.

We also wandered around enjoying the numerous murals found in Lyon.  I’m not sure you would call this street art, but entire buildings are painted with murals.  Some of them were pretty cool.

One of the murals near our hotel.

They also have this pretty cool flower tree.  I bet it would be stunning on a bright and sunny day….

Flower tree in Lyon.