We are in Lyon, France! We arrived by train from Marseille. It was a high speed train and that is good but it was the most crowded train we have been on in Europe! We booked two seats (not all trains need a seat reservation but for some high speed trains it is required and for other high speed trains it is necessary if you want to not stand the whole time). We were in a quad section with another couple across from us and there was a table in the middle. We tried to put James under the table but it was TIGHT. And there were people standing in the aisles so James couldn’t sleep in the aisle. And it was rainy – so rainy. When we arrived in Lyon we decided to get an Uber because it was so rainy and it was going to be a 40 minute walk to our apartment with luggage and a Poodle in the rain. We were standing in the rain when our first Uber arrived. They took one look at all of us (and wet James) and said no. So we called another Uber. They also said no. Finally, we grabbed a cab and he was okay with a wet American couple and a wet Poodle – but James did have to go in the back of his hatchback with the luggage! I was so afraid the back of the car would pop open and James would fall out so I held on to him tight from my back seat.
When we arrived at our Airbnb, no one greeted us. We waited outside in the cold and rain for about an hour when finally someone returned our messages and let us inside. We were cold and wet and decided you will get the Airbnb video tour in a few days!
We think James has a bug in his system (he drank from a public fountain in Aix-en-Provence) and thankfully it didn’t hit him until after the train ride to Lyon. Our apartment is on the 6th floor with no lift and it is sad to see James sit by the door to go outside only to drop his head when he sees he has to go down 6 flights of stairs before he can relieve his frequent diarrhea. Poor guy.
Luckily the couch is comfortable and James has been resting while Chris works:
The rain is clearing and a beautiful spring day is here – this is the view from our bathroom. If you look in the middle of the photo, that is the Tour métallique de Fourvière (Metallic tower of Fourvière) and it is an industrial-style tower, built in 1894 for the Exposition Internationale. I think it looks like the Eiffel Tower. If you look to the right, you can see two teens from our building sitting up on the roof enjoying the weather (they also have McDonald’s food and drinks with them and I just think that is fun!).
A view of the Tour métallique de Fourvière now that the sun is down:
We can also see the La Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière from our kitchen window and it is lit up beautifully at night:
Hopefully James the Poodle feels better tomorrow.