Lyon is a city in the Rhone-Alpes region of France. Lyon is the third-largest city in France after Paris and Marseille, but Greater Lyon (Lyon and its suburbs) is the second-largest urban area in France, being slightly larger than that of Marseille.
Understand
Lyon is a city rich in history, from Roman times to the Resistance. It is also renowned for its gastronomy.
The city is based around two hills and two rivers. In the west is the hill of Fourvi猫re, topped by the prominent 19th Century basilica and in the north, the hill of the Croix Rousse, where silk weavers used to work.
The Sa么ne river cuts through the two hills and is met at the southern point of the city by the Rh么ne river, coming from the east.
The city is divided into 9 districts or 'arrondissejfkdsfsdkfhkments':
The 1st and 2nd arrondissements cover the area between the Rh么ne and the Sa么ne (the Presqu'卯le), including the slopes of the Croix Rousse hill. It is an area where you will find many bars, restaurants, Lyon's opera house, and interesting pedestrian shopping streets.
The 3rd, 6th and 7th arrondissements are to the East of the Rh么ne.
The 4th arrondissement includes the Croix Rousse plateau
The 5th arrondissement includes the hill of Fourvi猫re and the old city
The 8th arrondissement is to the south east
The 9th arrondissement is in the north west.
Get in
By plane
The Saint-Exup茅ry airport (old name: Satolas), 25 km west of Lyon, is linked to the main cities of France and the world. The Satobus service will take you by bus from the airport to central Lyon in 30-50 minutes and cost around 8鈧. Taxis to Lyon from the airport cost around 75鈧.
By train
Lyon has four train stations:
Lyon is linked by TGV (fast trains) to Paris (2 hours) and Marseille (2 hours).
By car
Lyon is a major automotive hub:
Get around
By bus, tram, subway or bicycle
Lyon's public transport, TCL, consists of an extensive network of buses, subway (4 lines, 38 stations) and tramway (3 lines, 62 stations). The metro is efficient, relatively inexpensive, and by far the best way to easily move around.
Lyon has also 2 cable-car lines. These are accessible from the Vieux Lyon metro station and provide access to the Roman theatres and Basilica respectively.
Since May 2005, Lyon also has a public bicycle service which allows travellers, after registering a credit card, to pick up and drop cycles to and from points around the city. You may need a credit card (Visa/MC/French CB) to make use of the service. The prices are very cheap: 1 euro for the "velo'v" card, then 2 euros per hour of use, with the first half hour of each use free. Check that the bike you want is OK or you could have bad surprises.
Note that the system only works with a French credit/debit card. Otherwise the transaction is aborted, no explanations given on the terminal.
By car
Traffic is dense. Avoid driving within the city if you can. The minimum age to rent a car is 21 and an additional charge may be required for drivers under 25 years old. There are car hire places at the major stations. Best to hire from Part-Dieu, as the subsequent navigation is much easier. For the city center look for sights "Presqu'卯le"
See
Lyon has many monuments and museums.
Do
Learn
Lyon is an important university center. French language courses are available at Inflexyon,
Alliance Francaise, Lyon-Bleu, Ecole Interculturelle de Francais. If you look for an immersion programme, you can have a look at ESL schools groups Learn French in Lyon with ESL
Work
Money can be made by giving private English lessons. Most French are keen to speak English. There are some schools which accept non TEFL qualified teachers but obviously a qualification helps. Try Berlitz or Demos. Often a lot of hours and sometimes travelling for not a great reward. There are several anglophone pubs which rely on student servers. Speaking French to a reasonable level is a must, even though bar vocabulary is limited.
There is an ANPE next to the Opera on Rue de la Republique. Just go in, you don't have to book and there are lots of job vacancies to be found. Also search for a shelf with black folders on it. They contain details of better paid jobs
Buy
'La Part-Dieu' is the biggest shopping mall in France.
Rue de la R茅publique, wide pedestrian street north of Bellecour
Eat
In the traditional bouchons lyonnais you can usually eat and drink at a good price. Restaurants have their menus with prices displayed outside. The region around Lyon is generally considered to have some of the best food in all of France. For vegetarians, though, the choice might be limited.
Budget
Mid-range
Splurge
Drink
Lyon offers some nice nightlife. A good starting point is Place des Terreaux and then upwards towards the Croix Rousse. In the streets that climb the hill there are many nice places.
"The New Albion", Rue St. Catherine. Scottish pub with the best quiz in Lyon every Monday. Music quiz every other Wednesday. Student friendly! Live music most weekends. www.albionlyon.com
At the quai Albert Augagneur is another centre of Lyon nightlife. Along the Rhone river are several out of duty riverboats (p茅niches) that serve as nightclubs or bars.
Sleep
Budget
Mid-range
Splurge
Contact
Most of cybercafes and call shops are in the district of Guilloti猫re, because of the large population of immigrants living there but you will also find cybercafes in the center.
Stay safe
Real security problems in the Lyon center are rare, but as in any big city, be on your guard. Pay attention to your surroundings, try not to go out at night alone, etc.
Get out
Lyon (former names include Lugdunum and Lyons), pronounced in French, is a city in east central France. The third largest French city, it is a major centre of business, situated between Paris and Marseille, and has a reputation as the French capital of gastronomy and a significant role in the history of cinema.
Together with its suburbs and satellite towns, Lyon forms the second largest metropolitan area in France after Paris, with 1,648,216 inhabitants at the 1999 census, and approximately the 20th to 25th largest metropolitan area of Western Europe.
Lyon is the pr茅fecture (capital) of the Rh么ne d茅partement, and also the capital of the Rh么ne-Alpes r茅gion.
The city gave its name to the Lyonnais province, of which it was the capital. Today the region around Lyon is still known as Lyonnais (French: le Lyonnais), or sometimes even as the Lyonnaise Region (French: R茅gion Lyonnaise). Lyonnaise Region is an unofficial, popular name, not to be confused with the administrative r茅gion of Rh么ne-Alpes, which is much larger than the Lyonnaise Region.
Lyon is known as the silk capital of the world and is known for its silk and textiles and is a center for fashion.
Lyon is also the international headquarters of Interpol and EuroNews.
Geography
Lyon's geography is dominated by the Rh么ne and Sa么ne rivers which converge to the south of the historic city centre forming a sort of peninsula or "presqu'卯le"; two large hills, one to the west and one to the north of the historic city centre; and a large plain which sprawls eastward from the historic city centre.
To the west is Fourvi猫re, known as "the hill that prays", the location for the highly decorated Notre-Dame de Fourvi猫re basilica, several convents, the palace of the Archbishop, the Tour m茅tallique (a highly visible TV tower, replicating the last stage of the Eiffel Tower) and a funicular.
To the north is the Croix-Rousse, "the hill that works", traditionally home to many small silk workshops, an industry for which the city was renowned.
The original medieval city (Vieux Lyon) was built on the west bank of the Sa么ne river at the foot of the Fourvi猫re hill, west of the presqu'卯le. (This area, along with portions of the presqu'ile and much of the Croix-Rousse are recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, see below.)
On the peninsula (presqu'ile) between the rivers Rh么ne and Sa么ne is located the third largest public square in France, and one of the largest in Europe, the Place Bellecour. Specifically, it is the largest clear square (i.e., without any patches of greenery, trees or any other kind of obstacles) in Europe. The broad, pedestrian-only Rue de la R茅publique leads north from Place Bellecour
East of the Rh么ne from the presqu'ile is a large area of flat ground upon which sits much of modern Lyon and most of the city's population.
Situated in this area is the urban center of Part-Dieu which clusters the former Credit Lyonnais Tower (central France's only skyscraper), the Part-Dieu shopping centre, and Lyon's main rail terminal, Lyon Part-Dieu.
North of this district is the relatively wealthy sixth arrondissement which is home to the Parc de la T锚te d'Or, one of Europe's largest urban parks, and Interpol's headquarters.
Administration
Lyon is the capital of the Rh么ne-Alpes r茅gion, the pr茅fecture of the Rh么ne d茅partement, and the capital of 14 cantons, covering 1 commune, and with a total population of 445,452 (1999).
Arrondissements
:Main article: Arrondissements of Lyon
Similarly to Marseille and Paris, Lyon is divided into 9 municipal arrondissements (often translated into English as borough), referred to by number. The arrondissements were originally created in 1852 when a number of surrounding communes (Croix-Rousse, Guilloti猫re, and Vaise) were annexed to Lyon. In 1963 Lyon annexed the commune of Saint-Rambert-l'脦le-Barbe, and in 1964 the 9th arrondissement of Lyon was created as a result of the annexation, thus reaching a total of nine arrondissements, which are still the arrondissements found in Lyon today. Within each arrondissement, there are a number of recognisable "quartiers" or neighborhoods:
History
:Main article for early history: Lugdunum.
Lyon was founded as a Roman colony in 43 BCE by Munatius Plancus, a lieutenant of Caesar, on the site of a Gaulish hill-fort settlement called Lugdunon—from the Celtic sun god Lugus ('Light', cognate to Old Irish Lugh, Modern Irish L煤) and d煤non (hill-fort). Lyon was first named Lughunum meaning the "hill of lights" or "the hill of crows". Lug was equated by the Romans to Mercurius. Lug's 'totem' was a cockerel (rooster), hence the Modern French association with 'le coq'.
The three parts of Gaul mentioned by Caesar met at Lyon. Agrippa recognized that Lugdunum's position on the natural highway from northern to south-eastern France made it a natural communications hub, and he made Lyon the starting point of the principal Roman roads throughout Gaul. It then became the capital of Gaul, partly thanks to its fortunate site at the convergence of two navigable rivers, and quickly became the main city of Gaul. Two emperors were born in this city: Claudius and Caracalla. Today the archbishop of Lyon is still referred to as "le primat des Gaules".
The Christians in Lyon were persecuted for their religious views under the reigns of the Roman emperors Marcus Aurelius and Septimus Severus. These included saints such as Blandina (Blandine), Pothinus, and Epipodius, among others.
The great Christian bishop of Lyon in the 2nd century was the Easterner Irenaeus.
Burgundian refugees from the destruction of Worms by Huns in 437 were resettled by the military commander of the west, A毛tius, at Lugdunum, which was formally the capital of the new Burgundian kingdom by 461.
In 843, by the Treaty of Verdun, Lyon, with the country beyond the Sa么ne, went to Lothair I.
Fernand Braudel remarked, "Historians of Lyon are not sufficiently aware of the bi-polarity between Paris and Lyon, which is a constant structure in French development" from the late Middle Ages to the Industrial Revolution (Braudel 1984 p. 327). The fairs in Lyon, the invention of Italian merchants, made it the economic countinghouse of France in the late 15th century. When international banking moved to Genoa, then Amsterdam, Lyon simply became the banking center of France; its new Bourse (treasury), built in 1749, still resembled a public bazaar where accounts were settled in the open air. During the Renaissance, the city developed with the silk trade, especially with Italy; the Italian influence on Lyon's architecture can still be seen. Thanks to the silk trade, Lyon became an important industrial town during the 19th century.
Lyon was a scene of mass violence against Huguenots in the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacres in 1572.
The silk workers of Lyon, known as canuts, staged two major uprisings: in 1831 and 1834. The 1831 uprising saw one of the first recorded uses of the black flag as an emblem of protest.
Lyon was a center for the occupying German forces and also a stronghold of resistance during World War II, and the town is now home to a resistance museum. (See also Klaus Barbie.) The traboules, or secret passages, through the houses enabled the local people to escape Gestapo raids.
Culture
As early as the 13th century, the Arpitans, residents of the region spoke a dialect of the Arpitan (often called the Franco-Proven莽al language too). This Lyonnais dialect was replaced by the French language as the importance of the city grew. Lyon was an early center for printing books, and nurtured a circle of 16th century poets. For several centuries Lyon and its bouchons have been known as the capital of gastronomy, fine handweaving, and the silk trade. The Lumi猫re brothers invented cinema in the town in 1895. December 8 each year is marked by "la F锚te des lumi猫res" (the Festival of Lights), a celebration of thanks to the Virgin Mary, who purportedly saved the city from a deadly plague in the Middle Ages. During the event, the local population places candles in their windows and the city of Lyon organizes and projects impressive large-scale light shows onto the sides of important Lyonnais monuments, such as the mediaeval Cath茅dral St-Jean. The church of Saint Francis of Sales is famous for its large and unaltered Cavaill茅-Coll pipe organ, attracting audiences from around the world.
Two of France's best known wine-growing regions are located near Lyon: the Beaujolais to the North, and the C么tes du Rh么ne to the South.
Lyon also features a renowned opera house.
UNESCO World Heritage Site
The Saint-Jean and the Croix-Rousse areas, which are noted for their narrow passageways (traboules) that pass through buildings and link the streets either side, were designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1998.
Colleges and universities
International schools in Lyon
There are several international schools in Lyon, including:
Main sights
Transport
Air
Saint-Exup茅ry International Airport is located 20 km to the east of Lyon, and serves as a base for regional and international flights.
Rail
Lyon is connected to the north (Lille, Paris) and the south (Marseille, Montpellier) by the TGV. It was the first city to be connected by the TGV c. 1982.
Lyon has two major train stations: Lyon-Part-Dieu, which was built to accommodate the TGV and has become the principal train station for extra-regional trains; whereas Lyon-Perrache is an older station that now primarily serves regional rail transport. In practice, many trains, including TGVs, serve both stations. Smaller train stations include Gorge de Loup, Vaise, Venissieux and Saint-Paul.
Lyon Saint-Exup茅ry International Airport is also directly connected to the TGV with its own station.
Road
The City is at the heart of a dense road network and is the joing point of several motorways: A6 (to Paris), A7 (to Marseille), A42 (to Geneve), A43 (Grenoble). The city is now bypassed by the A46.
Intercity coach
Lyon is served by the Eurolines intercity coach organisation. Its Lyon terminal is located at the Lyon-Perrache train station.
Public transport
The TCL (French: Transports en Commun Lyonnais), Lyon's public transport system, consisting of metros, buses and trams, serves 62 communes of the Lyon agglomeration. The metro system has 4 lines, 38 stations and runs with a frequency of up to a metro every 2 minutes. The bus system consists of normal buses, trolleybuses and coaches for areas outside the centre, but which operate on the same ticketing scheme. There are three tram lines since December 2006: T1 from from Montrochet in the south to IUT-Fessine in the north, Tram T2 from Perrache station in the southwest to Saint-Priest in the southeast, and Tram T3 from Part-Dieu to Meyzieu.
The public transit system is complemented by V茅lo'v, a bicycle network providing a low cost and convenient bicycle hire service where bicycles can be hired and dropped off at any of several hundred stations throughout the city.
Miscellaneous
Born in Lyon
The long list of notable native Lyonnais includes:
Sport
Lyon is home to Ligue 1 Football team Olympique Lyonnais, commonly known as Lyon or OL. The team has enjoyed unprecedented success recently, winning the last six national titles and establishing themselves as France's premier Football club. The captain of the side, Juninho Pernambucano is one of several Brazilians at Lyon, and he has received many awards while leading his team to unrivalled success. The team competes in the prestigious UEFA Champions League and plays at the impressive Stade de Gerland, where the Danone Nations Cup is held every year. Lyon also has a rugby union team, Lyon OU, currently playing in division 2, Rugby Pro D2. In Addition Lyon has a Rugby 脿 Treize side. Lyon Villeurbanne Rh么ne 脿 XIIIL are a Rugby League club in the French rugby league championship the club currently plays out of Stade George Lyvet in Villeurbanne.
Twin cities
Lyon is twinned with:
Cultural references
External links
