We’re in Lyon to begin this year’s European adventure. The last time we were here, we flew BA through Heathrow, and, as usual, it took a very long time to get through intra-Heathrow security so we could (barely) connect to our flight to Lyon. This time, we flew UA through Frankfurt, and it took nearly two minutes to get through Passport Control, and there was no security check required – it’s as if they trusted the TSA!
I had planned on taking an Uber from LYS (Lyon Airport) to our hotel, the Hotel de Verdun 1882 Best Western, but there were no signs to steer us to the Uber pickup area, and the “typical” price for a taxi was about the same as an Uber, so we hopped into one of the many taxis that were waiting for passengers.
Traffic going into the city was very bad. Lyon was hosting Manchester United in the UEFA Europa Cup quarterfinals this evening, and our route took us past the stadium. And then we hit construction. And more traffic. And more construction.
Our driver’s husband kept calling her asking when she’d be home, and she kept telling him “as soon as I drop my passengers at the Hotel de Verdun” (I paraphrase freely, since I don’t know French but could pick up a few words). It took about 90 minutes, but we did eventually reach the hotel, which is well located with plenty of restaurants within an easy walk.
We were too tired to try to interpret a French menu, so we played it safe and went to Les 9 Lotus, a Vietnamese restaurant with a bilingual menu and an English-speaking owner; it was delicious, fairly inexpensive, and quick…all of which were exactly what we wanted after a long day of travel.
Tomorrow, we plan to visit some sites we missed on our previous trip, like the Musée Lumière, which was under construction then.
Enjoy and safe travels