Cathedral St. Jean, Lyon

Advantages: Wonderful city
Disadvantages: Pollution

...Introduction As some of you may or may not know, as part of my degree, I study an element of French language in preparation for the third year I will spend in France next year. My likely destination is Lyon and as such I decided it would be worth taking a trip to Lyon to explore what the city had to offer and get my bearings a little before I actually attended the university next year. Lyon is situated in the Rhone- Alpes region of France, which lies in the east close to the Swiss border. It is surrounded, unsurprisingly, by the Alps and is not very far away in fact from Europe's biggest mountain, Mont Blanc. It is in fact France's second biggest city residing close to St. Etienne and Geneva (in Switzerland). So I and my fiancée (who will also join me in Lyon next year) took a visit to the place. How to get there The easiest way... Read review

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Advantages: A LOT OF CURIOSITIES TO DISCOVER
Disadvantages: TRAFFIC JAM IN SUMMER

...quarter, the district of “ST JEAN and GEORGES “ patrimony of the world by UNESCO. THE GEATEST Renaissance houses with cobbled pavements in EUROPE. You can enjoy many restaurants and dancing. Lyon is also a futuristic city with many technopoles of scientific research, education and industry. The challenge involves the goal to become an eurocity like BIRMINGHAM, MILAN, FRANKFURT, BARCELONA or GENEVA and also a great financial market (during Renaissance LYON was the first town in Europe to issue drafts). Don’t leave before tasting the specialities, which enrich of our local tradition, silk, scarf or confectionery; it has been a great industry during the last XIX Th. century. On the top of the hill, a golden virgin who protected LYON AGAINST the plague is a symbol for all the inhabitants. Every 8 of December, millions of lights glitter... Read review

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Advantages: History, culture and good food
Disadvantages: Industrial backdrop

...Lyon has long suffered being the second largest city in France, continuously having to compete with the illustrious Paris. Be warned, first impressions of Lyon are not to be trusted - the abundance of factories, (the chemical corridor,) the long, intertwined motorways full of traffic and the overbearing greyness of the buildings - give yourself a chance to discover the real heart of this city. The 'Old Town' lies in the centre of the city, and here you will find winding, narrow streets leading you to a splendid collection of Rennaissance buildings - long since demolished in other parts of France. The landscape is really impressive, for those of you who know Paris, imagine St Germain with the terrain of Montmartre. To the west there is a stunning Gallo-Roman theatre overlooking the Saone, the city also boasts an opera house built in 1831... Read review

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