Let me tell you about my home town: Lyon. If you're hesitating as to were you want to go for your next holidays, why not consider Lyon? If you're a student who wants to learn the language, Lyon is the perfect place to do so.
It's Location:
Lyon is considered to be the door to the South. Most Europeans, if they have traveled a little bit, have been through Lyon. Perhaps you can remember the horrible traffic jam in the tunnel that crosses the Fourvière hill. Most of you probably just rejoiced when you left the city because you almost suffocated to get through it. Lyon is not just a tunnel and a door to the South. It's a city packed with history, charm and beautiful sites to see. It's also a city that is really well located geographically. It's only two hours away from the beautiful alpine mountains. It's right on the edge of the Beaujolais hills, and only a few hours away from the Massif Central, the volcanic region West of Lyon in the center of France. You're only two hours away from Paris by train and an hour and a half from Marseille. If you don't want to go too far away from the city, you can venture up into the Monts du Lyonnais, picturesque hills right outside of Lyon (on the West side).
The City from West to East
A city that is over two thousand years old previously named Lugdunum by the Romans that first established the city on the Fourvière hills were you can find Roman ruins (the amphi-theatre). Two rivers cross the city: the Rhône and the Saône. The city is the location of their meeting point. As I mentioned already, the Romans established their community on the Fourvière hill (West). You can find the Vieux Lyon neighborhood right at the foot of the hill. This neighborhood goes back to the Renaissance and is the most visited site in Lyon. It is composed of charming narrow streets with cobble stones and many restaurants. You then have the Presqu'île which is the "peninsula" of the town. It's the part of the city which is squeezed between the two rivers. The Romans left their mark on this part of the town but you can mainly see structures dating from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Tourists will enjoy visiting the shops and seeing the squares, especially Bellecour and Terreaux. Much of the nightlife takes place near the Terreaux were many pubs and bars can be found. On the hill north of the Presqu'île, you will enter into the Croix-Rousse. A charming area of the town, which housed the silk sowers (there are few left today). You can also find there an arena were many people were killed for the pleasure of the Roman crouds (esp. Christians). On the eastern side of the Rhône you will find the more recent neighborhoods of Lyon and also the great Parc de la Tête d'Or with it's zoo and rose garden. The Part-Dieu neighborhood houses one of Europe's largest shopping malls. There are many museums: the fine arts museum, the contemporary arts museum, the Résistance and Deportation museum (WW2) to name a few.
Food
Lyon is a great place for eating. There are many specialties such as the Andouillette (porc intestins, it's better than it sounds), the quenelles, cochonailles (porc), cervelle de Canuts (sour cheese cream), bugnes (pastry) etc. etc. etc. The city is still perpetuating the tradition of the cullinary arts. You can't miss the bouchons lyonnais: the traditional restaurants.
Studies
There are four universities that welcome many foreign students. I encourage foreigners to come and study here. I assure you that you will feel very comfortable here. It's not a huge city and you will not feel as lost when you first get here as you would in a large city like Paris. There are many programs for learning French here.
Transportation
Buses, trams, tubes, trains will help you get around town. They are very well developed and cover the whole city.
This is such a brief description of the city but my goal is to give you a foretaste of what you could experience here in Lyon if you come.
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