DES VACANCES EN FRANCE: PARTIE SIX

DES VACANCES EN FRANCE: PARTIE SIX / HOLIDAYS IN FRANCE: PART SIX

One Hotel Room at a Time

Finding our way to Lyon is easy with Justin’s new best lady friend, the sat navigator. However, what it doesn't count on, nor let us know is our hotel is in the middle of the city; no, not just in the middle of the city, in the middle of the city mall. After circling the block over and over we decide our best course of action is for Justin to jump out with the luggage and go check in, while I continue to circle the city. I circle and circle the block; the locals must pick the crazy tourist, until Justin comes back to the car.

Finally after picking up Justin and lining up for a car park for almost an hour, we walk back to the hotel. Justin and I are starving so the plan was to drop off the rest of our stuff and go in search of food. But once inside our hotel room Jarvis changes the plans. Our little man takes his first steps, without holding onto anything. So we just sit and watch Jarvis walk. I feel so sad and so proud.

Once in the mall we opt for snacks now and an early dinner later. I am becoming addicted to crepes and hot chocolates. We also do our first shopping, a new pair of boots for Jarvis. In the week since we have left Brisbane his old boots have gotten too small and we figure to celebrate him walking Jarvis needs a stylish pair of French boots.

Lyon is shaped by its two rivers, the Rhône, to the East, and the Saône, to the West, which both run North-South. Our destination after leaving the mall is Vieux Lyon (Old Lyon) the Renaissance area, which is along the right bank of the Saône. On the way we pass another great French children’s park. Laughter and chatter permeates the air as these parks are filled with children and their parents, Jarvis loves them, he spends as much time socialising as he does playing.

Wandering through Viex Lyon is hard with the stroller; it is packed full of people, and cobblestones makes the stroller virtually impossible to push. Out comes the baby sling. Not only am I lugging a heavy child, Jarvis is now swinging and kicking his new boots into my thighs as I walk. Why did we buy him such chunky boots?

After wandering for a bit and stopping to take photos, (a giant Lion in Lyon) we find a great place for dinner; child friendly and the waiter chats away to us in English and is super friendly, even posing for photos with Jarvis. Added bonus is the meal is delicious.

Stuffed and feeling content we slowly walk back to the hotel only to end up smack bang in the middle of Lyon’s 2012 Zombie walk. Taking photos, with a baby in a sling, in the middle of over 1000 marching zombies is crazy, but we make it back to our hotel with only a small smattering of fake blood.

In bed that night both Justin and I remark on the same thing, since being in France we have felt no one has questioned our relationship. No one has given us the weird looks and the second glances that are all so familiar where ever we go in Australia. Even more so in Lyon, no one cares we are a mixed race couple, no one cares that in our relationship there is a significant age difference, and no one cares that it is me, the female that is older. Thank you France for not questioning our relationship.