“In Paris I eat. In Lyon I savor”, words of Paul Bocuse, the chef of the 20th century, who died on January 20, 2018 at almost 92 years old. Monsieur Paul, as his brigade called him, did not abuse his image, but his charisma traveled the planet without him abandoning his beloved Lyon. Among the signatories of the manifesto that founded nouvelle cuisine in 1973, the chef never fully embraced its principles, faithful to the classic trinity of French gastronomy: butter, cream and wine.
The Auberge du Pont de Collonges, the historic restaurant in Bocuse, has retained (the only case in the world) its three Michelin stars for 55 years, losing them only after the death of its founder. However, even today, many foodies consider it an unavoidable stop to understand the history of French haute cuisine.
Over the years, the Pope of gastronomy opened nine other restaurants in Lyon, in addition to transforming the market that today bears his name, Les Halles-Paul Bocuse. There are 55 merchants and artisans, restaurants and stalls where you can experience a mosaic of local flavors that include oysters, sausages, cheeses, pastries and great wines.
La Cuisine du Marché is, in fact, the title of the French chef's bible, in addition to his greatest teaching. Bocuse personally went to the market every morning, because he said that “it is the market that decides my menus.” Furthermore, he asked himself: “Since when have we forgotten that the best tomatoes are eaten in August, the best cherries in June and that a menu is created by paying attention to the calendar?”
The chef also created a haute cuisine school in his city, and the most important competition for young chefs in the world has been dedicated to him. The influence of Bocuse in what the German writer Curnonsky defined as the "world capital of gastronomy" is evident, but the same can be said of the influence that Lyon and its ancient gastronomic tradition had on Bocuse, heir to six generations of Lyon chefs .
German food critic Jörg Zipprick once said: “Gastronomic culture cannot be measured by the number of excellent restaurants, even though Lyon is very well located. Instead, it is measured through your daily life and, in this, Lyon is number one." To see this, just walk through the cobblestone streets of Vieux Lyon, a neighborhood so photogenic that it deserved UNESCO protection.
The capital of the Rhône-Alpes region is the most Renaissance city in France, where the Florentine influence can be admired in the ancient residences of courtyards crossed by a dense network of traboules, covered passages that can be visited, which allowed silkmakers to take shelter from the frequent rains. In Lyon, both the steep medieval streets and the grand Parisian-style boulevards are dotted with more than 4,000 establishments, including restaurants, bistros and brasseries, the typical bouchons. That's where the local saying comes from: “He who skips a meal is not a Lyonnais!”
Thanks to its geographical position, ancient Lugdunum became the meeting point of various culinary traditions. Today, the second French city, or the third according to interpretations, is one of the cities in the world with the highest density of Michelin restaurants per capita. In addition to Bocuse, it saw the birth of other giants of French gastronomy, such as the pioneer Eugénie Brazier, whose historic restaurant is now in the hands of chef Mathieu Viannay; Christian Tetedoie and Alain Chapel, greatest exponent of nouvelle cuisine and mentor, among others, of Alain Ducasse.
However, the city not only offers good food, but also romantic walks in the shadow of the Fourvière hill and the great church that characterizes it, and paths along the two rivers that cross the city, the Rhône and the Saône. In reality, there is also a third river: the Beaujolais, oenological glory of the region.
In this bonsai-metropolis, proud to be a grand ville de petite taille, nothing is missing: huge squares, luxurious shops and sumptuous buildings, as well as narrow and mysterious alleys full of small shops; But there are also museums with collections surpassed only by the Louvre, and architectural examples of notable value such as the Auditorium Maurice Ravel or the new neighborhood of La Confluence, which even has the oldest Roman ruins in France.
Lyon also enjoys a special connection with cinema. In fact, it is here that the Lumière brothers created their first film in 1895: La Sortie de l'usine Lumière. Thus, it is not surprising that the city hosts the most important festival of lights in Europe. The tradition of La Fête des Lumières has ancient origins dating back to 1643, when the city begged the Virgin Mary to protect it from the plague, and in her name they would build a statue on Fourvière Hill.
Two hundred years later, on September 8, 1852, the statue was expected to be inaugurated, but a flood postponed the celebration until December 8. That morning the city woke up under a strong storm that dissipated in the afternoon as if it were a miracle. To thank the Virgin, the people of Lyon illuminated their windows with thousands of candles, thus the Festival of Lights was born. Today, the tradition is maintained by placing candles on the windowsills on the night of December 8, while squares, streets and buildings come alive with visual, musical and light shows.
The festival extends throughout the city, this year it featured 32 works by different artists. Giant soap bubbles, swirls of lights, walks between planets, flowers that warm up at nightfall and plants that light up thanks to a fluorescent serum, a fantastic atmosphere, worthy of the imagination of another illustrious Lyonnais, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry , the father of The Little Prince. The art and poetry of light manage to highlight the extraordinary architectural heritage of the city.
Over the course of four evenings, which in Spain coincide with the Purísima bridge, Lyon is transformed into the true Ville Lumière of France capable of attracting, each year, some two million visitors who stroll through the facilities with a plate of raclette and a glass of vin chaud in hands. For those looking for a city where they can fall in love and taste delicious food, Lyon is just five hours by train from Barcelona.
