La Manifestation Francaise- a protest or a parade?

I woke up on Thursday morning, the 29th of January, to megaphones and music as Lyonnais workers led the national protest down my street.

When I hear the word protest, as American I picture a potentially violent event involving the SWAT team. It is something I would not want to be involved with in the States. In France, though, I found it to be something completely different.

As I made my way down the street that morning, I found friendly protesters and families with their babies and children. These public sector workers represented many grievances from politics and education to public transportation. They were holding signs or balloons and singing, chanting, or at the most yelling. Venders were set up on the sidewalk serving sausages and baguettes. It had the energy and excitement of a Mizzou homecoming parade.

Thousands of people in Lyon refused to work on this national day of protest. The city and its people suffered, but the next day life continued whether their needs were met or not. I do not think the strike resolved any grievances but it is apparent that demonstrating gave them a sense of satisfaction and unification as French workers during the unfortunate economic condition of the world.

Kebab Me

A foreigner could easily be convinced that the Kebab is a French tradition. In Lyon there are probably as many Kebab shops as there are patisseries. The Middle Eastern influence in France is definitely transparent in the Kebab fan base and popularity of couscous.

I finally gave in to the greasy rotating hunk of lamb. 

To to tune of the children's song "On top of spaghetti":

On top of some lamb meat, all covered in grease

I poured sauce blanche and some spilled on my feet.

Beautiful. One more time.

Le Marché Français

French people love food. I think that is why they insist on buying the freshest ingredients from their local source at the market. On any given day there is at least one outdoor market bustling in large urban city of Lyon. Endless rows of colorful vegetables and fragrant cheeses can be truly mesmerizing, not to mention mouth-watering. If the market is especially popular, there might be surprises around each corner. At the Place Carnot market on Saturdays, there's a sidewalk where breeders sell puppies. The Square Lumière and Croix-Rousse markets include everything from clothes and shoes, to art and pottery. At one market someone was selling mattresses and showerheads, which I thought was particularly odd.

Buying locally at the market isn't only fresher and environmentally more efficient, but it is generally less expensive than grocery stores. The interactions and discourse at the market is a cultural experience that is equally as important to the French as the food being sold. I think the proximity and abundance of fresh regional produce contributes largely to Lyon's pride in being the Gastronomy Capital of the World.

SOLDES SOLDES SOLDES

January is an especially exciting month in France. January and June are the only months when you can find sales "soldes" in French retail stores. Any other time of the year everything is full price. The soldes season in France is something to definitely take advantage of. With the cost of living so high here, paying full price for clothes can be teeth-grinding. I was able to experience the excitement first hand when I went to Part-Dieu, the local mall in Lyon. People were shopping shoulder-to-shoulder, or baguette-to-baguette, and lines wrapped around the stores. It was especially crowded that day as it was the last Saturday of the sale. The experience was comparable to Boxing Day in the states. I managed to buy a rain jacket, jacket, and nice jeans for under 60 euros total. I was dead tired after navigating through the crowds for a few hours, but it was fun to be part of the semi-annual event.

Pérouges living the Medieval life

Pérouges, France is a tiny and well preserved medieval village about 35 minutes from Lyon by train. It is a very quant place, completely empty on the cold rainy day I visited. Clara and I were literally the only living souls outside that day. In the summer, I hear it is quite the tourist attraction. I was glad to go on a quite day to enjoy the cobblestone streets freshly polished by rain and hear the pitter-patter of raindrops on clay ancient roofs. Inside the 15th century village church, the cold cement walls kept all natural light. The dark medieval feel inside the church was enough to give me the chills. We only stayed half the day, but it was fun to be surrounded by everything medieval- very different from Lyon.