Swimming and Aqua Activities for adults, children and babies 379 rue Jean-Marie Arnion, 69380 Dommartin Tel: 06 11 88 26 50
What's On in Lyon?
Ahmad Jamal Jazz The jazz player Ahmad Jamal is playing the piano on 29 April, 8.30 p.m., at Théâtre de Vénissieux, 8 Boulevard Laurent Gerin. For all the lovers of jazz music.
Artist Ben The Modern Art Museum of Lyon presents Ben Vautier's main artworks from March 3 to July 11, quai Charles de Gaulle
69006 Lyon, 04 72 69 17 17.
Concerts Alpha Blondy, the king of reggae, 2 April- 8.00 p.m, at Espace Double Mixte, 19 rue Gaston Berger, 69001, Villeurbanne.
Tokio Hotel, rock pop indie, 18 March, Halle Tony Garnier, 69007, Lyon.
Medrano Circus Entertaining shows for children will take place at Medrano Circus near Perrache railway station.
for a cultural exchange between the French and the Japanese communities.
City Guide to Lyon, France an in-depth Lyon city guide featuring information about Lyon tourist attractions, sightseeing, where to stay, what to eat, and other useful Lyon, France travel tips.
Contact Expats Contact expats worldwide through their network
for people choosing a new life in a foreign country
Dreamkaravan This blog is a very original travel in the world of beauty and wonder by a very talented local writer
Expat.org Portail de la mobilité internationale et de l'expatriation
Lucie Aubrac (1912-2007) was one of the most famous woman who played a very important role in the French Resistance during the Second World War in Lyon.
With her husband Raymond Aubrac she joined the Libération-Sud resistant group in Lyonand then ran the underground paper Libération in 1941.
Her husband was arrested by the Gestapo in 1943 and sent with the famous French resistant Jean Moulin to the Montluc prison located in Lyon.
Lucie Aubrac managed to convince Klaus Barbie, the Gestapo’s chief, to allow Raymond Aubrac, the father of her child, to get married with her before he was executed. During his transportation to the German command, the French resistants managed to release him with the 13 other members of the French Resistance. The Aubrac left for London and their daughter became De Gaulle’s goddaughter.
As a history teacher, Lucie Aubrac was always active in the campaign for the human rights. The film Lucie Aubrac, released in 1997, shows her husband’s escape and her role in the French resistance in Lyon. Her role was played by the very popular actress Carole Bouquet.
Home Attitudes is a property search consultancy in the beautiful Beaujolais region near Lyon and the South Burgundy. With many years of experience and a perfect knowledge of the region, the agency can help you buy the most suitable property for you.
Situated between Burgundy to the North and Lyon to South, the Beaujolais offers a panorama of spectacular rolling countryside, with vines to the east and massive fir tree forests to the west; not to mention the striking ‘Golden Stone Region’ to the South, fittingly a likened to Tuscany.
Home Attitudes helps you find your property according to your requirements. The agency also organizes a discovery tour of the Beaujolais region so that you can see by yourself your future home region and get all the local information you need.
At Home Attitudes, the property search services fees are absolutely free.
In addition, Home Attitudes helps you move in your new home region by giving you legal and financial assistance. The agency provides you a relocation package (connecting water, electricity, internet…, recommending builders and surveying renovation work etc) and gives you all the advice you need to succeed in living your new expat’s life. These services are submitted to a written estimate.
Do not hesitate to contact Home Attitudes if you want to find the best place to live in the beautiful Beaujolais region.
The French agricultural industry is in danger, although it is considered as one of the best in Europe. What about the Rhone-Alps region?
France is the leading country of European agriculture and the second exporter in the world after the United States. French agriculture is based on farms and produces beef, wine, poultry and cereals, but also milk and sugar beet with Germany.
Contrary to most countries, France has implemented a controlled property market since 1958 as land and rural properties cannot be purchased freely. This structure control ensures that the young farmers can find properties more easily or enlarge their agricultural surface areas, but it also supports the operations of agriculturists with several jobs.
Agriculture covers 51 % of the total surface area in France and 60 % farms produce milk, beef, wine and major crops. The land prices go from over 6000 €/ha in the South and less than 3000 €/ha in the central regions of France.
To become a professional farmer, the candidates for installation grants must obtain the agricultural skill qualifications, especially technical knowledge, economic and management skills.
The French agriculture has always played a very important role in France’s economics as its contribution to GDP is one and a half times that of the car industry and that of the food industries.
One French person in four lives in the countryside and the average size of the professional farms is 70 ha.
The Rhone-Alps region is the 10th agricultural area in Europe and the second largest one in France. 51 % of the professional farms are located in the mountain regions, which represents a real economic advantage for the touristic activities. The agricultural farms in the region produce beef, pork meats, cheese and wine. However, the region’s production is very popular for its diversity and quality as the average size of the farms is smaller than in the other French regions.
In addition, the farmers produce the local products that are part of the culinary and gastronomic traditions, especially the AOC wines and cheeses.
The number of agricultural areas decreases whereas the urban areas are developing in the Rhone region. But the Savoie, the Haute-Savoie and the Drome regions have large agricultural farms that offer a large selection of local and high-quality products.
Today, the French agricultural industry faces an incredible crisis. The milk producers were on strike in Lyon on January 17 as the URCVL, the organization in charge of collecting and selling the milk production in the Rhone-Alps and the Haute-Loire regions cannot cope with the financial crisis anymore. The milk production has been in danger in the European Union as the equality of the farmers between the European members does not exist. Of course, the milk production quotas should be reduced as long as the dairy market is not fully stabilized in order to balance out supply and demand.
Yet, the prices the milk producers are paid for their produce do not cover the costs. The local milk producers want a base price system and a monitoring agency in Europe.
With over 1, 000 exhibitors and 3,500 animals exhibited in Paris, the annual agricultural fair or the “largest farm in France” presented the French local products and animals of all the French regions, despite the distress of the French farmers. The visitors could see all the diversity of the French agricultural traditions and taste some of the best local products.
A lot of the Lyonnais people are convinced that the agricultural industry of the Rhône-Alps region highly contributes to the economic development of their region and has a direct impact on tourism. More and more local farmers try to produce biological products and organize visits on their farms to adapt to the tourists’ expectations, who do not want to be merely consumers anymore.
The Frog Legs (cuisses de grenouille)are a very traditional recipe of France. They are very popular in the region of the Dombes in the North East of Lyon. They are usually prepared with butter (beurre), garlic (ail) and sparsely sauce (sauce persillée). The French really appreciate their mild flavor that tastes like chicken wings (ailes de poulet).
What is more, the frog legs are often associated with the French cuisine as the English nickname for the French is “Frogs” or "Frog eaters" (mangeurs de grenouille). If the frog legs are mainly eaten in France and in China, they are also eaten in India or in the United States, particularly in the state of Louisiana where they are either fried or grilled.
The most famous recipe of Lyon to cook the frog legs is the Cuisses de grenouilles sautées à la persillade (Frog Legs sautéed in garlic butter):
4 people
Ingredients:
40 frog legs
1 tablespoon flour
200 grams onions
50 grams butter
Salt, pepper and parsley
1. Roll the frog legs in the flour.
2. Sauté the legs and the minced onions in hot butter.
Season with salt and pepper, then stir and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Sprinkle with minced parsley at the last moment.
Serve very hot with a dash of lemon juice.
He is a highly controversial artist who thinks that signing and writing slogans on artworks contributes to the art creation. However, some criticize what they consider to be his lack of respect for the arts standards. They see his work as sensationalism. French local magazine Lyon Capitale calls into question the controversial artist : can we consider Ben as a real artist?. The magazine denounces the selection of Ben in the program of the Modern Art Musem of Lyon. The exhibition could be a way of presenting a highly popular exhibition more money-making as it is more adapted to the public’ expectations.
« le Musée d’art contemporain […] programme une grosse expo populaire, qui “fera de la billetterie”, histoire de remplir un peu les caisses et de programmer le reste du temps des choses plus confidentielles… »
True, Ben Vautier is a very original artist who does not seem to care about the others’ opinion about his art.His official site looks like an incredible bric-à-brac where you have to pick up what you like best.
Whether you like him or not, you know his art since it is part of our everyday life. We can see his slogans and his round writing on many products such as diaries and socks.
Modern art is often seen as a popular art that is not real art. Many modern artists use basic materials to make their artworks. They can use tires or matches to invent a new creation and communicate their vision of the world. Of course, as it is always the case with the modern art, many people do not understand their interpretation of the world and do not consider them as real artists.
Modern art certainly needs more time to be accepted.
However, we should not despise popular art and think only elitist art can be real art. It is no exaggeration to say that art should be understood and appreciated by more and more people since real art is communication.
InterNationsLyon get-together was a real success on February 25th. About 15 nationalities and 60 members took part in the event at the Hilton Lyon Hotel where the staff of the bar was very friendly.
As the Lyon Community is getting bigger, the members of the Inter Nations network are eager to meet every month and welcome the newcomers in a recreational atmosphere. Inter Nationsis an international online community of expatriates who exchange information on expat-specific topics in the World forum or in their town community.
Many members of the Lyon community think it is very important to share their ideas and tips or advice with friends or business contacts on the Internet, but also meet them in fashioned and cosy locations in Lyon. Internations plays a key role as it enables its members to have a first contact, then meet regularly and strengthen their friendship or partnership.
Of course, we can expect the members to be even more next month at the Inter NationsLyon get-together.
The adjective LYONNAIS or its feminine equivalent « lyonnaise » is usually used in expressions that refer to the local information about Lyon and its local people.
The people living in Lyon are called the “Lyonnais”: les “Lyonnais” et les “Lyonnaises”.
In the same way “Parisien” means the people living in Paris and the Londoners or “Londonniens” means the people living in London.
In addition, “Lyonnais” is also included in other expressions that mainly deal with the French gastronomy, sport and banks.
The “Bouchons Lyonnais” are very traditional restaurants in Lyon where you can eat the most famous dishes “à la lyonnaise” like the “andouillette lyonnaise”. The dishes are served in the local style with sauces.
The Crédit Lyonnais is a historic bank that opened in Lyon in 1863 before it was nationalized in 1945 and went bankruptcy in 1993. Today, it is known as LCL.
The international press often talks about the OL or the Olympique Lyonnais or Olympique Lyon, a French football club founded in 1950 in Lyon. They usually play their home-matches at the Gerland stadium (stade de Gerland) that can welcome 41, 044 supporters. The club has already won 4 Coupe de Francetitles and a record seven Trophée des Champions. The club’s nickname, Les Gones, means the kids in the local dialect. The club’s home colors are white, red and blue.
The club is going to change stadium and play in the new 60, 000-seat stadium located in Décines-Charpieu in the suburb of Lyon.
More and more Russians love Lyon and would like to visit our wonderful city. Some of them can speak English or even French.
However, only a few tourist guides are published in Russian. The Russians often need interpreters and translators to visit Europe and France.
Lyon, the second largest city in France should make some effort to integrate the Russians people and help them find information, tips and advice more easily.
Fortunately, a few Russians like Tatiana Klimova who has been living in France for about 5 years, try to share their passions for France with the Russians. She has been writing many interesting articles and blogs in her French and Russian blog of gitane " Veni, Vidi, Vinci".
Here is one example that I have found very beautiful in French and in Russian.
True, the local people of Lyon should work together with the Russians and help them understand the French culture better.
The Atelier Clafoutis welcomes you in a very cozy home kitchen where all the fans of the kitchen can learn how to cook very modern and original recipes.
The bilingual chef Nathalie Guiral will share her passion for food with you as she teaches you how to prepare a large selection of dishes that you can bring home for a very reasonable price.
As a member of the slow-food movementshe defends the local food traditions as she considers that biodiversity for food guarantees tastefully high-quality products and well-being.
In her workshop situated in the center of Lyon, Nathalie Guiral offers adult classes for individuals or private groups as well as classes for children and adolescents in French or in English. The adults can prepare full menus or menus for special events and they can also learn the expertise of pastry cooks whatever their level of cooking. The kids can learn how to cook their favorite recipe and prepare birthday snacks in a very festive atmosphere on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons or during the school holiday sessions.
The Atelier Clafoutis
138 rue Duguesclin, 6ème arrondissement Lyon.
Tel : 06 63 43 15 15
In his brillant article entitled 500-year-old Nostradamus prophecies become first French book to be archived on Google, Graham Smith said, " A sixteenth century edition of predictions by Nostradamus has become the first book from France's vast archive of literature to be digitally preserved by Google.
The collection of prophecies is from a vault containing 500,000 classic French books stored at the Municipal Library of Lyon.
Nostradamus is best known for The Prophecies, the first edition of which appeared in 1555 and has rarely been out of print since his death.
France has a 750million euro (£650million) scheme in place to digitise its libraries and museums."
"... a group of French wine brokers were convicted of selling to E. & J. Gallo 3.57 million gallons of red wine from the Languedoc that it falsely called pinot noir but in fact was made from a much less expensive grape,Some French wine brokers were convicted...", reported Eric Asimov in the New York Times on February 19. Read the article
The French are lazy and unreliable. Many people think the French have too many vacations compared to other countries. They usually have about 8 weeks more of vacations. A lot of French workers have part-time jobs and work 4 days a week depending on their firms. They also have a lot of trouble going to work when the public transport is on strike, which happens regularly . That’s why they are used to staying at home as soon as it is possible, especially when they are said that the weather conditions are going to prevent them from going home after work.
Some could say that the arguments against the French are highly debatable since they are merely stereotypes.
However, the French think that vacation has been a social right since the First World War and they highly respect the men and the women who died to fight for their rights. In other words, they have been used to a system that gives more priority to the rights than to the obligations. They consider flexibility at work, working overtime and money making jobs as the enemies of their system.
True, nobody should accept to work more and earn less money. But, it is hard to see the validity of such a point of view as the young generations will not be able to pay for the retired people. The French know the fact. They do not need economists and experts to tell them about the critical situation that more and more workers and future retired people have been handling. It is illogical to complain about the retirement age extension whilst at the same time having a second job at 70 when you have the bare minimum to live on.
It is clear that the French live in a paradox: they cling to their social rights that have always been the symbol of their victory over the evils of the marketplace. They were certainly right to fight for a better and more egalitarian society as their fight proved to be a symbol of social progress. The fact remains that the reforms that have been implemented so far may be necessary to save the French system. Reforming means that you have to change something from the past to adapt to the new reality. Unfortunately, the French as the Europeans and many countries in the world are facing an incredible financial crisis. So, they should work longer to save the retirement system for example. But, how can you go to work when you are 55 and you have just been fired by your employer who decided to build a new factory in China?
This boils down to saying that the French will have to be lazy and unreliable in the future as they have no choice.
Swimming and Aqua Activities for adults, children and babies
A French Resistant Woman in Lyon
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