Our Famous Home Away from Home

Hey everyone!

Something to mark in your calender;

Our little Lyon is going to be featured THIS SUNDAY APRIL 27th on CNN on Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown @ 9PM. Here he is pictured below with Paul Bocuse, Lyon's famous chef who's restaurants many of us have now dined at!

Here's a link to a preview of the episode; LINK

We'll be watching!

THANKS

Joel & Amy

Making My Way Home...

Sooo...this is embarrassing! I have been surprisingly busy the last few weeks since I've left Lyon and have not had a chance to post anything new. Though, since I am home now, I am able to give face to face updates, which are the best kind!

BUT lets rewind a few weeks to March 25th when I started making my way back to the real world.

I decided to discover one final destination before landing in Toronto on March 28th. AND since Iceland Air offers a deal for those who want to extend their layover in Reykjavik, I thought Iceland would be a great choice.

I booked a lovely room in a guest-house right in the heart of the little region of Reykjavik. I spent three days wandering through the cute little town, browsing the expensive wool shops and enjoying the mountain over ocean views. It really was an amazing place to see, I have never seen anything like it. This is a highly recommended trip for nature lovers. 

I took what the locals call the "Golden Circle Tour" and got to see some of Iceland's natural wonders. Thingvellier National Park (pictured right), the Geyser Geothermal Area and Gullfoss Waterfall. The weather was slightly less than desirable as the changing of the seasons brought on torrential rain so unfortunately I wasn't able to get as many pictures as I wish I could have. BUT I was still able to see it first hand and I can't complain about that.

On my last day I booked a trip to Iceland's famous Blue Lagoon (seen below). This could not have been a more relaxing experience. I loved the healing properties of the lagoon, the swim-up bar and the all-natural spa treatments that were available. The hot water was a great way to warm up after spending a few days in the rain. If you make your way to Iceland you CANNOT miss the Blue Lagoon.

AND SO, since I've been home I've found myself spending half my time in Niagara and half my time in Guelph. I've just signed the lease for our new downtown Guelph apartment which we will get on the first of May. AND I've started a new job at Scottsdale Dental near the Stone Road mall. Joel will be home for a few weeks at the end of April and he'll be looking forward to seeing everyone as it has been a while since he's been around these parts. Then it'll be my job to make the new apartment comfortable before Joel's final flight home at the end of July.

THANKS AGAIN EVERYONE!

As I mentioned before I will attempt to make posts on behalf of Joel as he sends pictures and updates on what he's been up to.

Joel & Amy

Au Revoir Alpes Francaises

Oh nooo, this is devastating!

I am officially starting to do things for the last time. I wanted to make sure I got one more day of snowboarding in before I leave for home and Joel had no objections. We checked the weather and Mont Blanc was expecting one of the nicest weekends of the year. How could we refuse? 

We drove up to Chamonix Saturday morning,  then spent the weekend riding our favourite spots and soaking up the sun sipping Monacos in the sky-high cafes and outdoor bars. We could not have asked for better weather. Snow conditions were still pretty fair and I am a HUGE sucker for a day in the mountains I don't have to worry about my toes freezing to the inside of my boots. Amazing!

THANKS guys!

Joel & Amy

Additional European Travellers

Can you believe we've bid farewell to more visitors!!??

We just spent a lovely week with friends Alison and Phil, showing them around Lyon, road-tripping to Torino, Italy and making our way to the peak of Mont Blanc. Couldn't think of a better way to spend my final weeks here in France. 

When our new guests arrived in Lyon we pretty much packed our bags right away and hopped in Joel's Skoda to drive about 4.5 hours South/East to Torino, Italy. Spending just one night there we had a pretty specific agenda and we hit all three items on our list! 

Battling the incessant rain, we visited The Royal Palace of Turin, checked out the views from The Mole Antonelliana Tower and tasted delicious pizzas and pastas.

We're certainly glad we were so productive on the first day of our road-trip because our plans for day-two took us back to France to visit the picturesque ski village of Chamonix/Mont Blanc. (Just visiting no riding this time.)

We took the Auguille de Midi Cable Car  and the Panoramic Mont Blanc Gondola to a peak that sits at 3,842m above sea level. Travelling above the clouds, we were able to get the most amazing view of Mont Blanc (4,810m). Ranked 11th in the world in prominence, Mont Blanc is Western Europe's highest summit. I don't think any of us were prepared for how light-headed or weak-in-the-knees we felt once we made it to the top (or maybe Phil was just doing the Charleston, I guess we'll neverknow). 

RIGHT: Aly & Phil step out into the "Void". A glass cube that stands over a sheer drop of more than 1000m. 

I think this was definitely a day we all will never forget. 

AND of course we couldn't omit the usual tour of Lyon that they scheduled two full days for. (I can't believe how many times I've been to Lyon's Roman Ruins!)

LEFT: They cozy up in front of Lyon's Bartholdi Fountain in one of the city's main squares. 

On Wednesday my last visitors boarded a cheap flight to Barcelona for 3 more days of touring. Spring is really starting to break through here in Europe so they will enjoy a nice couple of days strolling along the beach in the sunshine.

THANKS ALY & PHIL!!!

We had a great time sharing many European laughs with you two!

In other news, I have officially booked my permanent flight home. I will be arriving in Toronto on Friday, March 28th and can't wait to catch up with everyone! But not before a quick stop-over in Reykjavik, Iceland. As you know, Joel will be continuing his work here in Lyon until this coming summer. 

See you soon!
Joel & Amy

More Visitors!

Last week we entertained the company of good friends Laura & Henry. After spending 3 days in Paris they took the high speed train down to meet us at Lyon's Part Dieu Station. We couldn't believe the luck they had with the weather! After about a month and a half of rain the skies cleared and let them enjoy 3 days of sunshine in Lyon. With temperatures at around +15 they were happy to be away from home for the week. 

On their first day we took a guided tour to the Beaujolais Wine Region. We got some good info about the wine making process and the history of the region before stopping at a small family winery for some tastings. Then we checked out the medieval town of Perouges.

We spent the next few days touring Lyon. Visiting the classics like Fourviere Hill, Vieux Lyon, The Paul Boccuse Market, Brasserie Georges AND The Miniatures and Film Props Museum! 

Right: We browse the Parc De La Tete D'Or.

Below: Enjoying some Vin Chaud outside of Lyon's City Hall.

                                                                   

Then we all headed to the Lyon Airport to catch a quick flight up to Amsterdam (Joel too!) We managed to fit SO much into each of our days (lots of walking!)

The Anne Frank Haus, The Van Gogh Museum, The Heineken Experience (not just a brewery tour!), The Tulip Market, NEMO The Science Centre (Joel's idea), an evening canal cruise, The Red Light District AND of course, we didn't forget to taste the pancakes.

The day after we arrived we got to celebrate Laura's 30th birthday, her only request was lots of beer, I think we nailed it.

Again, using the AirBnB website we stayed in this cute little Boat House on one of the canals. 

This is one of the coolest cities we've visited, I've already claimed that it broke my top three locations that we've travelled to all year. I feel like I could have jumped right on a bike and joined the locals. It's nice when you visit a city and get a good feel of what it would be like to live there. 

THANKS SO MUCH FOR COMING BATES & HENRY!!!

You two were great travel companions and it was a pleasure being your hosts in Lyon. PROOST! See you really soon.

This Friday we welcome another set of friends and can't wait to show them around and explore Turin, Italy with them!

Joel & I were happy to have been able to watch a lot of the Olympics via live-stream on a French website. Though we may have missed a lot of what was happening to any Canadians who didn't medal we still feel like we were able to celebrate Canada's success. Woohoo!

THANKS GUYS!

Joel & Amy

Deux Baguettes - Porto, Portugal

Deux Baguettes - Portugal from PaddyRumble on Vimeo.

Song is "The Wire" by HAIM.
THANKS GUYS!

Amy (& Joel)

Uncle Pete & Uncle Jeff in France

 Last week we met my Uncle Peter and my Uncle Jeff in Chamonix/Mont Blanc to join them in discovering the French Alps. Jeff and Joel, being the more advanced on the slopes, were hoping to take a guided tour and ski one of Mont Blanc's glaciers. Unfortunately the weather was slightly less than ideal and the guided tours were cancelled. BUT Peter and I were able to enjoy our Sunday activity (see above). "Just keep running off that cliff" they said "We'll do the rest". 

Paragliding wasn't exactly on either one of our bucket lists but it was certainly an experience to remember. A gorgeous 15 minutes of peacefully gliding over the slopes and the city below, very nice. 

They then popped down to Monaco and the Monte Carlo before joining us in Lyon where we enjoyed a lovely few days of browsing the city in the rain, relishing in Lyon's most impressive restaurants and cafes. 

Jeff enjoys my singing from the top of Lyon's Roman Ruins. 

Tasting the micro-brewed beer of Brasserie Georges.

They scheduled themselves just a half-day to enjoy the romance of Paris before flying home.

Thanks so much for the visit you two, our livers will be in recovery for weeks.

Joel & Amy