Around old Lyon

In the 1er arrondisement of Lyon, the Bartholdi Fountain stands in the Place des Terreaux near City Hall, a sculpture that features Marienne, the personification of France, commandeering a chariot with four galloping horses controlling the four great rivers of France.

Fun fact: the sculptor of this Bartholdi Fountain is the same guy who created the Statue of Liberty in New York!

One of my favourite things to do when I travel is to walk around and, quite literally, get lost in the maze of streets in a new city. On one of these lose-myself occasions, I found myself in the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon - the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon. I love seeing the beautiful colour of the sandstone walls along the length of the hallways!

Life's simple pleasures: a book, beautiful architecture, a fine day.

The Musée des Beaux-Arts is housed in a former Benedictine convent. The central courtyard features a number of statues in a beautiful area where many can be spotted enjoying a good book or simply basking in the sun.

I decided to go back to the Fourvière to check out the basilica by daylight. The first thing that strikes you at the Fourvière is just how incredibly ornate it all is - so much going on, a ton of intricate carvings and so much that decorates every single corner of the basilica. And that's just from the outside!

The inside of the basilica is filled with gold-plating everywhere, beautifully painted ceilings, and an incredible amount of ornament. You'd think that a building like this should be a few hundred years old, but it was actually only completed in 1884 - that's less than 150 years ago! The design draws from Romanesque and Byzantine architecture, which is why the building is as ornate as it is.

Just look at the amount of work that must have gone into that level of design, and having to paint that on a ceiling, too! Trying to paint that on a ceiling must have meant that painters had to work almost lying down while completing this piece of art.

The Fourvière is also home to the Les Petits Chanteurs de Saint-Marc (The Children's Choir of Saint-Marc), the same choir that was involved in the French film Les Choristes. 

Around the basilica are a number of beautiful religious sculptures, such as this one of a four winged angel. I never knew that angels were depicted as having four wings, but the unusualness of this sculpture certainly piques one's interest.

As with the rest of the city, the winged lion of Lyon is ever-present, here resting on the outside of the Fourvière keeping a watchful eye.