Metroites

I was under strict instructions to be back at Carl's sister's house for 10:00 am to leave for the church and the christening, and I managed to do that, despite a rather long wait for the bus at Gare de Vaise.

We were in plenty of time at the church in Fontaine-sur-Saône, a short drive from the house. Being Easter Sunday, the christening was just a part of the full mass, so our time in the church was quite extended. I'm not a great one for churches and religion, but I have to say that the time we spent there was rather wonderful. The atmosphere was extraordinarily relaxed (indeed, rather chaotic at first as the representatives of the families of the eight children being christened were organised in their seats), and the whole experience was really joyful and uplifting. The church was packed (okay, it's Easter Sunday, but when was the last time a church in Ireland was packed?), and the singing — rather a lot of it — was loud and committed, with some hymns even generating a clap-along involvement from the congregation.

AFter the usual standing around which always follows events in church, we (some twelve of us) headed off in convoy for a restaurant in Saint-Cyr-au-Mont-d'Or, which is perched on a hilltop which, we were told, has a spectacular view over the city of Lyon in fine weather. Unfortunately, the rain had come on while we ate, and there were no views to be seen. Still there was some talk of going on a planned walk on the hill, but this was finally given a knock on the head and the convoy moved on to Old Lyon instead. A walking tour of the old town was the new plan, but I cried off because of the soreness in my legs which the calcification problem sometimes brings on. Carl took pity on me and allowed me to persuade him to join me in a Danish bar on the banks of the river, where we waited for a couple of hours for the return of the walkers. After many hugs and double-cheek kisses, I parted company with the rest and made my way back to my hotel.

This pair were across from me on the metro on one leg of my journey, and I couldn't resist taking a from-the-hip shot of them. I ate Lyonnaise style in a little bistro beside Gare de Port Dieu (had saucisson, which I was told was pork but turned out to be a rather large sausage cut into slices and served with salad and potatoes.