Vieux Lyon and Croix Rousse: Roman ruins and traboules

After Paris, R and I were in Lyon to complete some paperwork. While there we decided to spend the remainder of our day wandering around Lyon's old city, Vieux Lyon, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. For an ancient history buff like me who studied Latin for years, I was in my element and happily entertained for hours walking and "trabouling" through the old city, learning about Lyon's ancient and not so ancient history.

Roman Lyon
Lugnudum, now Lyon, was established by the Romans in 43 B.C. and enjoyed prosperity for over 300 years as one of the most important Roman cities, behind Rome of course. Using Lugnudum as a base, the Romans expanded their empire into the rest of Europe. It was not all plunder and pillage though—while in Lugnudum, the Romans built aqueducts, two theaters, and an odeon.

Antique Amphitheater: Located at the base of the Fourvière Basilica, it was built around 15 B.C. but later expanded to a final seating capacity of 10,000. It is still used today for a local festival and open to the general public. When I entered the theater, I was alone as a group had just left it. Quiet, I could only hear the sound of pigeons flying from one end of the theater to the other end, playing in the wind. Closing my eyes I could imagine the sights, sounds, and smells of ancient Lugnudum and the people surrounding me. There I sat in awe of history and the wonders of humankind to erect such a structure without access to modern devices and equipment. I wondered what Roman theater-goers who would have gone to such events were thinking about, what they might have worn or eaten that day, and if they were accompanied by their loved ones. And then I realized how much things have changed and how much they stay the same.....

Odeon of Lyon: Located right next to the Antique Amphitheater, it was built around the same time and accommodates 3,000 people. The Antique Amphitheater and Odeon of Lyon are unique, as they are one of two such theater/odeon pairs in all of Gaul. The other pair is in Vienne which R and I visited during the long Easter weekend. The odeon is also open to the public—while there we saw Lyonnais enjoying the sunshine and a picnic in the grass next to the Odeon and Antique Amphitheater.

Amphithéâtre des Trois Gaules: Situated at the base of the Croix-Rousse hill, it is the second and smaller of Lyon's two Roman amphitheaters. It was finished by 19 A.D with a seating capacity of 1,800—enough to accommodate the members of the 60 Gallic tribes that used it as a meeting place. Between 130 to 136 A.D. the amphitheater was expanded to seat 20,000 which sounds quite large doesn't it? Actually, the amphitheaters in Nîmes and Arles are even bigger! Pope John Paul II visited Les Trois Gaules site in 1986, but today it is open to the public only through peering at it across an wrought iron fence.

I have to admit that I was shocked to see the site in such a ruined state. In Lyon, as well as other Roman sites, R and I found out that many Roman structures were left to disintegrate, or forgotten or built upon. In some cases Roman sites were even deconstructed so people could re-use its stones to build newer structures! Only later, maybe in the 18th century were excavations started to reveal the ruins...and only in the 19th and 20th centuries were they protected as historic monuments and added to France's patrimoine.

Who was living there before the Romans came? The Gauls. How did Lugndum become Lyon? During the Middle Ages, it gradually became known as Lyon, probably as a result of a natural sound change.


Les Traboules
There is a secret side to Lyon—starting from the 4th century Lyon was an important site on the silk trade route. Les traboules, or secret passageways, were built around this time for both locals and silk workers to easily move water and products from one part of the city to the other part very quickly. Not only was it a speedy method of movement and transportation of goods but it was generally much cooler inside and provided shelter during inclement weather. In modern times, les traboules were used by the French resistance to escape from the occupying Germans.

Many of the traboules, especially the underground ones, are either blocked off or not available to the public. If you want to "trabouler" through the city, you can find 40 traboules that are open and free to the public. Even though they are not very secret per se, you should allot some time and patience to track them down because they are not really advertised and they are spread across 3 different arrondisements (the 1st, 4th and 5th).

Think of it like a scavenger hunt—first you have to narrow down the ones you want to visit (on the map), then physically locate it on the streets, and lastly figure out how to enter, as many are locked and require a special key code you must type. The reason why they're locked? Many of these traboules are integrated into private apartment buildings, so you're basically gaining entrance to someone's entryway, courtyard, and/or looking up at their balconies and staircases.

Unfortunately we did not prepare in advance, or else we would have found the most famous traboule, Traboule de la cour des Voraces, translated as the Traboule of the Voracious Court. This one and many others are located in the Croix-Rousse.

We also didn't find these walks that lead you directly pass many traboules.

But we did find ourselves having a beautiful day nevertheless in wonderful Vieux Lyon and Croix-Rousse. What follows is a pictorial story of my day with R, in which we found three traboules and were lucky enough to enter them, thanks to some very nice Lyonnais who unlocked the doors and let us into their world. Enjoy the photos and a slice of Lyon's history.

Croissaint at L'epiaison

Flan au grand-mere at L'epiaison

Tuiles patisseries at L'epiaison

Heading up to the Roman ruins

A secret looking passageway, but not a traboule

A "helicopter" bee at a giant cherry tree near the Fourvière Basilica

Me sitting at the Antique Amphitheater, a Roman theater

Cobblestone streets in Vieux Lyon

New Lyon, next to the Rhone

Shadows play near the giant cherry tree at Fourvière

View of new and old Lyon from the Fourvière

View of Place Bellecour, commonly known as the "Red Square" for its red gravel

4.30€ for one chocolate filled, dressed up Easter egg. That is $6.30 USD!

At Voisin, you could buy a tombola ticket to benefit Japan. If your ticket is selected, you win this giant egg and other chocolatey goodness.

Moving from one part of the city to the other...a secret place, but still not a traboule.

Graphic art on the streets

The author of Le Petit Prince was born near Lyon, and he and the price grace this wall dedicated to famous Lyonnais.

Finally, looking up from a traboule in the Croix Rousse. Walking in here, we noticed the temperature really dipped. It was like stepping into an AC'ed room.

A view of the Fourvière from the Rhone....notice the tower? It's just a radio tower, that happens to kind of look like the Eiffel Tower to me (but it's just a regular radio tower).

Another traboule...to the right, the red door opens into someone's apartment.