What America could learn from Europe

 

It's a travel day. We went from Macon back to Lyon. We are at a hotel at the airport. Leave tomorrow for Valencia, Spain. We will be back to France - to Paris - at the end of October. It was only a 45 minute train ride here to Lyon. Then a tram ride to the airport. 

I've been thinking...uh oh. As we have gone to each country, I have looked at the history because I find it interesting. It's really opened my eyes to the difference between the U.S. and just about any other country in the world. They have a long history and we don't. It's obvious, but I never really thought about how that would affect peoples character. 

Europe can trace its history to very ancient times. They lived through two world wars that affected everybody's lives directly. That obviously shapes a people and how they think.

In France, for example,  they lived under nazi occupation for 4 years. There are still people alive who remember that. Their children were told the stories. That happened in many countries here.

Each country here has its own history and culture. Each is distinct. People know the history and are proud of it. They share cultural traits.

Everything is so old here - the housing, the buildings. There are historical sites thousands of years old. The way people live is different than the US. Housing is not necessarily brand spanking new, in fact the majority of it isn't. Old buildings don't have air conditioning, window screens, dryers, etc., things we take for granted in the U.S.

I'm not saying having that stuff is better. A lot of people here think it's just unnecessary.  They have fans or open their windows. They hang their clothes on dryer racks. 

People here don't seem as frantic as people in the U.S. They aren't as stressed, at least it doesn't feel like it. They are more relaxed. There is not the level of violence here.  There is violence, but not everybody owns a gun. There are homeless here but they don't seem to be as numerous. People do sleep on the street but you don't see as many. The homeless here sit with a cup out. 

I don't mean to make it sound like this is an ideal society. It isn't. It does feel much calmer. It feels kinder. It feels like they try to deal with problems rather than just talk about them. 

America is such a young country. It has so many different kinds of people trying to get along. The disparity between rich and poor or even middle class is so wide. It is so fast paced. The social safety net isn't as strong.

We have so much to learn from these countries with their long histories and stories of survival through trying times. I wish we would listen more.

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September 30, 2022 at 08:31PM

La Resistence in Macon, France

Free France Resistance flag

When we arrived in Macon, France it was raining on the way to the airbnb. It rained yesterday  and half of today . Then it was partly cloudy and about 60.  So we were able to walk around the town. It's a town of 33,000 people but seems bigger than that.

Macron started as a Celtic settlement in the 1st century BC. Then along came the Romans, known to be here then because of a large coin, plate and figurine stash found here in the 17th century. Therer were probably 30,000 gold and silver coins that disappeared (stolen) at the time. Eight figurines and a plate were left, that are now in, wait for it, the British museum.

In the middle ages this town controlled access to the wine growing area and lay between two kingdoms. It made a  lot of money off all of that.

It lived under Austrian occupation 3 times in its history. 

In World War 2 it was the northernmost city in unoccupied France. It was one of the centers of the French Resistance. 

We sat in a square today that has a memorial to those who died from Macon in the German occupation. There is a special plaque to memorialize Berty Albrecht, considered a heroine of the Resistance movement. She helped start a major part of the Resistance. She was tricked by the gestapo to go to a meeting in the square where she was arrested and then imprisoned. After being tortured, she committed suicide.

The Resistance involved all layers of French society and every occupation. They sabotaged German infrastructure, gave  information to the Allies and helped prisoners escape. A general said they supplied 80% of the information before D-Day.

Ninety thousand Resistance fighters were killed in the four year German occupation. 

The things you learn in a small town in France.

 

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September 29, 2022 at 08:38PM

Macon,France is where that glass of Chardonnay comes from

 Its raining today so reading about France and Macon.

France has 13 regions. Next, there are 96 departments in the regions.  Those 96 departments are divided into 320 arrondissements. The arrondissements are divided into 1995 cantons. The cantons are divided into 34,826 communes. This for a country smaller than Texas. They all serve different functions and control certain things. The communes have councils and mayors and are equivalent to municipalities or townships. 

Macon, where we are is part of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comte region. It in the department of Saone-et-Louire. The arrondissement is Macon. There is a Macon 1 and 2 canton. Finally it's a commune with its own mayor and council.

That's a lot of organization. When it is so divided this much  a lot of people have a say in what goes on and politicians have to at least listen.

Why did I look into this? Because when I looked up Macon it said it was a commune and I wondered what that was.

The Maconnais wine region in the south of Burgandy is centered around - and named after- the town of Macon. They specialize in white wine made from Chardonnay(grape) and red wine from Pinot Noir(grape). There are many churches, chapels and castles in the middle of vineyards. 

There is a place near here called the Aze cave which has been occupied by humans and animals going back 300,000 years.

Even small towns have interesting histories!

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September 28, 2022 at 06:36PM

No room at the inn

 We are in authentic small town France. The town is Macon, 45 minutes north of Lyon.  Macron has a little over 33,000 people. It is on the Saone river. 

It has narrow little cobblestone streets with old buildings with shutters on the windows. It seems like a bigger town than it is. 

How did we end up here? Well, let me tell you. It was a series of mishaps, one big mistake by yours truly. 

So we left the fruit fly infested  and gross airbnb and went to a hotel last Tuesday. We stayed there til Saturday ready to go to the next airbnb in Lyon. Everything was copacetic.

We're sitting at the bus stop on Saturday with our luggage outside the hotel when I check the airbnb about where we're going. All of sudden, my stomach drops as I discover that I scheduled it for the wrong date. Instead of September 24-Oct 1, I had scheduled it for Oct 1-8. Uh oh, now what?

I quickly looked to see if the hotel we had just left had a room for that night. They did - at a cheaper price!  So we went back to the room we had been in. 

So now  what do we do for the rest of the week? So I called the desk and asked if the room was available until this Saturday. It was available through Monday night only. There was some big event occurring starting Tuesday. 

Ok, let's look for another hotel. There were no hotels within 20 miles of Lyon unless you wanted to pay $500 a night and there wasn't even many of those. Uh oh, now what? 

We ended up booking an Airbnb until Friday in Macon. It was the only option fairly close to Lyon. We have to go back to catch a plane on Saturday out of Lyon. 

I would like to say on my behalf, that with the many airbnbs, hotels, trains, planes we have been in and on, this is only my 15th mistake.  Really, it's the first time it's happened. So sue me.

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September 27, 2022 at 06:40PM

Vienna and Edinburgh - my future homes?

 

When M and I talk about where we would live if we decided to come back over here and stay a while, he likes Lyon and London. 

Lyon because of it's a pretty rivers and houses on the hills surrounding the city. It's picturesque. The buildings are beautiful. It is diverse. It's stylish. History, culture. Not overpopulated. Kind people.

London because there is lots to do and you will never see everything. Interesting neighborhoods. Probably the most diverse city. Speak English. 

For me it would be Vienna and Edinburgh. 

Vienna is just awe inspiring. The architecture may me almost over the top, but spectacular nonetheless. It has so many museums, concerts, cultural places. It could keep you busy for years. Great public transportation. Calm people.

Edinburgh was just fun. The Scottish people are outgoing, proud of their heritage, like to have a good time. Edinburgh is full of interesting old buildings and nooks and crannies. It is mysterious and moody. Weather is temperamental. I loved Linlithgow where we stayed and it's beautiful Loch. Beautifu scenery. Great castle on the hill.

Those are two countries I would definitely return to. 

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September 26, 2022 at 07:08PM

There is a giant orange man on a mobile phone in Lyon France

There is a giant orange man on a mobile phone in Lyon France

 

The area we are in is called citi internationale. It is centered around a convention center. It is 79 acres.

As you start on the street toward our hotel there is Interpol, the international police organization that is a central location for training, technical assistance and super secret spy stuff. Then corporate offices. There's an apartment. A bank. 

The area here is a series of connected buildings. There are 4 hotels as part of it. One is a Marriott with a casino in the basement. Right next to the Marriott is a strip club. It's done in a way that it doesn't stand out. There is a movie theater.

Then there there is the convention center.

Part of the whole area is a museum of contemporary art. What's interesting about it is the front of it. This whole area used to be a set of buildings that were built in the 1930s for the trade fair. They moved the trade fair in the 80's and started building all this. The front of the art museum uses one of the old facades of the trade fair. 

There are many restaurants here, mostly pricey. Lots of outdoor seating. The latest addition is an amphitheater which seats 3200. In front of the amphitheater is a giant sculpture of an orange man on a mobile phone. It is part of 6 sculptures in the citi internationale called The Inhabitants.

Quite an interesting place. All this is across from a beautiful big park and beyond that is the river Rhône. 

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September 25, 2022 at 07:20PM

The hill that prays in Lyon, France

 It has been pouring rain, hailing here tonight in Lyon. It doesn't seem to want to stop.  Might have to head for the ark.

So I tell the history of things because it's interesting and I want to remember what I learned. 

So todays history lesson: Fourviere. It is a hill that overlooks the city. The Roman's established a city there in 43 B.C. There was a forum established. The Roman's lasted until the Middle Ages. The forum collapsed and the stone was used for other things. The hill lay dormant until the 16th century when there developed religious cults around St Thomas and then Mary in the area. 

A chapel was built in their honor  on the site of the old forum. There were plague epidemics in the 1600s. An annual pilgrimage was started up the hill to the chapel to ward off future epidemics.

In the 19th century a gold statue of Mary was commissioned and place on top of the chapel. A basilica was also built. The architecture is neo-Byzantine. People believed that Mary watched over the city and protected it. 

A pilgrimage continues every year on December 8 up the hill. People put a candle or lantern on their sill and walk up the hill with candles.

The basilica on the hill is seen as a symbol of Lyon. The Fourviere is known as "the hill that prays".

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September 24, 2022 at 07:07PM
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September 24, 2022 at 07:07PM