A view across the Rhone towards Notre Dame de Fourviere
It was 20 years since I had been to Lyon and back then I did not stop for too long before moving on to my ultimate destination to the southeast of Lyon. For this trip, at the end of January, I decided to read up on Lyon to identify a few sights I would like to visit and add to my basic knowledge of the city, and its culture. I decided to refer to Elizabeth David's book on Provincial French Cooking, but I was surprised at her comments. She was of the opinion that one must be a Lyonnais to properly appreciate the local cooking and then proceeded to moan in an unappreciative manner about the anti climax that she experienced from the fountainhead of French cuisine. I suppose I should not be surprised to read this from somebody who ignored the Jura and Franche Comte in the same publication, but it still a good book despite these shortcomings. To assist me on my journey, I decided to travel with three books The cuisine of the Rose by Mireille Johnston, The White Cities by Joseph Roth, and Roman Gaul and Germany by Anthony King.
Lyon is not a monumental and decadent city in the mould of Paris. This ancient city has grown up and expanded at the confluence of two of France's most important waterways; the Rhone and the Saone. The Roman colony of Lugdunum was founded in 43 B.C by Lucius Munatius Plancus, a leading officer serving under Julius Caesar during his campaigns and battles to subdue the Gallic tribes. The site chosen by this officer, who is also reputed to have founded Augusta Raurica in 44 B.C. not far from Basel, was previously a Gallic hill fort occupied by the Segusiani, and today this vantage point towers over Lyon and is known as the Fourviere hill. Its significant position on the Rhone and Saone lended this site to being used as an administrative centre with easy and speedy access north and south on the navigable river systems which passed through the city. Over the next three hundred years this settlement would be favoured by a number of Emperors and Lugdunum flourished as a result. Features of this development still visible today are the numerous aqueducts, theatre, odeon and the amphitheatre.
A view looking south across the Roman theatre, Fourviere, Lyon
The steep featured flanks of the Fourviere descend to the Rhone and a number of bridges and passerelles make communication with Presqu'ile quite easy. As the name suggests, Presqu'ile is not quite an island but a strip of land that has been cut and narrows to a point where it finally reaches the confluence of the Rhone and Saone.
Roman Gaul is proving to be a tourist attraction for the modern town of Lyon and the Roman theatre on the Fourviere hill is the most visible representation of this period of the city's history. When the Roman builders arrived on site in or about 15 B.C. to build the first theatre structure in Gaul, they must have welcomed the prospect of building a theatre structure on this site because the steep hillsides in the vicinity could be easily employed in the construction of a theatre. While the slopes would minimise the need for a freestanding outer wall and a complicated series of vaults, arches and supports there are visible remains of radial substructures supporting the cavea. The theatre measures 108 meters in diameter which makes it a little larger than those built at Arles (Arelate) and Orange (Arausio). The remains of three cavea are visible, the media cavea and summa cavea are only to be identified by the series of vaults and hemispherical wall structures that would have supported them, and the remains of the ruined vomitoria quite immense. The date of the initial construction of this theatre places it firmly within the reign of the Emperor Augustus and there is evidence to suggest it was restored and extended during the reign of Hadrian, and it is suggested the scaena frons was added during this period.
A view looking west towards the cavea of the Roman theatre, Fourviere, Lyon
Although it faces east and overlooks most of the city of Lyon today, the scaena frons structure situated in front of the seating would originally have been approximately 30 meters high, and thus the great panoramic view to be seen today over Lyon would have been not a particular feature of this theatre. The structure would have been ornately decorated and some elegantly carved column bases are to be found on site today. The hillside has a number of other interesting structures, and just to the south can be found the Roman odeon which is thought to have been constructed during the 2nd Century A.D. This is 73 meters in diameter and also backs onto the hillside for support and its cavea are surrounded by an immense boundary or outer wall, which is quite distinctive and sets it apart from its neighbour the theatre. The orchestra measures 21 meters in diameter and is decorated in opus sectile with porphyry and other exotic stones and marbles from the distant far flung corners of the Roman Empire.
A column base from the Roman theatre site
To the north of the theatre and also nestled into the hillside is the musee de la civilisation gallo-romaine the exhibition spaces of which are sunk into the hillside. It houses an important collection of sarcophagi, inscriptions, decorative mosaics and other materials found in excavations from the area. The mosaic of the circus race is quite well preserved and evidence of the fact that one of the four circus tracks to be found in the Gallic provinces was located not too far from the Fourviere hill, and in close proximity to the Gier Aqueduct. The aqueduct may have been the source of the water used in the fountains along the spina depicted in the mosaic.
Detail of the Circus Mosaic, Musee de la Civilisation Gallo-Romaine, Lyon
The remains of the amphitheatre, La Croix Rousse, Lyon
The amphitheatre was excavated and investigated in circa 1818, and the quartier was developed thereafter. The remains, which are now incorporated into a garden, are presently covered by roads, modern buildings and indeed cut in half by a tunnel built to alleviate the flow of traffic leading up to La Croix Rousse. The size of the amphitheatre is debatable but is clear that it was improved and extended through the centuries and must have been an impressive sight. Some commentators are of the opinion the structure was smaller than those at Arles and Nimes. However my impression is that, in its most developed state the amphitheatre in Lugdunum would have been as significant as the amphitheatres built at Arles and Nimes. The principal difference in Lugdunum, is that the amphitheatre was both reliant upon and contained by terrain it was built into.
An important inscription was found in 1957 yielded evidence for not only the build date but the people who financed its construction; the inscription pays testament and records the fact that a Gallo-Roman family from Saintes (Santons), most likely seeking to underline its loyalty to Rome and the Emperor, constructed the amphitheatre at their own expense. It must be noted that there is also a magnificent amphitheatre to be found not far form the centre of Saintes.
An aerial view of the amphitheatre using Google Earth
I crossed the city towards Fourviere and climbed the steep hill, absolutely breathless and weak by the time I found the theatre in bright winter sunshine. The day was bitterly cold and nobody was there. After spending half an hour wandering around looking for the remains of the aqueducts, and various mausoleums, I was quite conscious of the fact that the bells had stopped chiming in the nearby churches, and lunch would be now available. Wandering back through the streets of St Just towards Vieux Lyon, I eventually arrived at the point where I had commenced my ascent of the Fourviere hill at the top of Rue du Boeuf.
The path of least resistance led me down the narrow cobbled street to a restaurant on Rue du Boeuf called Les Adrets. Being both hungry and thirsty, I entered a long narrow dining room paved with tiles with strained and heavily deflected ,wooden beams overhead. It was full but a space at a table was found and I ordered terrine de gibier to be followed by tete de veau along with a refreshing pot of cote du rhone. Despite being obviously foreign, my choises engendered me to those sitting beside me, and they inquired about my little adventure and what I places I had visited and offered advice on what I should see next.
In the restaurants of Lyon you frequently end up wondering if there is anything that you would like to eat on the menu. You need to be adventurous. The menus can be viewed with some intrepidation if you are anxious about ordering various types of tripe, offal or combinations of both. My tete de veau probably shortened my life by two weeks, but it was unctuous and bitter and satisfying; the mellow sweet flavour of the gelatinous fat was cut by a parsley vinaigrette dressing. This dish would be relished and devoured, without a second thought, by a boatman who had been working his vessel up the Rhone, from perhaps Valence, for the previous 20 hours, against a strong current and a bitterly cold mistral wind. Arriving at the quays in Lyon, with his hands paralysed by the cold wind, this dish would have revived such a man. My meal was finished with a fantastically rich quenelle of chocolate mousse and a coffee, and the knowledge that I would be sentenced to at least three months hard labour for eating everything that put in front of me on this trip.
Opus reticulatum and opus mixtum still visible on a support of the Gier Aqueduct, Lyon
I have already refered tothe lenghty pondering I experienced reading a number of Lyonnais restaurant menus, and my chosen reading prior to the trip had not fully prepared me for this very distinctive cuisine. The books probably were too heavily influenced by Dijon and the Bourgogne and neglected the indigenous fare of the Lyonnais. Over the five days of thisparticular visit I have discovered the Bouchon, which is a type of Lyonnais restaurant serving earthy, homely food, but typically Lyonnais using just about every edible part of a pig, cow, chicken or available fish; lentils, onions and macaroni are a feature of the Lyonnais cuisine.
The first Bouchon we dined in was La Meuniere. It was one the most enjoyable meals I have ever had. Most of the prepared food was laid out on a bench in the middle of the very dated and somehow complimentary dining room. It appeared not to have been decorated since the 50s or 60s and was somewhat spartan in appearance, however posters celebrating Beaujolais wine served as a strong suggestion as to what you should be ordering with your meal. The staff engaged with you in a very familiar way, and some diners received a reproach for failing to clear their plates. While I had a terrine to start, I decided to have poulet fermier a la vinaigre for my main course. I did not expect this dish to be as agreeable as it was. It was very good. Thereafter, I received slap on the hand when I thought the canut, a soft cream cheese with herbs and garlic, was my cheese course of preference. Instead I was directed to two large wooden boards full of locally produced cheeses.
The next Bouchon, was the similarly celebrated Le Garet. The menu of the day was noteworthy because it sums up for me what Lyonnais cuisine is all about; Salade de dent lion aux oreilles de cochon (a salad of dandilions with pigs ears); Omlette a la truffe Francaise; Ris de veau a la creme et champignons. I began my meal with an offering of five bowls from the kitchen containing, Lentil salad, mousseau (pickled face of cow thinly sliced), pied de veau, saucisson de veau et cochon, and tripe; collectively known as salad de cochonailles. A pot of Crozes Hermitage worked very well with this selection and the following plate of le tablier du sapeur, which was a section of marinated and fried tripe. The dessert was a homemade blackcurrant ice cream, barely sweetened, which was served with a bottle of vieux marc to use as you pleased, and I did!
Some of the creations of the Patissier and choclatier Richard Seve
Food forms a very important part of Lyonnais living and they are proud of their traditional servings and just as proud of their influences on the new modern cuisine developing in France today. It is not based upon fusion or any passing weakness for a modish taste but merely a celebration and presentation of French food and its industry at its very best. The master boulangers, patissiers and affineurs that base themselves in Les Halles Paul Bocuse are representative of this ideal. They are some the best boulangers and patissiers in France and strive to produce the best quality food to a very high standard. You rarely witness crowds of people surrounding a butcher stall focusing on a butcher dressing a rack of lamb but this occurs most days at les Halles Paul Bocuse.
Street markets are also a feature of Lyon life, as they are of most French villages, towns and cities. Local producers sell their fresh vegetables and fruit and anything else they think the pubic will purchase. I spotted one vendor selling walnuts, walnut spreads, and huile de noix; the oil produced from the pressing of the walnuts. They also sold the tourteaux de noix, which is the dried remains of the pressed walnuts. It can be used much in much the same way as chestnut flour to flavour flour in making biscuits or in general baking.
My personal preference leans towards the everyday and traditional food of the bouchon which preserves the old dishes in an unglamorous and less ostentatious way. This food is generally consumed with the three princes of Lyon; Beaujolais, Cotes du Rhone, or Crozes Hermitage and after a few days my fear and intrepidation has turned, with a little understanding, into a sense of surprise at every menu. This understanding will no doubt encourage me to return and continue my exploration of the Gallo Roman ruins.
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