The Eurostar and TGV trains: Our Experience Traveling from London to Lyon

From Lonely Planet

Maybe this will be about learning French. After all, that's what this blog is about. However, if you haven't had the opportunity to travel to France and use your French it's a good idea to know what it might be like and what the travel experience itself will be like.

My first trip to France 28 years ago consisted of...
Popping into Amsterdam Schiphol via 747 on a direct flight from Minneapolis,
 "over-nighting" in a hotel sans English and then boarding a train early morning at the Central station,
arriving at the Gare du Nord, Paris and finding my next hotel via taxi to stay overnight,
starved until I found a Vietnamese restaurant whose host spoke many languages including English,
found my way by taxi to the Gare de Lyon, Paris
and boarded the TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse) to Lyon.

It was a bit traumatic. I really didn't know what I was doing. None of my taxi drivers knew any English and didn't realize I really didn't understand their French ("Why would you go to France if you didn't know some French?" was their thinking I believe.). I also had a terrible case of jet-lag which didn't make me any too sharp in any language.

Well, France has changed a lot in almost 30 years. It's very possible to find people who want to speak English to you... but it still isn't most of the taxi drivers in Paris. So keep learning your French. It will pay off.

I'd like my readers to know about the travel option of taking the Eurostar train to connect with the fast speed trains of the TGV system of high speed trains. Why take the trains? Personally, if I never have to travel through Heathrow Airport, London again it would be fine with me. All travel in airports these days seem to require a rather high level of endurance to get from one gate to another. Throw the security and passport control into the mix and it would be helpful to get into a physical training program 6 months prior if you are over 50 years old. 

Heathrow pushes all these parameters to the limit... and coming back to the U.S. through England (which most routes seem to require) means a security check at your departing city (e.g. Paris) and another slog through an incredibly slow and difficult security check at Heathrow. My experience is that younger and more agile sprinters are able to get to the head of the line (although they are penalized by running up the escalators). Maybe they have improved on this second security requirement since the Olympics but I doubt it.

Eurostar at St. Pancras Station, London

On this trip we avoided a second exposure to Heathrow by adventurously trying out the Eurostar which leaves St. Pancras Station, London and uses the tunnel under the English Channel ( "Chunnel") to get to France and on to Paris. We flew a daytime American Airlines flight and stayed in London for our first couple of days just to get past jet-lag and enjoy London, which was having a fabulous few days of wonderful fall weather.

Then we departed on the Eurostar and connected with the TGV in Paris to get to Lyon that same afternoon. One would think flying would be faster, but with all of the hurrying to "wait in line" of modern flights the train was almost as efficient. And, surprisingly the cost of the flights would have been about the same as our train trip; so viva la France et viva le train.

TGV at Gare de Lyon

I write "almost" because a change to the TGV required arriving at one station and leaving from another. The normal time allotted for this is 1 hour.  We planned 2 hours and made to the Gare du Nord to the Gare de Lyon in about 1 and a half hours. So much for thinking we'd have lunch at one of the restaurants there... but we didn't miss our connection as others, we overheard, did. Sandwich jambon bought at a counter came to our rescue. (Conversation with Parisian taxi driver in French whose taxi has a McDonalds Golden Arch advertisement on it:  Jokingly “Do you ever eat at McDonalds?” Driver: “No, I never eat pork.”)


As for the actual experience on the trains, both were very comfortable. I really appreciated the special decorating of the restroom near our seats. One could  sit and enjoy the pastoral pictures of black and white cows in a green field on the walls. This served to act as an anti-claustrophobia treatment for me as the room was actually smaller than some in airplanes. It was so clean and cute, though, that I didn't mind.

Airport and train station at Lyon, Saint-Exupery

Leaving Lyon we flew Iberian Airlines with a change of planes in Madrid. (Avoiding Heathrow) Lyon has a lovely gem of an airport... modern and the security line and check was short, fast and within a few steps of the gate area for departure. One can take the transit train out to the airport in about 45 minutes from Gare de la Part Dieu (very central city). OK, the service of espresso and croissant at the airport took a little longer at the gate than you'd find at Starbucks, but it was very good. We left so early in the morning that the train service wasn't running yet. Our taxi driver arrived at our hotel promptly at 5:15 AM. He could speak English rather well but enjoyed talking to us in French which was like a tutoring session for me. I loved it.

Re-entry back into English after London and Lyon

When traveling to places that don't speak English it is always a bit of transition for me returning home. I really like where I live so it always surprises me that in a short time I can accommodate myself to the other parts of the world that speak French and other languages. Then, when I return, I always bring back expectations learned in France that simply don't work in Minnesota.

In contrast, British English shouldn't be a foreign language but it's sometimes difficult for me to understand and the habits can be very different. The best example I can think of is the British full breakfast of fried eggs, baked beans (yes, like Van Camp's baked beans that went on the camping trips so often), cold toast and cold butter, bacon (that looks like prosciutto but tastes like a mild ham) and sausages. Tea is the morning beverage: it might be difficult to get coffee at a small business. Let's not skip the hazard of stepping out on the street while looking the wrong direction (definitely a tourist hazard) or the idea of having "tea" at 4 or 5 PM and a snack or full meal later. These aren't differences that will travel home with me because they simply won't happen at home.

When it comes to France, however, the hazards are hidden.

For instance: the driving laws and who has the right of way. It looks the same, but some of the rules are different. The good thing is that all of France has consistently the same laws for pedestrians or cars, so it's not a matter of crossing a state line, as in the U.S., and finding out that the legal street speed or parking on the street overnight faces a prompt and expensive ticket or fine. I've read that it is a good idea to get an International driver's license so that if you have to give up your license you will still have your legal U.S. license upon returning home. Food for thought on the next trip.

France also has a different idea of serving food in a restaurant: often tableware and dishes are switched out according to what you have ordered. Eating fish requires a fish knife. Dessert deserves a desert spoon. Beef steak requires a (really sharp and dangerous by U.S. thinking) steak knife. Of course, the glasses are taken away if you aren't going to drink wine or added if you are going to order a different wine with each course. In France, the idea of eating in an uncivilized manner is really repulsive. And, this is in virtually every restaurant not just the high-end ones.

The idea is to eat slowly, with due concentration on the quality of the food, and with company at the table. On this trip I observed that there are more people eating alone in restaurants so custom and perhaps practical needs are relaxing a bit. I still haven't observed anyone in France walking along eating a croissant or drinking a up of coffee. It's not done. They don't need signs at entrances to stores that prohibit bringing in a beverage or food with you. Who would think of it? If you really have to have fast service go to the walk up counter at a Brioche D'Or (they are everywhere and unavoidable), the order counter at McDonalds, or a Starbucks.

Maybe we think of Germans as being the Europeans who are punctual. But, indeed, when it comes to business matters the French rarely "screw up". Taxis are ordered and they arrive on time (what a concept!), when planes arrive late the captain apologizes even it it is only a ten minute delay. I can't remember ever paying for something at a check-out line while the employee carries on a conversation with the one next over. So, sadly for us, the French just overall present themselves in a much more business-like manner.

Time flows differently in restaurants because the expectations are different: they want you to have time to decide what to eat and to ask questions about it, they don't immediately place ice water on the table unless you actually want it... instead they ask what kind of water you might like, the server watches (even if you aren't aware of it) to make sure you have finished one course before they serve the next. The restaurant bill is not presented until the customer is satisfied, lingers as long as "he" wants to possibly over coffee, and most important not until the bill is requested. (On this trip we kept forgetting to bring the subject up with the server because of our unconscious assumption that they would ask us.)

Immersion French in Lyon: Returning to Lyon as a (more advanced) beginning speaker of French.

I must say that learning French is a lot easier if you are surrounded by it.

Here are a few examples of what I have noticed while in France on this trip:
- I understand the announcers on the Metro! My ears have grown beyond gibberish.
- I have relaxed in my use of French. I'm less afraid of making errors. I've been surprised that a few people have commented on my good accent and want to know where we are from... may I say that they didn't expect to hear "Minneapolis"... "north of Chicago" is more helpful to people who only know that the U.S. has an East Coast and a West Coast.
- Every location provides a set of vocabulary words that I may not have otherwise learned. This includes items on menus, neighborhood names, and so forth.
- Vocabulary that I haven't used for a long time has popped up along the way and has been quite useful: navette for river boat, coline for hill, and velo for bicycle are examples.
- My brain isn't working hard to translate as much, I just "know" what someone means.
- I would also add that speaking beginning French in Lyon (now) is far less intimidating than, for instance, Paris. Here just about everyone has the patience to let you go on in French even when they know English and they also know you speak English. I feel the effort is appreciated so much more and it is motivating to continue to improve one's French.

Today our goal was to find Les Halles de Lyon - Paul Bocuse. This is the covered market for the area that sells all kinds of fish, shellfish, sausages, wine, baked goods and so forth to restaurant buyers as well as the public. I'm suspicious of this one though because the sit-down restaurants in this nice building are more like ordinary restaurants that offer food at extremely good prices.

My experiences with similar food markets have been more like I'd find at a state fair: the full smells of fish, cheese, and ham. This market is extremely clean and tidy... maybe all food markets should be like this? Anyway, busloads of tourists come to the market daily from all over Europe and beyond. Locals shop here as well. So we found arriving at about 9 AM was a little early but at 10AM the groups appeared.

Les Halles is very close by to a large centre commercial (a large modern shopping center at Gare Part Dieu). But this is a business area so bring a map and be prepared for the inevitable torn up street and intersections as Lyon is constantly under improvements.

We think Lyon, France has the best hot chocolate.

Hot chocolate in France. frugal-cafe.com

There's nothing like a good chocolat chaud (hot chocolate) and a croissant in the morning. J’aim mon chocolat.  Somehow the drink in Lyon has just the right combination of chocolate vs. sugar and milk… oh, and served with a cube of sugar if you have a personal need to adjust it.

One day this week we found ourselves at The Sofitel for a later than usual breakfast. They served us pots of hot chocolate (2 cups in each), sugar, macarones and the croissants we ordered with it. Oh, sure it was a splurge at about $30 for the 2 of us but we really needed to rank the Sofitel with the others we've visited: so far the Sofitel Madrid, Spain comes in first, then Lyon, then Montreal, then Minneapolis and all the other Sofitels we have ever just popped into for hot chocolate. It's a passion of ours.

Fourviere, Lyon, France

We visited the Tourist Office at Place Bellecour to pick up some literature on options of things to do. We bought one day transit passes and took the underground and funicular up to Fourviere which is an area that sits up on top of the hill and is the original site of the Roman city, Lugdunum. It was thought that the Romans were the first to build there, however Celtic artifacts have now been found which prove the Romans eventually merged with the locals and assumed some of their culture, especially gods. There is a really good Gallo-Romaine Museum, which exhibits and describes the discoveries since 1933.

The next day, we bopped around Lyon, by transit and foot, to check out all the neighborhoods we could get to. We had a nice dinner in vieux Lyon, the oldest central part. Compared to years ago, this city is really working hard to get visitors to come and spend their money. There are really fabulous clothing and furniture stores as well as unbelievable quantities of wonderful restaurants all competing to be the best at what they do be it the local Boucheron Lyonnaise food, classic French, innovative foods and regional such as the crepes. And don't forget seafood. The views in the city are wonderful: the old roman area sits high on a bluff over the city with a basillica that is lit up at night (Fourviere). There is also a mini-Eiffel tower mostly used as a radio and satellite tower which is decorative by day and lit at night with orange-ish colored lights.

An example of the fun lions to be found all around Lyon.

All around town the Lyon lion is to be found at restaurants, at businesses and public areas in general. These seem to be each the same statue in a realistic size that has been decorated each individually for display. I suspect it is similar to what Minneapolis and St. Paul did with little statues of the Charlie Brown characters. Chicago once had cows all over the city, surprising visitors.

The stylish entrance to the best park in France.

Today we traveled to the Tete d'Or Park. This is one of the nicest public parks I've ever been in, including Kew Gardens. It includes a small zoo, botanical gardens, play areas for children, bicycle paddle boats for use on the small central lake, cafes, and a lot of acreage of beautifully groomed lawns as well as rose gardens and natural areas. When I was in the Park years ago, the park police would chase people off of the lawn. But now it is fully accessible to everyone. There were a lot of athletic types running and walking the trails, bicycling, and generally making the most of the park.

Pour quoi Lyon? Why Visit Lyon? There is so much to see and do.

Louis XIV at Place Bellecour, Lyon

How much can a city in France change in 30 years? A lot. It is still the same city with all the same interesting sites but Lyon has become so much more interesting and friendly to visitors that it is almost a different place.

An example is Place Bellecour, the big square in the central peninsula between the rivers Soane and Rhone. What once was a huge, crushed limestone-covered area with a large statue in the middle of it has been renovated considerably.  About a third of it is being transformed into a space for pedestrians to enjoy sitting under lovely green trees. Artfully planned, additional modern sculpture and fountains have been added.

The statue of Louis XIV remains, imposing a sense of awe to those in the square. If I remember my Lyonnaise history, Lyon took the side of the royalists during the French Revolution and suffered the consequences with mobs burning major churches and other buildings. This Louis has survived in the heart of Lyon for many years.

So what makes Lyon now seem so much friendlier?

First of all, much of the tourist literature is bi-lingual with English. When I was here in 1985, tourists were barely recognized as important and actually rather a curiosity to the locals. There were very few people interested in English or what that might mean to the local economy. I was told back then that most foreigners visiting were German and they were on their way to the Cote d'Azur (Nice and Cannes) on the Mediterranean.

Second, people are smiling everywhere and having a good time. Children are playing. One of the things I remember most about Lyon was how serious everyone took themselves. I'm sure the local culture hasn't transformed into happy-go-lucky people, but there has been a remarkable change in attitude on the streets. This is pretty amazing given the financial crisis France is climbing out of right now.

Third, there really are lots of tourists from many places visiting here. The tourist office and local campaigns to improve the city have drawn many people.

Fourth, city transportation has been developed into a very easy to navigate place. Funiculars take visitors and locals to the top of the hill that overlooks the city. There are underground metros and buses. There are boats that transport people and goods up and down 2 rivers.

Roman theater in foreground with Lyon behind.

There is so much to see and do in Lyon that I really don't understand why more people don't visit here. Many Minnesotans who talked to me about our upcoming trip asked us "why Lyon?". As I will be writing about in future days, there is everything here: Roman ruins, a tradition of gourmet food and chefs, significant architecture old and new. Paris is lovely, but all of France is so diverse and interesting that it's difficult for me to understand why so many of my fellow Americans think France outside of Paris is primarily wine country. Wine is nice. But there is so much else.

Our goal today is to explore the Roman ruins and the Gallo-Romaine museum that has been created here. Why not start from the beginning, ne c'est pas?

London Language vs. American Ears: Why watching movies to learn a foreign language is a good idea.

We are about to leave London and I have been reflecting on the interesting aspects of British vs. American English. We all know there are many dialects and accents in any language. I've especially been thinking about this as a student of French.

If you've read my blog you know that I watch a lot of French language movies (when I'm home) to improve my French. What I may not have mentioned is that I also have to make a point of watching or listening to British English so that I can keep up on it as well. This week has proven the point as I have to ask everyone to repeat themselves before I figure out what they are saying. (And sometimes they ask me to repeat myself.) My impediment is with the different sounds of English, not the vocabulary.

So, I know that a really good way for me to improve my French comprehension is to continue to watch movies and videos, listen to native speakers, and even listen to French radio. However, what mostly benefits me doing these things is not the acquisition of more vocabulary but instead the rhythms and inflections. When I now watch movies in French I am hearing so much more... because I know what to listen for... the pronouns, key phrases, homonyms (very difficult and sometimes funny), and probably a lot more than I'm not really aware of.

It occurred to me that understanding Londoners is often difficult in that so many are speaking English as a second language. This is also true in French in France. In English it's usually easy to know that this is a problem for me, but in London the various local accents added to the first language becomes rather challenging. Enunciation on both listener and speaker's parts normally solves the problem. But when trying  to speak another language such as French, when you don't know it very well yet, you have to assume that you just don't understand the French when the problem may be another unfamiliar accent or dialect distorting your understanding of the language.

On my last day here we have done:
2 museums: The British Museum (again) and The Tate Museum of Modern Art
3 restaurants
1 boat ride on the Thames
2 walks: the Millennium Bridge crossing the Thames and the Whitehall area along the river up to Big Ben
Endless travel on the underground system, without which I would not have been able to do any of this. A big thanks to the railroad systems even if it seems like half of it was shut down this week end... we discovered commuter shuttles on the Thames.

Is Kew the same as "Q"?

Stephen Fry, center, is the ring leader of the show.

I have read that there are about 300,000 expatriate French living around London. So far I haven't encountered a lot of people speaking French. My ears do sometimes have a problem understanding BBC and Londoner's English. Last night I was watching BBC2 while trying to fall asleep.

There was a game show on our hotel TV last night , Q.I., which stands for "quite interesting". The night's theme of the show was words that begin with the letter "j". Did you know there are 28 different definitions for the word "jigger" in the English language? Anyway, it reminded me how frustrating it can be to learn new words in French only to find out that they have so many related and non-related meanings it's difficult to figure out what those using French mean to communicate. So, like English, context can tell you a lot more than a dictionary.

Just a tiny piece of The Kew Gardens

We headed out for Kew Gardens this morning. The weather is so perfect I keep checking to make sure I am in England. The 10 day forecasts projected cloudy and cloudier but not rain. Go weather predictors! You are wrong once again in my favor. Despite visiting London several times before in the past, I have never made it to these gardens because it takes a while to get there (maybe an hour by the time you connect with the train at Waterloo station after you find out the underground train is shut down for maintenance for the week end); it takes a few hours to walk around in it; and preferably the weather is agreeable.

Tonight we are going to the theatre: "Yes, Mr. Prime Minister" would seem to be something like going to Brave New Workshop in Minneapolis... at least on the political-comedy end. www.yesprimeminister.co.uk/tickets

Preparing for a Trip to France: 5+ tips for Traveling

Updated text as of 3/23/16

TGV fast trains: a village on the way to Lyon

By my count, I have traveled to France at least 10 - 15 times over the past 30 years.  I have also traveled to many other countries as well.

Thirty years ago in France, there were legitimate reasons to worry about finding a toilet, finding someone that spoke English, exchanging money conveniently, and understanding the transportation system. Now in the new century, France (especially in Paris and the larger cities) has caught on to the idea that they will benefit from the many economy-building tourists that don't speak French and need a conveniently located, clean, toilet. In most situations, ATMs have solved the money exchange issues.

Good walking shoes are the best transportation. If not, the trains, count on the Metro and buses. Look for the information "i" to ask for details. (see text below).There is a shortage of taxis available in Paris so you might need to order one in advance. Uber exists, but may not be legal. It's been my experience that taxi drivers in Paris rarely speak much English. The Cote d'Azur drivers are more likely to have worked on their English.

Here are some of the practical things I've learned through the years about traveling in France:

First:

Pack as little as possible. It seems obvious, but years of refining this idea have paid off very well in making trips easier. The most dramatic demonstration of how little I actually need was my first trip to France in 1982-- we bicycled across a good part of it, in combination with hopping on and off trains when attempting to traverse difficult terrain or we when were behind schedule (“Train plus velo” it was called in the early ‘80s).

The way people dress in Lyon, France at the summer sales.

For that trip, we set out with our bicycles from Lyon and finished at Amsterdam Station. Prior to beginning out bicycle adventures (because I'd just finished a 6 week graduate program in Lyon) I shipped unneeded clothes and books to the Amsterdam Central Train Station where they were held for me. We sent some things directly home to the U.S. by surface postal service (surface mail = a long ride on a boat).  All that we had left, we stuffed in the panniers on our bicycles.

It didn’t take long for me to discover unnecessary weight still hindered my cross-country advance. We again forwarded the excess to Amsterdam for later pick up. I essentially pared-down to some underwear and one other alternate set of clothes for bicycling.

Bottom line: For clothing, I learned that if you can’t wash it out in a sink and hang it up to dry overnight, it's not essential. Your most important asset besides money or credit is a map/GPS. Sun block, a toothbrush and your own soap are important. Reduce reading material to disposable newspapers or a reading device like a Kindle. (Yes, Kindle sells you all kinds of stuff through wi-fi while traveling in France.) Retain a paper map in case your electronic devices fail or go missing. Cell phone use can be "iffy"... your phone service in your home country will tell you it will work (but it might not). Learn to use skype at cafés).

Second:

Don’t pack too soon. It’s just too easy to keep remembering and adding more stuff that might come in handy if you work too long on it. Remember that you are not moving your household, just your barest necessities. Pack as if packing for a 6-year-old’s overnight birthday party and you'll still be inclined to take too much.  Don't weigh yourself down physically and psychologically-- and airlines have made extra weight and baggage expensive.

Assuming you're not bicycling, cutting down to one overhead sized carry-on for a week isn't crazy. If you are on a longer trip find clothes that weigh less (so you can pack more). I highly recommend silk (hand washable) and casual clothing sold by stores such as Patagonia. If you are flying within France or to Switzerland, you may be told that your overhead luggage is too heavy-- in your planning for the trip, check on the details before packing or something might have to be left behind in the airport.

If you need medication with you, make sure you don't check it into baggage! You can be separated from it for days if problems come up with the flight. Don't assume you can buy a bottle of over the counter "anything" in France. If you find the same item you use in the U.S., it's often limited to 10 tablets at a time (yes, you can waste time going to multiple pharmacies to overcome the system but why not bring the aspirin with you?).

Bottom Line: In Europe, there is always a drugstore  around the corner (hours can be quite limited), a laundry, ATMs of choice, and if you really need to dress up: bring simple, inexpensive jewelry, a pair of nicer shoes, and definitely a multitasking silk scarf. Women still generally don't wear shorts in France--it sends a message you don't want to put out. As usual, men need only to present themselves as clean, tidy and with clothing and shoes that bear no holes. The French have learned to tolerate casual dressing in most cases. If you suddenly have a need for something dressier, buy it there. If you can, research the neighborhoods you’ll be in for ATM options that work with your card.

Third:

Double check that you have all of your identity papers, visa if required, enough cash in your banking account to withdraw at foreign ATMs, and be sure to call your credit card companies to give them information about your trip. Make a check list for this at least a week in advance and take action on these things at least 3 days in advance to keep what little hair you may have left from falling out or turning gray as you grab that taxi to the airport. Read the fine print in your agreement with your bank card: if they charge fees for foreign purchases, find a bank card that doesn't. Get a credit card using chip technology which is what all of Europe runs on. Others may cause you delays and aggravation if you don't have the chip or payment problems if someone steals it.

Bottom Line: The worst consequences of failing to use this advice are being sent home by security at the airport or missing your flight connection because of a lack of organization.

Fourth:

Memorize the name and address of the friend you’ll be staying with or your hotel name and address for passing through immigration. Preferably, give a plausible itinerary to describe your trip even if you don’t follow it. (Act like a grown-up.) I have often been asked where I am staying by authorities and have at times almost drawn a complete blank just because I was surprised by the question.

Security: Never show up at the last advisable minute for a flight or a train. We all know there are good reasons for extra security so do yourself a favor and arrive at departure an extra hour in advance. We have found that lines can be shorter...

Bottom line: It makes you look suspicious if you don’t know where you are going or how long you are going to stay there. Especially in France, a land in which no one ever admits to not knowing something-- and in which personal identification carried on your person at all times is required by law-- present yourself as capable and as knowledgeable as possible without telling falsehoods. This can make traveling in France a lot easier.

Fifth (and a warning):

Never, ever drive a car after drinking alcohol. France now has the toughest laws in Europe for driving drunk. With all the other transportation options available to everyone, there is just no excuse. Click here for Driving and Alcohol in France

Bon voyage (happy travels)!

P.S. If you are learning French, you may find the locals keep switching you to English. This is not as likely in certain smaller cities and rural areas. (Tours was good, Villefranche-sur-mer is excellent.) I've found insisting on speaking French can work if you are friendly and show that you really are interested in the local culture. Mention (en française) that you are an élève (student of French). Most people soften up.

    Look for the "i" and the word renseignements (not "information") to find the information bureau. Colors and fonts might vary on the symbol. In my experience, there is always an English speaker at the information counter.