Lyon

After Paris we took the train to Lyon, and had a couple of days there. It was the weekend so a few things were closed but we still saw a lot. The first evening we walked to the town square and saw some people dressed up in big white balloon-like costumes. (The picture at the top was a big red balloon floating away in the sky. By the time I was ready to take the picture it was quite tiny...so it's not quite the picture I was hoping for but I like it because seeing that big red balloon float away reminded me of one of my favourite films.)
The next day we took a bus tour and did some hiking at the top of the cliff that overlooks the city. There was a wonderful view.Lyon is the birthplace of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and we found the statue that has the author sitting with his creation, the little prince. We also came across a market by accident - it was wonderful - full of fresh fruit and vegetables, baked goods and even some tables of fabric. It was set in a long avenue of chestnut trees, just like the ones they have in Paris.
Then we visited the textile museum which is one of the city's main features. I took a lot of pictures like this in Paris too, there was so much nice stonework detail on buildings.
This is the outside because unfortunately photos are not allowed inside the museums. The main building on the left has a history of textiles and the building next to it has a museum which shows textiles and other furnishings as they would appear in a home. There were so many beautiful things there.
The other reason you might like to visit the textile musuem is that there were several stores nearby selling yarn and fabric and other crafts/textile related things. I saw this display of wool felt in a window and was disappointed because it was closed and I couldn't go inside!
So that was Lyon - after that we took the train to Mont Blanc...