2022: Eurojumelages french course in Lyon
"Language is the key to the world" (Wilhelm von Humboldt).
In line with this motto, Jumelage Lyon offered a French course this year from 16th - 22nd October in which Jumeleurs from England, Spain, Germany and Mexico took part..
As well as learning French, participants also discovered Lyon and its surroundings together with French twinners and lived like "God in France".
Monday 17th October
French classes started at 9 am on Monday, our second day in Lyon. Beginners were in Sylviane’s class and advanced students with Pierre-Yves.
After three hours of lessons, we took the tram and metro to the central Belle Cour square.
We had lunch in the central canteen of the PTT.
Well fortified, we saw the most important sights of Lyon on a double-decker city bus in bright sunshine with the trip lasting almost two-hours.
The sights included: the opera, the town hall, the Cathedral of St Jean on the banks of the Saône and the Basilica of Notre Dame de Fourvière on Mount Fourvière, the amphitheatre, the Euronews headquarters and the Musée des Confluences.
After dinner, part of the group followed Thierry's offer to look at the murals located near our accommodation.
Renate Bonow & Marion Grau, DE
Tuesday 18th October
This day started with both the sun and a good French course led by Pierre-Yves, who had prepared his course-content to cater for the level of all participants, irrespective of their competency.
Participants came from England, Germany, Spain and even Mexico!
We had our lunch in the old town of Lyon at a Bouchon Lyonnais. Several members of the Lyon section and friends of Madeleine, the course organiser, joined us. We were able to try quenelle, one of the traditional Lyon dishes. This dish is made from a river fish, flour and eggs. Of course, our meal ended with a delicious dessert.
The icing on the cake, however, was a sunny boat trip on the Saône. It allowed us to admire different types of architecture, ranging from the 16th century to the present day. We were able to admire new buildings such as "Le taille Crayon" (green), which is also the headquarters of the Euronews television channel. Our ship turned around at the Musée des Confluences, a building with asymmetrical architecture made of glass and metal.
So many things to remember on the second day of our stay!
Isabel & Armando Tellez-Velasco, GB/MEX
Wednesday 19th October
Hello to the Twinners from Lyon! The course, we go there, as we like to touch the silk: it is a moment full of softness.
This afternoon we had a guided tour including a demonstration of silk and gold weaving on a 19th century Jacquard loom. These fabrics were intended for dressmakers or for palace and castle furniture. However, the history of silk began in 1536, with a privilege granted by King François I. Lyon then became the only general silk warehouse authorised in the kingdom of France. The weavers settled in the Croix Rousse district, located on a hill, which we climbed thanks to a cogwheel metro. A census carried out in 1788 showed 5,832 workshops and 14,777 silk looms. Our guide then explained the silk production cycle, including the rearing of silkworms.
We express our appreciation to the municipal association "Soierie vivante" (www.soierie-vivante.asso.fr) and a nod to its shop selling silk from Lyon.
Maria Lisa & Fernando, ES
Thursday 20th October
We participated in the French class from 9am to noon.
After lunch we took the bus to the Lumière museum. Claude Antoine Lumière and Louis Lumière (father and son) invented the photographic plate in 1882. They had a great success with this plate and the whole family started to produce them. Then they built a factory and 2 beautiful villas, where they employed 900 workers.
In 1895, the Lumière brothers founded the first cinema in Paris. They showed eleven films that were between one and two minutes long. In one of them, which was very realistic, the audience feared that the train would jump out of the screen, whereupon they ran away!
Margita, Georg and Françoise DE/FR
Friday 21st October
On Friday morning, we had our last lesson in CISL with Pierre-Yves and Sylviane. Sylviane's group performed a short skit in French on the topic of going to a restaurant, showing off their newly acquired language skills.
After class, we went to lunch together at the restaurant of the French Post and Orange building near Place Bellecour. The afternoon was free for shopping, museum visits and individual sightseeing.
The highlight of the day was the joint dinner with our friends from Lyon and Paris in the famous "Brasserie Georges", right next to the Perrache train station in the 2nd arrondissement, between the Rhône and the Saône. This is an impressive building that has existed since 1836 and was built in the Art Nouveau style. The restaurant is decorated in the "Belle Époque" style and seats more than 500 people. It is a temple of gastronomy with dishes and wines from the region, as well as beer brewed on site.
We were served a typical Lyon menu. After the appetizer, we were treated to "Salade des Lentilles Vertes du Berry" as a starter, "Saucisson Pistaché avec Pommes de Terre Écrasées à la Fourchette" as a main course and "Feullantine au Chocolat" for dessert. Our meal was accompanied by a red Grand Cru from the famous wine-growing region of "Chénas" south of Lyon.
The chairman of Eurojumelages, Peter Backes thanked Madeleine Tissot and her team for the great organisation of our stay and the two teachers Sylviane and Pierre-Yves for the entertaining lessons. On this occasion, Peter Backes and some course participants presented gifts to the organiser Madeleine Tissot and the two teachers.
Michel Morel, the chairman of the French Jumelages, then addressed a few words to the group and was pleased about the participation of three European nations and even one nation of Latin America in the event. 
As participants of the French course in Lyon, we were unanimous: it was a great language course, in wonderful weather, in a city worth seeing, super organisation and loving supervision with lasting positive memories.
Brigitte & Gerhard Klose, DE
...what we still wanted to say
The beginners' course was enjoyable and informative. There were six Jumeleurs who attended the beginners' course: a Spaniard and five Germans. Despite our different knowledge levels of the French language, Sylviane's lively teaching made the course enriching for everyone. During the classes we learned about the special features of Lyon, especially the special Lyon cuisine. Thanks to Sylviane, who brought us joy in the foreign language through her professional teaching.
Annelies & Wolfgang Radermacher, DE
Saturday 22nd October
On Saturday, it was time to say goodbye. Full of enthusiasm for their stay in Lyon, most of the twinners went home, but others indulged themselves in an extended stay in Lyon.
Many thanks dear Madeleine and dear friends from Lyon.
