Lyon - France 2014 - page 1374

ated on the ground floor). The first film reels held about 950 frames, which played at 19
per second, so these first movies were only 50 seconds long. About 1,500 Lumière films
are catalogued between 1895 and 1907. (Notice that each movie is tagged with its “Cata-
log Lumière” number.) The very first movie ever made features workers piling out of the
Lumière factory at the end ofa workday.People attended movies at first not forthe plot or
theaction,butrathertobemesmerizedbythetechnologythatallowedthemtoseemoving
images. After their initial success, the Lumières sent cameramen to capture scenes from
around the world, connecting diverse cultures and people in a way that had never been
done before.
The museum's upstairs features exhibits on still photography and the Lumière living
quarters (furnished c. 1900). Across the park from the mansion is a shrine of what's left
of the warehouse where the first movie was actually shot. In a wonderful coincidence, lu-
mière is the French word for “light.”
Nightlife in Lyon
Lyon has France's second-largest cultural budget after Paris, so there are always plenty of
theatrical productions and concerts to attend (in French, of course). The TI has the latest
information and schedules. From mid-June through mid-September, the terrace-café at the
Opera House hosts an outdoor jazz café with free concerts (usually Mon-Sat, www.opera-
lyon.com ) .
Afterdinner,strollthroughLyontosavorthecity'sfamousilluminations(seesidebar
on here ) . Walk through the old town, then along the river (the view from the pedestrian
bridge— passerelle —that leads to the Palais de la Justice is sensational), and along key
streets past the main monuments of the Presqu'île.
Forlivelybarandpeople-watchingscenes,prowlRuedelaMonnaie(anglesoff“res-
taurantrow”RueMercièretothesouth)andthestreetsbetweenPlacedesTerreauxandthe
Opera House. The James Joyce Irish pub, in the heart of Vieux Lyon, is a cozy English-
speaking place (daily, 68 Rue St. Jean, tel. [phone]).
Sleep Code
( € 1 = about $1.30, country code: 33)
S =Single, D =Double/Twin, T =Triple, Q =Quad, b =bathroom, s =showeronly,
* = French hotel rating system (0-5 stars). Unless otherwise noted, credit cards are
accepted and English is spoken.