France - 20 Lyon

10/20, Day 11 of tour Rainy day today with overcast skies. We have been so lucky with the weather being clear blue skies and warmer than usual. Meet Mariya Primova, the creative genius behind The Adventures of Little Kali. The gala dinner, last night on the boat, was seven courses with 3 wines. The food was okay. Service was really great. The wines were okay. You would expect better wines and food for the region we are in. Lyon is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, 243 mi southeast of Paris, 173 mi north of Marseille, and 70 mi southwest of Geneva. The city of Lyon proper had a population of 522,969 in 2019 within its small municipal territory of 19 sq mi, but together with its suburbs and exurbs the Lyon metropolitan area had a population of 2,280,845 that same year, the second most populated in France. Lyon and 58 suburban municipalities have formed since 2015 the Metropolis of Lyon, a directly elected metropolitan authority now in charge of most urban issues, with a population of 1,411,571 in 2019. Lyon is the prefecture of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region and seat of the Departmental Council of Rhône. The capital of the Gauls during the Roman Empire, Lyon is the seat of an archbishopric whose holder bears the title of Primate of the Gauls. Lyon became a major economic hub during the Renaissance. The city is recognized for its cuisine and gastronomy, as well as historical and architectural landmarks; as such, the districts of Old Lyon, the Fourvière hill, the Presqu'île and the slopes of the Croix-Rousse are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Lyon was historically an important area for the production and weaving of silk. Lyon played a significant role in the history of cinema since Auguste and Louis Lumière invented the cinematograph there. The city is also known for its light festival, the Fête des Lumières, which begins every 8 December and lasts for four days, earning Lyon the title of "Capital of Lights".