Long and Hot

Day: 2
Mile: 600/300
Coordinates: 45° 45' 29.71", +4° 50' 51.78" (Lyon)

Today was the most gruelling leg of the tour; 300 miles mainly on the Autoroute du Soleil (once more chapeau to the French Superintendent of Road-Naming) heading straight south. The thermometer was rising by a degree every 50 miles, registering a hotter-than-it-reads 28oC in Lyon.

After a quick supplies-stop at the Dizy LeClerk (water, fruit, saucisse, cheese and an amazingly soft baguette) we set off. The journey was mostly uneventful, apart from some liberating toying with a Carrera Turbo, a Hells-Angels sighting and..Sofia driving -bien entendu. Obviously, we passed all these challenges with flying colours and lived to tell the story.

Pit-stopping for lunch was delightful. FYI, the French autoroutes have some amazing rest areas every 20km or so. We are talking proper, shielded from the motorway, in-the-woods, with-picnic-spots rest areas – not your Folkestone Terminal see-the-tent-roof-covered-in-seagull-droppings kind…

We eventually reached our destination for the day, Lyon. Beautiful –we will add- Lyon, with the Rhone and the Saone snaking through it, a spectacular vieulle ville, a mini-Eiffel tower and so much more. A very pleasant French town and one we definitely recommend for a w/e break.

Most importantly, this time we hit the jackpot with dinner. As a matter of fact Lyon has many restaurants so the odds were for us this time. For those who will pass from Lyon, we have tested and unreservedly recommend ‘L’Est’ at Part-Dieu.

Now, to bed, ‘cause we’re knackered. At least we fared (a bit better) than N’ shoes..

A bientot!