Village Life

Though it may seem a strange thing to say, although I live in a city, at times it feels as if I live in a village. Croix Rousse is an area of Lyon and is perched onto of a hill. This is quite a steep hill and has a psychological effect on most people, who end up thinking that to get here is really difficult (despite good metro connection and several buses.) This effect means that Croix Rousse has kept its identity and is quite a distinct area of Lyon.


It started as a village outside of the old city walls and has gradually been incorporated into the city itself. It was the first area of Lyon I discovered as I stayed with a friend here on my first trip to the city. It has a daily street market, little street cafes, small boutique type shops, as well as artisan bakers, butchers etc. There is a maze of narrow one way streets (why didn’t those 18th Century builders put in garages and wide streets?) designed to confuse the newly arrived. The majority of buildings are tall Canut workshops – built to house the silk workers and their looms, so ceilings are nearly 4 metres high. These have been converted into some amazing loft style apartments.
As it feels like quite an isolated area, you get to know and recognise everyone quite quickly. When I see my neighbours in the street or the market we always say ‘bonjour’. I have my favourite stalls in the market and my regular shops I go to. It is strange to out in the area and not bump into someone you know and have a little chat. My sister used to live in a small village in the UK and told me that you know you have been accepted into a village, when it takes you half an hour to do a 10 minute task eg. Popping out to the shop. I now know what she means. It does however make the area friendly and welcoming. The story in Lyon is that some people stay on the hill for months at a time, everything you need is here, and I do know some who only leave it for work.


I also live in another village, though this one is spread out over the city. It is the expat community village. Although Lyon has a large expat community, it does feel quite small at times. I was chatting to a Spanish guy once night, and the next day was asked how my Spanish was by a friend who hadn’t been there!
I also work in a bilingual crèche and often find that some of the families are friends of my friends. You have to get used to being talked about a lot, fortunately most of this seems to be in a good way! You also get used to hearing about people that you haven’t meet (yet) and get to feel that they are friends of yours already. Then you go to a party, start talking to someone and realise that you know all about them, and they know all about you….