Lyon to Valence (4 October 2024)

 

Roman Theatre de Vienne

The first task of the day was to rescue the car from the carpark that we had found.  It was the cleanest carpark I have ever been in.  However, it cost a fortune for the two days we had sheltered it there.  No matter where we had parked it was about 35€ a day. 

 

I parked outside the apartment to make loading the car easier. 

 

Our first stop was Vienne which is about 40km south of Lyon and like Lyon is situated alongside the Rhone.  We followed the Rhone to Vienne and our destination in the town was a Roman Theatre.  Finding a car park was the first challenge.  With narrow streets and a lot of competition for spaces it took a while and a few missed turns until we found a car leaving and grabbed the park. 

 

It was lunchtime and the Theatre was closed so we found a little bar/restaurant where we had a superb lunch.  It was one of those fortuitous finds, a place for locals rather than tourists.  The food was very good. 

 

Reluctant to relinquish the car park we walked up the hill to the spectacular Theatre.  The visual impact of this ancient theatre was stunning - unfortunately the pictures don't quite capture what the eye could see.  The Theatre could hold 13,000 spectators.  It was not a gladiatorial amphitheatre but was for readings, plays and poetry.  Much of the original theatre had been buried under lots of earth.  An archaeologist had convinced the inspector for historic sites that there was theatre and not an amphitheatre built into a local landmark.  From 1908 to the 1930s the site was excavated to reveal the extent of the theatre.  Some of  it has been reconstructed but there are examples of the original seating and the tunnels that run under the terraces are largely intact. 

The original seats



One of the tunnels - like our stadiums


 

It was fun wandering around the theatre. 

 

We then called into Condrieu, a small village that is the centre of white wine production in the area and makes rather prestigious wines but we could not find a cellar to taste or inspect the wines.  There was clearly money in the village as everything was pristine. 

One of the vineyards around Condrieu

 

Street scene Condrieu

Valence was our stop for the night.  To get there we followed the Rhone going through Tain l’Hermitage, home to a great Syrah.  It was getting late and the traffic was rather heavy so stopping there was not really an option.  We arrived in Valence but there were a few missed turns and then the problem of figuring out where the apartment was.  Combined problem solving got us into the rather nice apartment.

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