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Great if you are into old European oil paintings, or relocated Egyptian, Greek or Mesopotamian antiquities. An impressively large local numismatic gallery. Housed in an interesting building with a pleasant courtyard. Probably disappointing if you have come from larger museums such as those in Paris, unless you have a specific local history or antiquarian focus.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
Basilique St Martin d'Ainay
The only entirely Romanesque church in Lyon, dating back to the 11th-12th centuries. The abbey of Ainay was one of the most powerful in France between the 13th and the 16th centuries. A must-see for its very nice atmosphere.
The largest clear square in Europe. In the centre stands the equestrian statue of Louis XIV ("under the horse's tail" is a usual meeting point for locals). Apart from this, it is rather empty, windy and not so pleasant. A renovation project is under way. Between the southeast corner of Place Bellecour and the river Rhône is Place Antonin Poncet. There was a hospital there (Hôpital de la Charité), built in 1622 and demolished in 1934. The only remain is the bell tower (Clocher de la Charité) built in 1667.
The majestic Hôtel-Dieu was the oldest hospital in Lyon and is one of the largest buildings in Presqu'île. The façade along the river Rhône is over 300 m (984 ft) long. The first hospital was built in 1184-1185; it was modified several times before Soufflot designed the current building, built from 1741 to 1761. The large dome was completed in 1765. The newly built Grange Blanche hospital (today Edouard Herriot) became the main medical centre in the city in the 1930s. Hôtel-Dieu doctors were pioneers in numerous specialities, including radiology (Etienne Destot), oncology (Léon Bérard), surgery (Joseph Gensoul, Matthieu Jaboulay) and orthopedics (Louis Léopold Ollier); they contributed in making Lyon the second medical centre in the country after Paris. The building no longer fit the needs of modern medicine, and the hospital was closed in 2010. It was converted into a shopping mall and the Intercontinental Hotel.
St Georges is the name given to the south part of the Vieux Lyon. It has nice Renaissance buildings which, however, do not really compare to the palaces of St Jean; on the other hand, it is much more quiet than the St Jean area.
Garden of Curiosities
Small garden hidden in the bottom of a street/car park, behind a metallic door. It was designed by Canadian artists in a surrealistic spirit (recalls Magritte or Dali). Also a very nice viewpoint over the southern part of Lyon.
Designed by Gaspard André and opened in 1877, the building has a beautiful Italian-style façade. In the middle of the quiet plaza outside the theatre stands a strange periscope in which you can see rotating geometric shapes, like a kaleidoscope. Those were actually painted in the car park beneath the plaza by the famous artist Daniel Buren and they are reflected by a rotating mirror. To enter the car park and see the other side, take the stairway on your right when looking at the theatre.