D's Birthday and Fete des Lumieres

The weekend started with a bang. Dave’s 40th birthday was approaching and we were so far from all his family and friends that I had to work hard to figure out how to make it special. Fortunately, it worked out to be easy. First, I invited some friends to a birthday dinner on Dave’s b-day, but found out they couldn’t make it because Jimmy, the male half of the couple I invited, was turning 30 on Dec. 10th and was celebrating on the 11th, which was Dave’s birthday. So, I decided to hold a joint birthday party for the 2 big 10 birthdays on Friday. Entertaining here in France is always an adventure for me, especially when I want to cook Indian food, because the grocery shopping is so challenging. To get the Indian spices, I have to go to this little whole in the wall spice shop that makes you feel like you are walking into a seer’s den. You walk in and it’s crowded with spices and rice and flour and you can barely walk around. The whole place dark and full of the smell and smoke of incense, and the owner is a wrinkled old Indian man who is so hunched over you expect to see him staring into a crystal ball and asking you what you want to know about your future. Their selection of spices is fabulous, but it’s a trip to get there, and I have to admit I am always just a little uncomfortable walking in there to do my shopping.

Then, after getting the spices, I have to go to the boucherie to get fresh meat, and I usually try to go to the morning market to try to get fresh veggies. Anyways, I spent the day traveling from place to place to get everything fresh, and arrived home at 4:30 to start my cooking.

Our guests arrived at 7:00pm, and fortunately loved the dinner. They are French, so I was really concerned that they wouldn’t like the spicy food. The French palette is not used to spicy food, and our friend’s daughter Melody, who is 4, was going to be there too. Well, little Melody kept humming and saying mmmmmmmmmm, and her Mom Cathy was beginning to feel insulted. “She never hums when she eats my cooking!” she exclaimed. And the birthday boys stayed quiet the whole dinner so they could concentrate on their eating. Woohoo!!! Success! You know you did okay when everyone goes quiet so that they can eat. :D



Dave, Jimmy, Melody, Cathy, and Cathy’s delightful Mom, after the boys blew out the candles on their cake.

After that we went for a walk to see the lights of the Fete des Lumieres. Dave was so excited that this holiday was happening on his birthday weekend. Five million people descend upon Lyon each year for this festival, and it really livened things up so Dave felt very festive. He kept going “Hey! Look at that! Monica come here!” and he’d make me stand still so he could use my head as a tripod for his camera so he could catch the lights on (digital) “film.” At one point Cathy started tickling me under my chin every time Dave was trying to take a picture so that I’d move. I made a huge effort to stay still but just couldn’t do it. So, then Dave started using his own head as his tripod. It was the funniest site. I’d turn around to see where he’d gone and he’d be standing on some bollard, grinning like a mad scientist with his camera on his head taking a picture. It kept us all laughing hysterically all evening.


Here was one of the pictures Dave got of the lampshade people. And yes, these lamps were all lit up.

The next morning our friends from England, Helen and Daron arrived. We walked around the Marche Noel (Christmas market) and then headed up to the regular weekend markets on the river. Helen really enjoyed the artwork and I loved all the artistic jewelry. After that we stopped for a cup of coffee and when we were walking out to leave we saw some guys handing out some paper lanterns. Our guys of course had to get some, but us girls were a bit skeptical. But the lantern people insisted we take 4, so we took them, posed for some pictures, and then nearly threw them out. Instead, we thought we’d enjoy them for a little while and decide what to do with them later.


Daron and Dave laughing after I told them to “look at each other lovingly.” They both wanted to be very clear that they don’t do “that sorta thing.”


Every time Dave looks at this picture he says “hey, that guy is looking at my wife’s pretty bouncy lanterns!” Everywhere we went people kept asking us where they could get lanterns of their own.

Do you remember the story about Rita’s turkey for Thanksgiving? The one that she needed to special order and cost $150?! Well, on our way home we walked by the same butcher who provided that turkey, and guess what we saw? A whole rack of Christmas turkeys hanging in front! And let’s just say, they definitely weren’t $150! But look at how they are displayed.


They still have their heads and tail feathers on!!!! I wasn’t sure whether to laugh of groan.

At about 6:00pm we headed for dinner. I had called and visited about 10 restaurants to try to get reservations so we could celebrate Dave’s birthday on Sat. night with Helen and Daron, but nobody was taking reservations that night because of the festival. They all told me to come between 7 and 8pm, and we should be just fine. Well, I figured they were telling everyone that, so I suggested we go at 6pm. It’s an ungodly hour to eat according to the French, so I thought it might be a good time for us. We decided to try the oldest Brasserie in Lyon, Brasserie Georges, which has 120 tables, great staff, traditional food, and a very old world feel to it. It’s actually a brew pub and many of it’s artwork, last updated in the 1920’s, are dedicated to the reconciliation between the gods of wine and beer.


We got seated immediately and the boys ordered very manly maas’s of beer and platters of meat and sauerkraut (choucroute).


Then Dave’s birthday cake, a huge Baked Alaska complete with sparklers on top, made it’s way across the crowded restaurant.


And our waiters, to Dave’s surprise and glee, sang happy birthday in English! I love those guys!

Saturday night was supposed to be the big night of the Fete des Lumieres, so after a quick stop at home, we headed out into the crowds to see as many lights as we could. We decided to light up our lanterns and take them with us, which turned out to be the best idea ever. The crowds were so thick, you could barely move and we’d all get sorta pushed around and get separated. So, we all just kept looking for the lanterns and that’s how we managed to stay together. Thank goodness we didn’t throw those things away.

Daron, Helen, and me sporting our festival lanterns. Dave asked “Monica, would you like a picture of all those hanging Lyonaise balls?” I giggled, “Yes Sir! I’m very much enjoying admiring them!” ;) So we decided to pose with those beautiful hanging Lyonaise balls.

The lights that night were amazing. I’d never seen anything like them. Lyon certainly knows how to do it all up. But then, of course they do. They’ve been doing this every December 8th for over a century! As we walked home absolutely exhausted, the last display we saw was my favorite one.


It was just so odd with the sorta space ship looking thing across the river, and then that flower ball thing and the fountain, and then these eerie flowers being planted by these slow moving ghost-like figures. I’m not sure why I liked this one so much, but it just had so much going on. The contrast between everything just seemed to stimulate my imagination. And I wasn’t the only one. Daron asked what the heck that flower ball was. We couldn’t answer so he pondered out loud “it’s kind of like the opposite of a Death Star. Hmmmmmmm……… I know!!! It’s a Love Star!” Yes! Yes!! We all agreed. It’s a Love Star.


Here’s the same scene the next morning as we walked by it. Now we can’t ever look at that flower ball without thinking “it’s a Love Star!” What a happy thought.

Helen and Daron left that afternoon, but it had been a wonderful weekend. I’m so very glad we were in Lyon to celebrate that weekend. And now….we can focus on Christmas! Next stop: Les Marches Noels du France!