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| April 21, 2024 - Tacoma, WA |
I think that when most people think of full time travel, they think of excitement and a vacation every day, but in reality, it is just daily life somewhere else, and can often be repetitive and mundane. However, I am not knocking repetitive or mundane in the least; the reason I am staying in one place for a little longer is so that I can have those "regular" days! So here is a little peek into the real life of a slow traveler.
Thursday January 16th, 2025
Lyon, France
6:00 am: Yes, I still get up early! I love waking up in the dark and watching the sun rise over the...mountains...or in this case the courtyard of my building! I get out of bed, use the bathroom, brush my teeth, and put in my contacts; this is the same exact routine every day without fail! The next (very important) thing is to make coffee! I drink my coffee and watch the light start to get brighter as I catch up on the news and blogs. When I say "drink my coffee," that is coffee plural, and also it is not the tiny cups that the French drink. I do like espresso, but I also like a big ol' cup, or five, of drip coffee. However, I am actually drinking instant, which will probably gross out the coffee snobs, but there is no coffee maker in my apartment and I actually don't mind instant that much anyway.
7:00 am: Now that it is light, I go for a quick run along the Saone river, which is just a few hundred feet from my doorstep. I did this on purpose, as one of the things that is important to me when I am traveling is the ability to get out and get some exercise without having to travel or fight crowds. Of course, a nice view is nice too, but I have found that often the place with the nice view is either the popular (crowded) one, you need a car to get to it, or it is prohibitively expensive! It is a little cold still, and a bit foggy, but it is invigorating to get out!
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| A bit dreary, but its good to get out |
8:00 am: The run is done; I buy a baguette and hit the shower, then eat the baguette with butter and call that breakfast done! Usually I would wait a little longer to have breakfast, and then just have two meals instead of three, but today I have a walking tour at 10:00 am, which is my normal eating time.
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| Walking to Vieux Lyon |
9:00 am: I start walking down toward the Vieux Lyon, which is about a 2.5 mile walk from where I am staying. I take my time and enjoy the quiet of the river, and the cyclists all doing their thing commuting to work. This is a big cycling town and I love it, and of course I also miss my bike! I could easily take the Metro, as there is a stop about 30 seconds from my house, but I enjoy the exercise, and seeing the people on the street. I get to the area a little early and check out the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, which has a really cool astronomical clock inside.
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| St. John the Baptist |
10:00 am-12:00 pm: Walking tour of the Vieux Lyon. This is something I generally like to do on one of my first few days in a new city, as I can get a nice lay of the land and a bit of history. Plus I like to pick the brain of the tour guide for a place to eat and anything I should do that the locals do (in case you are wondering, here are his recommendations).
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| Inside of a Traboule |
This tour is a free walking tour, but that means you have to tip the person, which can be whatever you want but I think that generally $10-$20 is standard. This is still true in non-tipping countries, as this is how they get paid. This is one of the only things I need cash for in most places that I travel (and my baguette; it just feels weird to charge one euro every day on my card!)
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| Place Bellecour |
12:00 pm: The tour ends near the Place Bellecour, which used to be a military training ground but now is a plaza with a Ferris wheel and a subway stop. From it you can see the Basilica of Notre Dame of Fourvière, which sits up on the hill above the city. Luckily it ended here, because also Republic St. is a known shopping street and is nearby and I need a new phone! I head to FNAC to look.
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| Rue de la République |
2:00 pm-4:00 pm: I slowly make my way back home, but not along the river. Instead I go up through the Croix-Rousse neighborhood, which is my favorite neighborhood in the city so far. It has a lot of artwork, murals and weird art installations, and it sits on the top of the hill, so you get a great view of the city below as you go up the hill. I have fun "treasure hunting" as I walk.
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| Croix-Rousse |
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| Croix-Rousse |
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| Duck confit? |
5:00 pm: Family video call! We do this every Thursday. It used to be at 5:00 pm PT, but now that I am abroad, the family does it at 8:00 am instead. Otherwise, I would have to get up at 2:00 am to do the call. Thanks fam!
6:00 pm: The call is over, so I make myself a pate and baguette sandwich for dinner. What do you mean that I can't just eat bread with toppings for every meal? Fine, I will have a side of cheese with it.
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| Cheese!! |
7:00 pm: I read my book for a while. I am reading The Briar Club by Kate Quinn, which is a good book. It is not my favorite Quinn book, that would be The Alice Network, but it is still enjoyable.
9:00 pm: I do my bedtime routine, which is to play one game (okay, maybe two) of Rummikub on my phone before going to bed. I am having issues with my phone though, and the battery doesn't last, and I don't have two adapters, and my computer is plugged in in the living room, so I have to keep my external battery pack nearby to charge my phone. I win one game and lose the other, which is about par for the course.
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| I am about to win! |
9:15 pm: I put on a podcast, set the sleep timer to 15 minutes and pass out!
Total steps: 13,000
Total miles: 7.5 (12 km)
What is your favorite thing to do when you get to a new place? What is your normal bedtime routine? What is your favorite kind of cheese?
I would definitely do the same as you, find a place to stay near running route, if I travel alone! I love to start my day with a run in a new city. I will eat baguette for all the meals if my stomach can tolerate it too.
ReplyDeleteI like to explore local markets too when traveling, it tells about the culture of the place and give me a sense of living expense.
my evening routine is hug the girls and chat with them together or separately for 10-15 min, then read some, few minutes lately, sometimes write down to do list for tomorrow, check tomorrow's calendar to mentally prepare.
Yes! Often I will explore the city by running, effectively killing two birds with one stone. I always carry my reusable grocery bag in my running vest, just in case!
DeleteI need to get better at sitting with my to-do list more regularly. I find I am more willy nilly lately, which isn't really my style.
You know I love DITL posts, and this was super fun to see what your day is like while travelling. How fun to just live elsewhere and do day to day things, but in a different country. I guess that's what long-term travel is.
ReplyDeleteLet's see, what are my answers to your question. My favourite thing to do in a new place is to wander around, I guess? Normal bedtime routine - jammies on, serums and lotions on, teeth brushed and flossed, read a little or watch a little TV with Rob, bed by 8:30! I don't really eat a lot of cheese but I used to love a blue cheese or a really old white cheddar.
Flossed! I need to get better at that! I like old white cheddar and blue too, although the latter took a little bit of getting used to! My friend K makes a gorgonzola dio that is to die for. Really it's just melted gorgonzola and you can pretend you are dipping celery in it but really it's about the cheese.
DeleteWhat a fun post! It is funny how even in a different city, your daily routines are pretty much the same. Lyon looks beautiful. I love taking walking tours! How did you remember so many details from a day that was quite awhile ago? Do you write it down in a journal or did you know you would write this post??
ReplyDeleteMy bedtime routine is: go to the bathroom (but I will probably go 1-2 more times before going to sleep), take out contacts, wash face, brush teeth and then get into bed to read! I read for around an hour.
I’m actually not a HUGE cheese person. I like it but I am not great about the strong flavors and stinky cheeses! I like a good high quality cheddar best I think!!
What! We cannot be friends anymore....you are not a fan of cheese? Haha. I love the stinky ones. I love a good cheddar too though so I guess we can find some common ground. Do you like haloumi?
DeleteI try to read before bed but it often puts me to sleep! However when I am camping and have no service I definitely read more.
As for remembering the old timeline it's a combo of memory, gps tracking and photos!!
I adore day-in-the-life posts and it is so cool to see how you spend your days! My most-eaten cheese is hands-down cheddar, but I love mozzarella and Brie and goat cheese and Manchego and all sorts of other cheeses.
ReplyDeleteMy bedtime routine is: wash face, brush teeth, pee, remove contacts, jammies on, read until I zonk out. I can usually stay awake for about ten minutes, reading. More if my legs are feeling restless, which is not fun for anyone.
My nightly routine is pretty much identical to yours, even down to the 10 minutes!
DeleteOh I do like manchego and when I was in Spain I found a few similar ones whose names I cannot recall that were equally as good.
PS restless legs suck!
I am here for DITL! I am also here for "bread with toppings" meals, and "eat the same thing for all my meals if that's what I'm feeling". When I go to a new place, I always want to start exploring the neighborhood where I'm staying to get the lay of the land.
ReplyDeleteNormal bedtime routine: get in bed with dog and read for a bit, take shower/brush teeth/do any other needed bodily maintenance. Get back in bed, and it's my choice of read/waste time on phone/do NYT crossword puzzle until lights out. Lately I've been sleeping well, but if I can't fall asleep then I listen to a sleep mediation.
Favorite cheese: all of them! If you told me that I could only have one cheese for the rest of my life then I would choose a strong cheddar.
Wow, a lot of cheddar fans here! I would be hard pressed to choose just one really. That's like picking a favorite child!
DeleteIn bed, then out to shower, then back in? That's an exciting night! I do prefer reading in bed to doing it most other places!
I can make (and have made) an entire meal of just bread if the bread is good. Yes, I *can* fill up on bread, thank you, I am an adult! We used to get an incredible chocolate cherry bread at Cleveland's West Side Market (Christopher's Bakery), so I could even have bread as a dessert.
ReplyDeleteCheeses are not much of a part of my menu anymore, thanks to some cholesterol concerns--thanks, Dad!--but I used to love all kinds, especially chevre and bleu. And I've always had a soft spot for baby Swiss.
At bedtime I put the TV on an episode of Dateline, set the sleep timer for 30 minutes, and shut my eyes. I'm usually asleep within 10 minutes, especially if the narrator is Keith Morrison. It seems macabre, but there's something about that show that puts me right out.
Bread for the win! Good bread even more so! Chocolate cherry?? What? I think I need to try that! My parents get an excellent walnut bread from their local co-op and it's very good. The more nuts and seeds and things the better, I always say. I love a good dark German bread. But there's also nothing wrong with a plain French baguette!
DeleteOoh la la, my Dad and his mother also are bringing me the high cholesterol gene. Boo. I may have to lower my cheese and...dare I say it...ice cream consumption! Maybe in a few years.
My favorite two cheeses are both French, so if you find yourself back in France, keep your eyes open.
ReplyDelete1. Brillat Savarin - I think it’s a triple cream, similar to Brie but oh goodness even better.
2. Roquefort - My favorite Roquefort was one I had in Paris in 2022, Famille Carles. Likely you knew this, but if you didn’t, Roquefort is a specific bleu cheese, and has to be made with milk from particular sheep, in a particular region of France, from particular caves. Otherwise it’s not Roquefort (similar to Champagne and Parmigiano Reggiano, which I also LOVE.)
Bonus - You can’t go wrong with some good California cheeses, like Cowgirl Creamery Mt. Tam or Cypress Grove Humboldt Fog. We had some last night, actually, as part of our cheese and bread dinner (we also had fruit and a bit of sausage, but really, it’s about the bread and cheese.)
Your day looks so perfect, and I think slow travel is such a lovely way to do it, rather than feeling rushed and like you need to get everything done all at once.
J you are speaking my language. First, I did know about the special Roquefort sheep! And I also like the cheese, and most blue varieties. You probably also know that there have been deals fought over the specificity of those sheep and the name Roquefort!
DeleteAlso I like the Mt Tam, and there is also one that K gets every time we go to Oregon that they only have there which is really good. I'll have to find out the name, so you can pick some up next time you go.
I don't love cheese, but the rest of my fam do. My favourite is Dubliner.
ReplyDeleteDITL posts are so fun to read and I'm impressed with how much you fit into a day. Wow you are active!!!
Our first day in a new spot we like to walk on foot. Twice (Sydney and Paris in 2019) we had a walking tour on our first day and it is a great way to get a feel for a city while also learning some interesting tidbits.
I feel like my bedtime routine does change around a bit but it's usually: wash face, put on jammies, read/watch a show in bed, pee, lights out. I tend to fall asleep fairly quickly, but I have a bad habit of staying up later than I need to...DEMERIT to me.
I think that if you fall asleep fast then maybe your staying up later is helpful? That's what you can tell yourself at least.
DeleteI have just started this walking tour thing, as I usually would just wander on my own. But sometimes it's nice to get a few facts! And then I still end up wandering a lot!
We love free tours of cities. Coach didn't set any of those up when we were in Italy this trip, but we had other things mapped out and I don't think we could squeeze one in. Your routine sounds delightful. My morning routine includes a morning run or a strength workout in my house, a shower, and food. By 7:30 I'm putting up the garage door to welcome my small charges Mon- Thursday. I do like cheese, but I'm not great an naming the fancy cheeses that are available in the world. I do enjoy sampling them at places like book club, but I rarely now what they are called. I don't care for blue cheese, which is fine because sometimes it's made with bread mold and I can't have bread. When I studied abroad, my brother and I traveled around at Christmas. We ate so many dang baguettes with jam that we kept in our backpacks, that the corners of my mouth suffered little cuts. I swore I'd never eat bread again when we got home. Well, I did eat bread for about 20 more years and then I got diagnosed with celiac. I miss bread.
ReplyDeleteI am glad that you ate a lot of bread at the beginning! Imagine you found out about the celiac early and never got to have a baguette!!! The horror. I actually have found some darn good pizza and desserts that are GF! I was actually quite surprised to be honest! Bread is a little harder although I have been to some restaurants that have done a darn good job of making a close replacement!
DeleteYessss, thank you for this! Nothing brings me more joy than a DITL post - I'm doing one on Wednesday, in fact! This is SUCH a lovely day. I love everything you did and how fun to experience all of the city on foot. (So much walking!! I might have died, but you are heartier than me haha.) I love a good walking tour, though. It's such an excellent way to see a city!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite thing to do when I get to a new place is to stock the fridge! Even if I'm staying in a hotel, I like to go out and stock it with some drinks/snackies for those times when I'm just chilling inside.
You would die at my bedtime routine because it's so long and complicated, lol. Scooping the litter boxes, doing my 7-step skincare routine, brushing the teefers, prepping my CPAP machine, tidying up the apartment/starting the dishwasher, journaling + making a to-do list for the next day. It's intense, lol.
Pepperjack is my favorite cheese!
Wow that is quite a routine!! What time do you start!? 😉 I definitely like to do the dishes and tidy up before I start my teeth and reading and stuff so I get it!!
DeleteI love stocking the fridge! It's so satisfying!
This sounds like an awesome day! I love DITL posts, and you'll enjoy looking back at them too! I would also be standing in the grocery store staring at all the unique items. You know, I think bread with toppings is perfectly acceptable for every meal. When you have access to French baguettes, you have to take advantage! I'm pretty boring with cheese. I like mild cheddar and mozzarella.
ReplyDeleteYay! MG approved! That means I can eat more bread! Ironically I am not really eating that much currently. When in Rome, ya know? I seriously go to the grocery atore in a new town or country (even Canada!) and walk down every aisle so I can see what things are the same or different!
DeleteYou know I love a DITL post! It's funny how they're always fascinating to read, whether the person is traveling abroad or going through their normal workday routine.
ReplyDeleteWhen I traveled a lot for work, I would spend the first day in a new place figuring out where I was going to run, and where I would get my food. Since I'm vegan this usually meant finding some sort of "health food store" in the vicinity.
If I were doing what you're doing, I would love to spend a day almost exactly like this. I might not get up in the dark, but an early-ish wakeup, nice run, walking tour (love those), a little shopping, food, reading... hey. Can we trade places? : )
Yup! I spend a lot of time figuring out where to run! It's such a great way to explore a city! Even at home it is easy to get in a rut, bit so fun to discover a new neighborhood or area that you didn't know was there!
DeleteHi Kyria! I loved this post. We *may* visit Lyon on our France trip this coming summer. We will be in Beaune for 4 nights so we may swing by Dijon and/or Lyon..
ReplyDeleteWhen I get to a new place my favorite thing is to wake up early the next day and get a feel for a place in the early morning, even if it's just sitting by the window to see the place wake up.
My normal bedtime is routine is skin care (clean, toner, serum, night cream), read/acupressure mat/Insight timer/fall asleep at 9 the absolute latest.
Favorite cheese... Emmental? Or Gouda. Or Edam... Who am I kidding? I love cheese.
If you only have one day, Dijon is much more compact and would be easier to explore. Also many of the museums are free! However, Lyon does have more to do if you have more time. I also love cheese and don't think I've found one that I don't like!
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