We went from Iceland to France, making our way to Lyon to board the AmaKristina for the Colors of Provence cruise. This was our first river cruise, and we really enjoyed it. The ship is a floating hotel, so after unpacking once you’re good for the week.
We took a walking tour of Lyon; it began with a bus ride to the top of Fourvière Hill to the Basilica of Notre Dame de Fourvière.
From there it was all downhill,
weaving past the Roman amphitheater (built in 15 BC), and through the Old Town, which is a remarkably well-preserved Renaissance district.
Did you know that Antoine de St Exupéry was from Lyon? Author and WWII pilot.
Note the little shop dog behind me. I came back the next morning and bought stickers for personalizing our water bottles.
My favorite part of the tour was a visit to Soierie Saint Georges. This silk shop has a workshop in the back, with jacquard looms from the 1800’s. The family has been using them ever since. Some of their work is in the palace at Versailles.
It takes 3 months to warp this loom.
This portrait of JM Jacquard is actually a silk weaving, produced on a Jacquard loom.
Making velour the old fashioned way. Metal rods are inserted to make a taller weft fabric, which is then cut with a razor.
The next day, a woman from Brochier Soieries gave an onboard presentation on silk weaves, and printing on silk fabric as we cruised to our next destination. Screen printing is done in layers of color. This scarf depicts the city of Lyon: the Saône and Rhône rivers, and Presqu-ile, the peninsula in between.
She also discussed block printing, and machine printing. Machine printing isn’t necessarily faster; it can require one pass for every warp thread.
I learned a lot, and may have purchased a scarf. I was thrilled to have another textile tie-in on this trip!
More learning on this cruise: This AMAWaterways sailing was co-branded with Smithsonian Journeys. We had two art historians on board, Amanda Luyster and Stéphanie Jeanjean, who each gave two lectures. They covered the period between first century AD up to contemporary art. This added a lot to my understanding of the sites we visited.
More later!
