Christmas in Lyon

Maybe it's because we don't watch French TV. Or because we no longer have young kids. But Christmas in France seems less frazzled, frantic, and frenzied than in America. Sure, people still get out and shop for presents, but I don't see the same gluttonous spending-spree mentality amongst the people here. There's no such thing as "Black Friday." Malls don't stay open until midnight (they do, however, open on Sundays, which is a big no-no throughout the rest of the year). Shoppers seem to go casually about their business, strolling along at a leisurely pace, hardly paying attention to the longer lines at the cashier and hoards of people in the streets.

Here in Lyon, nighttime in December feels festive and gay (using, of course, that good old-fashioned definition). Many streets glow with Christmas lights and other leftover decorations from the Fête des Lumières. White flocked Christmas trees in large red pots line our own street. Throughout town, shop windows are often cheerfully decorated with greenery, tinsel, and colorful baubles (often blue, purple, pink and silver rather than red & gold). But sadly, hardly anybody decorates their own apartment balconies. Last year I went through the trouble of stringing lights on our balcony, but without an outdoor plug it was impractical -- we had to leave the windows open to accommodate the extension cord, and it was brutally cold!

Santa is a fairly rare sight in France. Kids can get their photos taken with Père Noël in the big malls, and he makes an annual appearance on a horse-drawn sleigh in the parc de la Tête d'Or, but I haven't seen Santa decorations in homes or stores. Last year we went to Christmas dinner at a family's house in the country, and I didn't see a single lawn display featuring Saint Nick and his eight tiny reindeer. So sad.




Trees, however, are becoming a bigger deal here -- literally. Friends who have been in Lyon a long time said that it used to be that families might set up a very tiny "Charlie Brown" tree on top of a table. But now many grocery stores, marches, and florists in the city carry trees up to 2 meters tall. This week I've seen lots of folks dragging trees down the sidewalks or hoisting one over their shoulders. Even larger trees can be found in countryside cut-your-own tree farms, just like in the US, but for the second year in a row we elected to go with a student-run business that would deliver right to our doorstep -- and it was a bargain, the cheapest price I've seen so far. (No matter that the top of our tree is missing a few branches, it's all good!) The best part is not having to use one of those aggravating Christmas tree stands: the trees here come pre-mounted onto a large section of wood, cut in half so the base is flat and the trunk fits in a hole drilled in the bark.

The one Christmas tradition that the French seem to do even bigger and better than the U.S. is....drum roll...SWEETS! Entire aisles of the supermarkets are taken over by candy displays: crinkly cellophane sacks of Révillons, pyramids of Ferrero Rochers, boxes of Mon Chéri...it's all so good! And the pâtisseries have to keep up too, with all sorts of special Christmas cakes and treats, such as the bûche de Noël, a cake rolled up and decorated to look like a yule log.

No wonder I'm constantly singing "It's the most fattening time of the year!"

Looking back at ICCL's 10th Annual Christmas Carols

Two weeks ago, our small church put on a big event. The International Christian Community of Lyon's 10th annual Christmas Carols service drew a crowd of about 450 to the Temple du Change in Vieux Lyon. It's a fun and festive event which truly kicks off the Christmas season, and is a much-anticipated outing for many English-speaking expats and Anglophiles in Lyon. It's not a passive concert, but instead a chance for the entire congregation to lift their voices together in song. Many traditional hymns are sung such as Joy to the World, Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, and my personal favorite, O Holy Night.

We also celebrate our diversity by bringing the German speakers up front to sing "Stille Nacht" (Silent Night), and we do an international Bible reading, this year in 15 different languages! Our emcee, Jim, keeps the tone lighthearted and joyful. The kids get a chance to come up front and ring bells to the tune (loosely) of "Jingle Bells." It's a great action photo opportunity for the moms and dads, and the kids are rewarded for their efforts with a peppermint candy cane.

This year, being the 10th anniversary, we added a special twist. We invited the world-famous Petit Chanteurs de Saint Marc to join us, and they delivered a beautiful mini-concert of Adeste Fideles (O Com, All Ye Faithful in Latin), Gloria, The First Noel, and the well-known French carol "Il est ne, le divin enfant." These young singers mesmerized the audience with each stirring note. It was unforgettable!

We also had an amazing guest speaker this year, Jim Kallam from Church at Charlotte in North Carolina. He delivered the message of God's greatest gift, Jesus Christ -- the light of the world and the hope of the nations. Jim's words were filled with grace and truth and I know the message touched many hearts that night.

As the evening drew to a close, we wrapped up with another annual highlight, the singing of "12 Days of Christmas" which involved the entire congregation standing up according to their birthday month: Januaries during "A Partridge in a Pear Tree," Februaries during "Two Turtle Doves", and so on.

We ended the evening by belting out "We Wish You a Merry Christmas," and then everyone filed to the back of the hall for cookies and clementines before heading out into the crisp winter evening. As we did so, our hearts were a bit merrier and the smiles on our faces were a bit wider, for the true meaning of Christmas had stirred our souls.

Merry Christmas!

Kids lining up to get their bells....

... and performing "Jingle Bells"

International Bible Reading

Germans singing "Stille Nacht" (Silent Night)

Pure Christmas Joy!

The Petit Chanteurs having a good time

Enjoying the Word in song

It was a joyful time, thanks to the leadership of our talented emcee Jim Carlson

Fête des Lumières 2014

Last night our family and about a dozen young adults from our church ventured out for the first night of the annual Fête des Lumières. We had just feasted on generous helpings of warm tartiflette, providing us with lots of energy for the night ahead. The mood was festive and convivial. Thankfully it wasn't too cold nor too crowded.  The Fête is a virtual feast for the senses, and must be experienced to be fully appreciated. So rather than try to describe it with words, I'll let Lindsey's video show you a sample of our evening. Enjoy!

10th Annual Christmas Carols

Inviting all my Lyonnaise readers to join us for the 10th Annual Christmas Carols in Vieux Lyon this Sunday, November 30. Sing along with us as we kick off the holiday season in style!

After this event is over, I have an early New Year's Resolution: to do more blogging. 

à bientôt!

Apprendre le français!

Everyone agrees that the best way to learn a foreign language is to be immersed in it. Our youngest daughter has that luxury by nature of going to a French public school every weekday; she's definitely progressing faster than the rest of us. Even though we can get by, our ministry is in an English context, so Greg and I find ourselves using our native tongue much more than French. We try to improve our language skills by learning in our spare time.

Sometimes this learning happens on the street, in real-life situations. My favorite phrase when interacting with the French is "J'essaie apprendre le français" -- "I'm trying to learn French." For some reason, this sentence seems to be the key to getting language help. I think it's because it shows humility and a desire to enter their world. Whatever the reason, I usually get special attention when I say this phrase, and I almost always learn something new. For example, the other day we had repair done on our balcony doors. After welcoming the workers, I used the magic sentence, and in a matter of seconds I was getting a vocabulary lesson on construction tools!

Besides these types of daily interactions, I also participate in conversation groups and a language exchange partnership (wherein I help someone with English and she helps me with French). I also use a variety of free language websites. In case some of you are also "d'apprendre le français" I'd like to offer reviews of the tools I've found to be most helpful. And please send me a comment if you have found other great websites!

Coffee Break French - this is an excellent podcast by RadioLingua. In short, 15-20 minute segments, French teacher Mark and his "student" Anna take beginners through the basics of the French language using a thematic, conversational approach. Every 10 lessons, Mark offers a quiz to review the material previously learned. The podcasts are free but extra written materials are available for purchase. I love Mark's teaching style. He mixes grammar and spelling rules in with the lessons, but the focus is becoming comfortable in conversation. He excels at demonstrating how to build on what you already know to be able to succeed even in unfamiliar situations. Some of the more advanced lessons provide realistic "radio-play" conversations that Mark breaks down one sentence at a time, explaining the nuances of the language as he goes. I give this an A+ for explaining "real" French in an entertaining way.

Apprendre le Français avec TV5 Monde  - One of France's TV stations teamed up with French university teachers to create this fun and effective language tool. Learners watch a short clip from a television program, and answer a series of comprehension and grammar questions. There are usually four or five sets of exercises for each clip, which forces you to watch the same clip over and over again. This is not a bad thing; as a matter of fact, I've found that with each subsequent viewing, I understand a little bit more every time. At the end of the lesson I usually watch the clip one final time while reading the transcript provided. The lessons are categorized by level: A1 & A2 for beginners, B1 & B2 for intermediate and advanced. This website gets an A- because while it's fantastic for listening comprehension, it doesn't offer much in the way of explanation.

DuoLingo - A friend told me about this one, and I do use it from time to time but find that it has a lot of problems. On the plus side, it helps you learn to spell French words and introduces new vocabulary. Also, it's game-like approach keeps it fun. However, the sentences they come up with are really stupid. "The small elephant has a red dress." Really? I would never find this to be useful in real life. Another huge problem is the audio. I think they used the google translate voice -- it's very mechanical and hard to understand. In French, correct pronunciation is vital, and this website doesn't help in that area at all. C+.

LiveMocha - This is a social networking website, and it can be a lot of fun. It's necessary to create an account to get started, because the goal is to interact with other language learners around the world. You earn points by providing feedback to English learners, and you redeem your points to "buy" language lessons. Each thematic lesson includes vocabulary, grammar, speaking, writing, and listening. You have the opportunity to record your voice during the speaking lessons and have your submission reviewed by a native French speaker (for enough points, you can even get feedback from a professional French instructor!) I give this a B because the lessons are written by a variety of coaches, and some of the lessons aren't as useful as others. Also, I seem to always get sucked into spending more time reviewing English submissions than working on my French!

So there you have it, a few places to get started on your language adventure. Comment below to suggest additional French resources. Thanks!

My new normal

When our family moved to urban Lyon from suburban North Carolina, everything changed. I usually tell people I come from Charlotte, but due to typical American sprawl, we actually lived in a "small" farming town situated about 25 miles south of the big city. (Small is in quotation marks because the town is so widespread geographically: google tells me its area is about 30 square kilometers. In contrast, Lyon is 48 square kilometers, but has 44 times the population!)

Our former rental home sat on over an acre of woods. In the summertime we couldn't see our nearest neighbors thanks to the thick foliage. Occasionally, the sounds of lawn mowers or barking dogs would disturb the peace, but normally it was quiet.

By contrast, in Lyon we live in an apartment just a few blocks from city center. It's noisy. All the time. But as I've said before in earlier posts, I love my new lifestyle here. It has become my new normal.

It hit me like a ton of bricks the other day as I was walking back from the grocery store, toting my "caddy" behind me and carrying a baguette underneath my arm: "I have a new life." One that I'm actually used to. I don't find it strange anymore to exit the front door and immediately enter a living stream of humanity rushing along the sidewalks. It's no longer foreign to hop on a metro or take out a bike from the "Vélo'V" stands to get from place to place. I'm thankful, SO thankful, that I don't have to get in the car every time I need to run an errand. Everything the city has to offer is literally just outside my door.

I've grown accustomed to the urban noises. Cars, buses, and delivery trucks constantly cruise down our street, but I barely notice the ruckus anymore. Now I'm so used to the French police sirens (which sound like bagpipes to me), when I watch an American action movie I find the high-pitched siren noises strange.

When I need some peace and quiet, I simply head to the park. It's a 15 minute walk, 10 minute jog, or 5 minute bike or bus ride away from our apartment. This enormous and beautiful park has become my surrogate backyard. When I enter its imposing gates, I enter another world. Stress drains away. I commune with nature, and the God who created it. Sometimes I go there to exercise, sometimes I read a book or work a Sudoku puzzle, sometimes I just sit. And breathe. And after a while, I return. I return to the noise, to the chaos, to the energy of urban life.

Usually, I don't even hear it.

A long overdue update

Blogging is like exercising: both are addicting while you're in the rhythm, but once you slack off for a few days it's hard to get started again. Several weeks have passed since my last post, so it's probably best if I work back into it slowly. Perhaps just a snapshot of September events will suffice for today.

La rentrée - School started again for Lindsey on September 3. Although still difficult, things started off much better than last year. She has a good grasp of the basics of both the French language and culture, which helps tremendously. Our high school graduate, Lori, has also been staying busy this month by taking French lessons at a private language school and getting one-on-one art instruction from a friend from church.

Church - The ICCL also had its own rentrée this month, greeting lots of new international families and students from places like India, Japan, Peru, Colombia, England, and Sierra Leone....just to name a few. But we're also sad to be saying goodbye to people returning to their home countries. Such is life at an international church! I'm incredibly thankful to be a part of this dynamic and diverse group of people who are connected by their common faith in Jesus Christ.

Saying "au revoir" to Jennifer and Marcia

Visit from the beau-père - My wonderful father-in-law came for a 2-week visit shortly after school started. We all had a great time showing him around the beautiful city of Lyon, in addition to Geneva and Chamonix in the French Alps. Greg and his Dad journeyed to Normandy by train and visited several WWII beachheads and museums.

La langue française - Improving my French has been one of my focus areas for this month. I'm taking advantage of a couple of free conversation groups and a one-on-one language exchange. Additionally, I'm supplementing my learning with websites such as Live Mocha, DuoLingo, and TV5Monde.

Exercise - Working out is another priority activity for me. I don't go to a gym; I prefer to exercise outdoors or at home on my yoga mat. I stumbled across a great "online trainer" named Sean Vigue, who motivates me with his challenging power yoga, pilates and conditioning workouts. 

And speaking of exercise, to expand on the analogy I used in the beginning of this post, I don't want to pull a brain muscle so I think I'll stop here and pick it back up again another day!