18 Days in France - Lyon

Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière - Lyon, France
 Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

WE ARRIVED in Lyon in the morning. It would be our final port for the Viking Lofn. We thoroughly enjoyed our crew, from Carlos, the overall manager (who was everywhere, doing every job on board with great cheer and humor), our crew of great bartenders, the cruise director, and on . . . all the way to our room steward. It may have been the best ship crew I have ever experienced.

Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière - Lyon, France
 Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

OUR VIKING-included excursion for the morning was another coach/bus trip around the city ("Panoramic Lyon)." We did have an opportunity to stop and get off the bus at a couple different venues, which was nice. We were able to stretch our legs and see a couple sights up close. Our guide was a good-humored guy who started by telling us about a rivalry between Lyon and Marseille, regarding which city is the second largest in France. Most sources give the nod for that honor to Marseille. But like so many different statistical statements, it really depends on the "metrics." If talking about the entire metropolitan area, then Lyon is probably a bit larger (by population). Does it really matter? For our purposes, not one bit. But you could see that he had acquaintences in Marseille and that there was a friendly, bantering rivalry (he brought it up several times).

Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière - Lyon, France
 Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

My opening image is the Notre Dame Basillica (Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière), way up on a hill overlooking the Rhone and Saune Rivers. The two rivers join at Lyon. Interestingly, this one is referred to as a "minor" Basillica. Architecturally, there is nothing "minor" about it. It is massive and impressive. It is, however, one of the newer such churches of note around the world. It was built in the late 19th century, on the site of the ancient Roman Trajan Ruins. The photo, taken from inside our moving bus, demonstrates the challenges of such a shot. However, when we arrived on site, the street side facade was undergoing restoration and was covered with scaffolding; not a very photogenic shot. I did like the crypt entrance at the top of the stairs in the center of the entrance though. The view across the river is panoramic, and impressive. That morning, we were looking directly into the sun, though, so I didn't make any memorable photographs from there.The interior of the Basillica, however, was worth taking a few minutes inside. As impressive and ornate as I have seen around the world, I really liked the look here. I was especially enamored with the cylindrical hanging lights throughout the sanctuary.

Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière - Lyon, France
 Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

WE HAD some time to walk around the exterior courtyards and use the public restroom facilities. I took a bit of time to walk around and make a few more photographs. The tower - quite reminiscent of the more famous tower in Paris - immediately drew my attention. It is sometimes referred to as the mini-Eiffel Tower of Lyon (it is said to be an exact replica of the third stage of the Eiffel). Ironically, it was originally built by protestant supporters, to offset the overpowering - and strongly Catholic - presence of the massive adjoining Basillica. Today, it is used as a radio and communications tower, and it not open to the public.

Tour métallique de Fourvière - Lyon, France
 Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

AFTER RE-BOARDING our bus, we stopped in the downtown area and walked around for a few minutes. Like many European cities, it has its older sections with pedestrian - only, often cobblestone streets. One of the kind of cool and unique things we saw in Lyon was the passageway - entrances to some of the residential dwellings. Rather than entries directly onto the main streets, there were passageways between two main streets and the dwelling entrances were in those passageways. It made for a much quieter residential spot, and the entrances were protected from bad weather. I was taken by the bicycle locked to one of the railings, giving us just a peek into the life of a Lyon local.

Lyon, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

AS WE drove back to the ship, our guide pointed out the modern towers pictured here. They flank two very large, public swimming pools. Very popular during that time, as France has been experiencing record high (high 90's F) temperatures this summer. I made my image from the walkway just up from and in front of our ship.

Lyon, France
I made this image in color, but my B&W version seemed better in this case
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

WE WERE back to the ship by 12:30. Predictably, just in time for lunch. Viking seems to be pretty well planned around their meals. 😋. The rest of the day was free time for most of us (some may have taken one of the optional excursions). It was so hot that it was difficult to get motivated to go out though. I spent a little bit of time later in the afternoon smoking a cigar up on deck. But mostly we just loafed and rested.

Lyon, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

18 Days in France - Vienne

Our Viking Lofn "rafted" outside another Viking River Boat at our mooring in Vienne, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

WE WERE still getting used to the cruise stop/port schedule. We are accustomed to the ocean cruise ship schedules which mostly cruise at night and stop at ports during the day, staying put once in a given port. River cruises are less consistent. Part of the reason is schedules can change depending on conditions. Another is that many of the river ports are very small, making in and out scheduling challenging. We had heard about this already, but it is often necessary to "raft" fwo or more boats along the dockside, meaning you may be going through, or up and over, another ship sometimes. So river cruise stops are just less consistent by their nature. Our stop in Vienne appeared to me to be one of those instances. We arrived at our mooring in Vienne, sometime during the dinner hour. There was a scheduled evening walking tour, starting around 9:00 p.m. Sometime during the night, we would leave Vienne and sail onward to our final port of call on this leg of our journey: Lyon, where we would remain docked for the next 3 nights.

Vienne Suspension Bridge - Vienne, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

OUR MOORING was actually across the river from Vienne, at Sainte-Columbe, just at the foot of The Vienne Suspension Bridge (La Passerelle), a beautiful pedestrian bridge across the Rhone. Having already spent a rather long, hot day in Tournon, only 2 of our group opted to go out on the scheduled night walking tour of Vienne. I was one of the participants. I am glad I went.

Vienne Suspension Bridge - Vienne, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

KNOWING THERE would not be any opportunities in a group setting for a tripod, I opted to carry only my Samsung S24+ phone for this one. I don't usually do a lot of handheld shots at night, not having fully embraced the high ISO capabilities of my Sony a7cr. I probably should. But I got a few that I think are worthy of posting anyway.

Cathédrale Saint-Maurice de Vienne (Vienne Cathedral) - Vienne, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

VIKING PUTS their passengers out for excursions in semi-manageable "groups." On this night, not expecting a huge turnout (and they were right - there were only 2 groups in the end), they did not assign us a group. We just picked one. My newest acquaintance, Randy (brother in law to our other traveling companions Jim and Flo) and I picked a group and set up our "walkies" and off we went. After we exited the Vienne Suspension Bridge, we crossed perhaps Vienne's busiest street and almost immediately came upon the beautiful Romanesque and French Gothic Cathedrale Saint-Maurice de Vienne (Vienne Cathedral). Our walk had started right at 9:00 p.m. (Civil Twilight) and the light was warm and low contrast, flattering the stone work.

Jardin de Cybele (Vienne Archaelogical Garden) - Vienne, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

BEYOND THE Cathedral, we walked a couple city streets in the heart of the old Medieval City, and arrived at one of its most popular places, The Archaelogical Garden (Jardin de Cybèle). In this spot there are the remains of the ancient Gallow - Roman civilization which is now at the geographical heart of Vienne. The structure you see up on the hill behind the garden is Théâtre Antique de Vienne, and ancient Roman Theatre, which now serves as a venue for musical acts. We did not go up there as it was in use at the time, by none other than Sting, who has often performed there. We could hear the music and the cheering crowd way up in the distance. Built around 40 - 50 A.D., the theatre still bears its stone seating (maybe an uncomfortable concert attendance).

Roman Ruins - Jardin de Cybele - Vienne France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

JUST STEPS away from the garden, we came upon Place François Mitterrand the site of Hôtel de Ville (City Hall), former 18th Century town house of one of Vienne's noblemen (recall from the Avignon Blog that in French, "hôtel" can have a number of meanings, one of which is an important municipal building). The architecture and landscaping is grand; all the more so when lit at night.

Hôtel de Ville, Vienne - Vienne, France
Copright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

CONTINUING JUST around the corner, we came upon Vienne's historically most popular square, Place du Palais Charles de Gaulle, the site for the ancient Roman Temple of Augustus and Livia. Built some 100 years B.C., the temple is an important part of Roman history, and attests to the presence of Roman Civilization so many years ago.

Temple of Augustus and Livia - Vienne, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

THERE IS often a special magic in night time lighting. At the same time often masking unwanted clutter around a photographic subject, the lighting creates contrast and shadows, enhancing the textures and colors of these subjects.

Temple of Augustus and Livia - Vienne, France
Copyrigtht Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

THIS BASICALLY ended our nightime Vienne excursion. But all around this area, there were shops, restaurants and bars, and evidence of a vibrant night life in Vienne's old downtown. I wished we could stop and visit one or two of the street bars for a drink and to take in the nightlife. I think that if some of the rest of our group had joined us, we might have. We were only about 10 minutes from our cruise ship. Our guide let us know that staying for a while was an option, but it seemed that most of our group opted to accompany her back to the ship.

Vienne, France
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I WAS able to make just a couple more images of this beautiful city on the way.

Vienne, France
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OUR NEXT port of call, the next morning, was Viviers.

A last look across the Rhone to Vienne, as the moon rose over the city
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

We will be away for the next two weeks, traveling again in Spain and France. Of course, the plan is to bring back more photos. I think our itinerary will bear much fruit for that endeavor. In the meantime, stay tuned and I will see you in October!

18 Days in France - Tournon

Tournon Steam Train (Train de l'Ardeche) - Tournon, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

WE ARRIVED at our dock in Tournon, France, sometime during the night, and awoke ready for our adventure of the day, a short coach ride across the river to the Tournon-sur-Rhône railway station servicing the now tourist-driven Tournon Steam Train. Historically, citizens of the area traveled by a similar steam train to get from one village to another (or further). Just a year ago, we had ridden a similar train on our 2025 Celebrity Apex ocean cruise with our good friends, Todd and Heather, in Flam, Norway. Given that we were pretty far north in the world at that time, it seemed like mother nature chose that one day to give us rain and drizzle. But for me, surprisingly, I got some pretty nice "atmospheric" images.

Steam Locomotive - Tournon Steam Train - Tournon, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

TODAY'S TRAIN ride was in many ways similar. It was an old, narrower gauge train driven by a steam locomotive. The open cars (they were closed with windows in Flam). One of the things I have learned during our travels over the year is just how challenging shooting from a moving vehicle is - especially when there are windows involved. In fact, I will go so far as calling it a proverbial "crapshoot." When I do get a nice (or even just acceptable) image, it is as much due to luck as it is skill or equipment. Today was no exception. Not only were we moving along at a pretty good clip, but even though there were no windows to provide ugly reflections, it was one of those cloudless, blue-sky days, yielding harsh lighting conditions. Back home at the computer, I was disappointed not to really get anything I though was very good.

BUT AS I often say here, it is one of those probable once-in-a-lifetime gigs. So you do what you can. This is the third "scenic" train ride we have taken during our travels (beginning back in 2020, on Alaska/Yukon's White Pass Railroad). One of the shots I have aways tried to get is the one of the rest of the train up ahead of us, rounding a track (preferably even crossing a bridge). So far, I have been successful, as shown above (and in the opening image).

Tournon Steam Locomotive - Tournon, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

WHEN DOING my research prior to this trip, there were two things I wanted to try to make photographs of. The first was that fact that there would be an opportunity to capture (possibly even dramatic) steam around the locomotive. I did get a few like that, though lighting conditions meant some pretty intensive "post-processing" to get the image looking acceptable (in my view anyway).

Hand-operated "Armstrong" Turntable - Tournon Steam Train - Tournon, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

THE SECOND thing was the turntable used by the engineers to turn the locomotive around for the return trip. At both ends, the locomotive had to re-connect with the opposite end of the train in order to pull it in the opposite direction (I never figured out how they turned it around back at the main station). A little "Google" research turns up more than I ever wanted to know about these things (but if you are a train buff, I recommend you look up "train turntable" and watch a couple of the You-Tube videos that pop up - they are interesting). This is known in the industry as an "Armstrong" type turntable. One might think it was designed by an engineer by that name. But no. It is more obvious than that. It can be operated by one man with just "arm - strength," as the image below illustrates. You cannot really see it here, but the entire mechanism balances on a large plate with bearings in the middle, while the ends run on a rail around the circumference of the turntable pit. The key is to get the locomotive balanced on the center of the pivot. Fascinating to watch.

Engineer single-handedly pushing the locomotive balanced on the turntable 180 degrees around - Tournon Steam Train - Tournon, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

I HAVE only seen something like this one other time; at Powell and Market Streets in San Francisco, where two workers push the car 180 degrees around on a turntable to reverse directions. It was pretty cool.

The end of the Tournon Steam Train - Tournon, France
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THERE IS a small, but interesting museum at the station which is part of the admission for the train ride. Of course in our case, Viking took care of all the ticketing, times, etc. But you can certainly do this on your own. It is hard to see the size of the parts of the wheel drive mechanism I photographed, but they are huge. There is also a collection of railroad lanterns, and a couple specimen cars.

Steam Locomotive wheel-drive components
Tournon Steam Train - Tournon, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

I THINK I have mentioned that our visit to France was during a period of record high tempuratures, and today was no exception. High 90's (F) were common most days, with a couple actually exceeding 100. This day was no exception, and by the time we returned to the ship, we were ready for a cold drink and some welcoming air-conditioning. Apparently, it is a tradition for Viking crew members to greet returning passengers with their red umbrella line on from time to time. Today was Lofn's turn. It made for an engaging photo, even given the challenging lighting conditions.

Viking Lofn - Tournon, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved