FRENCH JOURNEY - PROGRAMME 2

LYON - WEAVING & COOKING

It's the people as well as the buildings that give a city its own character. This part of Lyon is called "the working hill" - thousands of Lyon's population used to earn their living here, weaving silk.

Everywhere in the city you can find surprising big walls. These extraordinary trompe-l'oeil look almost real. An ingenious way of covering the white walls, these frescoes are a living tribute to the Lyon of yesterday and today. That one is called the Wall of the Canuts. Canuts is the name given to the silk weavers who lived here. Nowadays, one of them lives and works here. He still uses a traditional loom.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the rattle of looms poured out into the streets from all these windows.

Georges Mattelon is 86. He has been weaving silk since his teenage years. Wendy went to see him.

Georges Mattelon:  It's very old, it's a Chinese style of weaving.  The Chinese used it thousands of years ago.  

Now, Georges makes textiles with patterns for the government as well as unique pieces for haute-couture fashion shows. This type of loom allows for the making of any pattern.

Wendy:  Are you the last person to do this work in that way?

Georges Mattelon:  Oh yes!

Wendy:  The last person?

Georges Mattelon:  Yes, the very last one.

This loom was invented by Joseph-Marie Jacquard and uses a complicated system of perforated cards. Each hole determines an element in the pattern. In 1805 the Jacquard loom revolutionised the silk industry, reducing the weaving time considerably.

Jacquard is honoured on another big trompe-l'oeil, the Wall of the Lyonnais. There he is, next to other heroes from Lyon - inventors, writers, politicians, artists and show hosts. The Lumière brothers, the inventors of cinema. Antoine de St Exupéry, the author of The Little Prince. And the pride of the city, chefs like Paul Bocuse, famous around the world for his fine cuisine.

Lyon  is not the right place to start a diet. In the 30s, much to the dismay of Paris, Lyon became the world capital of fine cuisine. Nowhere else in Europe are there so many good restaurants per square metre. Lyon's gastronomy has simple origins. It can be found in little restaurants, called "bouchons", typical of the city. Chefs are often female. Wendy went to meet one - Arlette Hugon.
 
Wendy:  Hello, Madame.

Arlette Hugon:  Hello.

Wendy:  How are you?

Arlette Hugon:  Very well.

Wendy:  So this is a genuine bouchon. What exactly is a real bouchon?

Arlette Hugon:  It's like we have here.  It's a real, old Lyon bouchon.  It's a small place where we cook home-made dishes in front of people - dishes passed down from generation to generation where we make simple, everyday meals.  Come and see the ingredients.

Wendy: The kitchen is tiny!

Arlette Hugon:   It's tiny.  So this is what we eat in Lyon.  People love black pudding with stewed apples.  This is 'sapper's apron', it's heiffer's stomach.  It's served as an escalope.  It's wonderful!  

Wendy:  And that?

Arlette Hugon:   And this is for the Lyonnais, they love it.  They're sausages made from intestines.  It's good!  You need to be from Lyon, though!

Wendy:  You eat strange animal parts!

Arlette Hugon:   Yes, with lentils.  It's a very rich cuisine.

Towards noon, the restaurant started to get busy. And the small kitchen heated up under the supervision of Chef Hugon, the son of Arlette Hugon, who follows on the family tradition.

Arlette Hugon:   Here are the starters

Michel:  A bit of everything

Man:  There's everything there. Pork...

Michel:  That's herrings and potatoes, herrings and potatoes in oil... Potatoes, lentils

In a real 'bouchon' like this one you can eat at any time of the day. Some people even go there for breakfast.

Wendy:  People eat here from 9 in the morning?

Man:  Oh yes, there are some who come in the morning. 

Michel:   They eat black pudding in the morning.

Wendy:  Not black pudding! That's impossible!

Michel:   It's like rognons, really good.  Do you know what rognons are?

Wendy:  No, I don't

Michel:   They're testicles - do you know what they are?

Wendy:  Yes, yes, I know!

Michel:  It's testicles.  They soak them in vinegar...

Wendy:  I think I'll stick to potato!

Who said the Lyonnais haven't got a sense of humour?

Wendy:  Michel, what do you like about the bouchons?

Michel:  If we come to a bouchon, it's to eat old-fashioned cooking. Traditional cooking is largely based on cochonaille, that's pork and then all these vegetables, these mixtures of starters, these hors-d'oeuvres, and also to drink good wine.

Wendy:  And what do you like about the atmosphere?

Michel:   The atmosphere?  There's a very friendly atmosphere and you can sit next to anyone.  People may not know each other, but everyone chats. It's friendly.

Originally there were hundreds of real "bouchons" in Lyon. Nowadays, there are scarcely 20 left. It's worth looking out for them!

Copyright BBC 2000