Place Bellecour

On my way back to the my hotel in Lyon, it felt that there were a lot more people than usual. I was thinking that I was approaching some shopping district even if it was already quite late at night. Indeed there was a shopping area nearby but what caught my attention was the presence of a large square. This is the Place Bellecour. It seems that it has a lot of superlatives associated with it. It is one of the largest open squares in Europe. It also happens to be the third largest square in France. It is also the largest pedestrian square in Europe since vehicles are not allowed here but other larger squares allow vehicles.

I was struck by the size of the square. I didn’t know that it was going to be that empty. There was a large Ferris wheel here which I thought was only there for Christmas. I didn’t ride the wheel, I thought it a bit tacky to have something like that in a square. There were statues here in the square but it was a bit too dark to appreciate them. I noticed that there were metro stations here and I would assume that it is a major stop in the metro lines. Indeed, major shopping streets are nearby here and it would be a good place to stop. Winter seems to have more activities here including an ice skating rink although I didn’t see one at the time, perhaps it was too warm.

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