Place Bellevue

Let's take a break from our ascent of Croix Rousse to take a look at this magnificent panorama of the city. Do sit down for a moment and admire the view from this square which, in my opinion, well deserves its name: Place Bellevue (Beautiful view square). From here, you can see the eastern part of Lyon: the towers of the Part Dieu on the right and the Parc de la Tête d'Or on the left. In a garden at the back of this square you’ll find a statue of Sully Prudhomme, the first ever writer to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. He's depicted here because he lived in Croix Rousse for a while! Place Bellevue also used to be the site of Fort Saint-Laurent, a military fortress built in 1830 to protect the city, making it a place of great importance in Lyon's history, besides offering a magnificent panorama of the rooftops, and of the city, which is also known as the City of Lights.