Caption: Quiet evening in Lyon
Caption: Janet Flanner and Sylvia Beach in front of “Shakespeare and Company”
Sylvia Beach opened an English bookstore in Paris named Shakespere and Company. Ernest Hemingway decided he wanted to borrow some books. The woman who was helping him was Sylvia beach. Ernest gave a brief description of her physical appearance than says, “…she was king, cheerful and interested, and loved to make jokes and gossip. No one that I ever knew was nicer to me” (35). When Ernest realized he didn’t have enough money to borrow books and become a member, but Sylvia allowed him to take as many books as he liked and he could pay her back whenever it was convenient for him. This demonstrates Sylvia Beach’s generosity and kindness even to someone she knows nothing about. This is evident in the novel when Ernest said, ”There was no reason for her to trust me. She did not know me and the address I had given her,74 rue Cardinal Lemoine, could not have been a poorer one. But she was delightful and charming and welcoming…”(35). Sylvia also invites Ernest and his wife over for dinner after they have small talk, which also contributes to her friendly attitude.
The place that I would like the most to visit would be Lyon so far. Ernest describes Lyon as a town that is “…heavily alive since early mourning.”(160) and “…not a very cheerful town at night.” I like this because it allows you to be more engaged during the day with the hustle and bustle of the town, which allows you to become more in-touch with the culture in that town. I like the fact it is quiet at night because after a long day of the busyness and what not, the peacefulness and calmness of the night would allow me to be in a really relaxed mood. Another reason I would like to visit Lyon is the chicken. Ernest said, “For years I had heard about the wonderful chicken in the restaurants there…” (159)Myself being a big fan of chicken would be eager to taste Lyon’s chicken to see if it is as good as people make out to be because I have heard that chicken is good there once before. I also wouldn’t mind trying some of this white Mâcon wine because Ernest makes it sound exquisite.
