MAY 20, 2018
MAY 21, 2018
Yesterday was a travel day with a nice surprise while shopping at a small market as most stores are closed on Sunday afternoons. We checked into a very spacious 2BR flat with almost everything…. We miss the kettle for coffee but I suppose the Nespresso machine sort of makes up for it.
Our little shopping trip was a great success – a box of Magnum double chocolate ice cream bars (as we have a full freezer!) and, of all things from a small grocery store a bottle of Sauternes.
Thom introduced me to Sauternes in 1998 on the front porch of the family home on Martha’s Vineyard, as the sun was setting. It was a bottle from the early 1980s, and the color reminded you of the sun and honey. The flavor was similar. The house was sold not too long ago, but my memory of those first sips of Sauterne at that house will be with me forever. Now that we are in Avignon with an apparent endless supply of Sauternes, guess what I’ll be sipping over the next few days!!
Today was a calm and slow day with no real agenda. We have 6 days here and will explore the local area and probably rent a car to see Arles and Montpelier. We wandered out to find the river, the Rhone, which is only about a 10 minute walk. We walked along the area where boats were tied up and saw some really nicely set up boats and a couple from the UK. I like the sound of that journey!
We came across a small ferry that turned out to take you across the river for free. Once there we found there wasn’t too much actually there, but we caught a glimpse of a large castle farther away up on a hill that seem quite imposing. We must find out how to get there??? We also saw very dark storm clouds to the east and when we caught a glimpse of lightening, we decided it best to head back across the river and start to go back to the flat. We had hoped to find fresh fish but the local market closed at 1:30. Maybe tomorrow.
We had a nice wander through parts of the old city we hadn’t seen yesterday and then it started to pour. We picked up the pace and found our way back in about 20 minutes, wet but not soaked.
Given the afternoon had succumbed to the rain for a few hours; we put on dry and somewhat warmer clothes. And I started sipping the sauternes. This could be a bad habit!!! But so nice…….
MAY 22, 2018
We decided to do a bit of exploring today. After walking into town we found Les Halles which is a terrific market area. Beautiful fish on display, as well as produce, cheeses, etc. We continued through the city, this is a very walkable place, and continued on to cross the river where there was an imposing castle on the hill side. We started with the free ferry and then walked south to the bridge where we crossed over to the other side of the other half of the river. It was then a bit of a walk to what turned out to be a fortification (the imposing part) and what was once an abbey, the Abbey of Saint Andre, but not long ago turned to a private estate. We think it no longer is occupied but perhaps can be used for functions. After paying the entry fee we sat in the shaded small café for some coffee. It was then a very pretty walk amongst gardens, olive trees, remnants of very old ruins, and terrific views across to the Palais de Papes in Avignon. We’ll go there tomorrow!
We walked back down the hill, and encountered a beautiful black fig tree, covered with figs. We’ve seen a great many fig trees but only a few seem to be in full production. We also noticed music coming from the village. It became apparent when we reach the town areas that there was a large park and “horn” music was coming from within. We walked in and kept walking through the park. We saw a group of long, resting on the ground, horn players. We learned later at the tourism office that there was to be a concert of these Swiss horn players on Friday. With several days to practice they should sound better by then!!! It was fun to watch them practice.
We walked out of the far side of the park, passed some animals from maybe a nearby farm (?), and towards the river hoping to find a place to get a quick lunch. As we have encountered at other times, restaurants close between 2 and 7, so we were out of luck. We found the tourism office and inquired about the bus service to go back into Avignon. It worked out well as we had done a lot of walking and it was time to get home.
MAY 23, 2018
We did a bit of around the town walking today. First stop was around the ring road, just outside the Avignon ramparts, to the central train station to look into renting a car from Avis. It all looked to be an easy thing so we decided we’d rent Thursday and drive around the sites not far from Avignon.
We then walked into the town to go to the Palais de Papes. Avignon was the home to a number of popes. It was a very interesting tour and we’ve found using the free audio guides is very helpful. The one at this Palace was a tablet, where, once “synced” to each room, provided a virtual tour of the room as you rotated around the room while the narrative explained what the room had been used for. We spend some time seeing everything there but as we were finishing the rains were beginning to fall. We scrambled to find someplace for lunch on the main square. We had a very good fish soup and by the time we were finished the rain had stopped and the sun came out.
Our ticket to the Palace includes access to the Avignon Pont. There too was an interesting tour as there was a great deal of detail provided about how the history of the bridge was determined. There was a lot of archeological detail as well as the technical parts of the computer modeling, think BIM!, that have been undertaken to understand the history of the Pont and why it stands as it does today – with a good portion having been lost to floods in the past.
Another treat as we were on the Pont D’Avignon…. Was 2 river cruise ships came up to the end of the bridge, playing the song…. With the decks covered with passengers taking photos of us on the bridge and waving. Then, oddly, the ship backed down the river through the downstream bridge to where they had been berthed earlier. Seemed strange to drive up, and then drive back in reverse. Maybe it’s due to the currents of the river in that area.
The skies had cleared and the sun returned, so it was a lovely late afternoon for our walk back to the flat.
MAY 24, 2018
Today was rent the car day – up at 8 to get to Avis by 9 and be on our way.
I voted to go to Pont du Gard which was well worth the trip. It’s a UNESCO site and quite amazing to see the engineering that was achieved in 50AD+/-.
We had a good walk at Pont du Gard and then drove onto Arles. Thom had been there many years ago but much has changed. We found a café for a quick snack next to the Arena. It was fun to walk around it but we decided not to go in. What’s another Roman Arena??? And then the small amphitheater nearby. It’s still in use today!
We walked some more and found churches, a spot providing a great view to the mountains, and the city hall square.
Then onto destination #3 – as recommended by the knowledgeable young woman in the Avignon tourist information office, to Les Carrières de Lumières (Quarries of Light) in Les Baux. What an experience. They have taken an enormous quarry/cave complex and fitted it with a multi directional series of videos set to music. The exhibits we saw were of Picasso and friends, as well as some modern 1960s art/music. It was amazing!!!!
And at a short walk from the caves, we climbed up to the perched town/fortress on the hillside. Château des Baux de Provence. We had lunch in a café in the town, climbed up and around and through the fortress and then headed off to the next destination. Beautiful views south and supposedly to the Mediterranean. It was too hazy to see clearly.
It was getting late but we still wanted to go to the other recommended perched town, famous for its ochre coloring, Roussillon. Rich deposits in the clay resulted in much of the town being various shades or red/orange. There are also ceramics with variations of the color. In the late day, and pending sunset, it was beautiful.
It was time to call it a day and we ended up back in Avignon struggling to find an open gas station at 9:30pm. Long day… but wonderful explorations.
MAY 25, 2018
A slow day. We depart on the 26th so it was a day to get organized and get ready for Barcelona. I decided to look into buying new shoes. These Merrills are nice shoes, 3 months old but seemed to have gotten too small. I must be walking too much!!! There is a sporting goods store in downtown Avignon to look into and then there are stores in Barcelona too.
We decided to take a walk about and walked into one side of the walled city and straight through to the other side. We did this without getting lost!!! And came out to the waterfront where the river cruise boats were docked. How familiar they look, and every now and then I want to take one again. Maybe someday….
We walked further and then realized we had to get back to the flat for our “checkout” procedure with the concierge. This is a new flat on Airbnb and some of their processes are annoying. We got back to the flat in time, the concierge came in and said there had been a mistake with the owner and we needed to do our checkout in the morning. OK. This was important as we had to leave a cash deposit of 150 euros and wanted to get it back!
So back out on our walk and I went to see about shoes. The shop owner was not helpful. My feet are large, and now I need to wear a 43-44. Most women’s shoes stop at 42. When I said I wanted to try on men’s versions, he said that they would not fit. They are not made for women’s feet. OK – If he doesn’t have women’s shoes in my size, what am I to do? I left, hoping I’d have better luck in Barcelona.