Bristol Avignon

... came down near us but we were lucky and just got debris on us. But enough whining about the weather.
Avignon is extremely beautiful and we have a lovely view at night of all the castle etc all lit up as we are camped on a sort of island in the Rhone. We arrived yesterday and explored the town and went to the Popes palace which is the best preserved castle of its age in France. We then ...

... across the street – La Palette Gourmande (29 Rue Roussy), but we thought we would wander around and see what else was on offer. However, while we were doing our washing in the nearby launderette, it started to rain. At first it was just a gentle refreshing shower, but became a thunderstorm lasting for hours. By dinner time it was still lashing down, so we ran the 5 metres across the road.

We were rewarded by one of those ...

... driver behind us). Ok, so he was waving and flashing behind us and we had no idea what he was going on about so we figured he was either mad or had never seen a car with a right side driver, but then later realized when he drove by that he was only pointing out that the bulb had blown.

Finding the resto was a bit of a challenge, the 3 others (4 including the one we found out was closed on the website before ...

... as the theater began, there were all sorts of different kinds of performances, including classical Greek plays. Apparently by the end they were reduced mostly to performing mime, which I'm sure had to have something to do with the fall of the Empire.

Across the street from the theater is a museum that houses bits and pieces from the theater and the town that have been unearthed and are being protected from the elements. It also housed ...

I'm so sad that I didn't bring my camera to our special "splurge" belated birthday dinner. It was so beautifully presented! We went to a hole-in-the-wall place with 8 tables that came highly recommended. Those people were right. It was a world-class meal and exceptionally reasonably priced by French standards. I'm not sure how he's paying the bills with only 8 tables, but my hat is off to the chef/owner. It's a good thing ...

Believe me you don't want the story but here are a few photos and videos of what was a wonderful adventure for the most part.

The bull running was a random and free event - just next to lovely beach. Camargue horses are breathtakingly beautiful in the wild.

Unfortunately no photos of characterful and cultural city of Arles because only took the camera out one day - the day we went to The Camargue obviously.

... at the map and decided to head on up into the hills to a place called 'Le Grand Canyon du Verdon'. With a name like that, it's gotta be cool, right? Leaving the coast was the best thing I could have done. People aren't as friendly on the coast as they are in the mountains. The towns are dirtier. The traffic is worse and the tourists drive you mad. Up in the mountains everyone says hello to each other. The storekeep at the small alimentaire will give you a complimentary pain de ...

... email. As time was short on our trip this time I thought it best to jot down the adventures once we had returned safely. When in Canada I was always under time pressure with a certain amount of paid internet time to cram as much detail into my updates as possible - even then I managed to ramble on a bit while the seconds were counting down! As I am now nicely settled on the sofa with a blanket and a cup of tea I will have to remind myself to go easy on ...

... although the Romans left more monuments including temples and aqueducts. There is also the nearby Chateau in La Coste, which is somewhat infamous for its last inhabitant, the Marquis de Sade. France has a great rail network for getting to city to city, but there is vary little infrastructure for regional transport, so we decided to rent a car to visit all of these places. And Provence is on the Mediterranean Sea, so we figured a visit was warranted.

... for something. As we approached Avignon it became more and more commercial and industrial. This was a large city and we were very lucky to hit the ring road at the right spot and head in the right direction towards the old part of the city near the Rhone river. We passed city ramparts on our left, the river on our right and a bridge in the near distance which I immediately, right or wrong, labelled the Pont d'Avignon. All of a sudden there was a big blue P pointing towards ...