http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Mobile-Geriatrics/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Mobile Geriatrics en-us Thu, 31 Dec 2009 00:16:13 +0000 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 00:16:13 +0000 1719 October 2009 After so much hot sunny weather it was a bit of a shock to look through the curtains in the morning and see that it was snowing hard The first fall of the winter in this area.As we lost altitude the snow soon stopped and for our journey home we followed a route which for the most part was different from the one we use in the winter. There were two reasons for this firstly we http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/England/blog-447761.html 16 October 2009 We continued on our way through the Alps with beautiful autumn colours below the snow capped peaks of the Mont Blanc massive.Our overnight stop was at Chapelle drsquoAbondance where we ski in the winter. We stayed with Dick and Angie Anderson who own Chalet Arthur the house we use for our January visits. It was great to see them and really put us in the mood for the forthcoming http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-447758.html 3 October 2009 We spent the morning doing a spectacular walk just below the line of the Dentelles which at times crested the ridge in gaps between the cliffs giving spectacular views of the surrounding countryside.Later we moved on to another delightful town in the area PerneslesFontains which as the name suggests is famous for its 36 fountains. We were able to stay in an area reserved for cam http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-442112.html 13 October 2009 After visiting some of Aptrsquos excellent shops we went to another area of disused ochre quarries called Le Colorado Provenal and enjoyed a two hour walk visiting the various areas. We then moved 60k east and spent the night at Greoux les Bains a small spa town. http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-444878.html 15 October 2009Today was the start of the serious driving north to get us home and we chose to follow the Route Napoleon from Castellane to Grenoble which is the way the Emperor and his followers went after his escape from Elba. The road goes through stunning mountainous scenery but our trip was not without incident. For several days the front wheels of the van had been making a bit of a noise par http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-445525.html 14 October 2009One of the places I particularly wanted to visit on our trip to Provence was the Grand Canyon du Verdon which is Europersquos widest and deepest gorge. We finally made it today and although after many days of sunshine the weather was dull it didnrsquot obscure the immensity and grandeur of the place. There are tortuous roads on both rims of the canyon and we drove along the nort http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-445519.html 12 October 2009We had intended to move on but we were so impressed with the beauty of the countryside and villages in the Luberon we decided to stay another day.In the morning we had a walk around Apt which turned out to be a very attractive market town with an interesting Cathedral. It being Monday most of the shops were closed but we were able to purchase some of the sweets which are a local spe http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-444604.html 11 October 2009 Most of the morning was taken up blogging and doing chores in the van. The rest of the day we spent visiting Luberon hill villages. Firstly Bonnieux with its sweeping views towards Mont Ventoux. Then Gordes which tumbles down the side of an almost vertical hill and has a lovely walk down to the bottom of the village. And finally Roussillon with buildings in various shades of ochre http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-444298.html 10 October 2009 A day of scenic driving and the start of our journey northwards and home but we do still have over a week left.We started by going along the coast eastwards along a winding steep road called the Corniche des Cretes which goes above the red cliffs we had seen the previous day and gives great views back over Cassis and the Calanques.Then inland on one of the few bits of motorway we http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-444293.html 9 October 2009The coast between Marseille and Cassis is called Les Calanques a wild area of many inlets surrounded by steep limestone cliffs. In returning fine weather we went for a spectacular but hard walk which climbed above the cliffs and went down to a remote beach in the En Vau Calanque.In the evening we rewarded ourselves with a fish dinner in a quayside restaurant. http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-444288.html 8 October 2009 It rained for the first time on the day we reached the MedWe had planned to visit Arles but we decided against it and instead drove through the Camargue a drained low lying area on the Rhone Deltafamous for its white horses and bulls which we saw and flamingos which we didnrsquot.Our journey then turned eastwards along the coast through Marseilles which turned out to be fairl http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-444287.html 7 October 2009 Our overnight stop was close to a range of hills called Chaine des Alpilles. On the ridge is a village called Les BauxdeProvence with a ruined castle on a plateau above it. Itrsquos a bit of a touristy place but it was fairly quiet and we enjoyed our morning there.Bauxite used to be quarried in the hills used and close by the village is an area called the Val drsquoEnfer which http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-444285.html 6 October 2009 Across the Rhone from Avignon is a satellite town called VilleneuvelesAvignon where the Cardinals used to go to escape the crowds and smells of Avignon.We spent a pleasant day in Villeneuve visiting its castle Fort StAndre and a former Cartusian Monastery la Chartreuse du Val du Benediction found by Pope Innocent VI in the fourteenth century. The monastery reminded of one we http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-444282.html 5 October 2009Besides the Pont the interesting thing about Avignon is that the papacy was moved from a feuding Rome to here between 1309 and the Great Schism of the Catholic church of 1377 when two Popes were elected one here and one in Rome. This situation lasted until 1403. During this period the Popes built a huge palace for their use and a city wall both of which are still complete.We spent http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-442357.html 4 October 2009We were going to have an easy day today but finished up by visiting Venasque a village built on a spur of rock and LrsquoislesurlaSorgue a town straggling five branches of the river Sorgue and claiming to be the Venice of Provence. We eventually arrived at our campsite in Avignon which we plan to visit tomorrow.It is a week now since we left home and as can be seen from the p http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-442115.html 2 October 2009 We left Nyons and drove the few kilometres to VaisonlaRomain an attractive town on the River Ouveze. We explored the medieval Haute Ville and its castle and then visited the remains of two roman districts.Just south of Vaison is an interesting area of limestone pinnacles called the Dentelles and we spent the night at a vineyard in a spectacular position just below them. http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-442106.html 1 October 2009On a warm sunny day we saw Nyons at its best and it gave us a great introduction to Provencal towns.It happened to be market day and we spent the morning wandering around the many stalls and buying vegetables cheese and other delicious looking local produce.After a relaxing lunch at the van we went back into town walked up to the view point across the river inspected the municipal http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-442105.html 30 September 2009 We drove the final 300k of our journey past StEtienne over the Col de la Repubilique in the Parc Naturel du Pilat down the Rhone valley to Valance and finally over more passes and through steep gorges to arrive at Nyons in northern Provence. We are on a pleasant campsite next to the river just outside the town and plan to spend a couple of nights here. http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-441260.html 29 September 2009 We continued southward guided by the satnav along straight minor roads through endless rolling countryside and the odd small town until we went through the vineyards surrounding the town of Chablis. We bought a couple of bottles of the local produce and had our lunch in a pleasant spot by the river.Before moving on we picked out another France Passion site at a ferme auberge in a http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-441257.html 28 September 2009 We caught the 8.30 ferry without any trouble and arrived in Calais in continuing fine weather.For this trip we plan to travel around France without using the motorways. Although this will take us longer to make progress we hope to see more of the country. It will also save us the cost of the tollsConsequently today we were guided by the satnav southwards via St Omar and St Quent http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-441254.html