Blogs from Avignon, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France, Europe - page 13

Bonjour tout le monde Kibby and I have just made it through our 4th day in France and I have to say we are doing quite well - I can't believe how much of my 6th form French lessons I can remember - see Mum my school trip to Noumea was worth it. In Montpellier we found a sweet little cafe with seating outside on the street and managed to order crépes. There was a little plate envy going on but Kibby did admit that it was the best crépe he had ever had, which I found funny considering he has one every morning We are now in Avignon: a cool little city surrounded by a huge castle-like wall. There are street performers and markets scattered around, although this seems quite common in France. Obviously there ... read more

Marseille We stayed in a nice hotel right on the Vieux Port in the central city. Everything was within walking distance which was handy. Our room was overlooking the the port over to the hill in the distance, which had the N.D Basilica perched on top, great sight at night as it was well lit up. The weather was cooler than what we were used too, but a welcome relief none the less. I even had to squeeze back into my jeans! Marseille is the second largest city in France, also the oldest. It was founded by the Greeks in 600bc. The original walls protecting the port still stand today. We took a mini train tour around the port area which took us to the top of the hill for fantastic views of the city and ... read more

Avignon is a really great example of a Medieval city. The first one I feel I’ve seen, with its great wall-driven planning and architecture. And the color of the place is so refreshingly uniform it’s amazing. I probably wouldn’t say that normally, but after spending a month in the Life/Monopoly/Risk color schemes of the rest of Europe it’s actually quite nice, if just for a change. Even from a distance, Avignon looks like a convincing storybook castle. And as the town takes shape, the character of the walls in complimentary contrast to the fortified buildings inside makes you feel like whispering “Camelot” in an awed voice and then complaining that it’s only a model. But it isn’t, so that would be silly. No, Avignon is real, and is really nice. We started the day by visiting ... read more

Spent a great 3 nights couchsurfing with Vero in Avignon Will add more details later when I have more time, but Avignon was a great town, nice atmosphere, old stuff to see. Went on a day trip to Nimes to see the old Roman stuff there and the Pont du Gard aquaduct on the way back. Pretty damn impressive... read more

I just realized I never blogged or put up pictures about Provence. I suppose I was really busy during that time--handwriting all my papers and typing them on French keyboards (the grade of at least one of those papers paid off for the work--perhaps I should always handwrite?). So here is a short breakdown of the trip with a few accompanying pictures. Sweet Briar took us there on one of the last weekends of March (before Easter). We took a horrible, very early morning TGV train to Avignon to arrive by 9:00 am. Then, were were bused to Arles, which was a Roman town, where we visited the amphitheater and the garden of Van Gogh's mental hospital. It was the first nice weather I had experienced since leaving Texas. Really, it was beautiful there. The flowers ... read more