May 25 - Avignon & Arles

Avignon Coat of Arms - there's those three keys again like in Cluny! They represent the three keys of heaven or keys of Saint Peter.

We had an exciting night going through several locks.  We found out later why we were 'bumping' our way through them.   The ship lost one side's bow & stern thruster controls, so it was quite the effort to stay centered in each of the locks.   They're having an engineer fly from the manufacturer in Holland with possible hardware solutions.   Here's a few morning cruising pictures Jan took.

After breakfast we started a walking tour of Avignon.   Our ship wasn't docked very far from the remains of the Saint Benezet Bridge over the Rhone.  It was finished in 1185.   It was 3,018 feet long and originally had 22 arches!    In the middle ages this bridge was an important pilgrimage route between Italy and Spain.

See everyone bundled up?   It was very windy and a little chilly.   This bridge is located just in front of the entrance to the city walls surrounding the papal palace and the residents at that time.   There were 3-miles of wall and 35-towers.   Here's an old drawing of the bridge and the papal palace.

Here's Jan at the city wall.

On to the .. Papal Palace, WOW!   It was built between 1335-64.   This is just a partial view of the front entrance.

It's 161,000 square feet of floor space!!  Largest gothic palace in the world.   Here's a model pic :

Because of a civil war and instability near Rome, the Catholic Church moved the residence of the pope here to Avignon from 1309-1377.   Seven successive popes resided here.    Many small and large chapels in this large complex.    Here was one of their large banquet halls and what it looked like 'back in the day'.

This what their cooking area looked like.

One of the small chapels.

This place overwhelms you just like Versailles did to us last October!  We started walking through the old town area and took a good look at their city hall, which in every French town, is known as 'Hotel de Ville'.

We had a surprise waiting for us.   Yesterday you were shown some images of the marriage ceremony room in the Vienne city hall and next .. today .. (et suivant) we caught family and friends welcoming a new bride and groom coming out of the building.

While walking back to the boat for lunch we saw this in a passageway.

This is a pic of our appetizers for lunch.

seafood salad, black olives spread, salami & cheese

On to Arles after lunch.   It was an important Phoenician trading port before taken over by the Romans in 123BC.   The town was formally established as a colony for the veterans of the Roman legion Legio VI Ferrata.    We first went to its impressive colisseum.

It could seat 25,000.   The one in Rome- 50,000.   We next stopped at an arena.

City Hall square with the Cathedrale Saint-Trophime in the background, to the right, built in the middle 1100's.

Vincent Van Gogh spent a couple of years in Arles.   He was very prolific here, producing 200-paintings and 100 drawings and watercolors.    His works from this period are rich in yellow, ultramarine, and mauve.    The following pics are of the hospital Van Gogh spent time in after he mutilated his ear.

Inner courtyard ..

and painting of ..

His 'Cafe Terrace at Night' used this cafe as inspiration.

Back to the ship for dinner.  

appetizer: lemon pepper marinated salmon, seasoned citrus, carrot salad, humus, cress - orange essence

main course: free-range corn-fed chicken, truffle jus, asparagus, cauliflower puree, roasted spring potato

dessert:  apple tart, vanilla ice cream

We had a delightful dinner time with Rex, Stephen, and John.  They are such seasoned cruisers and travelers.   They've been everywhere!  We need to get up early and pack and leave our suitcase and backpack outside our door before we go to breakfast.   Afterwards we're off to Barcelona by way of Nimes & Sete.   See you there!