11, 2019,July, Avignon and then down to Aigues-Morte.

We had a great week in Avignon.
July is the busiest month in Avignon with the summer festival.
The whole old city hosts music, acts, street performers and lots and lots of little theatres hosting 4 weeks of entertainment.
It made for fun evenings just strolling about late at night, in a relaxed enviroment, just people watching.

Then off for a cycle ride to go and view Villeneuve Lez Avignon (the new town) and the Abbaye & Fort of Saint Andre. Originally built 586, The Abbot in 1126 offered co-sovereignty of the abbey to Louis VIII  in exchange for royal privileges. 

The fort was then extended and fortified in 13C so that the King could keep a close watch on the Popes in the Papal Palace across the river  in case they got frisky.  

Looking back across the Valley to looking across the The Palace of the Popes.

Day train trip to Arles, to see the old amphitheatre and the bull running. I love these games as its all about the bull and not the men. 

The raseteurs are athletic young men who train all year to face the bulls.

They have to try to get little rosettes that are tied on with cotton to the bulls horns.

 I think we defiantly struck a training day as unfortunately there weren't many acrobatic displays of somersaults etc over the bulls back.

The Camargue bulls are essential to the economy and local culture of the camargue, ( much like the wild white horses and the flamingos), The bulls first enter the arenas 3-4 yrs old and can stay till 15-16. They are never killed as these games.

Entering the Camargue we saw our first wild white horses just hanging around!!!! 

And our evening stop at Aigues-Morte, looking across the marina to the ancient walled town,      which was started in 1244.

 In 1248 only the ports were finished, and sheltered vessels were loaded with provisions,                men and horses for Louis IX and the 7th crusade.

Again, these statues show how important the bulls are to the Carmarge area,

 along with the Salt, 

white horses and flamingos. 

 A quick cycle ride around and we actually saw some flamingos

 (not many😢😢😢😢)

The Aigues-Morte salt marshes produce 500,000 tons of salt a year, mainly table salt.

AND THEN comes Sete, 

and the oyster beds of the Etang.

😋😊😋 

10, 2019 July, Tournon to Avignon.

Leaving Tournon we headed down The Rhone and stopped at  Briefly at Valance, and next door had a letter box.

 Passing on down, old Chateaux and forts line the river banks.

 And the odd
nuclear power station
as well.

We stopped at Viviers, an incredibly old town that dates back the Roman Era and the 4C. There seems to be a lot of energy from young and old people to renovate the old houses and buildings to retain history. 

We then decided to climb like mountain goats up to The St Michael's Statue built high above the town which gave us an amazing view over the valley.

Arriving into Avignon, with lovely sights from the river.

Spent a week here especially tempting when once you find out paying for 4 nights gets you 3 for free.

Our mooring right outside the city walls. although still 30-40 degrees we found that cycling is actually cooler than sitting still, and again buckets of cold water and flannels works very well when sitting up on deck.

Now we know the french are slightly different but this lady climbed off her boat to walk her dog!! 

On the way back from here walk, we saw the dog trotting quite happily beside her,,, so  huh!!!!

😉😉😉😉😉

OUR ROUTE

9, 2019 July, Lyon to Tournon.

Leaving Lyon we set sail on the 'Mighty Rhone River' down towards the Med, or Sud,  which was infact very gentielle.... not fast flowing like everybody has told us. The spring melt this year has been very slow and not much of it.

The water is definitely more murky than the clearer waters of the River Saone.

Landscape very different now, the river is big and wide, and slowly flowing. Hills now on the banks with the beginings of vines down to the river and in the distance, mountains...


Vines growing either side of the gorge.
(Cotes du Rhone wines)

Next break we had was in Tournon where we stayed 6 nights over Bastielle Day.

The French are very good with lighting up all their monuments and squares at night. 

We decided to do tourist thing so
caught a steam train up
the Ardeche Valley.

The steam train has 4 pistons fired by steam
from a boiler using 6000litrs of water for
the 33 km trip.
AND  800kgs of coal.
( no carbon footprint then ,eh??)

It was a fun trip, and we had time to have
lunch and to walk
around the town of
Lamastre before the return jouney.

Then we got adventurous and

 headed up into the vineyards to visit the little chapel of St Christopher.

It was a long but beautiful climb up through the vines and as we started at 9am it was much cooler too. 

We saw the vines being tended to by hand, not machine due to the terain. 

And Max had found his dream cottage in the country....

Max getting hungry ? Thirsty ??

just not quite ripe yet...ha  ha  😋😪😪

Bastille Day fireworks,
and as usual the French have lots of fun.

 

And we always seem to be seeing such good sunsets. 

The weather has been amaqzing, 33-38 degreres most days 

with a slight breeze.

Now we head further south towards Avignon.