Posts Tagged With: Avignon

Friday, July 5, 2024 – Day 7: Carcassonne: a Medieval City

Posted on July 21, 2024 by Greg

We got up early to head back into the old city of Avignon. We went to Les Helles – an indoor food market that opens early and has a living plant facade. We had lots of fun strolling around looking at the various vendors – meats, cheese, seafood, baked goods, produce and more. We chose some delicious pastries for breakfast and grabbed a few snacks for our trip.

We packed up, walked to the train station, and boarded a train for Nimes where we had a quick stop and train change on our way to Carcassonne. Our Airbnb in Carcassonne was just a short 5 minute walk from the train station. We tested our travel philosophy to only pack what you can carry with our apartment on the third floor (which to Americans is the 4th floor) in a building with no elevator. Karen wished she had packed a little lighter! We were rewarded for the effort with a nice, spacious loft apartment.

With lots to see on our one day in Carcassonne, we quickly dropped off our things and headed out to the old medieval city (a 10 minute drive/30 minute walk from the new city where we stayed). This is a stop Kelsey was really excited about, as the Carcassonne board game is one of her favorites. All the guidebooks told us to expect lots of people and tourist trap type shops, but we found the old city to be charming and not crowded that afternoon. We really enjoyed the audio tour walk through the old castle with descriptions of medieval fortress life. Although it was a very warm day, it was cool inside the stone castle and there was a nice breeze as we walked along the castle’s ramparts.

After exploring the fortress and ancient town, we found a hidden garden bar that was a fun place to stop for a drink. Meandering a little more, we found a great restaurant for dinner.

As we traveled through France we found that many cities host festivals in July. Kelsey noticed a festival banner in Carcassonne that announced the performance of the opera Carmen in the old city amphitheater that night. She convinced us to experience this performance. It didn’t begin until 9:30 pm, and though it was still light at that time, the breeze really picked up causing the temperature to drop. By the end of the first act, Lindsey and Karen had enough and started the walk back to our Airbnb. Kelsey and I stayed until the end of the four acts which was after midnight. Although we were cold, we stuck it out to see an amazing performance in a unique and beautiful theater.

We really enjoyed our afternoon in this medieval city.

#HammondAdventures #LifeonPurpose #FamilyVacation

Categories: 2024 Family Trip in France & Belgium | Tags: Avignon, Carcassonne, Carmen, castle, medieval city, opera | Leave a comment

Thursday, July 4, 2024 – Day 6: Our Search for Lavender

Posted on July 16, 2024 by Greg

For most Americans the 4th of July is a day for red, white and blue – but this year it was lavender day for us!

The main purpose of the car we rented yesterday was to explore Provence. After our French morning routine of stopping by a local bakery for coffee/tea/hot chocolate and pastries, we set off to see lavender and a couple of small provincial towns.

Our first stop was the Abbey of Senanque. This beautiful old abbey was stunning – a white stone building set in the middle of lush greenery and fields of lavender. There were lots of tourists, many with interesting driving and parking skills. Unfortunately, we could not tour the abbey since our arrival coincided with their two hour lunch break. Even without seeing the inside of the Abbey we thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful scenery and our first glimpse of lavender fields.

We then drove about 15 minutes to the little village of Gordes. This is a beautiful little town on a hill that obviously knows its value to tourists. We enjoyed strolling around, looking in various shops, and having lunch at an Italian restaurant (we noticed Italian food being more prevalent in southern France)

Back in the car on the way to our next stop we drove past a gorgeous lavender field. We quickly pulled over and parked on a side dirt road. We captured the moment for a family photo shoot with no one around besides the passing traffic. It was exactly what we were looking for. Unbelievable!

Our last stop on our road trip was the little village of Roussillon. This town is known for the ochre-colored cliffs it sits on. The cliffs are beautiful and remind me of red rock found in the western U.S.

We then headed back to Avignon. We thoroughly enjoyed our day exploring Provence. It was amazing to see so much within an hour drive of our home base of Avignon.

Due to our unexpected trip to retrieve our travel documents yesterday, Lindsey and I had not yet visited the old walled city of Avignon. After our lavender road trip we went into town to experience the frenzy of the arts festival and see the old medieval city. Karen and Kelsey showed us around and guided us from their exploring the previous day.

Kelsey wanted to see one more site in Avignon, the Pont Saint Benezet. She and I went to see the historic remains of this 12th century bridge that now only goes over a portion of the Rhone river. We squeezed in an audio tour before it closed while Karen and Lindsey enjoyed wine at a cafe while people watching.

Before heading back to the apartment after dinner we stopped to see a street magician. Lucky me, he included me into his act. It was a fun and pleasant way to end a wonderful day in Provence.

#HammondAdventures #LifeonPurpose #FamilyVacation

Categories: 2024 Family Trip in France & Belgium | Tags: Avignon, France, Provence, Travel | Leave a comment

Wednesday, July 3, 2024 – Day 5: Two Paths – Lyon to Avignon, back to Lyon

Posted on July 14, 2024 by Greg

Today’s post needed to be written by Karen Hammond. You will see why in the day’s events.

The morning in Lyon was spent going in two different directions. We decided to divide and conquer. Kelsey & Karen rented bikes and went on a brisk bike ride to see one last sight before leaving Lyon. They rode on a great bike path along the river to the confluence – the point where the Rhône and Shoane Rivers meet. The time available for this trip was tight with just enough time to stop, take some photos of the Museum of the Confluence, and return to the hotel to make the train to Avignon. The museum, being a very contemporary building, anchors a part of Lyon with lots of modern architecture. The museum is controversial since the style contrasts with the gothic architecture throughout Lyon.

While Kelsey & Karen were off on their adventure, Greg & Lindsey enjoyed a more leisurely morning with their favorite iced chai latte and a pastry from a local patisserie. What time was left, they wandered a bit through some shops and picked up madeleines for the next leg of our trip.

Both teams were successful, meeting up at the hotel before quickly whisking off to catch a train for the 90 minute ride to Avignon. Our next stay was an AirBnB apartment just a 10 minute walk from the train station. Despite our lack of French we were able to communicate with the host who was able to show us the spacious apartment with an interesting layout (3 bedrooms, 2 showers, 1 toilet). Travelling further South we noticed a big change in temperature and were happy for the air conditioner that almost cooled the apartment.

Immediately after arriving Greg (THANK GOODNESS!) realized we left our passports in the room safe in Lyon! We decided the best plan would be for Greg to get our rental car early (fortunately we had booked one that was to be picked up later that evening) and drive the 2½ hours back to Lyon to retrieve the passports. Lindsey volunteered to be his copilot, and the two of them set out to learn about driving highways in France. Fortunately it was a relatively easy trip and they were able to retrieve the passports and get back to Avignon before midnight. Greg definitely earned MVP status for this one (Lindsey close runner up for keeping the driver company while updating the radio station frequently).

Meanwhile Kelsey & Karen started to explore Avignon. Our apartment was a 15 minute walk to the old walled city. The first thing we noticed were signs for the “Festival Avignon” and LOTS of people. It turns out we arrived on the first day of a 3 week arts festival. Every surface in the city was covered in posters advertising performances, and at every turn someone walked up to you trying to give you a postcard about a show. We quickly learned that saying “No, merci” let folks know we didn’t speak French. We avoided most pitches except for one performer who insisted we’d love the “no words show about three clowns who wish they were in Scotland.”

Our first stop in the old city was a tour of Palais des Papes (a huge gothic palace that was the home to the Popes in the 14th century). We then walked around the Jardin de Doms, a lovely park that overlooks the city and the Rhone River. Later we went into the city and watched several street performers and had dinner and ice cream in one of the town squares. We walked back to the apartment in time to make a plan for the next day and greeted Greg and Lindsey when thl returned from their “adventure.” Hammond family traveling always seems to include a little “hiccup.” We were glad to get it out of the way toward the beginning of our trip.