May 27-28, 2019 Dale and Kim leave, Ron and Chris arrive

May 27 - Dale and Kim leave tomorrow (May 28) and haven't yet seen the Papal Palace in Avignon, so the plan is to do Avignon during the day and for Dave to pick up Chris and Ron at the train station at 2:10 pm. I will stay home to catch up on blogging and do a bit of laundry and "tidying up" as Chris would say.

There is scaffolding in the courtyard of the Papal palace this time - perhaps getting ready for the summer theatre season?

That's a lot of seating

looking into the courtyard from the roof

As usual, the iPads are a hit and help one understand how the palace was used. And as Kim said, "It's so enormous!"

Kim is in lower right of photo with her iPad. The magic black boxes that "go back in time" on the iPads are in the center

the magic screen

the actual room

The iPad has a game where you search for coins. Evie had found them all in her visit, and now Dale and Dave have also found them all. Hooray!

Views from the roof show just how big Avignon is.

Can you see the river cruise liner on the Rhone in the background?

Kim at the top of the palace, listening to her iPad explanation with her earphones on

While Dave went to pick up Ron and Chris, Dale and Kim explored the town.

This ornate building is across the square from the Papal Palace. 

Not all stores are open on Monday as Dale discovered about this hat shop that had caught his interest

The meeting place for Dave to pick up Dale and Kim was the Pont St. Bénézet. Then it was only a matter of getting through the tourist traffic along the river to head for home.

Sur le pont d'Avignon, l'on y danse tous en ronde (I learned this song in 4th grade French lessons that came over the loudspeaker via radio once a week.)

Once everyone was back from Avignon, we had aperos on the terrace followed by dinner of steak (cooked by Dale), ratatouille and salad. We started the eating part off with a sparkling Muscatine to celebrate Dale and Kim's last night and Ron and Chris' arrival.

grill-master's kitchen

grilling is better if the chef is marinated in wine

notice we're finally wearing short sleeves

Early bed for everyone as Chris and Ron were up at 3 am London time to get the Eurostar from London. They left Winchester (by taxi to train station in London) at 4 am and caught the 6 am train arriving here at 2:10. They said they got breakfast and lunch on the train and had a wonderfully relaxing journey of only 7 hours by train to get here. Amazing!

May 28 -
This morning Dave took Dale and Kim to the train station, leaving here about 9:15 to catch a 10:17 train to Paris. They fly home tomorrow afternoon from Paris.

Ron and Chris needed some time in the morning to collect themselves and get settled in. They will stay with us until Saturday and then we will take them to Avignon where they have rented an apartment in the old city for another few days.

When Dave returned, we drove to Vaison-la-Romaine to go to the market there. Rumor has it it's a large market - and it was in full swing when we arrived. Unfortunately, I couldn't use my chariot because we had left the battery at home.

I walked, slowly, of course, a couple of blocks of the market. It's one of those where you can buy anything. Clothing and shoes are popular stalls. The backs of vans are set up as changing rooms for trying on clothing. Of course, touristy items are in abundance - lavenders, soaps, honey, regional products. Bags and totes in leather and straw, both touristy and practical are available.

We found a vegetable stall with most of the veggies we were looking for. Then the guys went shopping at one of the olive stalls while Chris and I went to a butcher's wagon. We bought pork sausages and brochettes to grill, And we bought 8 slices of REAL bacon, sliced off a larger piece by the butcher. (Clark, next time we must use the butcher to get real bacon, but it's possible). As Chris and I headed back to find Dave and Ron, we were once more dragged in by offers of free tastes of cheeses. Oh, but they were so good. So we bought $30 worth of a blue, a buttery cow cheese, and a combination of sheep and cow in a semi-soft cheese.

Shopping done, we sat on benches near the tourist office and ate our lunch, The day is evolving organically with decisions made spur of the moment. While at lunch, the crew decided that the medieval town of Vaison-la-Romaine seemed most interesting. Some of their photos:

kids playing in the water fountain

this head could give a kid nightmares

streets are cobbled and steep - even with my chariot, I couldn't go. Down the middle of most streets is a gutter - stone, tile, even blacktop that is pitched right and left toward the center so that the rain water washes down the gutter rather than into the houses.

flowering bushes are everywhere. This is the tallest rose anyone ever saw, says Dave.

looking out on the way up

Chris and Ron pause for a photo op

looking up a path

It's work to get to the castle at the top...

...but the view over the "Roman" town is beautiful. The bridge is Roman and still in use. There was a flood in 1992 of the River Ouvèze and the water was up to the second window down from the roof  of the square corner building attached to the bridge.

So while they explored and shopped, I stitched near the Roman ruins and watched the vendors disassemble their stalls, pack up and leave the market.

clothing stall - apparently banana boxes make good storage containers. Clothes on hangers are hung on rods inside the van.

I think I've gained a new appreciation for their work after watching. Vans (mostly white, small panel vans) must be pulled up to the stall, through the lingering people, the other vendors and their vans and trucks. There's a system for how things are packed. Packing materials are spilled out of the trucks and displayed items are packed in them.

this lady sold soaps and lotions

Clothes are moved from bars and racks to bars attached to the top of the truck's inside. Display cloths are folded and packed into boxes. Boards and tables are disassembled. Large market umbrellas are folded down and slid into specially fitted out compartments. It takes most vendors over an hour, but there's no hurry - only an ingrained process. They chat with each other as they pack.

vendors chatting as they pack

The whole taking down process can take as long as an hour and a half.

this lady is packing up shoes - each pair is stuffed with tissue and put into a cloth bag

then the shoes in bags are packed into wooden crates

But suddenly the streets are quiet except for the sound of the street cleaner brushing up any trash left behind.

street sweeper - a garbage truck came through as well and workers blew papers and trash into the street ahead of the street sweeper

I can imagine what it's like when these vendors get home. They need to account for the days receipts and expenses. Then they need to add inventory to replace that sold today. (I sometimes wonder if there are days when they sell anything as there are many lookers and few buyers, in my mind.) Tomorrow morning, in another town of the region, at the crack of dawn, they will pull into assigned stalls, empty their vans (and move them), set up tables, and unpack their wares, wrapping themselves in scarves and jackets against the morning chill. Many of these vendors make the wares they sell - local honey, olive oil, soaps, etc. Others purchase inventory to sell. But they all have to do something to get more products to sell.

I've always wondered why anyone would buy shoes and clothing and housewares in a market. But when you look at these towns, they have the basics - butcher, baker, post office, café - but they rarely have clothing or shoe stores, hardware or housewares. I'm starting to understand why markets sell all sorts of merchandise. And why a small town like Vaison-la-Romaine can support such a large market with so many vendors.

I've also noticed that shopping this way is also a social outing where you meet your neighbors and friends, stop at a café for a coffee, and chat in the middle of the crowded paths between the stalls. It's a way of life in towns across France and I feel privileged to have the opportunity to participate in this weekly ritual.

On the way home, we participated in another ritual and stopped at LeClerc to do the necessary grocery purchases - like dishwasher detergent.

Once home, we put away the groceries and got out aperos on the terrace followed by early dinner and lots of catching up with good friends. Life is good.

(And Kim and Dale made it to their hotel with no problems.)

May 26, 2019 Chauvet 2, gorges of the Ardeche and Aigueze

map to Chauvet cave

Once again we purchased tickets for the 11:20 tour in English at the replica of the Pont d'Arc cave, called Chauvet 2.

view of the reproduction cave from the lunch terrace

Our tour guide this time was Thierry and he was outstanding. And he told us things that we hadn't heard in the previous tour. There's always so much to learn in these historic sites.

This time, we ate lunch in the picnic area above the restaurant inside the Chauvet 2 complex and then went back to the Aurignacian museum to spend more time understanding the exhibits. Besides the reconstructed animals,

we could listen to scientists - archeologists, spelunkers, experts on paleolithic culture - explain the findings and what they mean. It's amazing how these scientists can piece together this pre-history from clues left behind and from the study of similar caves. One question remaining is how many others of these hidden caves might yet to be found. And for those caves that remained open to air, any evidence of paleolithic culture would have been erased by the elements. It's quite incredible to consider the spirituality of these Aurignacians who, while hunters and gatherers, were just like us in brain capacity - the ability to think, analyze, plan, express their thoughts and emotions, make art, and sustain a culture that had exhibited spirituality as well as practicality.

Finished at Chauvet 2, we drove through the Ardeche gorge more quickly this time, making fewer stops.

Pont d'Arc

As awe inspiring as the landscape is, the ride is still scary because of the steep drop offs and no guard rails. Quite a few times Kim and I were steering from the back and looking away from the view over the gorge to safer level ground.

driving through a tunnel on the corniche road

 Nevertheless, the views are as spectacular today as before.

As its Sunday, there seem to be more people down at the river, bathing or canoeing/kayaking. But there seemed to be fewer travelers on the corniche road (and no buses - ok one bus which we didn't think could fit through the arch) which made the drive easier.

We got to the end of the gorges and the Plus Beau village of Aiguèze about 4:30

Aiguèze on the hilltop above the Ardeche River

and spent a half hour looking around. You can tell it's used to hosting tourists by the shops selling local crafts - lavenders, honeys, postcards. But the village was quiet this late in the afternoon. Men were playing boules (bocci) on the pitch (Jeu de Paume) near the church.

The Jeu de Paume boules court on the right with the church of St. Pierre in the background

the boules game is taken seriously here

Families were gathered at the café having a late afternoon coffee, wine, and perhaps ice cream.

café on the main square with the funny trees to shade it

The remnant of the town that belies its pleasant nature is the ruined fortress, several towers of which still remain.

castle walls from the Castellas rampart give views over the river 

The history here is similar to most small villages in Provence. The need for protection against enemies, revolts, destruction of the castle, neglect.

the town, and even parts of the church were fortified for safety 

Archbishop Fuzet of Rouen was instrumental in saving the village and re-establishing its character.

St. Pierre

ceramic bas relief over the side portal

The 11th century church, St. Pierre was lovely, all painted on the inside

the church is beautifully decorated

and painted

a statue to St. Joan of Arc

and filled with beautiful statues in the chapels. Several stained glass windows included photos of what Aiguèze looked like in 1910.

castle walls in 1910

the church in 1910

We wandered along the old streets of the village, coming to a lovely view over the Ardeche river with views as far as Mont Ventoux. (That mountain is visible everywhere!)

Mt Ventoux in the background looking east

And I saw this lovely lending library on a wall under an arch-covered street.

Home tonight, we not only had aperos outside, but also it was warm enough to eat dinner outside. Finally!