Tarascon to Avignon: a short ride to the walled city

November 5, 2009

Weather: mostly sunny, some cloud in the afternoon

After a final breakfast at the lovely Hotel de Provence, Emmanuelle and Stephane came outside to see us off and wish us well.

A last look at the comfy reading lounge in the hotel.

The terrasse outside the rooms facing the street. The open door to the reading lounge is at the end.

The first part of the route to Avignon was the same as we had pedalled a few days ago to Pont du Gard, across a dam to the west side of the Rhone and past fields of salad greens and corn stubble. We even saw a flock of birds and a fast train going by on the same tiny road as before. The rest of the way we took slightly higher back roads to avoid the main road along the river, but it was all easy cycling. The weather report had predicted rain, but the ride was mostly sunny.

Cycling along the west side of the Rhone on the way to Avignon.

From the highway bridge over the Rhone just outside Avignon we had a terrific view of the well-preserved city walls and the Palais du Papes. The walls were surrounded by a ring road that was thick with car traffic—inside the walls traffic is quite limited. Of course on our bikes we could go anywhere, and we happily pedalled through one of the large arched gateways and walked our bikes through the pedestrianized streets of the centre. It was time for lunch, and we looked for a place where we could lock the loaded bikes outside and see them from where we sat. We picked a bar/restaurant with a surprisingly good menu du jour that soon filled up with office workers. Many stubbed out their cigarettes just as they came to the door. A lot of people seem to smoke in Avignon.

We were confronted with this view of the Palais des Papes as we crossed the bridge back over the Rhone into Avignon.

We could see the famous "Pont d'Avignon" off to our left as we crossed the highway bridge.

After lunch we walked/rode the short distance to the chambre d'hote, le Clos du Remparts, right across from the north rempart (city wall) on a tiny narrow street. Aida, the Lebanese-French owner, showed us to our comfortable room with a huge bathroom (and another bathtub!). The house had been in Aida's family for many years, and was built around a tiled outdoor courtyard, nice for breakfasts in warmer weather.

Our Chambre d'Hote was down this narrow lane near the east wall of the city.

The courtyard at our Chambre d'Hote was hidden behind the nondescript exterior walls.

We unpacked a bit, then took off on foot for the gardens above the Palais du Papes. Unfortunately a cloud came over as we wandered, which made photos difficult. We walked out onto the historic Pont d'Avignon, which was built in the 12th century and is officially Pont St. Bénézet. It is better known as the Pont d’Avignon on which one dances, as the song says. The song dates from 1527. Several arches of the bridge collapsed in the 17th century, and it was never repaired. We enjoyed ambling about this afternoon for a leisurely look at the city, since we would have all day tomorrow to thoroughly explore.

The view from the end of the "Pont d'Avignon".

Dinner was at a place recommended by Aida, which turned out to be very disappointing. The food was indifferent, the restaurant was practically empty, and we could smell cigarette smoke wafting from the kitchen. It made us wonder a bit about Aida's taste in food and what our breakfasts would be like at the chambre d'hote. On the way back to Clos du Remparts a few drops of rain finally came down.

Today's ride: 33 km (20 miles)
Total: 616 km (383 miles)

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