Day 1 of our Viking River Cruise, embarkation day, provided us with just a brief sample of the city of Avignon, France in the region of Provence. We arrived late in the afternoon and, after settling into our cabins, we joined the welcome walk through the historic center with a local guide.
Avignon is a walled city with narrow medieval streets and loads of French charm. The historic center is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
View of historic Avignon from outside the city walls
Avignon city walls
The Avignon City Wall
Our group on the welcome walk
Beautiful architecture with typical French charm
Another charmer
A gated view
Avignon is historically significant as the seat of the Papacy from 1309 to 1378. (More on that later.) The view in the photo below of the outside of the Palace of the Popes stirred our anticipation for the tour of the palace scheduled on day 3 of our cruise.
Palais des Papes (Palace of the Popes)
Palais des Papes
Conservatory of Music on the Place du Palais across from the palace
The main square, Place de l’Horloge, is the center of many community activities with the National Opera Theater, the Hotel de Ville (City Hall), and even a carousel. It’s also a perfect place for people watching.
National Opera Theater
Hotel de Ville (City Hall)
Place de l’Horloge
Carousel on Place de l’Horloge
There are over 50 locations with trompe l’oeil (a painting technique to create optical illusion) in Avignon and our guide pointed out one for us on the Place de Sorano. Window peeking is acceptable in this building.
I learned the children’s nursery rhyme, Sur le Pont d’Avignon (On the Bridge of Avignon), in my high school French class and I can still sing it to this day. The bridge in the song was built across the Rhone River in the 12th century but flooding destroyed it several times until finally, in the 17th century it was abandoned. Today only 4 of the original 22 arches remain but it’s one of the major tourist attractions in Avignon.
Le Pont d’Avignon
After our guided stroll through the historic center, we stopped to shop at Le Chateau du Bois to purchase some lavender oil, a well-known product of Provence.
Le Chateau du Bois in Avignon
Lavender growing in Avignon
Lori and I with our lavender purchases from Chateau du Bois
To close out day 1 of our river cruise on the Viking Buri, we enjoyed our first meal prepared by Executive Chef, Pascal Vallee, and his staff.
Desserts
Everything including the wine was delicious and we looked forward to each and every meal thereafter.
Dinner on the Viking Buri
Based on events from October 2016.
