18 Days in France - Viviers

Official Coat of Arms: Viviers, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026 - All Rights Reserved

WE WERE still getting used to the river cruise stop/port schedule. The next day after Arles was really Avignon (again). Originally, we were to have sailed to Arles and then back again to Avignon, but due to techical issues, the ship never moved during those first days. I think I have pretty much exhausted my Avignon photos here and though our tour guide was great again, I am not going to post another whole blog on Avignon. We are accustomed to the ocean cruise ship schedules which mostly cruise at night and stop at ports in the mornings, leaving in the afternoon or evening for the next one, except when occasionally doing an overnight. River cruises are less consistent. Part of the reason is schedules can change more readily on the river, depending on conditions. Another is that many of the river ports are very small, making in and out scheduling challenging. We had heard about this already, but it is often necessary to "raft" two or more boats along the dockside, meaning you may be going through, or up and over, another ship sometimes. So river cruise stops are just less consistent by their nature. So, after finally getting under way in the evening, we sailed on to Viviers, our next port.

Almost everywhere I go in the world, I find street art. This one was painted on the actual door of a building in sleepy little Viviers, France.
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ORIGINALLY SETTLED some time around 1200 BC, by the Gauls, as a fishing village on the Rhone, Viviers became an important center of the region, though remaining very small to this day. Later absorbed into the Roman Empire, the village became a possession of the Kingdom of France in the early 14th Century. During its development, the village was consistently influential in the Catholic Church.

 Viking Lofn docked at Viviers, France
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THE VIVIERS Cathedral (Cathédrale Saint-Vincent de Viviers) was built between the 14th and 15th Centuries and is the seat of the Bishop of Viviers. The Cathedral was our our ultimate destination that day. Already moored at the Viviers Cruise Port by the time I got up, I was able to grab my camera and make a few shots in the nice morning sunlight. Viviers is a popular stop for Rhone River Cruises, but we were the sole ship there that day. And it doesn't look like there is much room for numerous ships to dock. The quaint little village of only about 3600 people was quiet. It does appear to have a pretty busy little pleasure boat harbor, especially for such a small community.

Pleasure Boat Harbor - Viviers, France
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OUR EXCURSION was a walking tour of the village of Viviers, including a (thankfully gradual) climb up to the top of the hill where the Cathedral sits. Our guide told us she was know as the "wrong way" guide, because rather than walking us directly into the village, she took us away from the village and approached it from the back, in order to give us what she deemed the best view of the village and cathedral; best for making that memorable photo.

Viviers Cathedral Complex from below - at the rear of the village - Viviers, France
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I COULDN'T disagree with her. There were some nice views of the Cathedral up high and small village which starts down in front, but continues its way up the winding cobblestone roads up the hill. As we entered the village from the back side, she told us that the Village passed laws which require any new construction to match up to the ancient Medieval look of the existing buildings. The thought is to preserve the essentially Medieval character of the village - partly as heritage, and partly because it enhances the tourism draw of the place.

Learning Stone Masonry - the old fashioned way - Viviers, France
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AS WE proceeded upward, we reached a place where student volunteers were being taught the artisanship of stone work construction. It was fascinating to watch the essentially all hand tools being used. Although a fair number of people live in the village, it is mostly a "bedroom" community. Other than the small needs to serve tourists, and shops and restaurants that cater to both tourists and the locals, there is no industry there.

Viviers, France
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THE RESIDENTS who are working probably generally commute to one of the larger cities (like Avignon or Lyon). At the base of the hill and village entrances, there are a couple large car parks. It didn't take long to realize why. As we walked up the cobblestone street it became apparent that cars were not a common thing. There is a way to get up to the top by car (we saw a car park at the Cathedral, and we know some of the officials from our ship traveled up by car). But in the part of the village we were in we saw no cars.

Viviers, France
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IN OUR "Port Talk" the night before, and at the beginning of our tour from our tour guide, we heard that the ultimate moment of our excursion would be experienced when we reached the "summit" of the hill where the Cathedral stands. On the grounds is a large open area and there are 360 degree views of the countryside from there. So we kept trekking on upward, continuing to see the quiet, old school beauty of the village surroundings.

Viviers, France
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Viviers, France
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WE DID finally reach the top. And saw the promised view. I made the panoramic image below, looking down at the Rhone, toward our cruise port. I also made a few more images from the high vantage point.

Panoramic View of the village of Viviers and the valley below, with the Rhone in the background - Viviers, France
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THE CATHEDRAL is another gothic masterpiece, but was very difficult to get a meaningful photo of. I did make some closeups of some of the details, but didn't really bring a photo of the cathedral as a whole back. The shots from up there, though, made it worth the long walk.

Another view of the Village from up on the hill adjacent to the Cathedral - Viviers, France
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COMING BACK down, our guide left us to our own devices in the center of the village at the bottom of the hill. We walked back down the main street to our cruise ship - surprisingly close to the boat. Our walk in the "back way" was deceptive. Back at the cruise port, I made a couple images of the river. The first was a flag pole group on the riverbank featuring the Viviers official coat of arms.

Port of Viviers, France
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LOOKING upriver, the "mineral" excavation" is property of the multi-national french company: LaFarge. You see their footprint all over the world. There is a huge LaFarge facility at the extreme northeastern reaches of Lake Huron in the U.S. which I have seen from boat several times.

Looking upriver from The Port of Viviers on the Rhone River
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THE SHIP was scheduled to sail shortly after noon, headed eventually to our next port stop: Tournon, where we would ride the scenic steam train. This afternoon was one of only a couple days we were able to experience "scenic sailing" on the Rhone.

Andance, France
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ALONG THE way we made a very brief stop to board a group from an excursion that had taken most of the afternoon, and hence, met the ship on the way, shortly before dinner. During this part of the cruise, we experienced mostly clear skies and tempuratures in the upper 90s. While the views were indeed beautiful, it was so hot that you couldn't really remain on the deck for very long. I only made a few images and then, only with my cell phone.

Viking Lofn - Cruising the Rhone
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DURING THE two cruises up the Rhone and then the Seine, we negotiated many locks. Often, we were indoors during that time, seeing really only the concrete walls of the locks as we moved up and down. But during one of the sailing days on each ship, we were able to be up top and observe the "lock experience." Perhaps my better (more comprehensive) images will come later, as we sailed up the Seine and got a view from the bow of the ship. But this series was also very interesting, as we entered the lock; as it closed on us, and as we exit upriver.

Negotiating a Lock - Rhone River - Viking Lofn

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18 Days in France - Arles

 

Fontaine Amédée Pichot - Arles, France
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DOES ANYBODY remember the short-lived prime time comedy: "My Name is Earl?" No real connection here, except that when I learned how to pronounce the French: "Arles," it came to mind 😊. It is pronounced "Arl."

Fontaine Amédée Pichot (Ame'dee Pichot Fountain) - Arles, France
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THE PHOTOS above are of a fountain (on the front of the building) designed and built in 1888. It is what you see first as you walk into the city from the northern entrance. But before we even got to the entrance of the city, we spent some time on the bank of the Rhone just in front of what is now the Arles Rhone Cruise and River Port.

Arles, France from the bank of The Rhone
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ARLES ACTUALLY has a pretty impressive river port. We got a chance to see it only because our Viking Coaches parked there for the beginning and end of our walking tour of the city. I am not sure how many low bridges there are between Avignon and Arl, but it only takes one. For some reason, the Lofn chose our first night at our Avignon stop to decide its hydraulics for raising and lowering the equipment would give out. They announced this on the first night of our cruise, while we were supposed to be cruising. The repair parts wouldn't arrive until the next day, so they would bus us to nearby Arl. Good news: if we wanted, we had another night in Avignon. Bad news, we were supposed to be cruising and - presumably - seeing the sights. Having had a good dose of Avignon, we chose to stay aboard and exerience our first dinner in the dining room. Our travel companions (we started out as a group of 8) had not yet arrived, due to substantial flight delays. The two we had not yet met, it turns out, were actually in the dining room, just one table over and I happened to notice them (from photos I had seen) as I made a restroom trip. So we met them and got a chance to get to know them. The other 4 didn't make it until quite late - maybe 11:00 p.m. But I digress 😀.

This is the view of Arles, France from the bank of The Rhone that served as the motivation for Vincent van Gogh's "Starry Night" Painting in 1888
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THE VIEW from the Arles cruise port happens to be famous. It is the view where Vincent van Gogh is said to have painted his famous "Starry Night Over the Rhone" painting. Of course I had to make a few shots from there. And of course, I had to try my (admittedly clumsy) hand at my own post-impressionist take on the shot.

My post-impressionist "take" on van Gogh's "Starry Night"
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AS OLD and majestic as Avignon is, Arles show its true Medieval "bones." Dating back, to the First Century, BC, Arles today features well - preserved Roman ruins, including an impressive ampitheatre, a Roman Theatre, and ancient baths. In the center square there is an obelisk dating back to the late 17th Century. We were not able to enter the Roman Theatre, or the baths, but we did go inside the Ampitheatre. But it is really a more impressive view from the outside in my opinion. Of note: we learned that it is most emphatically not a "coliseum!" Apparently there is only one Coliseum, and that is in Rome. Others are (merely?) ampitheatres. We walked by the Roman Theatre and the Baths, but my photos from the exterior just don't do them justice.

Arles Ampitheatre - Arles, France
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TO SAY Arles is picturesque is an understatement. Indeed, it has enough promise that it served as a spot frequented by some of history's most famous artists including Paul Gauguin, Pablo Picasso, and - perhaps most famously - "Dutch Master" Vincent van Gogh. Surprisingly, van Gogh only lived in Arles for one year (1888 - 1889), but produced more than 300 works during that period!  It must have made a major impression (pun intended 😏) as The van Gogh Foundation has its headquarters in Arles.

Surprisingly, van Gogh only lived in Arles for one year (1888 - 1889), but produced more than 300 works during that period

I THINK one of the primary factors that attracts me to impressionism and post-impressionism is the artists (somewhat new for the times) embrace of bright colors. I suspect that as much as it is an inspiration by the artists of the periods, it may well also have to do with the development and availabilty of newer and brighter pigments used in their oils. In any event, I have often (perhaps monotonously so) said here that I am attracted to color. And bright colors were a hallmark of these periods. Vincent van Gogh is particularly associated with yellow, and the famous house he lived in while in Arles was painted bright yellow. Sadly it was destroyed by bombings during WWII. Also destroyed was a bright yellow cafe that served as the basis for his "Cafe' la Soir," a/k/a "Cafe' Terrace At Night," painting. The cafe pictured here is a replica. I am not sure when it was built or if it even existed when van Gogh was in Arles, but it is in the heart of the old Medieval City and certainly does van Gogh's style and memory justice.

Van Gogh Cafe - Arles, France
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SITUATED ON a small square just off the main town square, the center is full of colorful flowers, certain to have attracted van Gogh, as well as many other painters of the period. It is easy to see why. It certainly pulled my photographic eye!

Garden Square in front of van Gogh Cafe - Arles, France
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JUST WALKING around the city, you can see that, in addition to the Roman Ruins, the adjacent areas are charming and inviting. The first image below is one I saw as we walked toward the Ampitheatre. As always, the color and shapes drew my eye. It is especially notable, as it is surrounded by the rather monotone stone construction surrounding it. The second image is what you immediately see as you exit the Ampitheatre.

Arles, France
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THIS WAS my first experience with Viking's "included" tours. Something new to us: when you enter your stateroom aboard a Viking Ship, there are two "walkie-talkie" type gadgets with earpieces in a charger. You are expected to bring those along on all Viking excursions (and remember to put them on the charger when you return to your room). My first experience with one of these was on our walking tour of Lucerne, Switzerland a couple years back. I quickly learned that I really like them. If they are in range there is no struggling to hear the guide and I even find that I can stray a bit with my camera and still keep an "eye" on where my group is.  The Viking tours themselves tend to be either walking tours or "panoramic" (euphemism for bus), and range from generally very good to occasionally not so much. This one was very good. Our guide was excellent (though ironically, she was British) and gave us a great history of the place, with a generous, but not dominating, peppering of art and in particular, van Gogh's art.

Arles, France
Copyright Andy Richards 2026

THERE IS one other thing that is perhaps not so well known about Arles. It is a city that celebrates photography and photographers. Since 1970, it has been the location of Les Countres d'Arless, an international photography festival, which lasts from early July to early October (which means it was actually going on while we were there). The photographic scope of the festival goes well beyond the "landscape" genre one might expect to be the focus in a place like Arles. There is evidence of photography as a general medium, with styles and genre of avery kind and scope. I don't know if this guy was part of the festival, but his "studio" setup directly across from the Roman Theatre entrance certainly aroused my curiousity.

"Traditional" Phototgrapher in Arles, France
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THE PHOTOGRAPHS below were part of an exhibit along the outdoor walls of a building just beyond the theatre as we walk on through Arles. Our guide made passing mention of them. I am not sure she was familiar with the festival as she did not mention it. I would like to have seen more of it. Had we sailed to Arles as scheduled, there may have been time for me to remain in town and do a bit more exploring. As it was, we moved on. But I did get a chance to shoot a couple of portraits and make a composite of two that I liked.

Photography Exibit - Arles, France
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LOOKING BACK on the trip as a whole, some of our first visits to "little-known" spots (to me, anyway) and small, but historically significant places, were probably the true highlight of the trip for me. We would return to our coaches, and back to the ship, and would finally sail away from Avignon, upriver to points north. Bound next for Viviers, another very small, not well-known Medieval community, we would first make a short stop in Vienne, where some of us would take a night walking tour, before the ship moved on overnight to Viviers.

18 Days In France - A New Adventure - Avignon

Avignon, France
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THIS TIME it was a river cruise - our first. Because we travel a lot these days, much of this blog is devoted to photos of our trips. Because those travels often involve cruises, coaches, and daytime excursions, the photographs are not always made in ideal conditions. But when you are someplace worth seeing, it still motivates me to make some memories. I made a few on this trip.

Nothing really much to look at in daylight, the Ferris Wheel was a pretty spectacular view from the top deck of our cruise ship at anchor in Avignon
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THE ITINERARY was two back-to-back cruises on different Viking River Boats; one in Southern France along the Rhone River, and another on the Seine River, from Paris to Normandy and back. Back in college, I took courses in both European History and Art Appreciation. There was a healthy dose of both in this 18-day visit to France.

Lock and Hydro-power complex on the Rhone River (the railings are on our cruise ship)
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THE RHONE River cruise began in Avignon and sailed up the river to Lyon.  The headwaters of the Rhone are the Rhone Glacier in the Swiss Alps. The river is perhaps France's most powerful, and today is very different from its historical condition. Always a difficult waterway for navigation, its strong current and a wind condition the French call the "Mistral Winds" exacerbate the difficulty. Indeed, its very name, "Rhone," was given by early Gauls and means "rolling" or "running" current. In the early 20th century, France took on major project, constructing a series of 12 Locks between Arles and Lyon; 11 of them are also the sites of large hydroelectric power plants. The whole Rhone hydropower complex supplies 20% of France's electric power. The locks are a feat of engineering to behold and move ships up and down anywhere from about 20 feet to nearly 100 feet at its deepest lock! Most of them are just wide enough for our river cruise ship.

Actually moored across the Rhone from our Viking Ship, the smartass in me couldn't help sending this image to a couple of my cruising friends and suggesting it would be our floating home for the next week 😁
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THE HEADWATERS of the Rhone is actually a glacier (The Rhone Glacier) in the Swiss Alps. From there it runs to Lyon, where the Saone River (originating some 300 miles north in the French Alps) joins it. The primary navigation route for River Cruises is the Rhone, from that confluence in Lyon south to Arles, near the mouth of the Rhone and the Mediterranean. The Rhone river has a bar at its southern end, just south of Arles, that is not navigable, and a shipping channel has been constructed, for shipping to access points south of Arles to the sea. The 12 locks are between Lyon and the canal.

Just steps away from our Avignon Hotel - the carousel on Place de l'Horloge is a center attraction - more spectacular when lit at dusk, with the famous clock tower in the background - Avignon, France
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AS IS our general practice, we arrived in our embarkation cruise port city a couple days before our scheduled boarding and departure.  As seems to be common these days, our trip over was a bit of an adventure. My travel logistics expert wife, had booked us flights from our nearby airport (Tampa - TPA) through Detroit and eventually to Paris' Charles de Gaulle (CDG). From there we had to find our way to the train to Avignon, which we had also pre-booked and paid for. Unfortunately, our international flight out of Detroit was delayed by nearly 2 hours, making our train connection impossible. We wouldn't know for sure what we would do or where we would spend our first night in France until we got there.

Handkerchiefs (a variation on the popular umbrella streets around the world) - Avignon, France
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TRAINS ARE are major thing in Europe. I have always found it intriguing that they haven't endured in the U.S. We are, of course, the most "automobile-centric" country in the world, and with advent of air travel, train travel seems to have mostly gone away (with the possible exception of a single corridor alone the mid-south atlantic coast). In Europe, travel by train is common and can be relatively inexpensive. It can also be comfortable (though not always) and convenient. In the major cities (like Paris, though we also discovered this to be true in Barcelona, Lisbon, Porto and London) there are often multiple train stations. Because of the European Union's new EES system (we had read that the rollout has been rocky, often causing multiple-hour delays in processing travelers through customs) we had paid for an escort service through customs. That worked well and we got through quickly and our escort took us all the way to the CDG Train Ticketing Office, where we learned (to our relief) that we could simply change our tickets to a later train - at no cost). From there, we were directed to take the "city train" (really a subway) to the Gare Lyon (the train station in Paris where we would catch our express train to Avignon). Now that we have done it a couple times, we understand the system and it really is pretty easy once you get it down. But of course, the language issue is the biggest factor. We were in France, so predictably, everything was in French. We knew maybe 5 words of French 😓

I need to make more train photos - the best I could do right now was this shot in the Sao Bento Train Station in Porto, Portugal. But it illustrates the point that trains are ubiquitous in Europe
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WE GOT lucky. Finding the train toward Gare Lyon was easy enough and because CDG was a termination point, the train was almost empty (that would change). As we boarded with our luggage, however, I started to look at the train map. I didn't yet understand the system and was not crystal clear on where we needed to get off. There were many stops before Gare Lyon. As I studied the map, a lady obviously French, but in excellent English) asked me if I needed help and where I was headed. Long story short, she was headed to Gare Lyon herself and she said just get off when I do. By the time we arrived at Gare Lyon, the train was packed - standing room only and we were separated by a couple seats. But at the preceeding station she rose and made sure both of us knew it was the next stop. We somehow made it off the car and onto the platform and then our new friend decided she would be our escort (her train left about 20 mins after ours) and she explained the system to us and sat in a restaurant with us where we had a bite to eat and a drink. She was delightful and friendly and walked us right to our platform before saying goodbye. Thank you to her!

Avignon, France
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WE HAD an assigned car and seats and our train was direct (no stops) to Avignon. We arrived late afternoon and easily found the taxi stand. Our Avignon hotel was only 5 minutes from the station and we were able to check in and get situated. We would have the evening and 2 more days to explore. Our Hotel - it turns out - was right in the middle of the old city. That made it easy for me to get out and explore the Medieval/Rennaissance town which was, for nearly 100 years, the center of Christianity in Europe (more on that below).

Avignon City Hall - Place de l'Horloge -Avignon, France
I wasn't able to get the perspective I wanted on this - showing the Avignon Coat of Arms because of tables of the sidewalk cafes, and people wandering around, so I made a composite to show what it might look like had I been able to get back and close to the ground at the Coat of Arms. Also, note that this 19th Century, Neoclassical building is designated "H'otel de Ville." In French, "H'otel" can have several different meanings; one of which is a municipal building.
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TO MY good fortune, I found that two of the major attractions in Avignon were just a 5 minute walk from the front door of our hotel, through what is perhaps the main square in the old town. The square, know as the Place de l'Horloge ("Clock Tower Square"), is formed by some significant and historical buildings flanking either side of the square. In the center, there are numerous "sidewalk cafe" style restaurants and at the northern end is a large, ornate carousel, making for a pretty touristy spot, but nonethelss charming and - for my purposes - photogenic.

Palais de Papes (Palace of The Popes) - Avignon, France
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JUST BEYOND the square and the carousel, and backed up to the Place de l'Horloge, is the Palais de Papes ("Palace of the Popes"). Said to be the largest such palace in the world, the complex holds the palace itself (which dominates its own square), the adjacent, Romanesque Avignon Cathedral Cathédrale Notre-Dame des Doms d'Avignon) and other essentially "governmental" buildings (e.g., papal treasury), attendant to what was the kingdom of the Catholic Church (Avignon and surrounds) for nearly three quarters of a century during the early 12th Century. Pope Clement V moved the papacy to Avignon, where it remained for 7 successive Popes, until Gregory XI returned it to Rome at the end of his reign. For that period the church acquired and owned surround lands, imposed taxes on its inhabitants, and tolls and other fees on travelers, greatly increasing its wealth. I wandered around there on my first morning, and then again a few days later, when our cruise ship tour took us back there.

Basilique san Pierre (St. Peter's Basillica) adjacent to the Popes Palace - Avignon, France
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ADJACENT TO the Popes' Palace, stands the originally 7th Century, Gothic, St. Peter's Basilica, which was rebuilt in the early 14th Century, and elevated to the status of Basilica only during the reign of Pope Benedict in the current century. Nonethless, it is an imposing piece of architecture.

St. Benezet Bridge (Bridge of Avignon) - Avignon, Franc
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A FEW short steps beyond the Palais de Papes, you reach the river, and the remains of a historically significant and important bridge: The Saint Benezet Bridge. Originally built at the beginning of the 10th Century, the bridge was the only means (other than treacherous crossings by boat) to cross the Rhone from the west bank (French territory) to Avignon. In the early 11th Century, the French King, Louis VIII laid seige on Avignon, and the bridge was substantially destroyed. Rebuilt a few years later, by the 17 Century, Avignon no longer had the economic means to maintain the bridge and a series of strong floods over a period of years destroyed most of the arches. What remains today has been designated as a UNESCO Heritage Site. I arrived before the morning sun rose too high and found some nice lighting on the structure. I think it is a photogenic spot. The bridge is also famous for the little ditty that French children learn very young; and which has been translated to English and also taught to us here in the U.S. as young children, about dancing on the bridge. In reality, it is likely that any dance was actually done under the bridge, where at one time way back in history, and Inn stood.

Saint Benezet Bridge (Bridge of Avignon) - Avignon, France
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IN THE opposite direction from our hotel, in a couple short blocks south along the Rue de la Republic (a main street in old Avignon), you reach the Saint Didier Cathedral, and Place you reach a pretty, tranquil park with lots of space for sitting and just enjoying a nice day (Square Agricol Perdiguier).

Square Agricol Perdiguier - Steeple of Saint Didier Cathedral in the Background  - Avignon, France
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BEHIND THE square and to the east, there is another stately Gothic Church (St. Didier). Just beyond the church is another small, but lively square: La Place Didier. Our Hotel attendant directed us there for a nice place to have dinner outdoors on our first night.

The little street cafe we ate at on our first night
La Place Saint Didier - Avignon, France
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THE NEXT morning, I walked a loop around that area and back up a couple of the quiet, side streets, on my way back to the Hotel. I generally enjoy these wanderings. I find stuff to shoot that isn't really anything about anything that I know about. But there are just some subjects and scenes that draw my eye. Without labeling them as such, it might be hard to know they are images of Avignon.

Avignon, France
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Avignon, France
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Avignon, France
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Avignon, France
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Avignon, France
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I FOUND this little cafe just a few steps up the street, before I reached the Clock Tower Square. It became my morning routine to sit here and have a cappuchino.

Coffee Shop adjacent to our Avignon Hotel - Avignon, France
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ON OUR last night in Avignon before boarding our Cruise Ship, the weather was gorgeous and we felt the urge to spend one more evening outdoors, sipping a drink (and in my case, puffing on a nice cigar). We wandered into this neighborhood setting and had the perfect ending to our short, but delightful stay in Avignon. I would go back for sure!

Avignon, France
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WE WERE scheduled to board the first of our Viking Ships, The Viking Lofn the following day. Viking wasn't very forthcoming (IMO) about its boarding process (saying "around" 12:00), and we were to be out of our hotel by 9:00 a.m. 
We weren't weren't thrilled about the hotel's process for holding bags (very insecure), so we decided to "go for broke" and just head over to the cruise port. We hired a taxi to drive us the very short distance to the cruise port. After walking aound Avignon for several days, I realized that the port was probably about a 10 - minute walk from the hotel. But with luggage, it would have been a long 10 minutes! Most of our trip would be north - upriver - but there was one nearby, "not-to-miss" town that was a few miles south: Arles). The itinerary called for us to sail south to Arles that evening, and then back to Avignon the next day for an additional day in Avignon. However, due to mechanical issues, we were unable to sail that evening. Instead, we stayed at our mooring in Avignon and additional day, and we were bussed to Arles the next morning. A short ride and no big deal. Glad we didn't miss Arles altogether (but more on that next).

The Avignon Rhone River Cruise Port is small - but busy - Avignon, France
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FOR NOW, we settled in on the Lofn. We were early, but they boarded us and we were among the first to board. Exploring the ship took all of about 5 minutes. Compared to any ocean cruise ship we have been on, riverboats are tiny! They had a nice buffet lunch for early boarders/late disembarkers, and I discovered the cigar smoking area and started things off right!

Viking Lofn - Avignon, France
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