The next destination was the walled city of
Avignon, 'City of Popes,' and viewed from the river
it is a breath-taking site with the palace towers
spanning high above the medieval walls that encircle
the city centre. The included tour took us through a
city gate a few minutes' walk from the ship and
around the city centre. The focus of the tour was a
visit inside the 'Palais des Papes,' Palace of the
Popes, which is part church, part fortress which
dominates the centre. In 1309, following conflict
with the papacy and the French crown, which
culminated in King Philipp IV forcing the election
of a French pope, the Holy Vatican decamped to
Avignon and remained there until 1376. There were
subsequently a further six French Popes who spent
their time building and rebuilding the Palace Vieux
and the Palace Neuf and cultivating a more
palatable wine than the local vin, the famous
Châteauneuf-de-Pape. Their collective efforts were
justified as the scale of the Palaces is immense with
large, cavernous rooms, vaulting arches and
impressive windows. Several popes are buried within
the Palace, their tombs laid out in a row in one of
the anterooms, so I thanked them personally for
their wonderful vineyards and world-famous wine.
Finally, I enjoyed a solo walk along the river to the
Pont d'Avignon, the 12th-century bridge
immortalised in the rhyme and another interesting
UNESCO World Heritage Site. I was able to walk
on the bridge and find out about its history and
how it was constructed. Once it was the only bridge
that crossed the Rhône, was over 900 metres long
and barely 5 metres wide with 22 arches. Due to its
narrowness, people and animals frequently slipped
off the bridge into the water. Dancing on the bridge
as in the rhyme, 'tous en rond', in a circle, was
impractical and it is more likely that any dancing
took place on one of the islands under the bridge.
By the 17th century it was all but destroyed by the
ravages of sieges, floods, building costs and dancing
and all that remains is four arches which end
abruptly in the river. However, it was still an
impressive historical site and a treat for me to at last
see this bridge that I used to sing about in French
lessons at school, 'Sur le Pont, d'Avignon'. On the
Lyon and Provence trip you will want to dance
literally and figuratively at the sheer joy of such a
marvellous and experience packed adventure! But,
you will need to return several times to really be
able to fully appreciate and absorb all that is
available on this historic journey along the River
Rhône. Bon voyage!' Au revoir Lyons et Provence,
je reviendrai bientôt!
on the lyon and provence trip you will want to
dance literally and figuratively at the sheer joy
SEINE
RHÔNE
RHÔNE
Tournon
Viviers
Lyon
Vienne
Avignon
Paris
Nice
FRANCE
Dijon
C r ui s e
If yo u a d d th e Pari s e x te n sio n ,
tran s fe r f ro m Pari s v ia train .
O ve r night in Po r t
Arles
GETTING THERE: The 8-day Lyon &
Provence journey from Lyon to Avignon
or vice versa, starts from $3,795pp in
Standard stateroom
44
VIKING
