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Thursday, June 21, 2001
We were meeting at 6:30 this morning. Fortunately, we managed to wake up on our own. Neither alarm had been set correctly and we couldn’t get the wake up call to work.
On the way to our first stop, a large truck passed us. Barely. He was evidently angry about our driving (we were only doing the speed limit) and blasted his diesel horn just as he was next to us. I didn’t know he was there. Jumped three feet!!
Our first stop this morning was L’Isle Sur la Sorque, a picturesque city in the middle of the river Sorque. The name literally means Island on the Sorque. They used a lot of water power in the old days. At one time there were 77 water wheels in town. Six remain. One is pictured to the left and right.
It was their market day. A smaller market than St. Remy’s. The three photos above were taken at the market. The photo on the right shows an assortment of jams for sale. The center photo shows some arrangements using dried wheat, lavender, and roses. The photo on the right shows a different arrangement of dried wheat, lavender, and roses.
We wandered the town for quite a while, taking pictures. The three photos above show a restaurant near the river. The center photo also shows a dam built to harness the river waters. The photo on the right is a reflection of the restaurant in the river.
While wandering around, Bill, Deb, and I were standing there talking about the Munich trip. We were standing in front of a small shop with a massive vine growing up beside the door. Being photographers, we kept glancing at the doorway, trying to figure out if we were going to shoot it or not. This evidently made the owner nervous. She peeked out her window a number of times. When we broke up and went our separate ways, I set up to take a picture (left) of the doorway. She immediately came out the door. When I indicated I didn’t speak French, she asked “What are you doing?” I indicated taking a picture. She returned to the shop and I took the picture, but she kept her eye on me. I said Merci when I passed by. Later, I figured out what I should have said, in French. Oh, well. I guess she thought we were casing the joint!
At one point, I put my tripod down against a fence while I took a picture (I think it was the one to the right of patterns in the algae in the sun dappled waters of the river). I was sure it was firmly in place. Guess again. It moved a little. Then through the fence and down the steep embankment and into the foot deep stream! I didn’t know what to do! Losing my tripod near the beginning of a trip!! I finally found some of our group, including Catherine, our guide. I asked if there was anything she could do, thinking she’d call the police or someone and translate for me. I showed her where the tripod was. She handed me her sunglasses and watch and climbed over the fence. She managed to get down and retrieve my tripod and back up and over and not get wet! I can’t believe that happened!!! It took almost 24 hours for the tripod to dry out. The pipe insulation that Lee wrapped around the legs really holds the water!
From there, we drove to Avignon. Quite a large city. I’m glad we had a guide who knew where to go. We parked at the train station and walked through the main gates into the old city. We had lunch at a café in the square (Place du Pape) in front of the Papal Palace - ham and cheese sandwiches.
There was a group from Peru playing music throughout the lunch time. Unfortunately, they drowned out the lovely carillon that was also playing part of that time.
The photo on the left shows the church next to the Palais des Papes (taken from our lunch table). The center photo shows one of the buildings across from the Palais. It was another cafe, but not the one we ate at. The photo on the right shows the main entrance to the Palais as we approached.
After lunch, we went into the palace. After we bought our tickets, we were informed that the tripods had to be checked. All that most of the group wanted was to take pictures from the parapets overlooking the city. When they insisted no tripods, Judy Levy asked for our money back. That got the guard on the phone. They let us up the back way - only to the parapets. We weren’t allowed in the rest of the building. Actually, I could have gone on the tour. My tripod was sitting in the van, dripping....
On up to the parapets - 128 steps. Nice view.
The three photos above were taken from the parapets of the Palais. The photo on the left looks across the town of Avignon. The center photo shows a statue on a rooftop balcony across the way. And the photo on the right looks across the ramparts to the top of the Palais.
The three photos above are details seen while on the parapets of the Palais. The photo on the left shows a griffin on a nearby rooftop as seen through one of the arrow slits in the parapet. The center photo is looking up a nearby wall at a couple of gargoyles above us. The photo on the right shows a gargoyle that was near our location. Gargoyles disguised the downspouts.
It got hot up there, though, so I went back down. Of course, the exit is through the gift shop. I took a wrong turn out the back door (left) and wound up wandering the streets of old Avignon.
Finally retraced my steps and got to the Jardin des Doms, after climbing another 137 steps! And the garden wasn’t that nice after all. I did have a nice view of the bridge of Avignon - the one mentioned in the nursery rhyme. That’s it pictured on the right.
By then, I was tired and it was almost time to meet at the vans. I found another popsicle, which helped revive me. We all returned to the van and went back to the hotel.
I washed some socks, then stuck my toes in the pool. Felt good. After a while, we went to the grocery store, where I picked up a 5 liter bottle of water and some raspberries. And we picked up some sandwiches for later this evening. And we stopped for ice cream. Melon - yum! The hotel water may have been safe to drink, but it had a funny aftertaste. I used the bottled water to refill the water bottle I had bought at Van Gogh’s place.
That evening, we drove by Loumarin for some shots. The photos to the left and right above show our view of Loumarin. The center photo shows the forest of tripods at the edge of the road as we all lined up for a shot...
Then went up above Apt looking for some lavender fields that Catherine had spotted. None of them were quite right. It seems we’re a couple of weeks early for the lavender. It’s blooming, but the blossoms are still tight, more like buds, and a bit sparse. Not the lush displays that are on all the postcards. We still took some pictures as the light rapidly faded. The three photos above were taken at the one field we stopped at.
On the drive back to the hotel, there was a car coming directly at us, in our lane. Fortunately, it was one of the few stretches of highway that had a shoulder, so we were able to avoid him, but it was still scary. I was sitting behind Bill and could see it coming right at us. I’m normally not a screamer, but I screamed that night. My throat hurt the next day.
This evening also marked the Fetes de Musik, a country wide festival of music. Every little town we passed through had a concert going on in the main square. And lots of traffic!