France: Avignon Park & Palace

This was a day for stairs and steps.  Many staircases and countless steps, a real workout for the knees! 

ROCHER DES DOMS

On Sunday morning, we took the ferry over to the mainland again.  We were on the first crossing of the day and the only passengers.  Feeling ambitious, we climbed the long, angled stone staircase built against natural stone up to a park.  

At the top (puff, puff), you are rewarded with a set of marvelous views both over the old city and across to Isle Barthelasse and Le Bercail. Le Becail is the restaurant where we enjoyed two dinners sitting by the river with a view of the city’s wall lit at night. 

Jardin du Rocher des Doms is the name of this park. The “rocher” is a limestone hill that rises more than 90 feet above the Rhône River.  This hill provided natural protection for that city that developed. For some hundreds of years, one side was arid and sheep grazed there.  Later, promenades, fountains, and sculpture were added. 

 Once you have made the climb, there are views on all sides plus statues to check out.  

Returning to the level, there are gently sloping promenades that wind their way past the cathedral and down and around to the city below.

Few people were out, the air was soft, and the loudest sounds were the church bells booming the quarter hours.  A few steps away is the Palace of the Popes.

PALAIS DES PAPES

The Palace of the Popes is a mighty symbol of Christianity in earlier centuries and dominates the old city of Avignon.  It was built in the 14^th century in less than 20 years under the leadership of Benedict 12^th and his successor Clement 6^th. It’s the biggest Gothic palace in all of Europe; its floor space is the equivalent of four Gothic cathedrals!  At least seven popes ruled from here before the papacy moved back to Rome in the 15^th century.

We bought tickets to go inside the Palace.  Included in the admission price is an iPad. There is no sound, but by scanning a seal at the various points during your tour, text and diagrams appear on the screen explaining what a particular space was for and enabling you to see what the room looked like when it was in use.  Pointing the iPad at the ceiling, for example, you could see its original colors and patterns. The iPad was a bit heavy to carry, but the text for us was in English.  Virtually all of the explanatory panels in the rooms were French only.  

We did get a sense of the grandeur and size of the palace in the early centuries since several towers were taken down and other changes made by subsequent popes.  And a glimpse of some of the frescoes.  By climbing up and down many more narrow staircases, we got views to the surrounding buildings and also a chance to sit in the pope’s private garden. 

 It wasn’t a perfect tour.  The signage could have been better, and the way to exit much clearer. Near the end, we roamed around trying to find the Sortie sign.  Turns out the only way to get out is to drop off your iPad and then go through the two levels of the gift shop. 

LUNCH AND DINNER

You could easily find an outdoor café for lunch as cafes abound in this city.  But, we had booked a table at the elegant bistro, Le Carre du Palais, and had a table outside looking toward the palace wall.  The café has a notable selection of wines by the glass (we splurged a bit in our choices) and an intriguing menu. To start, we  both had the shrimp with corn espuma (foam) followed by the veal filet with forest mushrooms for the Chief Penguin and salmon in a very light curry sauce for me. 

The Condrieu wine I had was lovely. Dessert for the CP was a stacked St. Honore.  

We relaxed and savored this meal.  No waiter rushed or even nudged us. We could sit as long as we liked.

Our dinner that evening and the one before were at Le Bercail, the only restaurant serving. Their menu is short and the view enchanting.  We liked the platter of charcuterie and cheese we had twice as well as the fish soup and beef daube we sampled.  

Note: All photos ©JWFarrington (some rights reserved.)