Sunburnt in Avignon

My train stopped in Avignon, and so did I.

I excitedly left the train station, abandoning the transfer recommended by the ticket office, and followed the signs towards luggage storage. And was met with disappointment. Suitcase scanner broken; storage lockers closed.

I didn't want to miss out on Avignon, but I also didn't think I was capable of carrying around my large, heavy backpack for two hours, especially since it was 30 degrees. There was an Ibis hotel next to the train station (there always seems to be Ibis hotels next to train stations) and I remember storing bags in Brussels in an Ibis I stayed at. The storage room in Brussels was coin operated, and I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask the reception desk. When I got there, there was no one at the desk. I found the luggage room, but it was just shelving. I was willing to take the risk for Avignon though, so I dumped by bag and left just as a receptionist was returning to the desk. She said something in French to which I nodded and smiled, then I walked out. Freedom! Sneaky Freedom!

I walked through a gate into the walled city, and followed the arrows to the Tourist Office. I asked the man, “What can you show me in 2 hours?” And he pulled out a map, circled the Pope's Palace, the gardens, and Pont D'Avignon. “Merci Beaucoup!”

The main street in Avignon, Rue de la Republique, has the classic 5 story French buildings lining either side of the street, and huge trees growing down the middle that keep the street quite cool and shady. I grabbed some lunch from the grocery store, and before I knew it I was at the Palais de Papes, the Pope's (second) Palace. The building is so impressive, and like the rest of Avignon, it is made of light stone. With my limited time in the town, I opted out of entering the palace. It costs 10 euros, and when I was speaking with a hostel roommate later, she said it took her 2 hours to see everything and listen to the audioguide, so I'm glad I missed it (next time, perhaps).

The church attached to the Palace was free to enter, although there was a very large annoying sign saying women wearing shorts and tank tops were not allowed to enter. To the dudes that make these stupid rules, IT IS 30 DEGREES. I am not one of the local French people who seem to have no trouble wearing a long sleeved black shirt and black pants. Edmonton is lucky if it reaches 30 degrees all summer. You will notice this by the copious amount of sweat you can see forming on every part of my body. Anyways, no one was around to patrol this dress code, so I walked right in. Considering this is Rapturday (or so the Bible told that weird guy from the States), I'm pretty sure I'm screwed. Either that or God doesn't give two shits what I wear when I come to a building devoted to God.

The gardens behind the palace are built around a really cool rock, Rocher des Doms, which offers a really cool viewpoint of the Rhone. At this point, I realized I had left my sunscreen in my bag that was (hopefully) still in the Ibis luggage room. It was so hot that I couldn't tell what was burning and what was just pink from heat, but regardless, I figured it was worth it (in the end, I only had very pink shoulders).

After that, I walked along the wall of the city for a while before coming to Pont d'Avignon, which is a famous half-bridge in the city. It has two chapels on it, and acted as a crossing between Avignon and Villeneuve-lès-Avignon by the important religious figures in the area as well as others. Flooding led to parts of the bridge collapsing over a number of years. It wasn't repaired, and now only half of it is left. It's also famous for being the bridge in question in the song "Sur le pont d'Avignon". Yeah, I don't know it either.

As I headed back to the train station, I began to worry about retrieving my bag. It was unnecessary though, since the receptionist was helping people when I walked in. She acknowledged with a smile and nod, but kept talking to the people in front of her. I slid in to the luggage room, strapped on my pack, and headed to catch my train.

Ibis security: good for Danielle, bad for people who are thinking of stealing bags from luggage rooms.