The trip to Avignon was a total success! It was partly due to Cari, but mostly due to me. We arrived into the Gare Centre and our hostel was only a little walk from there, no more than 10 minutes. We arrived at the hostel about noon and we just dropped our bags off because our room was not ready at the time.
From there, we walked down the main street, but everything was closed, because
it was Sunday. Apparently, the French take their day of rest very, very seriously. We walked the length of Avignon and it was at the other end of town where all the good stuff was. We wanted to check out the Musee du Petit Palais first, but it was closed for lunch. So, we walked around the park that was in the city. It overlooked the town and gave picturesque views as the signs suggested. I could have sworn I saw an Alpe, but Cari and Kristi refused to believe that school of thought.....
We continued around the park and gardens and it was very pretty. Flowers were in bloom still and the trees still had their leaves. It was not the prettiest I have seen, but still quite nice. Other parts of the park offered views of Villeneuve. It was the neighboring town across the River Rhone and past a little island the River created. In Villeneuve was La Chartreuse, which the park gave great views of. La Chartreuse was first a monestary turned Pope hideout turned prison turned tourist attraction. That's a pretty fantastic history for a building if you ask me, which none of you did. It was during our walk around the park when we really started talking about very relavent issues: who our favorite Top Model is. It was nice discussing some of my interests with people who could keep up.
When we descended the hill, the art museum was open and we decided it was time to go in. I was excited to see some of the art that would never be found in the US or by US painters. We went to buy our tickets, and for some reason, the ticket man thought Kristi and I were a couple. I do not know how he thought that because we really were not even standing close to each other. I even told him we were paying separetly, but I guess people only hear what they want to hear. As for the museum, it was kind of a let down, sad enough to say. It was advertised as early Roman architecture and sculptures spanning into more modern artists. The first room was in fact Roman sculptures, but they were mostly of Jesus and saints, and, well, we all know how I feel about that. The rest of the room was this 14th Century Pre-Renaissance religious crap paintings. Most slash all of them looked the same and I did not understand all the religious references.
All of them were of baby Jesus suckling Mary's boob that magically spouted from her neck. Is that how it works? Despite heinous interpretations of female anatomy, the worst part of the musuem was when a tour guide found out we were American. He claimed to speak perfect English. He gave us a little tour around some of the galleries, but I did not understand about 95-97% of what he said. He kept trying to make American culture references, but he never really made the connection...bless his little heart. He also explained different colors Botecelli used, including "red firemen," "blue policeman," and "yellow poste," which is a reference to "post office yellow." He discussed a painting with us and explained why Mary had a "strong hand." Imagine a hand being mangled through a meat grinder and there you go. Apparently, Botecelli was a sculptor and did not know how to paint hands...at least, that is what I could pick out.
After that, we went to the Palais de
s Papes. It is the largest Gothic palace in the world. Really, it was quite impressive, if I say so myself. I am always amazed at how grand the rooms can be. My favorite room was the Tanil. It had a huge ceiling completely covered in wood paneling and was rounded. The Pope would have his huge parties there celebrating big events. It was absolutely magnificient. It was also crazy to think that thousands of people from hundreds of years of history had been in that room, celebrating and what not. I also liked the Popes' bedroom. It had a beautiful blue wall with gold branches painted, leaves, birds, and squirrels painted on it. The top of the palace also provided beautiful views of the town and surrounding areas.
From there, we went to the Pont d'Avignon. Cari really wanted to dance on it,
which she and Kristi did, as per the song. I enjoyed hearing about the history of the bridge and of St. Benezet, which I believed none of it.We returned to the hostel after that. The room was glorious. Painted a cheery bright yellow...but not "yellow poste..." with stencils of olives, very provencal. It was at this point I fell asleep. I did not get much sleep the night before and, let's be real here, I love napping. After I woke up, it was dinner time. We were all starving at this point so w decided to go to the Irish pub down the street. How French! We also had a lovely "get-to-know-you" conversation, since we did not know each other. Needless to say, we were at the restaurant a very long time.
We headed back to the hostel and I told myself I would take a shower, but I did not want to. I was just too tired to get out of bed when after I laid down. I asked Cari to read from her travel book what we were going to do in Arles, but I'm pretty sure I was asleep and just kept agreeing with her. I had no idea what she said and could recollect nothing. However, me sleeping did not stop me from correcting her grammar and pronunciation of English words....a teacher's work never stops, right? She will learn one day.
From there, we walked down the main street, but everything was closed, because
it was Sunday. Apparently, the French take their day of rest very, very seriously. We walked the length of Avignon and it was at the other end of town where all the good stuff was. We wanted to check out the Musee du Petit Palais first, but it was closed for lunch. So, we walked around the park that was in the city. It overlooked the town and gave picturesque views as the signs suggested. I could have sworn I saw an Alpe, but Cari and Kristi refused to believe that school of thought.....We continued around the park and gardens and it was very pretty. Flowers were in bloom still and the trees still had their leaves. It was not the prettiest I have seen, but still quite nice. Other parts of the park offered views of Villeneuve. It was the neighboring town across the River Rhone and past a little island the River created. In Villeneuve was La Chartreuse, which the park gave great views of. La Chartreuse was first a monestary turned Pope hideout turned prison turned tourist attraction. That's a pretty fantastic history for a building if you ask me, which none of you did. It was during our walk around the park when we really started talking about very relavent issues: who our favorite Top Model is. It was nice discussing some of my interests with people who could keep up.
When we descended the hill, the art museum was open and we decided it was time to go in. I was excited to see some of the art that would never be found in the US or by US painters. We went to buy our tickets, and for some reason, the ticket man thought Kristi and I were a couple. I do not know how he thought that because we really were not even standing close to each other. I even told him we were paying separetly, but I guess people only hear what they want to hear. As for the museum, it was kind of a let down, sad enough to say. It was advertised as early Roman architecture and sculptures spanning into more modern artists. The first room was in fact Roman sculptures, but they were mostly of Jesus and saints, and, well, we all know how I feel about that. The rest of the room was this 14th Century Pre-Renaissance religious crap paintings. Most slash all of them looked the same and I did not understand all the religious references.
All of them were of baby Jesus suckling Mary's boob that magically spouted from her neck. Is that how it works? Despite heinous interpretations of female anatomy, the worst part of the musuem was when a tour guide found out we were American. He claimed to speak perfect English. He gave us a little tour around some of the galleries, but I did not understand about 95-97% of what he said. He kept trying to make American culture references, but he never really made the connection...bless his little heart. He also explained different colors Botecelli used, including "red firemen," "blue policeman," and "yellow poste," which is a reference to "post office yellow." He discussed a painting with us and explained why Mary had a "strong hand." Imagine a hand being mangled through a meat grinder and there you go. Apparently, Botecelli was a sculptor and did not know how to paint hands...at least, that is what I could pick out.
After that, we went to the Palais de
s Papes. It is the largest Gothic palace in the world. Really, it was quite impressive, if I say so myself. I am always amazed at how grand the rooms can be. My favorite room was the Tanil. It had a huge ceiling completely covered in wood paneling and was rounded. The Pope would have his huge parties there celebrating big events. It was absolutely magnificient. It was also crazy to think that thousands of people from hundreds of years of history had been in that room, celebrating and what not. I also liked the Popes' bedroom. It had a beautiful blue wall with gold branches painted, leaves, birds, and squirrels painted on it. The top of the palace also provided beautiful views of the town and surrounding areas.From there, we went to the Pont d'Avignon. Cari really wanted to dance on it,
which she and Kristi did, as per the song. I enjoyed hearing about the history of the bridge and of St. Benezet, which I believed none of it.We returned to the hostel after that. The room was glorious. Painted a cheery bright yellow...but not "yellow poste..." with stencils of olives, very provencal. It was at this point I fell asleep. I did not get much sleep the night before and, let's be real here, I love napping. After I woke up, it was dinner time. We were all starving at this point so w decided to go to the Irish pub down the street. How French! We also had a lovely "get-to-know-you" conversation, since we did not know each other. Needless to say, we were at the restaurant a very long time.We headed back to the hostel and I told myself I would take a shower, but I did not want to. I was just too tired to get out of bed when after I laid down. I asked Cari to read from her travel book what we were going to do in Arles, but I'm pretty sure I was asleep and just kept agreeing with her. I had no idea what she said and could recollect nothing. However, me sleeping did not stop me from correcting her grammar and pronunciation of English words....a teacher's work never stops, right? She will learn one day.
2 comments:
Dear readers, this is Cari, and I have excellent English grammar and pronunciation.
Wow! All that history and fun. I'm jealous, except for the bad parts. Lol. I can't wait until we can chill back here in person and you can tell me even more. See you soon little brother.
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