We spent the past week in the southeast of France in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region, by far one of my favorite part of France. We started the week in Antibes, exploring some of the cities there, continued our visit in the walled city of Avignon, then spent the last day in Marseille before flying back to Prague.
I don’t usually post a ton of pictures here, but there were so many picturesque places to see! So here they are.
We started off in Antibes, which is one of my favorite places. It’s also close to Cannes, Nice, and Saint-Tropez, so there are lots of places in the area to explore.
A bay south of the old town of Antibes.The walk along the coast of Antibes past a small park. You can walk along the coast of Antibes for over five miles, and it’s a beautiful walk.The beach at Juan-les-Pins, on the other side of the peninsula from Antibes. We visited this beach a few decades ago, so it was fun to see it again.Seagulls at Port Vauban, a natural harbor in Antibes that was in use before the days of the Roman Empire.While we were grocery shopping in town near the apartment we were staying at we got caught in a hailstorm. How crazy is that?A view from the Pointe de l’Ilette. Kind of like the first photo, but with rocks.A view from the beach south of the old town in Antibes.Antibes south of the old town in the evening.The wall of Antibes in the evening.
Antibes is a short train ride to Cannes, so we spent a day there.
A view of the port at Cannes from the 12th century tower at Le Suquet in Cannes’ old town.Me by the big Cannes letters at the tower at Le Suquet.The beach at Cannes.
For the next part of the trip, we stayed in Avignon, which is in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region but is not located on the coast. My goal was to stay in one place that was picturesque, and one place that had history to explore. Avignon is home of the Palais des Papes, one of the largest and most important medieval Gothic buildings in Europe, constructed primarily during the 13th and 14th centuries. And Avignon also has a famous bridge.
It was very windy when we arrived in Avignon, and the temperatures dipped quite a bit from the temperatures during the past several weeks, so it was quite an experience. I have several pictures where my thumb can be seen holding onto my phone, as there was a definite risk that my phone would fly out of my hands and into the Rhône river.
Avignon is a walled city that is enclosed by 4.3 kilometers of walls. It is really quite impressive! And I find it neat that people go about their daily lives surrounded by walls constructed during the 1300s.One of thie first things I saw once I arrived in Avignon was this; a free library in Avignon made from an old phone booth.A path leading from where we stayed in the east of town to the Palais des Papes in the center.The Palais des Papes in Avignon, taken from the inside. I was super impressed by the self-guided tour. They gave tablets that offered a virtual reality experience while walking through the various rooms of the palace; you could look at the tablet to see what it might have looked like during the 1300s. Plus, there was a treasure hunting component. It was very well done.A view of Avignon, including the Rhône river and the Musée du Petit Palais, from the Palais des Papes.A courtyard inside the Palais des Papes. I thought this perspective was interesting.Me beside a medieval door inside the palace. I find it interesting that average human heights used to be closer to what they are now during our hunter-gatherer days. When humans started farming and domesticating animals, average heights shrank by about half a foot (which is when these doors were created). They have gradually crept back up again to the levels they are now.A view of the garden inside the Palais des Papes. This garden had direct access to the Pope’s apartments. It had a section for growing vegetables, and also a small vineyard.The garden inside the Palais des Papes in Avignon.Me at the garden inside the Palais des Papes.The papal bedroom inside the Palais des Papes. I didn’t realize that you weren’t supposed to take pictures in here (I didn’t see a sign) so I got in trouble. Fortunately, I don’t use a flash, so the walls were safe from my accidental miscreance.The Pont Saint-Bénézet, otherwise known as the Pont d’Avignon. And yes, we did dance on the bridge! Though during the tour, we learned that historically, the bridge was too narrow to dance on, so people actually danced under the bridge. Avignon was super windy while we were there, and it was even windier atop the bridge, so I had to hold onto my hat.A decoration on the Pont d’Avignon, taken from atop the bridge. I just thought it looked neat.
Our flight back to Prague left at 11:20 in the evening, so we left Avignon in the morning and spent the day in Marseille. We also managed to get in our obligatory visit to FNAC.
A view from the steps leading up to the Notre Dame de la Garde basilica in Marseille.The basilica of Notre Dame de la Garde, also known by locals as la Bonne Mère, south of the Old Port of Marseille. We took a “tourist train” up here, and thank goodness – it would have been a long uphill climb.A view to the east of the Notre Dame de la Garde basilica in Marseille.A view to the west of the Notre Dame de la Garde basilica in Marseille.Inside the Notre Dame de la Garde basilica in Marseille. What is interesting is the various nautical decorations they had hanging in the basilica; if you look closely in this picture you can see them to the left and right of the nave.The Old Port of Marseille.
We had a wonderful time touring the various places we did, and I for one am looking forward to returning one day.
