Avignon and the Palace of the Popes

We decided to spend a couple of days exploring Provence, one of the few regions in France that we never visited before. On Monday morning we left Vienne and drove a couple of hours south to Avignon. We didn’t really know much about it, and I was distressed that there was no VoiceMap tour. But apparently, Avignon once was the center of the Roman Catholic Church
and all the Popes for about 100 years moved from Vatican to Avignon. Not entirely sure why they decided on Avignon, but naturally they needed to build a place for them to stay and the result was a massive and gorgeous Palace of the Popes. The interior unfortunately been all destroyed or looted during the French Revolution, but the palace itself is in great condition. And it’s enormous ! I spent a couple of hours exploring it and relaxing in its tranquil garden. In the evening we took a one hour quick walking tour of the center and saw the famous Avignon bridge (its original from the 11th century) and walked around the city. Czytaj więcej