Exploring Avignon

On our second day in Provence, our group of Penn State travelers learned about the time when the popes were based in Avignon, not Rome. There was a period starting in the early 14th century when the Catholic church, wanting to escape the unrest in Italy and set up camp here in Avignon. As a result, there were seven straight French-born popes, with names like Gregoire XI, Clement V, Jean XXII, Benoit XII (the French version of the name Benedict), and Urbain V.

Actually, some would say there were actually nine French popes. In the late 14th century, the Vatican moved its base of operations back to Rome and an Italian-born pope was elected, but the French were still electing French popes, so they had had dueling popes for a while. That’s what you call a schism. So the last two French popes are sometimes called "anti-popes" or "schismatic popes."

The result of the popes’ presence in Avignon is a massive and wondrous palace called “Palais des Papes, or Palace of the Popes, which is a five-minute walk from our hotel. We toured it yesterday, checking out its immense rooms, its original 14th-century wall paintings, and beautiful tiles.

We also learned more about the famed Pont d’Avignon bridge, which got its start in 1177. Legend has it that the idea started with a shepherd boy named Bénézet: Supposedly an angel came to him and told him to build the bridge, which spans the Rhône River. There’s a two-story chapel on the bridge; St-Bénézet is buried in the lower chapel. The upper chapel is named for Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of Rhône river bargemen. (Who knew that bargemen had a patron saint?)

We took a tram tour of old-town Avignon, through the grounds of the palace, through the main square—called the Place de l’Horlogue after the clock tower above the town hall, and through the narrow streets that are lined with upscale boutiques. A very charismatic town. It would be even more picturesque if the sun would only come out! We’ve been experiencing all-day rains, but we’re told that the weather is expected to improve on the day that we leave.

Today’s cool French phrase is the word for appetizers or finger food: amuse-bouches. Literally translated, it means “fun for your mouth.”

Tomorrow we’re off to the town of Arles, where Van Gogh spent two years and did many of his paintings, as well as the “perched village” of Les Baux.

Photos

The 14th-century Palais des Papes served as the home for nine French-born popes during the time that Avignon served as the world headquarters of the Catholic Church.

Many buildings in Provence are colorfully decorated, including this one, whose painted windows advertise a festival in Avignon.

This fanciful balcony sculpture features a man and a woman who seem to be heckling the tourists on the street below. It’s in Place de l’Horloge, the town center of Avignon.

Most of the cars in France are on the small side—in part because Europeans tend to make gas mileage a higher priority than we do, and in part because the streets are too narrow to accommodate larger cars. This Smart Car is common in Europe and will be introduced to the U.S. in 2008.

The best view of the famed bridge Pont d'Avignon is from a windy overlook on the grounds of the Palace of the Popes. The bridge once had 22 arches, extending over the Rhône River, over the island on the right-hand side of the photo, and over another branch of the Rhone not shown here. Today just four arches remain.

Visitors can stroll on the Pont d’Avignon and walk right up to the point where the bridge abruptly ends.