Day 14 - Arles

I’m a big fan of the French Impressionists, so I couldn’t be this close to where Vincent Van Gogh painted so many of his beautiful pieces and not go see it for myself. Julie decided to stay in Avignon for the day so I took the train there myself. Super easy. Just one stop from Avignon and about a 20 minute ride. The weather so far on the entire trip has been fantastic. We had one partial day of rain in Portugal and other then that all blue sky. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen a prettier blue sky then here in Provence. It’s a cornflower blue that just is spectacular.

As many of you know I’m a big fan of Rick Steves, so I just ripped his Arles section out of my Paris book to take along. He has a great walking tour of Arles that hits all the major sites, so why attempt it on my own? While there are almost no original paintings left in town from Van Gogh, there are steel and concrete easels at a number of the places he painted in town of his famous works so you can stand where he stood and see what he saw and painted. Cool! Arles also has some of the best preserved Roman ruins dating back over 2000 years, and I wanted to see that as well. I had read that you can buy what is called the Liberty Passport at the Tourist Office or any of the major sites and it covers 4 monuments and 2 museums for 12 euros, so even if you’re only seeing two sites it is a good value.

Arles is quite a bit smaller then Avignon, so was easy to cover in a day. So here you go! Come along on my day!

The Yellow House. The actual house Van Gogh lived in was in front of this building but was bombed accidentally in 1944. But this building is also in the painting and still stands.

Roman Arena over 2,000 years old. Still in use today. A mini version of the Colosseum in Rome.

Jardin d’Ete. Looks exactly like the painting!

Cafe at Night - Cafe la Nuit today.

Top left - a street I loved, Top right - a flowery courtyard of a hospital Van Gogh was treated in that he loved to paint, Bottom left - Roman Classical Theater, Bottom right - St Trophime Cloisters.

A delicious lunch at Au Brin de Thym. I am loving their vegetarian plates in France. Black rice, roasted and fresh veggies and fruit. A taste sensation in every bite. And a delicious dessert made of meringue, whipped cream and berries. Decided if I put on a few pounds here it’s worth it!

Time to head back to Avignon. I’m so glad I got to see Arles. Now when I see a painting done by Van Gogh I will always be reminded of this day💕

The last dinner in Avignon. I love the chicken in France but this was the first time I saw it on the menu so had to get it. It’s always so moist and this was no exception. Served over garlic mashed potatoes and stuffed with mushrooms. Julie ordered it also. Magnifique!! At Le Vintage Restaurant.

Travel and especially Avignon make me so happy! That’s the Avignon Bridge in the background.

I’m trying not to be sad about having to leave Avignon, and just be grateful I got to be here. Plus we have more to explore in France! Next stop Lyon. Check back again. Au revoir🙋🏼‍♀️

Day 12 & 13 - Avignon

As of today Avignon is the most charming town I have ever been in - at least so far. It felt warm and welcoming from the minute we got off the train from Nice. The old town has buildings that date back to the 13th century and many of the tiny streets aren’t wide enough for anything larger than a bicycle - of which we see many. All the streets are cobblestone and every time you turn a corner it seems there is a cute little square to have a cup of coffee or glass of wine. We really lucked out with our Airbnb. It’s in a 17th century building in just about the perfect location. Convenient to everything but quiet once we shut the door to our sweet little balcony overlooking an adorable square and patisserie. I’m already on a first name basis with the owner of the shop as she makes my coffee and croissant every morning and I wave to her from the balcony as I enjoy it. If I don’t return to the United States this will be where to find me.

A great spot to wave bonjour to everyone as I drink my coffee.

I’m heading out for a day trip soon so this will be some of my favorite pics of Avignon so far.

View overlooking the city. I love the old tile roofs.

Famous Avignon Bridge but the actual name is St. Benezet Bridge. Supposedly there is a nursery rhyme about it but even when I looked it up it was unfamiliar to me. Dates back to 1171 and 1185 but damaged due to floods in 1668 and never rebuilt.

The most famous building and important site to see in Avignon is the Palace of the Popes. Built in the 1300’s when the Catholic Church was relocated from Rome to Avignon. It stayed in Avignon till the early 1400’s. The Palace is basically empty now, but we did the tour and each person gets an iPad and as you tour the Palace through the iPad you see what it looked like then. It’s very cool and you learn a lot about the early history of the church.

Palace of the Popes. I couldn’t begin to get the entire building in one shot.

Interior shots from the Palace. Bottom right is from the kitchen. A very tall shaft to let the heat escape from the fires to cook the food.

One of my most favorite streets. Reminded me of the Kansas sunflowers.

Roman ruins in one of the parks.

A convent from the 13th century.

The food has all been amazing here, and very reasonable. I’ve tried to increase my salad intake and decrease my bread and cheese. Only partially succeeding but since we’re doing lots of walking I don’t feel too guilty.

I love the goat cheese and apple salad available in most places. And a little quiche! Lots of beautiful pastries too!

Our incredible dinner! L’epicerie right around the corner from our square recommended by Rick Steves and the owner of our Airbnb. Magnifique! We shared the penne pasta with salmon sauce and the most incredible array of salads and spreads. Also shared an amazing chocolate, caramel and fruit dessert. We had a beautiful sweet wonderful waitress by the name of Prescilia that was so helpful and kind. A perfect evening.

There is a special high tech illumination show taking place every night in Avignon inside the courtyard of the Palace of the Popes called Vibration, and we heard it was great so bought tickets and attended. It was incredible. The latest technology projected on the walls of a 13th century building. Kind of mind blowing. I took pictures but you really have to experience it.

Just a small sample of what was being projected all around us. Amazing!

Well that’s it for now. I’m off to Arles to walk in Van Gogh’s footsteps. Check back soon. Au revoir!

Day 11 - Antibes

So very glad we made the effort to get to Antibes for the day. It turned out to be so easy. Just took the train for 2 euros 20 minutes and we were there. When I return to the French Riviera that is where I will base myself. It was totally charming and spectacularly beautiful. It’s tiny compared to Nice, but just as easy to get to and much quieter. And they had the only sandy beaches we saw - all the others are small rocks.

Hello sand!

Antibes is well known for its huge harbor filled with boats - or should I say yachts!

Not a great picture of the huge yachts but I love the fort. Many of the boats we saw were well over a million or 2 dollars each.

As with so many of these waterfront towns there are still excellent remainders of the wall built to protect it, so we first walked around that for the beautiful views of the water and beaches.

Hello from Antibes!

Antibes has what appears to be an excellent Picasso Museum, and when I return it will be first on my list to visit. Since we just had the one day we decided to keep exploring and see it another time. The building was originally a home of the Grimaldi family famous for ruling Monaco.

Hello Pablo! Next time for sure!

We meandered through quaint streets stopping here and there to browse in shops.

Love this!💕

If I lived here I would definitely have a bike.

We always like to visit at least one church everyday. This is the Church of the Immaculate Conception and has been here since the 1200’s. So simple but so beautiful.

Time for lunch! My friend Lynn had recommended a place she loved called La Storia and it was easy to find. Now we love it as well. It was a small place run by the owner and one staff. They were so nice and the food was fantastic. The extra bonus was meeting the owners cousin and family. When the children were being introduced they immediately came to both Julie and I and kissed us on each cheek. I’ll never forget that!

Pasta Pesto for me and Carbonara for Julie. Our sweet new friends💕

We headed back to the beach because Julie wanted to take a dip in the Atlantic.

Happy Julie!

Happy Patti sitting on the beach feeling like the luckiest person in the world.

Back to Nice for a final walk on the Promenade.

Made it back in time to watch sunset sitting in one of the famous blue chairs. Spectacular!

The French Riviera was even prettier then I had imagined it to be. I was most surprised at how one town just runs into another, and how easy it is to get around without a car. Next up heading inland to Avignon. So much more to see and do! Thanks for coming along!

Day 9 & 10 - Nice, France

We made it to Nice! We flew from Lisbon and then it was very easy to take the brand new tram from the airport right into the central area of Nice and walk to our Airbnb. And very inexpensive - only 1.50 euro each. No surprise that Nice is beautiful, but it is quite a bit larger then I expected. There are things to see here such as museums and squares with historical statues, but with the fairly short amount of time we have here we are doing what I think most people do here - enjoy the beauty that is the French Riviera.

There is a flower/produce market everyday in Nice except Monday, so we headed that way first thing in the morning. It is located in Cours Saleya which has been a market since the Middle Ages. There are little cafes all around the square so first stop breakfast.

My favorite way to start the day in France!

The market was amazing! Everything was so fresh and aromatic. People come everyday with their baskets getting what they need for the day. Fruits, vegetables, cheeses, olives, sausages, breads, flowers and a number of artists painting beautiful pictures you can buy and take home.

Lots of handmade signs saying Don’t Touch!

Sofi the artist. One of my favorites and still tempted to go back and buy something.

Next up the Promenade Des Anglais Walk along the much strolled beachfront of central Nice. I had the Rick Steves walking tour with me so enjoyed all the building descriptions and the history. I know Julie enjoyed me reading it to her too😊 Even without the guide it’s just a beautiful walk between the Mediterranean Sea and the huge gorgeous hotels. The beach is filled with restaurants offering lounge chairs with umbrellas as the beach is very rocky.

Hotel Negresco - the finest and most expensive lodging in town.

All along the promenade are blue chairs you can sit in free. This statue just celebrates the beautiful view and invites you to sit down and enjoy. We did!

We walked down to the old fort that overlooks the water and got some great pictures of the town. That’s also where the #I Love Nice sign is so we had to get that shot as well.

We just wandered the streets and came upon a very cute cafe so stopped for lunch. It was wonderful!

Cafe Paulette. Shared the Buddha Bowl which was amazing.

People ask me why I love France so much. It’s because of streets like this one. And they are everywhere.

The street our restaurant was on. And like so many others we saw.

The night before at dinner we talked to a woman next to us that had been to Mont Boron that day and raved about the view so we decided to try and walk there. We made it but it was long and challenging and probably better to take the bus. Totally worth it for the view.

View from Mont Boron of Nice. Off in the distance we could actually see the airport which has the runways build on the sea. A spectacular view!

We were halfway to Villefranche-sur-Mer at that point so decided to go ahead and walk the rest of the way. We were surprised that one town just led into another so we were never walking in an uninhabited area. It wasn’t great for walking because there were stretches with no sidewalks, but we were super careful when there was traffic and definitely got a great workout. The town is so quaint and pretty, and really feels more Italian then French. The building are pastel orange and has steep narrow lanes leading to the sea and harbor filled with big sailboats. We found a restaurant right by the water and shared a large delicious Caprese salad.

I’m not meeting my dessert quota so indulged in an amazing raspberry tart - yumm! Since we walked over 10 miles I didn’t feel guilty.

Wisely we hopped the train back to Nice. It only took about 10 minutes max and we were close to our Airbnb. A great day exploring and enjoying Nice and Villefranche-sur-Mer. Next up Antibes!

Day 8 - Azeitao and Lisbon

On our way back to Lisbon we made a stop at the Azulejos de Azeitao tile factory. Two things you quickly find out Portugal is known for are tiles and cork. We skipped the cork factory to stay in Lagos another day but enjoyed the tile factory very much. The tiles are made by hand from start to finish - starting with molding the clay into the squares or circles etc., glazing, baking, decorating and baking again. It takes months for the process to be completed for each tile.

3 methods to decorate the tiles - painting by hand, plaster mold and a rope method.

Our next stop was in Azeitao for a wine tasting at the oldest winery in Portugal - Jose Maria da Fonseca Winery. Started in 1834 and a huge producer and exporter of Portuguese wine.

Such a gorgeous building! The tour was interesting to me mainly because of the old beautiful buildings. In the building some of the best wine is aged in they were playing a sound track almost like monks chanting. Makes the wine better perhaps?

We had a little time to explore the cute town and Julie couldn’t resist this new look. A skirt and high heels in front of the barber shop😂

We arrived in Lisbon for our last night in Portugal and after checking into the hotel I just went out and walked around the central core for a bit. It was a spectacular day and I love the beautiful streets, squares and buildings. Lisbon is called the city of 7 hills so you always get a good workout walking. Here are just a few of my favorite pictures of the day.

Avenida da Liberdade - a grand and wonderful boulevard lined with this beautiful tile sidewalk.

Bottom left - the train station which has the prettiest Starbucks ever!

Pasteis de Nata - I might have eaten one more. Why not!

Saw lots of these small groups of students. It’s the start of University so apparently the older students dress in the black suits and take the new students around who must wear funny hats - kind of an orientation I guess? No one seemed to mind so apparently not hazing.

The Portugal portion of our trip was a tour with the Collette tour company. It is my second tour with them and as with the first which was to India I was very pleased. Our tour guide Maria was awesome. Very knowledgeable, organized and fun. The hotels were all good and the included meals better than we expected. The transportation system to get around Portugal is not currently what you find in a country like Italy, although their highways appear to be excellent so renting a car and driving is another option. Taking this tour allowed us to get around and see quite a few of the regions in Portugal, but for the next part of our trip we are on our own.

We met so many great people in the group from not just the US but Canada and Australia. That to me is part of the fun of a tour versus traveling alone. I enjoy both.

Great restaurant! Haddock fillet with shrimp rice and lemon meringue pie.

Our favorite new friends!

Now we are heading to the second part of our trip - flying today from Lisbon to Nice. South of France here we come! Goodbye Portugal - it’s been wonderful😘