A Few Days in Provence

15th May, 2013 (Sally)

Welcome to our first 2013 newsletter, and what a different start to our cruising year this has been. As usual we left the sunshine of the Gold Coast expecting the weather would be cool in Europe but temperatures plunging to near freezing and the hint of snow as we arrived at Roanne train station was a trifle extreme. However Sable was as welcoming as always and with the heating turned up, cases unpacked and a trip to the supermarket to restock the cupboards and fridge we were soon settled into our home away from home. We had been met at Charles de Gaulle by Gill who had had a few days in Paris before joining us to cruise but with the daytime temperatures of 5oC we looked for some sunshine and all decided the south of France looked promising so on a misty wet morning we set off in a hire car searching for some warmth. First stop, Lyon, where the normally placid waters of the Saône meets the snow-fed Rhone to continue its way to the Mediterranean, a massive body of fast moving water. At Lyon the Saône was a muddy raging torrent, a result of several huge rainfalls that have caused damage on several of the waterways of France, as we have since found out.

Our first night we spent at Orange, the site of the Roman Theatre which we had visited 13 years ago. A magnificent structure, 2000 years old and still in use as a theatre, it was actually being prepared for a new production while we there. We spent a couple of hours there with a very good audio presentation reliving the experience of 10,000 Roman citizens crowding in to witness the latest productions. Magistrates in the best seats, slaves, prostitutes and foreigners in the worst and everyone else in between. After clambering over the tiers of seats and exploring the tunnels behind I was pleased to say my new knee passed it all with flying colours. Dinner that night in a picturesque town square and a wander home in warm sunlight at 9.00pm convinced us that it was the right decision to have come south.

Next morning we had intended an early start to our travels but that plan was waylaid by the local market. What a delightful way for the ladies to while away an hour or so, stores laden with local produce with fresh strawberries and asparagus featuring on so many stalls. A linen display caught our eye and the stall holder was delighted to make two good sales before she had barely opened. We bought our lunch from the market, tomatoes, fresh off the vine and a kilo of mandarins for 1.50€. Tony eventually prised us away to drag us off through the vineyards of Chateauneuf du Pape. Our memories of our last visit were not wonderful, it had been late in the day and nothing was open so it was a delight to walk into a cute friendly village, have a coffee in the square and find of course a nice little wine shop where we could buy a bottle or two.... or was it three. At Avignon we boarded the tourist train for a tour of the town and the remnants of the famous bridge. This saved a lot of walking and left us time for a wander through the massive Palais des Papes before moving on to the Pont du Gard, another 2000 year old structure that is still in amazing condition. It is the tallest Roman aquaduct in the world standing at 48 metres high and was designed to bring water to the city of Nimes. We walked across marvelling at the size of the blocks that were used in the construction, and the symetry of the tiers of triple arches. Will anything we build today still be standing in 2000 years?

We had hoped to find accommodation near the village of Baux but being school holidays the only room we were offered was decidedly sub-standard so on to Arles and another test of the knee with a stone spiral staircase up to the third floor room. Once again it passed and we had enough energy for a wander down the Rhone waterfront visiting sites that Van Gogh painted so many times when he lived here in the latter years of his life, including a stop and a very expensive drink at the cafe that features in two of his paintings. It retains all of the shabby charm and is a great place for a bit of people watching. Arles also has two great Roman structures, a theatre and amphitheatre. The latter is used for bull fights, not our sort of sport but I would go to these as the matadors only have to remove the rosette suspended between the horns of the bull and he lives to fight another day. (Not always so for the matador!) However no bull fights that day so we settled instead for a meal at a resturant recommended by our hotelier. Luckily we arrived early, so early we were sent away for 15 minutes, as the tables filled very quickly and people were turned away before we were even served our main course. Gill and I shared the slow cooked shoulder of lamb which was delicious while Tony opted for the three course set meal.... Why are we not surprised?

High on my bucket list is to eat a Boullibaise at a Mediterranean waterfront cafe, so much so that I have resisted the same dish when served anywhere else, so next day by a circuitous route through lavender fields and olive groves we finally made our way to Cassis, a small fishing village east of Marseille. Highly recommended by friends (thanks Barb and Pete) it lived up to all expectations and after once again taking the recommendation of the hotellier we had a wonderful meal where we all sampled a traditional boullibaise. Big tick. Dining at night in the lingering twilight and wandering home with the sun setting over the fishing fleet leaves special memories. Next morning we watched a small fishing boat selling its catch to the locals, you can't get fresher than that. One whole fish 1.5kg for 14€. And you can't get cheaper than that. We bypassed Marseille and headed west stopping at the small town of Aigues Mortes for lunch and a walk around the ramparts. Aigues Mortes was built in 1240 by Louis IX as a port for France when all other access to the sea was controlled by foreign powers and today it is a town within intact fortification walls. The port is long silted-up and today it makes its money as a tourist spot and also from salt which is taken from the evaporation flats nearby. The white mountains are visible from the top of the walls.

We spent the next night at Sète, another fishing village we had enjoyed on our first year in France and the next morning turned towards home with a planned stop at the Millau Bridge. Such a highlight, our third time across this modern engineering marvel but the sheer scale of it still takes one's breath away. It is the tallest bridge in the world with the central pier being higher than the Eiffel Tower, and graciously curves for 2,460 metres across the Tarn Valley. When completed in 2004 at a cost of 400M€ it took 4 hours off the journey between Paris and Montpellier, but the truly amazing fact was it was completed in 3 years. We spent our usual couple of hours there, a film to watch and various photo opportunities as well as a good coffee stop. Our trip from Millau to home could be completed on the motorway but I did propose a slight detour to the town of Le Puy en Velay, one of the truly spectacular sights in France with three giant structures built on top of towering basalt pillars. One, a huge statue of Notre Dame was cast from 213 cannons captured at Sebastopol; but how did they get it there? There is access up a very steep path but even today I think engineers would be scratching their heads never mind in 1830 before the age of cranes and hydraulic lifts etc. The Chapelle St Michel d'Aiguille sems to grow out of a giant finger of lava rock and once again causes one to wonder at the ingenuity of men in the 10th and 11th centuries when it was built.

Sight seeing over it was time to turn for home and prepare for the start of our cruising. Monday was spent in final purchases, return the car and say goodbye to the few friends still remaining in port, ready for an early start on Tuesday. This is a later start than usual and the countryside is in full spring flush. Charolais cattle, belly deep in grass, crops well advanced and even some hay being harvested. However the heavy rain earlier has caused more than a few problems on the canals. Our plan was to cruise to Dijon to put Gill on a train and wait for Deb and Mark. However it was reported the Canal de Centre was closed due to a bridge being down, that has now been clarified to a breach in a canal wall which has emptied a 7km stretch of canal. It was discovered on the 5th, but with the 8th and 9th both holidays — and why would one start work on a Friday — it appears that the work was eventually started on the 13th and it could be two weeks before it reopens. All this means that we cruised left instead of right as we left the Roanne Canal and took Gill to Decize to catch a train to Paris, before returning and joining the queue of boats waiting. There was also a queue at Decize waiting to cross the Loire which was in full spate, and rumour has it that the Burgundy canal is closed due to too much water again. We have a pleasant berth at Paray le Monial, a couple of good restaurants in town, and Tony's favourite shop, Mr Bricolage, has a sale starting today. Yesterday as we sat in the sun under a shady tree we both thought there was a whole lot worse places to be.