Travel France - by Melinda

Avignon - Travel France

Party 'til the sun comes up in Avignon

June 29th 2006 18:00

Bonjour tout le monde
(hi guys.)

In a final flourish, we say goodbye to Avignon with this post. There are more exciting places to visit in Avignon, so we might return at another time.

As has become tradition, this last post will concentrate on the vibrant nightlife of Avignon. When I was researching this post, I thought a sleepy little town known for its beautiful medieval bridge wouldn't have a thriving nightlife. How wrong I turned out to be!!! I searched Avignon Nightlife on Google and up came thousands of sites.

The one I found with the most information was Time Out Travel. It recommended 5 different places. It says most nights out start at a bar on place de l'Horloge or place Pie ("place" in French means "square" and Avignon is formed by a series of "places"), but in case you want to spend a night on the town, here are some places to check out:

- The Caves Breysse - a trendy wine bar [41 rue des Teinturiers]

- Pub Z - described as a "boho student haunt" on Time Out (whatever that means), where you are greeted by a life size zebra at the door [58 rue Bonneterie]

- Le Bokao's - plays a large variety of music and has a huge dance floor, but is very fashion conscious.

- Le Cid Café - a gay bar located in the main square. Avignon has a thriving gay community and party scene. [11 place de l'Horloge]

There's heaps of places as well (just for tourists, if you don't want to mingle. Look at the "bar amércaine" on the main street. Well, that's it. A fond farewell to Avignon. Stay tuned for the "Tour de France" Tour.

À demain
(Until tomorrow)
Melinda

P.S - For another list of clubs and pubs, look up Avignon's official tourism website here.

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Gastronomy in Avignon

June 29th 2006 07:49

Bonjour tout le monde,
(Hello everyone)

Today we continue our series on Avignon and move onto one of the most important pieces of information you need to know about a region: where to get the best FOOD!!! And yes, Avignon has many fantastic places.

If you want to do your own research, all you have to do is search Google, however, a site which I have mentioned before in my Avignon posts seems to be the best site with a comprehensive list of restaurants to suit all tastes and budgets: the Tourism Office of Avignon. This list contains these places:

- Christian Etienne (high class gourmet)
- La Fourcette (fittingly named the French word for "fork")
- Woolloomooloo (specialises African and oriental cuisine)
- Opéra Café (stylish establishment. One to impress)
- And many many more!!!

A fork (or fourchette) [from wikipedia.org licensed under GNU Agreement

Most of the local hotels also have well-established restaurants which receive rave reviews. (eg. The Hôtel de Palais des Papes)

Make sure you sample the gourmet cuisine of the area. Provence is known for its famous dishes, fantastic atmosphere and great wines. If you're a wine connoisseur, there is a list of wine bars on the Tourism's website which you ucan find by clicking here. Try Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Gigondas and Vacqueyras, and the less known but quality wines from Rasteau, Cairanne and Séguret.

Next post we say Au Revoir to Avignon and check out where to party to all hours of the night.

À demain
Melinda

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Digging into the past: Le Musee Lapidaire

June 26th 2006 08:26

Bonjour tout le monde!!!!
(Hi guys)

Sorry about the long delay since my last post. I've been sick and have barely been able to do my semester exams!!!! It's been pretty hectic, but now I can really focus on bringing you the latest info about travelling around France.

When I last wrote, we were still travelling around the arts and antiques centre of the Provence region: Avignon. I've so far managed to review a bridge, a cathédrale, a papal palace and several museums. And today, it's another museum. The Musée Lapidaire.

This place is the centre of ancient sculpture in Avignon, with exhibitions from the Egyptians, Greeks and Etruscans. I must admit, I'm not a huge fan of ancient history, but if this sort of thing floats your boat, then this is the place to go.

You have to admire the fantastic architecture (from the Baroque period and style I believe), the huge windows ("fenêtre" in French) and the murals. The Musée has undergone several renovations to restore its glory.

The Musée can be found in the Chapel of the Collège des Jésuites, whose address is 27 rue de la Republique. It is open everyday except Tuesdays and like most monuments from 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 6pm. It costs 2 euros to get in (full price) with a reduced price of 1 euro.

À demain
See you tomorrow (hopefully)
Melinda

P.S Allez les Socceroos!!! (Go the Socceroos!!!) Another confession: I think I may have become a soccer convert. (perhaps for the next few weeks anyway!!)

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Walking and hiking in Avignon

June 20th 2006 02:27

So, today’s post is rather short.
After being sick for about a week (and still recovering), I have rediscovered the benefits of walking. I love being active and because of various reasons (mainly study and cold/flu virus preventing from breathing) I couldn’t play for my team on Saturday. I was rather depressed and after being trapped inside typing furiously at a computer and sniffling wrapped up under a blanket, I decided to go for a walk.

Now, what’s my life story for the past week got to do with France? Well, I have said before how walking is a fantastic way to get around, see the sites and get some exercise to burn off that luxurious French dessert you had last night.

There are walking tracks scattered all around France. In my research I found a site, which deals entirely with booking walking holidays of France. To me, this seems like an oxymoron because, by walking, you shouldn’t have to book anything!!! (Well, I suppose you do need somewhere to sleep).

Over the past two weeks, I have been telling you all about Avignon and it seems to be a charming place that everyone seems to forget about in the rush to see the Eiffel Tower and drink French wine in the Loire Valley. The best way to get around Avignon is to…you guess it…walk!!! I have been warned, however, that Avignon’s streets all meet at square intersections, so be careful you don’t get lost!

There are some interesting hiking tracks around Avignon too. They are numbered GR42 and GR63. (GR stands for Grand Randonnée, which basically means hiking). These tracks, though, look like they’re for the experienced hiker who wants to make a week of it.

Enjoy the walk. Don't waste money or petrol getting around town. Walking is the cheapest and most efficient mode of transport.
See tomorrow
Melinda

P.S discoverfrance.com has info and facilities to take bookings for hiking holidays

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