Walking around Avignon

Never mind the broken bridge, Avignon is a fascinating city. 



We were camped on a rather large island in the Rhone River and it was a short walk across a (complete) bridge, around the corner and into the city centre.

 

It was busy, as I suspect Avignon generally is. 



The city was in the throes of a Theatre Festival that lasted for most of July. 



I was fascinated by the contrast between the old buildings and
modern Ferris wheel (is this the Avignon Eye?)

We weren't in the least tempted to attend, since we wouldn't have understood the plays.



Well, I wouldn't anyhow. 



But it was clearly a big deal for those who could.  More about the Festival in another post.





We identified several museums that looked interesting. 



More about those later, too.








We considered a day trip from Avignon to Marseilles but decided against paying 100 Euros each for only a few hours.


I just thought Avignon was an amazing place to look at.

 

I've never seen a double-decker carousel before.  Have you?

All I can say is thank goodness for digital photography!

People threw themselves down under the tree while the dog went swimming.

It's funny what grabbed our attention. 

A new name for a dog grooming salon!

These are only a small fraction of the sights.

The restaurant 'name' in cutlery...ingenious!

As I've said before, I don't consider myself particularly a Francophile, but I must admit that the French have a real talent for good design. 

I'm quite enamoured with shutters and balconies...

I suspect that if one grows up around some of these amazing buildings, it educates the eye and enables further development of more good design. 

Bill was also shooting pictures of the wrought iron; it's not just me!

That's my guess anyhow.

They also, I noticed, have a sense of humour.

I just loved this cat 'flap'!