A couple of things only planned for today. First off is getting the rest of our tickets booked to travel from one city to another. The fast train prices go up the closer it gets, so time for us to buy at least our train tickets.
The train is about 1KM along the main street in Avignon. Near the top there is a protest starting, lots of flags, police around, nothing really to worry about. Unions are very strong here in France, this one seems to be a union protest about hospitals?
Into the train station to purchase tickets, we have already looked online at our choices and decided what we want. The cheapest way to go is the fast train from Bordeaux to Toulouse, but turns out this train station does not sell fast train tickets, they are only available online. OK, next stop is the bus station which is right next door, we know this bus station sells tickets for all kinds of busses so this will be a success. The train from Lyon to Bordeaux is very expensive, and a roundabout trip that you must connect through Paris, so we have decided to do the bus, it will be an 8 hour trip by bus, but the only long travel day we have. Train would take just about as long, and flying is not convenient airports to city, so we will do with the bus.
Stop at the tourist info centre and get a few questions answered on things to do the next 3 weeks here. We are looking for more hiking trails, but you really need a car to get to them. We may go back to Pont du Gard as there looked like a nice walk there, and there is no charge to just walk around.
Stop for groceries, the fridge is running very low. Back to the apartment, make a nice lunch salad and then off again.
This afternoon we rented bikes from those stands that you find in many cities where you can take it out and return it whenever and wherever you want to a stand. It is 1Euro to register and 1.00EUro per hour I think. Right now they have charged us 50Euro, hope that is sorted out quickly. We think it is just a deposit and after 24 hours they will readjust. I was not too comfortable to start, don't think I biked at all last summer at home, but once we got going and figured out the machine to get the bikes out it was fine. We started biking outside the rampart but the traffic is so noisy we moved inside. There is barely any traffic and the tiny streets are fun to bike around. Finally made it to the Avignon sign, we had seen it driving by on a bus one day but never had seen it in person, it is outside the wall on the far side from where we are staying and we are rarely outside the walls. We will probably try the bike rental again and go over to the Island just across the Rhone that is pretty much pedestrian only.
Back to the apartment and it is nice enough to sit outside and read and polish off a bottle of spritz, first time we have bought it already made in a bottle, we would purchase it again. 5 euro, much cheaper than at a bar/cafe/restaurants where they are between 6 and 12 euro.
Supper at the apartment then off for a walk in search of another grocery store for ice cream. You can easily purchase a carton for the same price as 1 cones here. Where we shopped earlier today did not have a flavor Andre wanted.
Home and watched a Netflix movie and another early night.
Steps today 12,000 or 7 KM plus about 5KM biking
A peaceful protest about a hospital either closing or going private
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