Day 75 Two stars plus The Q Factor

After a huge night at the Bruce Springsteen concert the night before and an early start from Milan’s main station it was a real treat to arrive at Avignon in the French region of Provence. We had made rail changes at Chambrey (the place where the shirts come from), and Lyon which is France’s second largest city. We then caught a wonderful TGV train and sped along at about 300kms per hour to Avingon.

Avignon is a living historic town which was made famous as the place that wrenched control of the Holy Roman Empire from 900 – 1000 AD when the French provided the Popes for the church. A cathedral and papal palace dating back to this period adorn this quaint walled city.

Speaking of quaint the hotel we stayed in certainly had the Q (quaint) factor. Though rated as only 2 stars, it is a work in progress as it is currently being renovated by a charming French couple named Sylvie and Pascal (how French!) who are a little younger than us . They made us feel very welcome, and in a very French accent Sylvie kept interspersing her conversation with “Allo, Allo.”

We enjoyed a quiet afternoon looking around the town and then an early dinner in a restaurant recommended by Sylvie. This turned out to be an experience in itself. Firstly we sat in the outdoor area and considered the menu. After five minutes of perusing the menu the almost comic young French owner, came over, apologised profusely and removed our menu saying that there were dishes which were missing and that the prices were wrong. Ten minutes later the new menu arrived which included at least a 4 Euro price increase for every dish. After ordering our meals the waiter arrived with our dishes announcing a Mediterranean salad, but alas we had ordered the chicken salad. He apologised, rushed off and then returned two minutes later with the same dish saying sorry – “This is the chicken salad – I am new and I don’t know all the dishes yet”. The food was very provincial and delicious but the whole event continued to be amusing. When paying the bill they discovered that the maths was wrong and that we needed to pay more than at first stated. Had we been at home we would have been more prepared to argue the point and demand our rights – but the fact that we can’t speak the language means we need to be a little more generous and understanding.

All in all a quaint dinner, in a quaint town, near a quaint hotel; and thankfully a quaintly early night!