After dinner last night we took the dogs down to the river. I took my tripod and shot these two photos of Avignon at night.

Pont and medieval Avignon at night

Cathedral and Papal Palace at night

Sarah awoke early and took the dogs for a long chilly riverside walk as the sun rose over the old city of Avignon. After she returned we discussed what we would do today. Would we push on to the mediterranean, or have a day of relaxation on our campsite. After studying the weather, and finding that today would be clear blue skies and 17 degrees and tomorrow rain, we decided to stay put.

In the morning I put together a spreadsheet to record our expenditure as we travel and studied the guide books for the next few days of our trip. Sarah cleaned the motorhome and relaxed with her book in the morning sunlight.

Basil’s pitch at Camping Bagatelle

This afternoon we went on a lovely long walk along the River Rhone with the dogs. In the sunshine the inhabitants of Avignon were out in force enjoying the weather all along the river banks. In one area a group were practising on slack lines and perfecting other circus skills.

Slacklining Skills

Slacklining Practise

We hesitated when we came to a no dogs sign but when we saw the area concerned full of dogs we joined the French rule breakers and pushed on. Within a few yards we came across a machine dispensing free bags for picking up dog mess, in a supposedly dog free zone, what was that about?

One observation from a week in France is that the French have not improved much when it comes to cleaning up after their dogs. Sarah and I clean up after Mabel and Melek wherever we go and seem to have poo bags in our pockets even when we don’t have the dogs with us. Since crossing the channel however, we’ve noticed dog mess everywhere. In cities, in the countryside and basically wherever people walk their dogs. I suspect its a minority, but it is still surprising.

Tomorrow we are definitely going to start our journey along the med to Italy. I’ve found a few stopping places, but they do not look particularly inspiring. Anyway we will enjoy the views, which from past experience of the Cote Azur, should be spectacular.

Finally, it has been drawn to my attention that the comments section of the blog is not working. My apologies to anyone who has posted anything. When I next have a free WiFi connection I will try to sort this out.