Day 12

Day 12:

Wednesday, April 1, 2009: Today we didn’t have class but we had to meet at the Palais des Papes for a tour. We had to be there at 9am!

The tour was guided and mildly interesting. The Popes lived in Avignon 700 years ago so the building was constructed in the 1300s. It had many uses over the years and is a museum now. We saw the Pope’s bedroom, etc.

After the tour, we went to the Pont d’Avignon. It was used to traverse the Rhone River in ancient times but part of it has collapsed and now it is a tourist attraction. After that a small group of us: Lance, Shawna, Zoe, and I. we had lunch at an outdoor café and then the girls left to go shopping.

Lance and I walked down Rue de la Republique and sat on a bench and had a bottle wine. Afterwards, Lance had to use the public restroom. It is completely automatic and self-cleaning. When you are finished using it, the door closes and it hoses itself down from top to bottom. Very high-tech!

After that, I needed to go to the Post Office to buy postcard stamps. The Post Office has the most bureaucracy in France. We could not use the automated machine to buy stamps because it would not take my Mastercard. Note: when you come to France, bring your Visa; they are accepted everywhere! So I had to take a number like I was at the deli and wait for service like you would for a pound of salami.

Finally, they called my number and I got my stamps – 12 for a little more than 10E or 0.85c/each. So then we called it a day and I went home. I had dinner, did homework and went to bed.

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