Avignon, France: The Heart of Provence! (Medieval History, Christmas Magic, & Wine Festival,)
We are in Avignon France. We’re excited
to learn about the city. It’s beautiful. We love it here. Let’s go. Welcome to
Wandering with Rick and Rachel. Come with us as we explore culture, art,
food, and wine. This time in Avignon, France. We’re a director and an actor
who’ve spent our lives telling stories on stage. Now we’re chasing new ones out in
the world, one unscripted moment at a time. Avignon is a city brimming with history in the
beautiful south of France. This medieval city is a perfect home base from which to explore Provence
and is home to one of France’s most famous arts festivals. This visit was a last minute decision.
We had planned to spend 2 weeks in Valencia, Spain to help finalize our decision about possibly
living there. But we decided after the terrible flooding in October that our visit to Valencia
should wait until the region had recovered. With a gap in our plans, we settled on the south of
France and chose Avignon. And it turned out to be one of the highlights of our fall travels.
We took the high-speed train from Madrid to Avignon and in a little over 7 hours arrived at
this gleaming modern station. Our apartment was just off this picture perfect square filled with
cafes and restaurants and just a short walk from any location in the city. We also quickly realized
that Avignon is a city that takes its Christmas celebrations seriously, as you will see later in
this video. Since this is the south of France, wine is pretty important here. In this video,
we’ll attend the delightful Cote du Rohne release celebration and visit a special winery that’s
producing exceptional chateau nu dup. We started with a quick walking tour to get a sense of the
city and learn some of its history and discovered that for nearly 70 years in the 14th century,
this vibrant city was the heart of the Catholic world as Avignon served as the official seat of
the papacy. This period has left an indelible mark shaping Avignon’s unique architecture,
art, and cultural identity. We are learning things. It’s great. This is the papal palace. The
majestic palace of the popes dominates the city of Avignon and is a UNESCO world heritage site. For
nearly 70 years from 1309 to 1377, this colossal fortress was the seat of the papacy and power in
the Catholic world, not Rome. During this period, famously known as the Avignon papacy. Seven
successive popes resided here, a direct result of intense conflict between the papacy and the
French crown. This tension led to the papacy’s relocation, profoundly shaping Avignon’s history
and its unique position as a spiritual center of the medieval world. and we’re about to go onto the
Pont d”Avignon, walk around. It’s a little chilly, but we’re going to explore and see what’s out
here. As I’ve said, it’s a beautiful place. So, and it’s it’s this wall that we’re walking
on. This is the top of the old medieval wall, which goes on for really miles. We discovered
yesterday. Well, it’s the largest walled city in Europe, according to our That’s right. our
walking guide. That’s right. And this is of course the Ron River. The Pont D’Avignon is a
singular structure built in the 12th century. This medieval bridge once completely spanned the
Ron River, linking the Kingdom of France with the Holy Roman Empire. It wasn’t just a crossing. It
marked a political border between two powerful realms. Though floods destroyed much of it by the
17th century, its ruins still stand as a symbol of resilience. Immortalized by the song Sur le Pont
D’Avignon. It remains a beloved icon of French history and medieval engineering and diplomacy.
We are on the Pont d’Avignon. It is so cool. We earlier we would look at it from afar and go that
looks kind of boring. Just a little bridge broken halfway through. But I highly recommend you come
out here that there’s a little museum. You can watch this fascinating film that for us anyway,
if you’re bit of a nerd about how the theories of how it was built and what happened to it. It’s
really cool. And you can just see the history of the of the city of Avignon here, the the the papal
palace behind the castle, the fortifications that go all the way along the river, and of course the
the rhone, which is really powerful current. It’s a drawbridge. I It’s so cool because we’ve gone
to so many castles and when you’re in Europe and the UK and you see all the castles, rarely
you get to actually see a drawbridge that maybe works. I don’t know anything about its history
when it was put in, but I love it very much. And I’m going to pretend it’s really, really
old and it works. What if I break it? Oh no. having the most delicious, delightful lunch after
the papal palace. We were there for a while. So, by the time we got out, it was almost 2:00,
which is when most restaurants close for lunch, but we were starving. And we walked and walked
and looked and this place, Simple Simon, was open. So, I have an onion tart that you can
see I’ve woofed down about half of it. It’s delicious. We have creamy caramelized
onions and a pop of pastry cheese on it. Gorgeous salad. Nice little glass of wine.
Rick got himself a steak. Show your steak, Rick. On a board on toast. Delicious. It’s
also decorated for Christmas right now, which is lovely. It’s very It’s very very
cute. Yeah, we’re really enjoying our our little bit here. There’s We got the British
flag and Elizabeth over here and lots of teas and cakes and see that. Did you see that? No, I
don’t know. Which may be in our future. Maybe. It’s a parade and it’s all about wine. Avignon’s Millevin wine festival is held
on the 3rd Thursday of November. We were very presently surprised that it was
not only happening during our visit, but that our apartment was about 100 steps away.
It’s a celebration of the release of the new vintages from the Rome Valley, specifically
Cote du Rhone and Chateauneuf-du-Pape. We are at the Millevin and that is means thousand
wines and it is the celebration of the new vintage that is out. So you there was a parade. A
lot of wineries here bringing their wines. We package all wines from the cultural and
I have a little white one. Rick has a red one. We’re trying a little of everything.
You get a you get a glass and they give you tokens and you get six tokens. Six
tokens. Six tokens for€6. For €6 to taste six wines. Be responsible. Don’t go back
for more. Although if you’re walking. Um, so anyway, we’re going to explore and just have
fun mingling and trying all kinds of new wines. So, all these really cool dressed
folks are part of the Brotherhood of Wine Makers here. And fortunately,
there’s some sisters in there, too. Uh, and they were part of the parade that was
marching through that we caught earlier. So, I You know, everybody’s wine turned out the way
they like it. Just 10 miles from Avignonis the tiny medieval village of Chatauneuf-du-Pape
which holds a large sway in the wine world by producing some of the finest and most
revered red wines in the world. We decided to explore by tasting at some of its famous
wineries. We’re at a winery doing a tour. The wines of the southern ran valley are known
for their rich bold reds and aromatic whites with Chateauneuf-du- Pape its most famous
example. Its name translates to the pope’s new castle derived from when Pope Clement V
moved here in 1309 and apparently he loved his wine. The medium bodied blended red wine
is produced primarily from the ganache grape which can be blended with up to eight other
varieties. The rules for this wine are that all the grapes used must be produced in this tiny
region with its unique soil, stones, and climate. We’re still in the winery tour and we’re still
in the cellar uh of this really cool wineries with some u 70-year-old barrels apparently. Yep.
French oak friends. Yeah. So now we’re going to go taste them. We just finished our wine tasting
after our tour and I can now tell you the name of where because they said it very quickly when we
arrived and I didn’t catch it. So we’re at Chateau Fortia which uh is this building. Isn’t that
beautiful? Yeah, this gorgeous building directly behind you. So again, here we are experiencing
magnificent weather and uh some lovely wine, some nice company, learning a bit more about wine. It’s
a little bit different but very similar to what we were experiencing when we were studying touring
in Spain. I said studying because we work so hard. Okay, we’re going on to see something else
now. It’s exciting. It’s lovely. There’s a incredible um sun over the vineyards happening
right now. Oh, the light’s gorgeous. Yeah. Rachel, this looks safe, doesn’t
it? But they won’t let me do it. So, uh, it’s November 30th about 6:00 and, uh,
collectively the entire city of Avignon turns on all of its Christmas decorations outside at
the same time with a parade with the floats that are coming down the street behind us. You can see
some of the streets that are lit up here and we’re going to shoot the lights all over the city. It’s
It’s really festive. A lot of fun. Is Is it really a float? I guess they’re not a float. I guess
they’re people carrying floats on their back. The madness madness happening. I tell you,
it’s not over yet. It’s still going on. They stop every like in in a couple of different
squares and perform and people watch and have fun. And we’re heading towards the last stop
which is which is one of the big markets. So, Lo, we’re in this great market . uh which
is a square and the church is a just an old church. It’s no longer a church. And our
first time here, the first day we got here, there was an agricultural market and
now it’s a Christmas market. There lights everywhere and all these really
fun animatronic things to just kind of just give it a festive air. And it’s just
kind of a special place. It’s really neat for us. Visiting Christmas markets was one of
the highlights of our time in Spain and France. And this market was truly magical due to its
incredibly unique setting, beautiful gifts and crafts from the south of France. And of course,
the proven salt village miniatures known in the region as santons. These crutch scenes were
astonishingly detailed and lovingly designed. Our last night in Avignon. We just had dinner over
there on the other side of this. There it is. Big courtyard in front of the pal de pap. In the
summer, it looks like they probably put I don’t know 70 or 80 tables outside in the square.
But we ate inside with maybe I don’t know 10 other tables. It was delightful and intimate and
a gorgeous dinner. Uh it’s just a magical place. And right now uh first second day of December,
weather’s comfortable. It’s a Monday night 10:00. It’s all ours. We’re up here.
We’re standing on the steps, the entrance going into the house. Maybe we need
to like show what we’re standing in front of, which is right right here. The Pope’s Palace.
We’re the only ones here. It’s amazing. Um, and we’ve got all the decorations for Christmas.
They have this lovely Christmas tree here. Uh, it’s just such a special place to be. So, I hope
you guys get a chance to come out here sometime, especially not in the middle of summer. Uh, I
think this is we’ve just had the best experience out here. Late fall was uh was a real find for
us to to to come to the south of France and in fall for Christmas. Uh, it’s it’s it’s been uh
an eye opener and so much fun. And I don’t know if we’ve mentioned this before, but the people
in this town are just the nicest people we’ve come across. And we’ve come across nice people,
especially with our really, really bad French. My Rick’s non-existent. and my 50-year-old high
school French um has gotten us through because everybody is so sweet and understanding
and even if they don’t speak English, they will pull out their Google Translate
and you’ll pull out your Google Translate.
Avignon in November! Explore medieval history, wine festivals, & Christmas magic! Join us in this unforgettable journey through Avignon, the heart of Provence in Southern France! In this episode, we explore the majestic Palais des Papes (Papal Palace), stroll the legendary Pont d’Avignon, and uncover the fascinating history of this medieval city.
More travel with us here! https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfR0988h6mUzqrD2Yz1LC-8xlS0PizXB7
🍷 Bonus adventures await! We stumble upon the festive Millevin Wine Festival, taste world-class wines at a Châteauneuf-du-Pape winery, and celebrate the holiday season with the enchanting Avignon Christmas Lights Parade and a magical Christmas Market filled with seasonal charm.
✨ Whether you’re planning your own trip to Provence or simply love French culture, history, and wine, this video offers travel tips, hidden gems, and immersive storytelling.
🔔 Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and click the bell so you never miss our next wander!
📍 Featured in this episode:
Palais des Papes (UNESCO World Heritage Site)
Pont Saint-Bénézet (Pont d’Avignon)
Millevin Wine Festival 🍷
Châteauneuf-du-Pape vineyard tour
Avignon Christmas Lights Ceremony & Parade 🎄
Traditional French Christmas Market
00:00 Intro
01:37 Palace of the Popes
02:34 Pont d’Avignon
04:53 lunch
06:08 Millevin Wine Fest
08:20 Chateauneuf-du-Pape
10:07 Christmas
10:51 Christmas Parade
13:35 Christmas Market
14:45 Conclusion
#Avignon #FranceTravel #Provence #ChristmasInFrance #WineTasting #ChateauneufduPape #PontdAvignon #TravelVlog #WanderingWithRickAndRachel #HolidayTravel #millevin #chateaufortia #travel #Cotedurhone #palace #winetasting #winetastingtours #wine #winelover