Avignon Train Station to Palace of the Popes. 10 minute Walk! EASY!!! – Avignon France – ECTV
Hey everybody, this is Eric Clark’s travel videos and I’m in Avignon, France and right behind me is the train station. So let’s say you come here from another city, Nims or Paris or something and you get to Avignon and you get to the train station and then you want to go to the Palace of the Popes. So I’m going to show you that exact walk. It’s really easy and I’ll show you exactly how long it takes to get there cuz we’re going to walk the whole thing together cuz you end up walking down the main street and it’s just a a big group thing. But uh you know, so let me show you what we’re looking at. So this is how you know that you’re in the right spot. So if you come out and there’s two identical towers sitting side by side, this street right here is the main street. And so we’re gonna time this and see how long it takes. Um, it’s now 8:55, but however long this video is is how long it takes. And again, it depends on how fast you walk, how long your legs are, how many bags you have, if you’re in a hurry, if you’re just taking your time, if you’re older and slower, or if you’re young and running. So, all of that stuff takes place. But there’s a big like government building over here on the right side. Um and uh and that helps you too. But this is the main street and and most of the time they don’t allow I mean cars can go up and down at any time I think. Um but most people don’t travel this one with cars. Um and so you will see exactly what it’s like to get to the Palace of the Popes. And there’s lots of little shops and, you know, pastries and that kind of stuff over here. The whole way is just filled with restaurants and eeries. And there’s a KFC up here on the right. There’s a Walmart up here on the right. There’s a Monor Pricks, which is a huge grocery store and department store. They sell clothes and groceries and all that stuff. You can see if you need a sandwich really quick getting off the train, there’s one right there. Uh, and it’s everywhere. So, there’s like pizzas too on the left side, but uh, and there’s a lot of cars that come down here. I mean, like delivery type vehicles, you know, the KFC. So, if you get off the train and you have an hour to kill and you want something fast and easy, there’s a KFC right there. Um, let me get out of the way. I’m just walking down the middle of the street and that’s probably not a good idea. If you’re looking for a beer when you get off the train, there’s an Irish pub right here, Okalins. Um, and then over on the right side, there’s a wonderful church here, too. You can see the tower right there. It’s pretty amazing. Um, let me cross and you can see the church. And it has grounds over here, too. So, if you just want to sit and relax and hang out, you can. But you can see the church right there. And there’s a square. And again, it’s, you know, it’s just a town inside that walled city. Um, and this is the office of tourism. So, they’re probably starting some tours right now. And I think what happens is people get off that train and and I’d say 90% want to go just to the Palace of the Popes. And so this is going to take you right there. You know, and I tell you, it’s not a a driving street and there’s cars running up and down it. But I think they limit the access or there’s other ways to go to get what you need and I can get back in the center of the street now. So these little diamonds like this, those are tobacaras. And I don’t know if that’s what they call them, but that’s where you can get tobacco at. So if you’re jonesing for a cigarette and you had your last one before you got on the last train, you would This is where you’d go. A tobac bar tobac. And I really like the tobacaria better. Here’s another church. And the world gets crazy with these stones. They’re in the palace of the popes and uh all that kind of stuff. This right here is Monopric. Monopix is a big big grocery store. Um, but it has like cosmetics and clothing and underwear and socks and shoes and all that kind of stuff. Um, but the food part is over on this side right next to the H&M. So, this is the Mono Pricks grocery store and you go downstairs. So, the grocery store is downstairs, the regular shop is upstairs. And you know what? I think I’ll be able to tell you the exact distance to the Palace of the Popes, too. And there’s banks and ATMs. So, if you need a ATM or a bank, you can get to that. And again, there’s lots of restaurants here. There’s Yum Yums right there. There’s a Pinocchio’s right there. There’s a monument of Bob the influencer there. Whoever that is, I don’t know. But this is Evan. And there’s a Care for right here and a McDonald’s. So Care for is cheaper, I think. Well, no, Care for has better selection. Monopric is cheaper. Um, and then the McDonald’s. And then the McDonald’s is open. They got a pastry place over here if you want a regular sandwich to go quick. And another tobac. And you can tell by the red and diamond up on top. And I can get back out in the middle of the street. finance. So, is that like a bank? No, that’s a computer place, maybe. I don’t know. And this looks like a tour group of high schoolers and they were staying at the hotel. So tobacco always has the red diamonds, right? Do you know what the pharmacies have? They have the green plus. You see down there straight ahead of me there’s a green plus. That’s how you know the pharmacies. Um, and so they they almost always have a a green plus out front. Pardon me. Too much talking this early in the morning. And it’s early. It’s actually it’s 9:01 and they actually have bus station stops here. So, I guess it’s not all that uh non-traicky. Now, up here, it’s non-trafficky. You can see the cones that stop traffic. I’ll show you those. So, that’s a good sign that it’s not traffic. Don’t get me wrong. I mean, if somebody has a one of the clickers, they can get those to go down and drive in there. But, uh, for the most part, there’s not a lot of traffic going past those. And that’s these things. You see these three little silver cones? And they go down. Whoop. And so if cars need to go through there, like a delivery truck or something like that, um they just press the button, they go down, and they’re allowed to come in. And there’s just tons of restaurants here. Lots and lots. And this is like the main square area right here, which is really nice. And you’re going to just keep going straight from the train station. There’s Hotel Deville, which is what? Hotel of the City. Is that right? Or Senna? I don’t I don’t know. Somebody was trying to explain it to me, but here’s a carousel. Um, and we’re going to walk right by the theater. And the theater, just so you know, on Saturdays are the only day they let you go inside to tour the inside. They have one entry at noon um to go in, and that’s the theater. So, I’m going to come back here at 12:00 noon and buy a ticket and go inside cuz I certainly don’t want to see a French play. Um, I couldn’t imagine sitting there for two hours not knowing what the hell they were saying. There’s a Mercure hotel over there. There’s another one um to the left of us. There’s another hotel right in front of us. So, there’s if you needed a room, you could probably get one like right in the center. There’s ladies in the windows. You can wave to them and they wave back. Um, and again, you just keep staying straight. And then, oh, there it is. The gold lady on top. That’s the Notradam or the Aignon Theater or Cathedral. Uh, but it’s the um Notradam of Avenue and this big amazing building right here on the right. Guess what that is? Yep. That’s the Palace of the Popes. Pretty simple, huh? Right off the train, walk straight down the street, and you’re here. It took me, this video is 10 minutes and 47 seconds long. Um, and that’s how long it takes. So, 11 minutes. 10 minutes. If you’re a quick walker, 10 minutes. Um, if you’re a slow walker, let’s say 15. To get a ticket, you just go up the stairs and go in that door. See the big arch? You go in there and you buy your ticket. That’s it. Pretty simple, huh? Pretty straightforward. Yep. I’m here to help. Anyway, you should never have to question how to get to uh the Palace of the Popes um from the train station. Very cool. Thanks so much for coming, everybody. Bye-bye.
The Palais des Papes (English: Palace of the Popes; lo Palais dei Papas in Occitan) in Avignon, Southern France, is one of the largest and most important medieval Gothic buildings in Europe.[1] Once a fortress and palace, the papal residence was a seat of Western Christianity during the 14th century. Six papal conclaves were held in the Palais, leading to the elections of Benedict XII in 1334, Clement VI in 1342, Innocent VI in 1352, Urban V in 1362, Gregory XI in 1370 and Benedict XIII in 1394. In 1995, the Palais des Papes was classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its outstanding architecture and historical importance for the papacy.[2]
Description
The Palais is actually two joined buildings: the old palais of Benedict XII, which sits on the impregnable rock of Doms, and the new palais of Clement VI, the most extravagant of the Avignon popes. Together they form the largest Gothic building of the Middle Ages. It is also one of the best examples of the International Gothic architectural style. The construction design was the work of two of France’s best architects, Pierre Peysson and Jean de Louvres, and the lavish ornamentation was the work of two of the best students of the School of Siena (Italy), Simone Martini and Matteo Giovanetti.
In addition, the papal library housed in the Palais (the largest in Europe at the time with over 2,000 volumes), attracted a group of clerics passionate in the study of “belles-lettres”, amongst them the founder of humanism, Petrarch. At the same time, composers, singers and musicians were drawn to the Great Chapel of the Palais. It was there that Clement VI used the Mass of Notre-Dame of Guillaume de Machaut, there that Philippe de Vitry at the pope’s invitation presented his Ars Nova, and there that Johannes Ciconia came to study.
Due to its immense size, the Palais was also the place where the general organisation of the Church began to change. It facilitated the centralisation of services and the adaptation of operations in order to suit the needs of the papacy, creating a truly central administration for the Church.[3] The manpower of the Curia (Church administration), while 200 at the end of the 13th century, surpassed 300 at the beginning of the 14th century and reached 500 people in 1316. To this were added over 1,000 lay officials working within the Palais.[4]
Despite this, the Palais became obsolete when the papacy found it necessary to return to Rome. The hope of reuniting Latin and Orthodox Christians, along with the achievement of peace in the Papal States in Italy, made the case for returning stronger. Added to that was the strong conviction of both Urban V and Gregory XI that the seat of the papacy could only be the tomb of St Peter. Despite strong opposition from the Court of France and the College of Cardinals, both popes found the means to return to Rome, the first, on 30 April 1362, the second on 13 September 1370. This time, the return was absolute.[4]
In the following centuries, the Palais lost all of its former glory, despite serving as the seat of two anti-popes and many cardinals. It retained, however, a “work of destruction” aspect that French poets and writers such as Charles Forbes René de Montalembert have referred to over the centuries, with its powerful sense of beauty, simplicity, grandeur and immortality.[5]
History
Plan of the palace in 1914.
The palace’s groundbreaking began in AD 1252. Under Philip IV of France who had conflict with Pope Boniface VIII which ended in his death and Pope Benedict XI a mere puppet of Philip who only lasted eight months, Avignon would become the residence of succeeding pontiffs in 1309, when the Gascon Bertrand de Goth, as Pope Clement V, unwilling to face the violent chaos of Rome after his election (1305), moved the Papal Curia to Avignon during the “Avignon Papacy”. Clement lived as a guest in the Dominican monastery at Avignon, and his successor Pope John XXII set up a magnificent establishment there, but the reconstruction of the old bishops’ palace was begun in earnest by Pope Benedict XII (1334–42) and continued by his successors to 1364. The site, on a natural rocky outcrop at the northern edge of Avignon, overlooking the river Rhône, was that of the old episcopal palace of the bishops of Avignon. The Palais was built in two principal phases with two distinct segments, known as the Palais Vieux (Old Palace) and Palais Neuf (New Palace). By the time of its completion, it occupied an area of 11,000 m2 (118,403 sq ft). The building was enormously expensive, consuming much of the papacy’s income during its construction.
My name is Eric Clark and I am a world traveler. I have been around the world a few times and decided to help fund my travels by sharing my videos and pictures. I have been to almost every country and would be glad to give tips and pointers. Drop me a note. = )