Bonneux was a great stop and a very nice hotel with a restaurant attached,The chef was a South African boy married to french girl .He seemed very excited to be speaking English and was had very useful info about where to go next and of course more nightmare stories of Barcelona.
Our hotel was shutting down for 4 months at the end of October ,so its something to bear in my when travelling that sept-oct is probably a lot easier than oct -nov because of the country goes to sleep .
The arts and crafts in this area especially is very creative and original.We saw a woman in the village knitting high end fashion clothes out of wool, silk,cotton and other in beautiful patterns and colours with no book .I know C was sorely tempted.
On leaving Bonneux we did a little circuit starting with a village called Lacoste .It is perched on the top of a hill ,Pierre Cardin reputely owns 50% of it and probably the reconstructed Chateau at the top ,formally the hang out of the Marquis de Sade,so a lot nasty goings on would have happened here .C started talking to a man (burning rubbish) and discovered he was the gardener for the play wright Tom Stoppard and that the reason there was so much burning was that they have been banned from burning since April and had a lot of fire frustration.
We to Avignon a walled city that we parked 6 stories under ground marred a little when I went the wrong way down a spiral fortunately little traffic and no harm.
Avignon seemed to have many tourist there and I found that some of the tour groups base themselves there.
C went on the noddy train around the city and I went up the palace of popes .
It was walled by pope Benedict the 13th the last of the nine popes who had based themselves there in the 14th century and according to records of the time “14th century Avignon attracted princes ,poets and others to beg ,rob and entertain the popes and was a sewer where all the filth of the universe had gathered.
The inside of the palce was pretty stark now but not as it had been .They have all the records of what was spent and the inventary had been pretty huge. It was built as a fortress ,with sluices for pouring hot oil and many archers slots ahh you can't head off religion.The main action action in the town is a very long place de l'Horloge ,lined with cafes and trees to prtect from summer heat and of course carousel .
C said her trip in the noddy train had been good and she saw what was left of pont Avignon.
We then stopped to look at pont du Gard a massive structure made by the romans 2000 years ago to Niems .It was designed to take water 50 kms to Niems and with a fall of only 17 meters from start to finish a very impressive construction.
We had dillyed to long so through the anchor out in Uzes not nearly as far as we had hoped.
Big day in car Uzes to Biaritz , 600kms on motorway cost about 35 euro in tolls ,half as much as the car takes in diesel.
Stopped only in Carcasson a still complete walled medievel village that looks great but unfortunately on tour bus route so over run plus shops selling all kinds of tat.
I also had the worst dining experience in France , a french onion soup that was absolutely foul .
Biaritz is a another place where the beautiful people go .A resort town on spanish border and on atlantic ocean .Not that crowded here and pretty impressive.Very large apartment houses and hotels with guards on them .I think the beautiful people had gone with their whites to the carribean ,again nearly end of season.
I was up most of the night going both ends getting rid of onion soup and didn't think but we would be going far today.But we decided on Bilboa with its famous Guggenhiem Museum .We are about 10mins out of center of city .Decided we would take non toll road for a scenic view unfortunately it took us around very unattractive industrial area where as the motor way went by the sea.
After small recovery we went into city .Very easy drive ,then went through Guggenhiem , very pleased it was free as the exhibits were fairly thin and pretty marginal in the main.
Dinner is at 9 at the earliest in Spain so having a rest to stay awake after ropy night the night before. Up bright and early this am feeling a lot better today for drive to Madrid.
The drive out Bilbao pretty drear with masses of inattractive appartment blocks and smog.We went through the middle of spain on motorway which was good because the landscape is pretty unexceptional .Lots of wind mills and very little wind at the mo any way.
Big areas of cropping and very dull looking villages.
All was going well until C needed the loo and we pulledoff what we thought was a Auto grill the girl sknow what that is.But it turned a drive into a village we were about to turn around when we wetre stopped at an intersection by police letting cylcle tour through. After 10 mins waiting we decided to turn around and did a u turn in front of them and about to drive when there was whistles etc and running over to demand we pulled over.We had to produce licence and lease of pug and thought that would be it .But no, an offence had been committed and a fine of 67e was required or forfeit of car .Fortunately we had the cash but bearing in mind this was in the middle of nowhere.
Unfortunately the rising state of my temper had the exact opposite effect on the ejit.
After seething for about an hour I then had to cope with driving in Madrid one of the busiest cities in the world > The hotel we had chosen was right in the center .In the end after a couple of wrong options at 6-7 outlet roundabouts we made it.As the hotel was pedestrian only C had to wait in the car parked illegally ,kacking herself while I first found the hotel then ferried the bags up .Then found the public car park.It turns out most of Madrid has been dug under for parking ,but it costs heaps.Its 40 euros for hotel and 27 for car.
We did a self walking tour and the city is quite simply outstandly beautiful with wide boulevardes and trees and lovely squares and fountains. Rome looks like a dirty little village in comparison. We will do on off bus tomorrow , C has collapsed in bed still having trouble with the cold from London.