Amy at Amsterdam airport
Our departure was about half an hour late for reasons that weren't clear but we arrived in Marseille almost on time where we went through immigration, picked up our luggage and were met by the Viking representatives. Viking had a bus to take us to Avignon which took about an hour. The region is very dry, similar to southern California, with lots of scrubby vegetation. Along the way we passed numerous olive groves.
The bus dropped us off just in front of the ship Viking Delling where we registered and were escorted to our cabin. We were scheduled to be on the ship Heimdal but due to high water, the Heimdal was not able to make it under the bridges to Avignon. Viking has many ships on the river so fortunately we were able to get onto the Delling, an identical ship. We are quite fortunate as the cruise the previous week was never able to leave Avignon due to the high water and passengers had to be bused to the various cities in the rain.
The cabin is very nice, with an efficient bathroom with a shower and two twin beds, a closet, storage drawers and a large-screen TV with CNN and other satellite channels, The room has floor to ceiling glass sliding doors which open onto a balcony with room for two chairs and a small table. We would really come to enjoy this balcony as we cruised along the river.
There was a short "Welcome tour" of Avignon which we went on with a tour guide who explained the history of Avignon and some of the significant points up to the plaza by the Palace of the Popes. At the end of the tour, Amy and I explored on our own, going up to the park on the highest point in Avignon which has commanding views of the river and the countryside in all directions. From the park we could see the famous Pont d'Avignon from the 12th century and the subject of a well-known French children's song.
Palace of the Popes
We came back to the ship and met Betty and Dave Noone who had arrived at about the same time. We went to the lounge which would be the place for daily briefings about the tours and other important news. The chef came out to make his recommendations for dinner which we took most days and were most happy with.
The service is excellent and the food is delicious. Most of the staff is from eastern European countries but speak very good English. They are all very friendly and attentive - we were quite impressed and were pleased to see the same staff at each of our meals.
In the evening, the ship left for Tarascon where we would dock and spend the night. The river is still very high and in order to get under the bridges, the crew had to take down all the railings on the sun deck even though they are only about 3' high. We were amazed at how little clearance there was between the top deck and the bottom of the bridges. We went through our first lock on the trip to Tarascon. It was quite fascinating to see how the captain navigated the ship into the lock - there is no more than a foot on each side between the ship and the side of the lock. (All the river cruise ships are designed to exactly fit in the width and length of the locks). The difference in water levels was around 45' and it was fascinating to watch the ship descend. It was around 1am by the time we arrived at Tarascon and when we finally went to bed. (I think the beds are smaller than normal twin beds - I nearly fell out the other side when I got in).
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