Day 4 (8 June) - Getting Lost Is A Bitch!

Despite having seen pictures of Lyon's morning market previously in Dawn's blog, I was astounded by the sumptuous feast of colours that exploded before me. Never before have I seen such beautiful fruits, vegetables and flowers everywhere, the markets of Lyon were certainly a far cry from the wet markets back in Singapore.

Luscious garden salad

Tiny but juicy tomatos

Cherries and strawberries galore!

Flowers to brighten up any room

After a breakfast of fresh produce from the market, we set off on a little walk through the city. The centrepiece of Lyon was undoubtedly the Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourviere, which was perched atop a hill. As most of us weren't in the mood for the steep climb up the hill, we took a train up instead.

View of Lyon from the hilltop

The basilique was spectacular but even more breathtaking was the 180-degree view it offered of Lyon. The city was so beautiful and it was a real pity that we could spend only one day here. But leave we did and soon we were on our way to Avignon.

The town of Avignon was enclosed behind a wall and all the roads in it led in circles and winding paths. After getting into the city, it was a good hour of travelling around the tiny town before we finally arrived at our hotel. Making things worse, Uncle Pat's car got separated from us. Imagine the mayhem of 2 different cars navigating through a confusing maze looking for a hotel AND each other.

The elusive Hotel de Garlande was charming enough for us to forgive it for the wild goose chase it led us on. Dinner that night was a noisy affair as everyone recounted the panic we went through and the screaming fits we all threw. At the end of the day, we were able to laugh it off but let me tell you getting lost is not fun!

The cosy but hard-to-find Hotel de Garlande

After dinner, we went on a little stroll around the town centre and it became clear to me why France is the top tourist destination in the world. The ambience it afforded (outside of Paris anyway) was unbeatable and along with the rest of the world, I was reveling and getting drunk on it.