Spring is here!

Finally, the wind has died down and the sun is shining! We have been "profiting well" (another expression that sounds 10x better in French) from the beautiful spring weather  and our last two week vacation by visiting some tourist destinations. Friday, Leslie, Hannah and I packed our bags and biked the 17 kilometers to Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Along the way, we made a pit-stop in Sorgues (where I teach) to picnic in the park. After resting for a bit, we continued down the country road to our final destination. Once we made it to the well-known wine village, we parked our bikes and explored the area. We hiked to the top of the hill to the old chateau and got a picturesque view of the village and the surrounding vineyards.

Picnic in Sorgues

Another hot-spot for tourists is the Pont du Gard, which is an ancient Roman aqueduct bridge not too far from Avignon. I went there during my high school trip to France but I have been wanting to go back since we live so close. When Leslie and I first got our bikes in October, we tried to summon up the strength to bike the 26 kilometers there on two separate occasions. Both times we failed. This time we decided to take the bus which was worlds easier than biking. Once we got there, we hiked around the bridge for a few hours and tanned next to the river. After several hours we decided to look at the bus schedule to see what time we should leave. I was almost positive that I read the schedule correctly and that we had to wait until 5:30pm for the next bus. Of course I failed to take into account that it was Saturday and the 5:30 bus doesn't stop at Pont du Gard during the weekends and we actually had to wait until 7pm. Thankfully, Laura and her sister had rented a car and were planning on stopping at Pont du Gard on their way back from Nimes. They saved us from having to wait another 2 hours for the next bus home. On our way back to Avignon, they wanted to stop by Chateaunuef-du-Pape to buy some wine. This gave me an excuse to taste some different wines and buy myself a nice bottle as a souvenir!