Author Archives: lbrandon

Sleep was difficult last night. Following the French governments’ ban on all non-essential shops opening from today, the fear has finally kicked in. For the first time since this outbreak began I’m now scared. Not because I’m worried about contracting the virus, but because the contagion of fear that’s sweeping the globe could well leaveContinue reading “Day 14: Paranoia in Paradise”

Today has been a great day. Awaking relaxed and refreshed I left the hotel with a spring in my step. My destination lay uphill and boy was it a steep hill. The walk to the cable car that would transport me to the summit of Mont Faron, which sandwiches Toulon between it and the sea,Continue reading “Day 13: There’s No Mountain High Enough”

Today was a slow day and not in a bad way. I woke up later than usual before making my way to the train to Toulon. An hour later I arrived and made the very short walk to the hotel (there are no proper hostels in Toulon). Although check in wasnt officially until 2pm, IContinue reading “Day 12: Time to Relax and Recharge”

This morning I treated myself to a lie in, if you can call getting up at 8am a lie in. But in this life where I’ve rapidly adjusted to waking up at 7 or 7:30, that half hour extra is a luxury. Ready for the day ahead I strolled down the hill to the harbourContinue reading “Day 11: The Count of Monte Cristo”

Today began horribly. Knowing I had a train to catch at 9:20 am I set my alarm for 7 to give me enough time to shower, pack and get to the station. Yet karma, not content with having me cancel the Italian leg of my trip, decided to curse me once more. At some pointContinue reading “Day 10: The Dream after the Nightmare”

Another day another UNESCO world heritage site. This time it’s in Orange. No not the fruit, the town. Once it was the principality of Orange, ruled by the Orange-Nasseu family that gave us William II of England and the family that still rule the Netherlands today. Centuries before that though it was a Roman colony.Continue reading “Day 9: A Roman Orange”

This little corner of France is packed with UNESCO world heritage sites. After Avignon and Pont du Gare, Arles makes the third. No more than a twenty minute train ride from Avignon, Arles was founded by Julius Caesar. Augustus, first Emperor of Rome then began building many of the monuments that remain today. Upon arrivalContinue reading “Day 8: Arles, Allons-y!”

Today I got up early to go and see one of the wonders of the Roman world. To the west of Avignon lies Pont Du Gard. It was built as part of the aqueduct system that carried water some 50km to the city of Nimes. At 52metres high it is the tallest aqueduct bridge inContinue reading “Day 7: The Flow of Time”

Waking up today was different. I felt more relaxed. I guess in part that was due to the fact only two other people were sharing the 6-bed dorm with me. The weather was better too. In Paris it was usually cloudy and occasionally raining. Here the wasn’t a cloud to be seen all day. FirstContinue reading “Day 6: Medieval Masterpiece”

It was a sedate start to the day. With check out not until 11 and my train not due to depart until 12:37, I gave myself an extra hour in bed before slowly making my way down to breakfast. Even so, me being me, I arrived at Gare de Lyon 2 hours early (should haveContinue reading “Day 5: Arrival in Avignon”