Arles and Les Baux - Provence. April 13

Good afternoon!
Well, we sure are the lucky ones. The weather is amazing! Warm sunshine and temperatures around 20. We are all enjoying soaking up the sunshine after our long winter and defrosting a little. The evening and mornings are chilly and we need a coat but it is wonderful at mid day and I the afternoon.

Last night was great. We had an introductory meeting with champagne and roses for the ladies. Dinner was delicious . Service is good and the free wine even better..
Some of us enjoyed the entertainment in the lounge with the ' gypsy kings'... My favourite music.
Some went to bed early after a very long day..

This morning, we boarded a large bus for an excursion to the village of Les Baux de Provence. The village’s castle has a fascinating exhibit of medieval weapons. The village and fortress was a Protestant stronghold during the French Wars of religion until destroyed by Louis XIII and cardinal Richelieu in 1633. The village is beautiful with fabulous views and very enticing shops! My ladies had fun... And so did our mascot ,as you will see in the photos.

Later, we visited an olive farm to learn about this age-old Provençal farming tradition.
some ladies took the “Impressionist Experience” tour to the Saint Paul de Mausole Asylum, and later this afternoon, a city tour of Arles takes us to the Romanesque cathedral and the Roman Amphitheatre.

We sail at 5:30 pm to Avignon. More Photos to follow!

At the airport

Beaver is ready to party and so are we!,,

We arrived!

Snow in Toronto as we left.... Will this winter ever end?

We had a good flight with Air France...after we went through the cherry picker to be de-iced.
We were greeted in Nice and met the other six ladies of our group who had left Toronto a few days earlier to enjoy the Côte d'Azur and all it's beauty. One of our ladies from Ottawa was delayed because of the snowstorm,but made the flight in Toronto. We were so happy to see her,

Weather is perfect in Nice with blue skies and 20 degree weather! It is so wonderful to see green grass and trees in blossom. We transferred to our bus to Arles . It was a long three hour ride but some us snoozed...and we chatted and got to know each other.
We boarded our beautiful ship the MS Amadagio by AMA Waterways.

The ladies all settled into their cabins. Some went for a walk and some needed a snooze. The ship is lovely. Cabins are small but well appointed. Everyone is happy!!!

We are ready for our exciting day tomorrow!!

Here she is!!!

Beaver and I are almost ready to go to France! This is Women's Travel Network's newest traveller and she is ready to have some fun in France on a river cruise!!

France - here we come!!!!

Only six more sleeps till we leave for La Belle France!!!!!

Provence River Cruise & Paris - April 2013

PROVENCE RIVER CRUISE - April 12 to 22, 2013
This April the ladies are heading to France for a magical cruise on the Rhone River.
They'll spend 7 nights cruising legendary wine growing regions, home to famous wines such as Beaujolais and Côte du Rhône. Enjoy wine tastings at local vintners, marvel at Roman ruins, and shop for Provencal crafts. Daily excursion take them to see the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Avignon as well as Arles, once home to Vincent Van Gogh.   This is a truly magical experience. Travel by TGV train to magical Paris to explore the “City of Lights”. See famous sights; Champs Élysées, Place de la Concorde, the Eiffel Tower and  Notre Dame Cathedral.

Check back often to follow their journey as they explore enchanting Provencal towns & Paris.