Another gem in Avignon

Behind the Palace of the Popes and up one ramp after another is the beautiful little park/garden Jardin Rocher des Domes.  

Its foot in the Rhône, the Rocher des Doms faces Villeneuve-lez-Avignon, where the Fort Saint André sits on Mont Andaon. Its terrace and the panorama it offers over the surrounding region should not be missed. The garden, laid out in 1830, was a colossal undertaking; it hides a reservoir that once supplied the city with water.  The first picture (which I got from a tourist sight on the internet) shows where it is standing way above the city.

A monument to the fallen in WWI and WWII

The overlooks

The Pont d'Avignon that once crossed the Rhone

The old fortress in Villeneuve Avignon

Just a beautiful day for these vistas

The garden

In the middle of the pond, the Venus with Swallows is a work by Félix Charpentier; its nudity caused it to be moved, in 1894, from the Place Carnot to here.

As you see, we really like this garden and probably spent an hour here walking around and taking photos.  From here we went back down the hill to see the St-Pierre Church just down  the winding streets near the Palace of the Popes,

Built in 1385 with a donation from Cardinal Pierre de Pres it is the most ornate Gothic church in Avignon

A huge tapestry covered one entire wall