Le Pont d’Avignon

Aka. Le Pont St-Bénézet. If you’ve ever heard the children’s nursery rhyme about the “Pont d’Avignon,” the bridge in the photo is what they’re talking about. It looks a bit different now, as it stops mid-river from the destruction of the many wars waged in the area. It now stands with only 4 arches and a small chapel called “St-Nicolas Chapel.” The story of the young shepherd body, St-Bénézet, is legendary. In 1177, he announced that he had been commanded by angels to build a bridge across the Rhône in just that spot. The archbishop laughed along with the rest of the townspeople. Small Bénézet had to prove himself by hoisting a gigantic boulder over his head and tossing it into the river as the start of construction. The funnest part, though, is getting the audioguide and listening to the French children sing the rhyme…

Photo: Le Pont St-Bénézet or Le Pont d'Avignon