Viviers
  Our ship left Avignon at 4:45 am to make our way to Viviers.   Along the way we passed through the deepest lock on the Rhone - the Bollene Lock.  When you go through the locks on a river cruise your ship really fits snugly in the lock so if you were to open your balcony you really only have a couple inches between you and the wall.   When you enter in low if feels like you went into a tunnel and then you slowly rise up and see sunlight again.   
  We arrived in Viviers after lunch.   When we docked it was easy to see that Viviers is a very small and old village.  There was even a Renaissance faire going on so the townspeople were dressed for the occasion which made it feel even more like we had stepped back in time.   Today we chose the Active option and are "canoeing" again but just like yesterday we learned that canoeing actually means kayaking.  Today's kayak was an included option so we had a few more people going but it was still a nice small group.  However when we got to the river we quickly realized it was a Saturday and that definitely changes the crowd.   Even though the weather was overcast and only in the low 60s the river was very crowded.   We were kayaking through the Gorges de l'Ardeche.  Our guide said that during the summer there is usually around 5,000 kayakers on the river each day.   There were only a few hundred today and that seemed too crowded for me.  I guess we got spoiled yesterday having that river all to ourselves. Our guides did a good job keeping us together and made us aware of what was coming as there were a few rough patches but it was really fun.  The gorge was really impressive with lots of great walls of limestone.   We all got wet but no one flipped over so it was all good.   Today there were a lot of included options to choose from.  There was another Active that was a hike through gorges so they saw a lot of the same things we did but from a different perspective.  There was a Discovery which was underground wine tasting.  There were 2 Classic which were either to the Lock Bollene or to a crocodile farm.  
After dinner we were all treated to a guided walk through town to learn more about the history which was very interesting.    The town of Viviers floods a lot but it sounds like the townspeople adapt.   Viviers is home to the smallest cathedral in France about 1/8 the size of Notre Dame.  I love getting to stop in these cute little places!    

​Last night we arrived in Avignon pretty late at night but we were able to catch a view of the half bridge of Avignon under an almost full moon.   We pulled up next to another river cruise ship which happens a lot with the river cruises because there is limited docking space.  Unfortunately for us the ship we pulled up next to had neon green lighting that ran the length of the ship and they did not turn it off at all so our room now had a green glow overnight.   I thought it was pretty rude that they wouldn't turn that off when a ship tied up next to them so I quickly made a note on which cruise line that was and will remember not to book them.   Personally I wouldn't want to cruise on a ship that was lit up like that every night.
   Today we were in port long enough to not only choose an included morning excursion but also there are some afternoon options that you could purchase.  We really enjoy kayaking so I signed us up for the afternoon option to do that.   This morning I chose the Discovery option which was described as going to discover more about Essential Oils at the Musee des Aromes et du Parfum and it said we would get to create our own scent.   I really enjoy using essential oils myself so I liked the idea of learning more and making my own scent.   Being in the lavender capital of the world and that being my favorite oil I was thinking this would be an interesting excursion for me.   Unfortunately it wasn't really as described and we didn't get to create a scent and really didn't get to do anything with essential oils.   The museum had some neat collections but I would not call this a Discovery or hands on excursion at all.  The only saving thing was we also stopped in St Remy which was a totally adorable French Village that I enjoyed wandering around.  We were there too early in the morning though so most of the shops were not open yet but I actually enjoyed getting photos of the empty streets and cafes.   The Active Adventure for today was an ebike ride through the Gard with a little wine tasting included.  I heard that was a very good excursion and a much better bike ride than our first one.   The Classic excursion for today was a city tour including the Palace of the Popes and a picnic.  It sounds like the picnic was more of a tasting of a few samples but it sounds like everyone that went enjoyed it.   
I was glad that I had booked us on the optional afternoon excursion to kayak on the Pont du Gard.  It was a little chilly and raining a little but I was excited to go kayaking.   We were a small group of just 10 guests going kayaking (I am thinking the weather had a few change their minds).  It was raining for the first few minutes but it cleared up and turned into a great day and we had the river to ourselves.  We paddled right under an old Roman Aqueduct which is the highest of all elevated Roman Aqueducts.   The river did most of the work so it was an easy and enjoyable paddle down the river.