There are lot's of reasons people travel; view historic sites, the food, shopping, visiting friends and relatives, just to list a few. One of my friends likes to say she travels so she knows she can still do it. Even though this friend can travel anywhere in the world, first class, she has come with me and slogged through muddy fields at the crack of dawn, looked for hotel rooms in towns where none existed, and countless other misadventures. For her, it is the thrill of the hunt, and of course the "hunt" is for antiques.
One fall, three of us decided to meet up in Villeneuve les Avignon and make that a base while we shopped the three large shows in that take place on a Friday, Saturday and Monday. We love Villeneuve, and the hotel that we always stay at. There had been a lot of rain, and a lot more was expected, but we were not really aware of that. We walked to dinner, up a cobblestoned street just as it started to rain. By the time we were leaving the resturant, the little street was at least a half foot deep with water, rushing downhill. Every woman for herself! The three of us; Sandi, her daughter, Densie and I made a dash. Sandi fell behind, as I stopped to wait for her, Densie yelled, "keep going, she can take care of herself." When we got to the bottom of the street, no sight of Sandi, only a large brown cloud floating downstream. Sandi was somehow enveloped in her raincoat, and came to rest at our feet.
The whole weekend was a mix of brillant Provencale sun, and record rainfall. Roads closed, and villages were evacated as the water rose. 24-inches of rain in a 48 hour period. People were drowned in the town of Orange and other nearby villages.
