May 29: Geneva to Avignon

Right after leaving Geneva, my first time in Romandie transitioned to my first time in France, as I traveled roughly parallel to the Rhône, which empties Lac Léman and flows past my next destination, Avignon. This next leg was via a TGV to Lyon, the inherent coolness of which was punctured by (1) not having a reserved seat and thus having to sit in a fold-down seat at the end of a car by the exit doors — it was a different train than I'd bought the ticket for — and (2) the vitesse was distinctly petite due seemingly to construction along the way, and maybe also due to the winding geometry of the route. There were still some good sights to see though.

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Judging by the bridge, this would appear to be Bellegarde-sur-Valserine.

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A treewall and a selection of ducks down by the river.

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The silvery color of some of these trees makes it look like the wind was blowing, or could the color be from something else such as white flowers?

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An indefinite series of transmission towers once the land flattened out.

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At the Gare de Lyon (not sure which one), leaving the TPV to thread through the busy underground to the next platform.

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Parallels.

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The presiding pigeon.

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The final train of the day approacheth. I wonder how many trains I rode over these six months, not even including the Helsinki trams.

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The train from Lyon to Avignon had no air conditioning, and its windows could not be opened, so it was a rather sweaty and heatstrokish ride. But it was fascinating to finally see the landscape so popular with the Post-Impressionists et al.