Travels - Arles

On Saturday, I took the bus to Arles with Erin, Meghan and Emily. Arles is a very traditional Provence town about an hour and 20 minute drive west of Aix. The ride took us through the French countryside and along many tree-lined boulevards. I love that - straight rows of trees lining streets and driveways leading up to large, peach-colored houses with bright blue shutters... but I digress. We arrived around 11:30 which meant all the monuments were closing for lunch (from 12-2). So we went to find lunch ourselves at a vegetarian restaurant recommended by Erin's travel guide (Eyewitness' Top 10 of Provence). Unfortunately, the restaurant had closed and a new one was just opening in it's place, but we all got great salads - with more than lettuce! - so no complaining here. Afterwards, we walked by the old Roman baths (still closed) and down to the Rhone River for a brief walk.

Our first big stop, and the highlight of my day, was the Roman Amphitheatre. Built around 80 AD, I can't even begin to describe how impressive it is. Most postcards of Arles are aerial shots where it's very clear that the amphitheater takes up a good portion of the town. It's right in the center with shops and apartments on the other side of the streets surrounding it. The amphitheatre itself is 136 meters long and 107 meters wide. There are 60 arches with interconnected staircases and galleries to circulate the 20,000 spectators efficiently. The amphitheatre was used as a fortress in the Middle Ages and towers were added for defense. The 212 houses and 2 churches that it contained were cleared out between 1826 and 1830 and after it was restored, it became a sight for bullfighting, which still continues today. Even with the scaffolding inside for a current restoration project, it was still amazing.

Next we walked by the former Roman theater - more like what I usually think of amphitheaters with the half circle of seats facing a stage marked by pillars. Our final stop was an impressive cathedral and the cloisters which were, unfortunately, under restoration as well. I have no idea how many churches Arles has but it's definitely more than 5 - for a town you can walk across in 15 minutes that's a lot...

Aix experienced much more significant and rapid growth than Arles did, so all of the Roman ruins and even the original town wall in Aix were taken down both to make space and use the stone for new construction. Arles, on the other hand, probably wouldn't be around without the Roman ruins because it relies on the summer tourist season heavily - which is obvious when you see signs pointing to Roman ruins right above one for McDonald's.

Before we caught the bus back, we decided to stop in a small pastry/chocolate shop for Valentine's Day. We each tried one of the pastries - if you're ever in France, try to find a Havane, a white-chocolate cake with chocolate filling... it's heaven. :o )