Posts from — May 2010

Tuesday was our last full day in Arles before we head off to Nice by train (Oh Boy! Another train adventure….. hold us back!!!). So, we made it a very laid back relaxed Brenda and Larry day which started with a short walk and you guessed it a cafe au lait at a local cafe right next to the Amphitheatre. On our way there we walked along the Rhone and it’s very interesting to see the number of Rhone Cruise Boats that come and go from Arles. Also are a couple pictures of a couple of Vincent Can Gogh’s work that has been recreated into plaques for a City walk and to remember the famous painter who used Arles as his home for a number of years and to do many of his famous paintings.

Monday was a holiday in France, however not letting that stop our travels we headed for the SNCF Train Station in Arles for a day trip to Avignon. We knew there were two trains leaving shortly after 9:00 am. We arrived a few minutes after 9 am and got in a line up for tickets as we haven’t quite figured out the SNCF ticket machines. We knew we were cutting it short for the 9:18 train and as luck would have it the person two in front us had a list of questions and as we got to the ticket window the 9:18 train was leaving the station. Oh Well, there is the 9:50 train! As soon as we bought the tickets there was an announcement that the 9:50 train was delayed 15 mins, then 30 mins, then 40 mins, then 1 hr and finally 1hr 30 mins….. to make a long story short we boarded the 9:50 train at 11:05 am. The trip takes about 18 minutes to Avignon. Once there we visited the Tourist Information, got a map and headed off to see the sights. So, what’s the most visited sight in Avignon? Well of course it is the Pont Saint-Benezet sur la Rhone. Famous for the song “Sur la Pont Avignon”  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZUzzWlvn1w , we tried our own version but thankfully for you readers we couldn’t get it to load into our web page. The bridge at Avignon was built in the 12th Century and was the first to cross the Rhone, it was destroyed by an ice dam/storm in the 17th Century. We crossed the Rhone River on a small free ferry for a walk along the bank opposite the Pont and to take some pictures. Avignon is also home to Palais des Papes or Palace of the Popes; sometime in the 1300 – 1400 the Catholic Church moved from Italy and set up this Palace for it’s Pope. Then the Italians complained, so for a while they had 2 Popes from about 1378 – 1417 until they settled the internal dispute and went with 1 Pope and moved him to Vatican City. In Avignon you hear a lot of English being spoken in the shops, cafes, and streets. However in Arles it is very rare to hear English spoken anywhere and it actually catches your attention when you hear it. Avignon is much larger, busier and more of a tourist town than Arles. It is defintely been restored and updated more than Arles and is quite pretty, we would defintiely return. However we are used to less crowds after a few days in Arles, so we were happy to get back on the train to quiet little Arles at the end of the day.

Today we were off to explore the City of Arles. Arles goes back to 40 B.C., yes that’s correct, Before Christ! However it never really became much until the Romans made a real prescence sometime in the 1st Century; around 90 A.D. So, there is so much history, old buildings, historic sites and things to see. As we mentioned the old town of Arles; which is a walled city, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We started off by visiting the Musee Departemental Arles Antique….. in other words the New Museum dedicated to the history of Arles. Lots of Roman ruins, artifacts, displays, models of Roman construction, etc. In fact near the entrance to the museum there is still remnants (footings, bricks, etc.) of the Chariot arena where you can see the curvature of the arena construction. From here we headed off to the Amphitheatre which was built in 90 A.D.; the last post showed us having dinner at a cafe directly across the street from the Amphitheatre. Currently it is under ongoing restoration which you will see in some of the pictures. This is because today they occasionally use it for Bull Fights (not where the bull gets killed). After this we visited the Thermes of Constantin. These were Roman Baths built between the 1st and 4th Century A.D. They were communal baths with three separate rooms, the first were Hot Baths where they used scrapers on their skin, this was followed by a rinse off in the  Lukewarm Room and then the Cold Pool and massage. We finished off by visiting the Cryptoportiques D’Arles which date back to 46 B.C. These are double u-shaped underground galleries that are 89m by 59m. You enter at the Hotel De Ville (which isn’t really a hotel, but a large building) and head down a steep spiral staircase below ground approximately 40′. First thing you run into is water dripping/running from the roof; probably a water line above with a leak; thank heavens the Romans were great builders…..other than the odd missing stone/brick it looked pretty safe to me. Here there is a lot of evidence of Roman Construction and no restoration, the area has been left pretty much as it was found. Unfortunately no narration or description; other than a pamphlet in french, so you are left on your own to explore the crypts complete with side rooms and large sections of marble, granite and limestone columns left lying as they were. Brenda couldn’t get out of here fast enough. That’s it we’re exhasuted time for a Baquette, some french cheese and a very good bottle of Chateau Neuf de Pape.

Saturday we got up early had a quick breakfast, checked out of the Hotel Diana and headed off to Gare de Lyon and on to Arles. From yesterday’s scoping out of the transit route we knew that there was a change in the bus schedule….. however we weren’t quite sure why. Anyway we stepped out of our hotel and all of a sudden there was a parade of people going by, we understood it was a pilgrimage……. and guess what, they were blocking the main bus line to Gare de Lyon. Well we did notice a police officer stopping them and allowing some traffic through however no sight of Bus #63 or #87. Once at the bus stop we asked a very nice lady who spoke no English about the signs posted at the bus stop regarding what we thought were potential delays…… after a few “parlez vous plus lentements, sil vous plait” (speak more slowly please) we got it that the buses were running but they may be late. After a few minutes Bus #63 showed up and we were off to Gare de Lyon. Once at Gare de Lyon it was mayhem; the place we thought we were take the train had now been moved to a new location and platform but is was only about 300 yds away upstairs, across a walkway and into more confusion. Anyway, we finally figured it out and the platform for our train was finally posted and once again thanks to pointy Sill elbows we got aboard the correct train to Arles. Whew!!!!!! Not long after leaving Paris the countryside is quite pretty with a lot of small towns and remnants of past history in buildings and structures. The TGV train we were on gets up to speeds of 320 km/hr so the landscape goes by fairly fast; fortunately we booked seats in the top of the car so we had a good view from above. On it’s way the train stops in Lyon and Avignon before finally arriving in Arles. Along the way we saw our first fields of beautiful red poppies. The old town of Arles is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and it’s where Vincent Van Gogh did a lot of paintings prior to his death, but more about Arles and it’s historical sites on the next post. Anyway after a bit of searching and asking confused French people in our perfect french language (Ha! Ha!) we found our Hotel and settled in. We are at Hotel Porte de la Camargue which is located immediately across the Rhone River from old town Arles. Having a great time..

Friday was our last full day in Paris and we decided to keep it a little simpler, not so busy and make sure we took the opportunity to take in the sights and sounds before heading off to the south of France. After a delicious leisurely breakfast we headed off to check out the bus route to Gare de Lyon and attempt to figure out the mayhem of this major Paris train station. Gare de Lyon is the main train station for connections to the south of France, so it’s hectic. Once back in the Latin Quarter we rewarded ourselves with a cafe au lait and sat and watched Paris go by. From there we did a little window shopping (lecher le vitrine) and picked up a few trinkets. In the afternoon we headed off by metro (underground train) to the Eiffel Tower stop so we could get on a Seine River Boat Cruise. It was a good way to get more information and a completely different view of Paris. It was a spectacular day so there were lots of people on the banks of the Seine enjoying the weather. Tomorrow we are off to Arles.