We left the village at 07.30, traveling east along the motorway through Montpellier and Nîmes where we stopped for coffee and cake by the side of the road.
There were many familiar faces on the bus, people we see when we are out walking or at village events, so we had plenty of people to talk to.
Our first event in Arles was a guided walking tour and the first stop was the Espace Van Gogh, formerly the Hotel Dieu or hospital where Van Gogh spent some time after he cut off his ear. The garden is much as it is in Van Gogh's paintings.
Our next stop was the Place de la Republic with an Obelisk that once stood in the roman amphitheatre.
The Church of St Trophime in the same square dates back to the 12th century. It has a very impressive facade
and this is a roman sarcophagus which is said to contain the remains of St Honoratus.
Next we moved on the the site of the Roman forum.
As we approached, we saw a large crowd of Japanese tourists pointing their cameras away from the column. Immediately opposite is a cafe once painted by Van Gogh.
We then wandered through the streets and up the hill towards the roman theatre and amphitheatre.
Finally, our walk took us down to the river. The Rhône divides jusr north of Arles into the Rhône and the Petit Rhône. This is the Petit Rhône.
It was then time for lunch: we arrived at a small restaurant close to the river where they were ready for us. An aperitif was waiting on the table and the queue for the one toilet started.....
The first course was Tellines, a very small clam (about the size of a small finger nail) in a cream sauce. This is a specialty of Arles, and delicious. Next we had a Bourride, a seafood spicy stew and another local speciality. Finally, there was a lemon tart and coffee.
Two hours later after an excellent meal and some wine, we emerged from the restaurant into the hot sun. Fortunately, our next appointment was a trip on a petit train around any of the sites that we had seen in the morning, so we had time to recover.
After the guided tours, we had an hour or so to ourselves, so we decided to see the insides of the Roman theatre and amphitheatres.
The theatre is in use with a stage on rails where the roman stage would have been. Around the theatre are some gardens full of odd bits of roman worked stones.
From the theatre you can see the amphitheatre a hundred metres away.
The amphitheatre has had a varied life. In the middle ages it was effectively a fortress with houses built into its walls and interior. Today it is used for bull fights and chases and is being rebuilt. The upper terraces are steel and wood stagings.
The scale of the structure is most impressive.
We arrived back in the village at about 19.30 and retired to the terrace for a snack before preparing ourselves for the next trip on the following day.
Pat and John on tour
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