Our last port of call - Arles
Well, all good things must come to an end (or at least the water portion thereof). This morning we docked at 9:00 and then took a 30 minute scenic drive into the old town of Arles. There is part of me that wants to describe it the way I would imagine Gary Spivey describing it ... "more walls, more narrow streets, more dilapidated buildings, more old churches, more roman ruins, more sidewalk cafes, yada yada yada", but I am much more cultured than that. Arles was a walled city on the banks of the Rhone River. It has a population of about 50,000 so it is a complete city but still has small midevil town charm.
Of greatest archaeological note is their Roman coliseum that dates back prior to the time of Christ. It si modeled after the coliseum in Rome but not as big (this one could hold 21,000 spectators). Today it is used for concerts and sporting events including Bull Games (not to be confused with Bull Fighting). In bull fighting, the bull dies. In bull games, the bull goes unharmed and only the men attempting to remove items from its head are severely injured.
One of Arle's claim to fame was the year that VanGough lived and painted there. For awhile after he cut off his ear, he was hospitalized. The picture he painted of the garden in the courtyard was from the courtyard of the hospital where he was treated for head lacerations and psychiatric conditions. First is a print of the painting, and then a picture of the courtyard that was in the painting. We saw several places around town of the places that he had painted.
