Les Antiques de Glanum & Glanum

Thursday 31 May 2012 Continued

Following our tour in St. Remy-de-Provence we headed up the road to Les Antiques de Glanum.

L'Arc Municpal

Le Mausolee

Le Mausolee was especially impressive due to its size and the clarity of the carvings after thousands of years of being exposed to the elements.  Dr. O'Brien pointed out Achilles protecting his fallen cousin/lover.  This is clearly a monument showing victory and triumph.

From Les Antiques de Glanum we walked up the road to the Glanum archaeological site.  Glanum was first settled by the Gauls in the 6th and 7th Century BC and was later influenced by Hellenistic (Greek) and Roman governments.  Today the site is all excavated ruins.

I really appreciated the signs and brochures (and personal tour guide Tim).  Without them I wouldn't have had a clue about what I was looking at.  I especially liked the sketches showing the different layers of the site's complex history - color coded by historical/governmental era.

 I was surprised to see pieces of stone which were still very detailed - like the flowers above.  We saw the well and the sacred springs and the elaborate gutter system incorporated into the city.  I like the well and springs the best.  Something about water always soothes my soul and makes me happy.

Glanum Well

Tim, David, and I wandered all the paths and discovered a great look out over the entire site.

Me overlooking the ruins of Glanum

I really enjoyed this site.  It brought back memories from when I visited Pompeii twelve years ago.  Seeing an entire city interpreted - houses, places of worship, functional systems, etc.  You get a real idea of what life could have been like.  The things and places that are important in a community.  Fascinating to imagine.  With each new culture introduced, I could see how it built upon the previous rather than destroying and rebuilding.

For more photos of Glanum click here.

Chateau des Baux de Provence

Thursday 31 May 2012 Continued

A short drive from Glanum the landscape became more hills and valleys until across the fields we saw a large group of rocks jetting upward in the distance.  The perfect place for a fortified city with a commanding view of the surrounding area and sure enough we saw the ruins of Chateau des Baux de Provence.  We climbed the steep city street to the entrance of the medieval site at the top.  A challenging walk, but its got nothing on Entrevoux!  We were warned that it would be hot on the time with little to no shade and that was exactly what we experience.  I traded in my international student ID for an audio guide and quickly found myself wandering the site alone, slightly ahead or behind the others, but making little to no contact with them as I explored.  The interpretive messages incorporated historical context, industry, as well as the really cool toys - i.e. weaponry like a couillard, catapult, and battering ram.

Catapultes!

One of the interesting pieces of information from the audio guide was the story of the original family being descended from one of the Magi who brought Jesus gifts in Bethlehem.   Because of the symbol of the sixteen pointed star of the flat represents the star that guided their path.

 
Because of the sun and extreme heat I wandered the site underneath my huge, multicolored umbrella.  I'm sure I looked goofy as all get out, but it was really helpful!  As I approached the actual Chateau ruins, I used both my umbrella and audio guide less.  It was hot, closer quarters, and more people.  I didn't want to whack anyone with my umbrella and I didn't want to stand in the sun listening to the audio guide without it.

Approaching the ruins

Hiding from the sun

It was in this part that I caught up with Minda, Erica, and David.  Together we climbed to the high parts of the site.  Although there were signs saying that it was forbidden to do so, there were no barriers preventing the way and some of the best hand rails I've seen in France to make it a safe journey.  The dangerous part was the steps themselves - you could tell where generations of people have places their feet (exactly where I wanted to as well) wearing away the rock until there were ankle deep grooves in some spots.

Narrow Path Ahead!

The views from the top were absolutely spectacular.  You could see for miles in any direction and the audio guide said on a clear day you could see all the way to the Camargue!  This just re-enforces why they picked this location for fortifications.  You should be able to see any enemy forces approaching in time to take appropriate measures to protect.

Me, Erica, and Minda at the top

On my way out I fell behind the others and Dr. O'Brien showed me the oldest part of the site.  I thought we were almost out of time so I headed to the gift shop and the others told me we still had a half an hour.  If I would have realized that earlier, I would have gone into the subterranean part - oh well teach me to pay closer attention.  As it was, David and I tried for a geocache, but quickly gave up due to the crowds in the area and went for ice cream instead.  By then it was time to gather and return to Gigondas. For dinner a group of us wandered up into town and found the pizza place.  They were so kind and we had a great evening!

For more photos of Baux click here.

Van Gogh in Provence

Thursday 31 May 2012

Today we headed to St. Remy-de-Provence.  Our first stop was at Maison de Sante St-Paul to learn about Vincent van Gogh stay at the facility the year prior to his death.

Reproductions of Van Gogh's work were on display.

We had a guided tour in both English and French, as some general public joined our tour.  The tour was good, but at 90 minutes too long, especially with the flipping between the two languages.  Prior to coming, I only knew the basic info on Van Gogh.  It was nice to get more context to his life.  Not a happy story, but an interesting one of a man who lived to paint but couldn't paint to live.  I especially liked the way they incorporated his artwork into the tour.

Statue of Van Gogh

As we drove through St. Remy-de-Provence, I noticed what a nice looking community it was.  Lots of art!  Our guide did say that this area was an artist's paradise.  It seems that St. Remy is trying to shape their identity along these lines rather than with historic or tourism.  Following our tour we sought out ancient sites in the area.  More on that in the next post!

For more pictures of our time in St. Remy-de-Provence click here.

Saintes Maries de la Mer

Wednesday 30 May 2012 Continued

Upon arriving at Saintes Maries de la Mer, I decided to join the portion of the group going on a boat tour into Le Petite Rhone for a chance to see some of the famous animals in the Camargue, a wetland area that also serves as a regional park and nature refuge.  As soon as we figured out the details of our boat trip, Muaamar and I grabbed some lunch before we launched.  I got a pizza (still very good, but I'll confess that I was getting tired of them by this time.  But they made a "safe" lunch when not feeling adventurous.)  Muaamar had some salmon and we ate as quickly as we could so we could make it back to the "Les Quatre Maries II" on time.  I had a nice seat up front with dr. O'Brien, Dr. Wingerd, David, and Muaamar.

View from the nose of the boat

Near the mouth of the river there were boats docked with fishing equipment.  Before the current harbor was built all the boats were kept here.  As we went farther up the river, we got father into the wildlife refuge and we saw some bulls.  I think most were domesticated, but they indicated that some were wild.  When we got even father up the river, near the ferry crossing (where we turned around) there was a field with horses and bulls.  As soon as the boat approached the horses ran over.

I thought this was a little odd, but I quickly understood once one of the boatmen started throwing bread to them.  Totally for the tourist photo opportunities - which I took advantage of.  On our way back down the river we did see some wild horses drinking from the river.  Over all I really enjoyed the ride.  I love being on the water and found this more relaxing than being on the beach - and I still got to work on my tan. :)

Me standing in the Mediterranean

I did have a chance to check out the beach.  They were full of people - don't blame them the water was very nice.  David and I met a man in New York, who wanted to talk about all the details of his trip.  Thankfully we had to go catch the bus, unthankfully he cost me my precious time to buy a beverage and use a restroom since all the public toilets were closed.  Adding to my day of small misfortunes (I forgot my sunglasses at the gite, thankfully Marissa had a spare pair).  On the way home we did make a restroom stop - unfortunately no paper, none at the next one either when we stopped at Carfour.  All I wanted at the store was lotion with aloe for my sunburn.  So I picked some up, checked out with Jim.  Got out to the bus and shared my lotion with Minda only to have it pointed out that I bought body wash instead of lotion.  Awesome. :/  Just not my afternoon.  Lesson learned - bring dictionary into the store.  Since I was "pre-lathered" I took a shower as soon as we got back to the gite, had some dinner and went to bed early to call it a day.

For more photos of our time in Saintes Maries de la Mer click here.

Roman Structures in Arles

Wednesday 30 May 2012

Today we headed to the city of Arles to see Arènes d'Arles as well as le Theatre Antique.  Les Arenes was under some construction for cleaning.  It seems to be in a constant state of restoration and modification.

Arenes d'Arles inter

 The interior was adapted for modern use.  I am torn about this.  On the one hand I love seeing old buildings refurbished and taken care of.  On the other hand, I wanted to see a Roman arena.  Getting down into the heart of the arena, in the walkway areas, I got what I wanted.  I could imagine people walking through those halls.

Le Theatre was disappointing only because I have already seen the one at Orange, which was so wonderful. Again, this structure in Arles was re-purposed with modern equipment.  But unlike at Orange, the modern intrusion was so jarring and disruptive to my Roman experience.  Made me think a lot about the balance between preserving the past and continuing to adapt old structures to meet modern needs.

Me at the Theatre

After about an hour in the city, we boarded the bus and headed to our next destination - Saintes Maries de la Mer, a great beach community by the Camargue!

For more photographs from our time in Arles click here.

Le Pont du Gard

29 May 2012 Continued

After a short drive from Avignon we arrived at Le Pont du Gard and were given a couple of hours to explore.  I followed the path down the aqueduct and was immediately impressed by its size and its completeness.

As with the sites at Orange, I am astounded by Roman architectural technology.  That fact that it is still standing - solid, without the use of any mortar in construction - wow!

  In my quest to see the aqueduct from all angles, David and I hunted a geocache located on the far side.  We were able to stand in the actual channel of the aqueduct.  The channel continued to run straight into the hillside. 

David actually made the find - a nice ammo can under a pile of rocks.  I dropped off my MN Breakfast Buddies geocoin - hopefully it will move around and not get stolen (it made it Germany but disappeared in December after traveling 1080 miles from where I dropped it!).  I also picked up a travel bug to bring home with me.

After coming back down, we met up with some of the others, but ended up geocaching some more instead of playing in the water.  Found one more and attempted two others without any luck.  Still not bad!  By this time I had forgotten about the museum and ran out of time to visit, but I heard it was amazing.  I'll have to come back at some point and check it out.

For more photographs at Pont du Gard click here.

Avignon

Tuesday 29 May 2012

Today we were able to have a bit of a lazy morning before boarding the bus at 9:30 and driving to Avignon.  When we arrived, we toured Palais des Papes.  

Palais des Papes

The tour was self guided, but we did have an audio guide which was nice.  But I have a love/hate relationship with this type of tour.  It is better than no guide at all - especially since all the interpretive signs were in French, but this type of tour is so isolating.  Even though others were near me, I didn't feel like I could talk to anyone else for fear of disrupting their experience, creating the alone in a crowded room feeling with my classmates as well as fellow tourists.  My favorite part of the tour was le chambre du Pape because of the patterns on the walls and tiles.  They were so unique and fairly complete.  When you look at Le Palais des Papes, it looks more like a military fortress than a lavish estate - both inside and out.  Dr. Wingerd indicated that they did this to protect themselves from the King of France, who had a castle across the river.  Although I do wonder how much of the fortifications was also to protect themselves from the "true" Pope in Rome (remember, this was during the Great Western Schism in the Catholic Church).

Interior Sanctuary

Following the tour, Dr. Wingerd and I got lunch and waited for the 1:15 pm trolley tour of the city.  It was late getting started and was mostly a disappointment as it was hard to see at times because I where I sat and the narrowness of the streets.  

But I did get to see a lot more of the city in the forty minute tour than I would have gotten in the same time frame wondering on my own.  We got nice and close to the exterior fortified wall, into the heart of they city, and back again.  

Because the trolley was late to start, it was late to end, making us late to our rendevous with the rest of the group to tour the Pont Saint-Bénezet (aka Pont d'Avignon).  So Dr. Wingerd sent me on ahead so I wouldn't miss out.  I caught up in time, got another audio guide and headed out onto the bridge.  This audio guide was similar in information levels as at le Palas des Papes, but it also had a spot to show photographs and sketches of various aspects discussed in the audio.  This was way cool, but challenging to see in the sun.  We had to cut the tour a little short as we needed to get moving to our next destination.

Left the bridge with this song stuck in my head: Sur Le Pont d'Avignon - classic children's song that Dr. Wingerd started signing. 

For more photographs from our time in Avignon, click here.