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.