Arles- Pont du Gard
March 7th
Our group reached Arles on February 6th. Still defrosting our hands and faces after braving the icy temperatures in Avignon, we hoped Arles would be warmer… but we weren’t so lucky. Arles was cold! This of course did not stop us from venturing out into the city to see some of its amazing sites. Right next to our Hotel was the Roman Amphitheater, it looks somewhat like the Coliseum in Rome but much, much smaller.
Seeing as the Romans took the city in 123 BC it does have its share of Roman ruins, the previously mentioned amphitheater/arena and a theatre for stage performances. Much to our amusement, we found out that Arles is quite the bullfighting city, and every year they conduct bull fights in the Ancient Roman Amphitheater. Call me a “purist” but the fact that they had somewhat modernized the arena and hold bullfights (also rock concerts, ect) today there did make me feel as if the structure had been violated instead of maintained. On a different note, we were privileged to look at the scene used for one of Vincent Van Gogh’s paintings, “Cafe Terrace at Night” from when he spent time in Arles (1888-1889). It was also in Arles that he cut off his ear and gave it to a…”close friend”.
During our stay in Arles, some of our group was able to travel to see the Pont du Gard…..it was HUGE!!! By far one of the most amazing structures I’ve ever seen. To this day, it is still one of my favorite historical sites in Europe. The peaceful river flowing below it just adds to the tranquility and beauty when you lay eyes on it.
Built in the 1st century, the story behind it is slightly humorous. It was part of a 31 mile long aqueduct that ran from Uzes and Nimes and was constructed so that the Romans could have fresh drinking water from the Alps…let that sink in. A 31 MILE LONG AQUEDUCT JUST FOR WATER FROM THE ALPS! And just to give you an idea of how gigantic the Pont du Gard is, look at the image below. The three of us are standing below one of its arches…huge.
We had to have a little fun faking out the people who stayed behind. “Look we found the Pont du Gard!”. They didn’t believe us.
~Andrew Hervey
External Links:
No comments:
Post a Comment