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Monday, February 03, 2014

France 2012 - Day 11 - Arles (Part 2)

France 2012
Day 11 - 23rd October - Arles
(Part 2)

Next was the Roman Theatre. Luckily for me it was not closed during lunch. Lunch time, incidentally, was heralded by many bells at noon - marking the most important time of the day!

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Roman Theatre, 1st c BC

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Killer Tomes on Arles. It has lots of culture and history.

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UNESCO plaque - more high class than the usual stone plaque

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Theatre

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Great setup - visitors can watch a video in the shade, sitting on old stones. I quite liked the open air TV.

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As at Orange, only the first third is original.

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Tour de Roland. The theatre survived partly because it was converted into a defensive structure (incorporated into the city walls)

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Another tower

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Adventuring

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Church

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Seats

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Walking down the sun-bleached steps. She was very bored, it seems.

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A possibly bored guy watching the video

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Very cheap Evian: €1,50 for a probably 600ml bottle. That was cheaper than the Coke.

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Arena of Arles. Again you see a defensive tower.

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Another tower, 12th c. The Roman arena sheltered 212 houses.

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Parking just outside

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Approach

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List of Principal Roman Amphitheatres (with their sizes)
The Colosseum is not the biggest! And when I'd visited Nîmes the hostel guy had told me that the Arles amphitheatre could fit in the Nîmes one, but they're almost the same size grr.

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On amphitheatres

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On gladiators

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Clearing of the building, restoration and conservation plan

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Keeping the bullfighting tradition alive - unlike in Catalonia. There's a French association of bullfighting bull breeders

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Stand and wall. You don't actually sit on Roman seats - they're in too bad condition for that

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Arena

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Another tower

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Stitch of Arena

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Historical view from when there were lots of buildings inside

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"Neo Pop Art. Eat your Banana and Shut Up. Disobey"

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More on the arena. This was too far to read, so I used zoom.

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Town view

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View through window

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View from top

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Resting

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Gallery

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Souvenir shop with Lavender windows

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Nice windows. As you can see it's nicer if the tourist shop is cropped off.

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Arena

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Dark corridor

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I don't see the resemblance. Do you?

There was a place with €7 Miso Ramen. But Miso Soup cost €3,50 so I had my doubts.

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Rue Renan

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Rue du Refuge, I think. The name was scrawled on a door so it might have been a prank.

While looking for a recreation of Van Gogh's room, I stumbled across the premises of a deserted radio station marked on my map at the same location (I didn't find the room).

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"Radio 3D FM 97.00. The culture of sound"

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Studio. The DJs were presumably all at lunch.

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A very old and cock chair. I sat in it and the cushion sank almost to the floor, and it was hard to get up. Maybe it was from Van Gogh's time and the map was outdated and this was all that was left of the recreated room.

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Activism in the radio station for ATTAC: Association pour la Taxation des Transactions Financières et pour l'Action Citoyenne (Association for the taxation of Financial Transactions and for Citizen Action). The FAQ asks if it's a supermarket. Strangely their mission statement involves access to clean water.

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Organic spices. €1 only!

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Splendid Romanesque Church portal. I loved the facade of St Trophime Church. It was in almost perfect condition.

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Nave

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Tapestries

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Painting hung damn high up

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Altar

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Stained Glass

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Chapel

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Grave

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Relic of St Anthony of the Desert

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Reliquary of St Anthony

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Justifying relics and their veneration. The justification seems weak: "We believe in the resurrection of the body, in eternal life and in the communion of Saints that we pray in front of their relics. They are for us a sign of the presence of the Saints who intercede for us with God"

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Sneaky money-making scheme: illumination in return for money. This is a typically Italian practice. I paid €2 since I didn't have any small change.

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Relics Room

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Relics with certificate: they are of the founders of this church, St Trophime and St Etienne

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Stone of St Caesar, bishop of Arles (6th c.)

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Left and right sides of relics room

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Above

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Robes

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Chapel

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Stained glass

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Another chapel

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Painting

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Chapel and font

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Gravestone

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Pulpit (with no way up?)

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On the baptismal font: in memory of the links with Canterbury

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On the church

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Obelisk and Hotel de Ville
St Anne's Church (the building beside the Hotel de Ville) was supposed to be open daily but the door was locked.

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Hotel de Ville

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Wut.
"The calendar of the Queen of Arles and the Maids of Honour"
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