France

Still don’t know why an ear? 

Paloma, our motorhome is riverside in the amazing city of Arles which is in Provence in the South of France. It’s on the Rhône River and the view from the €5 a night aire is amazing (N43.677010 E4.615880)


But tonight we’re living a little on the wild side….

And no it’s not that we gone all French and not bothered buying a ticket, or started peeing on the road side 

No we’re sharing the site with a tigers ! – the circus is in town and set up just behind the aire and the sky is filled with loud stamping and occasional roars – well at least we hope it’s a Tiger! 

With a new quest to find some winter sun, we set off along the south coast and it’s stunning sea views in the brilliant sunshine and eventually stopped off here.

It’s hard to get past the fact that Arles is where Vincent van Gogh cut off his ear and ‘gifted’ it to a prostitute, but that sort of crazy jesture only adds to Arles appeal.

If you’re curious about Van Gogh in Arles, the Van Gogh Walking Tour will take you to various sites where this great artist painted. At each stop search around for the reproduction of the painting in situ. It’s a treasure hunt! 

Starting out at the modern Van Gogh foundation 


Pop into the touirst office for a map, or like us just wing it and follow the pictures of the painter set in the pavements around the city. 



Van Gogh isn’t the only legacy to explore. The Celts, Greeks and Romans all settled here, too. In fact, the Roman Ruins are one of Arles’ biggest attractions and quite rightly so. 

The Amphitheatre was built by the Romans in around the first century BC when the Emperor Augustus reigned over the Roman Empire. 


Built for an audience of 20,000, it once showcased gladiators and chariot racing. Today it’s used for bull fights!

And it’s on the UNESCO list ….

Next door is the Théâtre Antique, which also dates from the 1st century BC. It’s used in the summer for various dance, film and music performances and festivals, so if you are there on one of the sunny summer days, you might get lucky……

Thankfully for us by following the walking route we covered loads of the town from views of the famous Lion Bridge, which bits of it remain to remind everyone of the scale of the WW2 bombing on this part of France.

The bridge was built in 1868 to allow trains of the Paris-Lyon Marseille company to link Arles to Lunel cross the Rhone river.

This line in particular was dedicated to dispatch the coal produced in the Cevennes mountains. The bridge was destroyed on the 6th of August 1944, during a bombing. All that remains of the bridge are its pillars and imposing sculptured lions


Back into the main town and past the local Antiques fair…..


And all the bits in between !


Eventually we end in the main square, standing in front of the amazingly overpowering Hotel de Ville


So another super place in the land of le camping car……

Paul. 

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