Arles: Following in the Steps of van Gogh in .NET

Drawer UPC-A Supplement 5 in .NET Arles: Following in the Steps of van Gogh

Boasting Roman ruins, medieval churches, 18th-century mansions, and tributes to 19th-century painter Vincent van Gogh, Arles is rich with history Its strategic position on the Rh ne has long made it popular Greeks first settled in the area around the 6th century BC In the 1st century BC, Julius Caesar gave the city prominence in his empire after the citizens of Arles assisted the Romans in their capture of Marseille It experienced a Golden Age when it was known as Rome of the Gauls In the early years of Christianity, Arles became a great religious center, but invasions throughout the Middle Ages ravaged the town It was revived in the 12th century, and you can see a number of impressive Romanesque buildings from that period, including Eglise St-Trophime, which once was a cathedral In the 17th and 18th centuries, noblemen built mansions in the city center; the mansions surrounding place du Forum are now elegant hotels Today, Arles is most famous for being one of the final homes of Impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh Fans of the tormented artist will find many reminders of him

Trains leave from Paris s Gare de Lyon and arrive at Arles s Gare SNCF (avenue Paulin-Talabot), a short walk from the town center One highspeed direct TGV travels from Paris to Arles each day (four-and-a-half hours, 95 /$124 for first class and from 75 /$98 for second) For other trains, you must change in Avignon Hourly connections travel between Arles and Avignon (15 minutes, 11 /$14 for first class and 6 /$780 for

second), Marseille (one hour, 18 /$23 for first class and 12 /$16 for second), and Aix-en-Provence (one-and-three-quarter hours, change in Marseille, 26 /$34 for first class and 17 /$22 for second) For rail schedules and information, call % 08-92-35-35-39 or 3635 within France (www sncfcom) Every day, five flights from Paris arrive at A roport International de N mes-Arles-Camarque (% 04-66-70-49-49), which is 25km (16 miles) northwest of Arles The bus company Soci t Ceyte Tourisme M diterran e (CTM) runs buses between Arles and the airport Buses arrive at, and leave from, boulevard Clemenceau near the tourist office (see Getting around and getting information, later in this chapter) A roport International Marseille/Provence is 70km (44 miles) from Arles From here, you need to rent a car to drive to Arles The major rental car companies Hertz, Avis, Europcar, National Citer, and Budget can all be found at the Marseille Airport For information about bus service, call % 04-42-28-40-22 Arles is on one end of a bus line to Marseille, with stops including Aix-en-Provence (one-and-three-quarter hours, 10 /$13) Bus service to Avignon also is available (one hour, 710 /$925) For details, call the Boutique de Transports at % 08-10-00-08-16 If you re driving, note that D570 and N113 and A54 (between A9 and A7) lead to Arles From Avignon, take A7 to A54 to N113 Driving time from Avignon to Arles is about 25 minutes Driving from Paris to Arles takes about seven hours Arles is 740km (450 miles) from Paris and 35km (22 miles) from Avignon

All of the major sites in Arles are within walking distance from the center of town The only site that s inconvenient to walk to is the Mus e de l Arles Antiques (about 15 minutes away); it s an awkward walk past major roadways (with sidewalks) For a rental car, try Avis (avenue Paulin-Talabot; % 04-90-96-82-42), Hertz (boulevard Victor-Hugo; % 04-90-96-75-23), or Europcar (boulevard Victor-Hugo; % 04-90-93-23-24) You can rent bikes at Europbike Provence (1 rue Philippe Lebon; % 04-90-49-54-69) for 13 ($17) for a half day and 16 ($21) per day For a cab, call Arles Taxi at % 04-9049-69-59 or 04-90-93-31-16 The tourist office is on boulevard des Lices (% 04-90-18-41-20; www arlesorg) April to September, it s open daily 9 am to 6:45 pm; October and December 25 to 31 hours are Monday to Saturday 9 am to 5:45 pm and Sunday 10 am to 12:45 pm; January to March and November to December Monday to Saturday 9 am to 4:45 pm and Sunday 10 am to 12:45 pm A small annex is open at the train station Monday to Saturday 9 am to 1 pm The tourist offices can book accommodations for a small fee, and they change money If you want to check