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 The Yellow House ~ Van Gogh by Lady_Mystique
His living quarters were the ones with the green shutters. His bedroom lay beyond. Vincent had finally found a place where he could not only paint but also welcome his friends. His goal was to establish a “Studio of the South,” where he and like-minded artists could work together.
Just as he did in Nuenen and Paris, Van Gogh here depicts his own surroundings. To the left we see the restaurant where he usually took his meals. His friend, the postman Joseph Roulin, lived to the right, behind the first railroad bridge.
The view is also an exploration of color contrast: “What a powerful sight, those yellow houses in the sun and then the unforgettable clarity of the blue [sky],” he wrote to Theo in the letter that accompanied a drawing he had made after the painting.
The "Yellow House" where Van Gogh lived, however, and the prostitute area around the rue de la Cavalerie , disappeared after bombardments of WWII.
On the location of the "Cafe de Nuit" there is built a horrible Monoprix and the "Pont de Langlois" is replaced by a new bridge on the wrong location! The Tourist office in Arles tried to correct this situation and organizes commented tours with an intelligent commentary to show where Van Gogh rested his easel .
"Vincent's House in Arles" (The Yellow House)
September 1888
Oil on canvas, 72 x 91.5 cm
Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum Vincent van Gogh Leave a Comment
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 Old Arles city center by davequ
Arles pdf City Map online
Here is (click below) an online, "zoomable" interactive streetmap of downtown Arles from MapQuest:
ARLES by MapQuest
that if you zoom in to street level lets you find actual street addresses.
and here is another fun map from ProvenceWeb:
Arles City Map
Wandering the deserted streets and little cafes late at night after a late diner from approx. 22:00 to 2am.
Without attempting to be "deep" or melodramatic, the experience is almost (imho) mystical and timeless. Leave a Comment
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 French connection: landing in
Marseille by davequ
Arles is a small town, not like Lyon, Avignon, etc. so you are more limited in ways to get there.
The best way to get to Arles depends on where you are coming from, and obviously if you are driving through provence, you will be arriving in your car (make sure to reserve, there is little/NO parking in the old city).
In the past, train was always the answer. But while Arles itself still does not have a decent airport, discount airlines are changing things.
The old long way:
(Oct. '01) I was originating from Cinque Terre, IT. The only option was a long, arduous (9-10 hours) train ride up through the French Riviera.
The new fast way: This year in 2003, from Cinque Terre, I could have taken a quick hop to Pisa on the train, then flown to Marseille instead for less money and saved at least 4 hours.
Sept. '03, as I was originating from Amsterdam, I found a good discount airline, Basiq Air (subsidiary of Transavia, subsidiary of Dutch KLM)
Basiq Air
had an unbelievably low fare from Amsterdam direct to Marseille for less than 50Euro.
From Marseille it was only a 20Euro ticket and 1hr train to Arles. Saved me much time and money, as the train would have cost me 100Euro and taken much longer.
NOTE: 8/10/04: To reach Marseille you may now need to use KLM
KLM website
I took this picture as we were on final approach from Amsterdam and landing in Marseille.
Summary:
I recommend you check all options before automatically getting an expensive train pass/ticket. Discount airlines in Europe are very affordable, and save much time if you plan ahead and shop on the web.
From a transportation standpoint, the Arles taxi drivers from the Arles train station seem to be a very funny, entertaining and interesting group of guys. But they are professional and give very good service.
One of the drivers gave me some sage advice on the french language:
"The best way to learn french is to learn from a french woman!"
He's probably right. Leave a Comment
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 Arles market by agarcia
Surprisingly, our weakest sense, the smell, is the one that brings more vivid memories from the things that impressed us. And that's the reason why, whenever your nose gets a hit of the perfume of your loved one, you immediately remember her. And that's the reason why I cannot smell lavender without going back to Provence for a while... Leave a Comment
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 Van Gogh Gate by agarcia
When I finally reached the famous gate, the same one that I'd admired so many times. Reaching that place will be the subject of a "warnings and dangers" tip of Arles that is still to come. By now, let's simply say that this is an important moment, because sometimes you have to compare reality with genius. It was clear to me that this time, the Genius won the game. ;-) Leave a Comment
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 Arles Roman theater by agarcia
Anyway, the conditions in which those ancient monuments are preserved is something remarkable; not because the preservation itself is outstanding, but rather because the inhabitants of that land had been using them during all this time... though they had in mind different proposes than the original builders. For instance, the old amphitheatre, after been used during the Middle Ages as a fortress, is currently used as a bullring.
Now that I think about it twice, maybe bullfighting and gladiator fights aren’t that different after all ;-) Leave a Comment
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 A Provence vista Oct. 2001 by davequ
Using Arles, Nimes, or Aix en Provence as a home base, I recommend side trips to Roman ruins in Glanum, Orange, Camargue, Nimes, Pont du Gard, Rasteau, Saint-Remy, Aix en Provence, .... anywhere you feel like going.
The ancient town of Les Baux, and the Wine Heaven of Chateauneuf du Pape should not be missed.
Aix-en-Provence is worth a whole other set of pages in itself.
Most of all, driving on the small side roads and two lanes through the beautifully lit countryside that has inspired so many artists is such a pleasure.
Driving to Chateauneuf du Pape estate Caves de Fines Roches and sampling their wines from the cellars on their beautiful estate. Chateauneuf and the Cotes du Rhones are some of the good wines of the world imho.
All of Provence is heaven when it is sunny and the mistral is not blowing.
Such remarkable countryside painted with sunlight. Leave a Comment
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 Café la Nuit by Lady_Mystique
He lived on the Place Lamartine, but spent time all over the city during his short stay. Nightlife was concentrated in the cafés and cabarets where he met the few acquaintances he immortalized in Arles.
One evening in September 1888 the solitary painter set up his easel here on the Place du Forum...the beginning or end of his evening stroll among the "night owls".
"The Cafè Terrace on the Place du Forum" Arles, at Night
September 1888
Oil on canvas
81 x 65.5 cm
Otterlo, Rijksmuseum Kroller-Muller Leave a Comment
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 Welcome to the sunny Provence by davequ
Don't miss:
- Roman ruins (Glanum, Pont du Gard & Nimes (in Gard province), Arles, Aix in Provence) and all the Van Gogh / Gauguin landscapes;
- The lightly spicy French dishes a' Provencal with fresh herbs & vegetables.
- Soupe de poissons in Arles or bouillabaisse (in Marseilles);
- Chateauneuf du Pape and Cotes du Rhone wines.
The light, the ruins, and the Rhone Leave a Comment
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 Moulin de la Crau by Lady_MystiqueLeave a Comment
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Place Saint Pierre de Trinquetaille, Arles - Ibis Arles
Rue Gerard Gadiot Centre Commercial Fourchon, Arles - Hotel d'Arlatan
26, rue du Sauvage BP 109, Arles - Hotel Acacias - Arles
2 Rue de la Cavalerie, Arles - Campanile - Arles
Rue Charlie Chaplin ZAD de Fourchon, Arles - PV-Holidays Residence Club Le Domaine de l'Estajan
Mas de Veran - Quartier Fourchon, Arles - Grand Hotel Nord-Pinus
Place du Forum, Arles - Hotel le Rodin
20 Rue Auguste Rodin, Arles - Les Cabanettes Hotel Arles
Route Nationale 572 Quartier Saliers, Arles - Hotel Maeva Les Villages du Soleil
Mas de Veran - Quartier Fourchon, Arles - Best Western Le Val Majour Hotel Fontvieille
22 Avenue D'Arles, Arles - Citotel Porte de Camargue
15 Rue Noguier, Arles - Hotel Mas de Peint
Le Sambuc, Arles - Mercure Arles Camargue
Avenue de la 1ère Division Francaise Libre, Arles - Hotel Jules Cesar
Boulevard des Lices, BP 116, Arles
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