Today was the first day of class! These classes are usually a semester long, and we only have four weeks in Arles, so class days are pretty intense.

We had a language lunch today, and my group went to le Café Georges. We had delicious couscous with vegetables and meatballs.

For dessert, we had a “thé gourmand.” A thé gourmand or a (“café gourmand,” if it’s with coffee) is tea served with small portions of desserts. Here, we had mint tea with fruit and a tarte tropezienne.

After class, we had a tour around Arles, led by our marvelous guide, Jacqueline. Here, she talks about the Roman theater, which was built in the 1st century BCE.

The most iconic feature of Arlesian antiquity is the Roman arena, built in the 1st century CE. For centuries between the fall of the Roman Empire and when the community started restoring its Roman ruins, residents re-purposed the space and built houses inside the arena. Here, you can see walls of some of these houses on the upper level.

We walked through the Jardin d’Été, next to the Théâtre Antique (Roman theater). Vincent Van Gogh frequented this garden and painted it. Here is one of several easels that are found around Arles, marking locations that are featured in his paintings.

Jacqueline showed us where the medieval ramparts were built as reinforcements for the pre-existing Roman ramparts.

We went to the lookout next to the church of Notre Dame de la Major. The view was impressive!

The Hôtel de Ville (city hall) is interesting for having a mostly flat vaulted stone ceiling, which the architect managed to build without the typical large arches.

Our guide told us about the carvings on the front of the Church of St. Trophime, which tell the story of the Last Judgment.

Arles is a beautiful little city with many narrow cobblestone streets.