Roman Theater and Monastery in Arles

After seeing the amphitheater in Arles, we moved on to the theater that was also built there by the Romans. 

All of the normal people would sit on the stone seats, while the big open area in the middle was reserved for noblemen who sat on moveable chairs.

Those columns were huge!

The remains of carved stones were stacked haphazardly behind the main theater.

This was in a shop nearby the Theater. Cicadas are a big thing in southern France and they are used as decoration. It's a strange idea from an American perspective since most insects aren't considered positive things in the US.

We passed the amphitheater on our way back from the theater.  I couldn't keep from taking another photo since the sky was so dramatic and beautiful.

Isabelle took me into a shop of santons, which are little statues made in southern France that are used in their famous crèches.

The little clay statues are meticulously painted by local artists. You can even buy them unpainted if you'd like to try your hand at it. The coolest thing about the santons, in my opinion, is that they are normal everyday people or historical characters that are placed in the crèches.

Look at that. You can have the pope or Van Gogh in your manger scene if you want!

Another attraction of Arles is that they have an active communist party and communist mayor.

We then moved on to the cathedral and the monastery that is attached to it.

The monastery was built in the middle of the city with a courtyard in the middle for the monks to go outside.

All of the columns were decorated with ornate carvings that depicted scenes from the Bible.

I believe the tapestries were an addition and not part of the original monastery...

Did I tell you that I've decided to stay here and become monk?

A nice lady took our picture. Yann wasn't there because he went back to the car to take his siesta.

I was amazed to find that the well that the monks drew their water out of was marked with grooves from the ropes.  What a mind blowing thought to realize that they hauled enough water out of there to break down stone.

In this corner you can see that the monastery was not completed all at once.  The rounded arches on the left are characteristic of Roman architecture while the pointed arches on the right are gothic.

Yeah for reals. I'm just staying here and becoming a monk. If the world needs me in the future I'll be sitting right here in the sunshine.

The last thing that we saw in Arles was the old roman marketplace. It used to be outdoors, but over the years it sunk and the place was built up. Now, it is a good bit underground.