Through the Alpilles near Glanum

Monday, October 11. All passengers had to vacate their cabins by 8:00, and we boarded the buses at 8:30. It was a very pleasant day and the countryside was beautiful. The bus followed a secondary road northeast from Arles, apparently the shortest way to the autoroute. We went by Fontvielle, a pretty little town. Approaching the Alpilles (Little Alps), we passed Glanum, site of extensive Roman ruins. At St. Remy the bus turned east toward the autoroute to Aix-en-Provence.

We arrived there about 11:00, but it took another 20 minutes to reach the spot where the bus dropped us off on the north side of the old city, across the street from the last remnant of the medieval ramparts. Laurent then guided us south down the pedestrian street.

We stopped at the St. Sauveur (Holy Savior) Cathedral, built on Roman foundations and said to incorporate every architectural style of the 5th through the 17th centuries. I dashed inside for a quick look. The Romanesque nave was particularly impressive. Then I had to run to catch up to the group.

Last remnant of medieval city wall

Romanesque dome in Cathedral

St. Sauveur Cathedral portal

Hotel de Ville & Clock Tower Rotonde

Laurent led us to the Place de la Mairie (Mayor Square), site of the Hotel de Ville (1665-70) and Clock Tower. The astronomical clock (1661) on the tower features statues representing the four seasons that appear at certain times (but this was not one of them). We continued down the pedestrian street until we reached the Cours Mirabeau. Created in 1649, this fine street is lined with plane trees, cafes, and elegant mansions, and dotted with fountains.

At this point, Laurent turned us loose to find lunch and to sightsee on our own. Jane and I had pizza at a sidewalk cafe' with another couple from the group. Then we strolled leisurely down the Cours Mirabeau to the Rotonde traffic circle, with its beautiful fountain, where we were to board our bus. The bus left at 1:10.
 

Memorial chapel

Rhine American Cemetery

About 2:30 we arrived at the Rhine American Cemetery in Draguignan. This cemetery was created as the resting place for American military personnel killed in the Rhone are following an amphibious landing on 15 April 1944 outside nearby St. Raphael. (Not many Americans even know that this attack took place, or that it swept far up the Rhone Valley before turning east toward Germany.) At one time about 2,000 Americans were buried in this cemetery, but many of the remains were repatriated after the war. Only 861 are still there. GCT had arranged a brief ceremony to commemorate the dead of World War II. We then had a chance to visit the chapel and explore the grounds before returning to the bus.

We entered Nice and drove almost the full length of the Bay of Anges waterfront. We got to the Boscolo Hotel Plaza at 5:15. Our room was very nice, on the top floor with a great view of the Bay, as well as of the old town.

Old Nice from our hotel rooom

Jardin Albert I & Bay of Anges

Bay of Anges

At 7:00 we walked a few blocks to dinner with two other couples. The restaurant was the FLO Brasserie, where we had eaten lunch in September 1999 while on an Elderhostel tour. It's an old theater, now converted into a rather formal restaurant. The kitchen is on the stage, and diners can watch their meals being prepared. The food was very good.

Jane and I detoured down a pedestrian shopping street on the way back to the hotel. The shops were very elegant. We got back to the hotel at 10:30.