An inseparable couple. Ancient and Romanesque, Arles has the feverish atmosphere of a city redolent with Spanish influence, under a sky swept clean by the Mistral. From its elevated position, the town sets the rhythm for the placid Rhone delta, in whose arms beats the pulse of the Camargue, long established as a place of worship.
The two places have linked their destinies. You don’t go to visit Arles without visiting the Camargue and the urbanity of the one perfectly balances the other’s desire for open spaces. Arriving in Arles is like plunging into an ocean of culture with an ever-present ‘art of living’ borrowed from neighbouring Iberia.
With its Roman remains (ancient theatre and arena), Romanesque treasures (Saint-Trophime church and cloisters), art collections (Arlaten Museum, Réattu Museum), Arles remembers the dazzling talent of Van Gogh, whose paintings reflected the beauty of the glaring light. But, nestled on the banks of the powerful Rhone River, Arles knows how to let itself go at bull-fighting festivals and cockade runs. An infectious trance takes hold of the town, heightened by the furious activity of the lively bodegas.
It is only a short step from bull-fighting to the bulls themselves and you take this step when you travel into the watery world of the Camargue. This is the home of that much-feared animal which, along with pink flamingos and white horses, makes up the area’s winning trio. People come from far away to admire their crazy stampedes and peaceful ramblings across the meadows and salt marshes. They also come to soak up the thousand-year-old culture and the subtle balance between human traditions and environmental protection.
The town of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer is a fine example of this wise balance, which herdsmen and gipsies defend with a passion.
