ERIK'S
WANDER OF EUROPE
intro
pre-trip
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Post
trip
> Explore Arles
8:13 – I slept a little better than the last two nights, but still not very well. The place is freaking loud. Our room sounds as though it were in the middle of a disco. I wore earplugs to bed. I slept 3 good hours, but around 1 my plugs fell out and I awoke. I took a 1.5-hour sleeping intermission and listened to the people outside my room in the courtyard. (Though they sounded like they were right next to my bed) There were Canadians and Americans out there and they were arguing about which country is better, it was pretty entertaining, especially when the Canadian girl thought the red coats fought in the Civil War. Eventually around 2:30 they went to bed and so did I.
I then re-woke at 5:30, right when I wanted to. We packed and took the sub for the last time to Gar de Lyon. We eventually figured out which train we needed to board. It was a bit stressful since we were tired and didn’t know any French rail vocab. I now know voit= car and voies=track. Once on the train we forgot to mark the date on our Europass so the ticket lady was pissed, but that is to be expected, she is French.
I then ate some pastries and took a nap. Now we are hauling ass to
Lyon where we will switch trains to Arles. Right now I am sitting across
from some stiff business guy who looks like Tiger Woods, except uglier.
Actually, there are many stiff business people on here.
11:01 – We successfully switched trains and we are now one hour away from our stop in Arles. I slept a bit on this train, and now I am enjoying the scenery that is very beautiful: Hills in the distance and sunflower fields near the track.
14:03 – We are in Arles, I really like this town. It is quiet, simple, small, full of Roman ruins, cheap, and best of all we got a cheap room (144f, while the stupid 3 Duck place was 300f for the both of us.) and the room is really nice too. (Of course it required a little inefficient wandering before we could find it.) We have to enter through the back up some old stone stairs and we have a small room sans bathroom, two floors above the cute alley below. And best of all, I think it will be quiet.
It is hot here, but it is a dry heat so I think I can handle it.
Right now we plan on exploring the town, tomorrow we will take a
bus to the Mediterranean, and Wednesday an open air market and a BULLFIGHT
in an ancient Roman stadium. Woo hoo!
17:05 – We wandered around town a bit and checked out the Roman stadium; I can’t wait for the bullfight on Wednesday. We also hiked a small hill to the Roman church and checked out the view; this little town is really cool.
Erik and his baguette dinner
17:23 – I was waiting in line for a free computer I found, it is butt slow, but I can check e-mail.
Now I am at a nearby park and I am sitting next to five old ladies who are chatting and fanning themselves. It is funny.
Oh yah, after the church we bought some postcards and then went to a grocery store where we bought some snacks for the beach tomorrow. I also bought another journal because I think this one will run out. I think I will write some postcards and then take a nap here in the park.
"Hills in the distance and sunflower fields near the track."
The window of our hotel room