Aix en Provence

We did another Seminary & Institute audit in southern France in a charming town called Aix en Provence, which is 30k north of Marseille (on the Mediterranean).  The weather was a balmy 65 degrees by afternoon which was a welcome change for us. We visited the Family Home Evening there.  Most of the YSA's have it with their families but this was attended by 2 missionaries, the advisory couple, us and 4 kids (1 from Tahiti, 1 from China, 1 from The Congo, and 1 actually from France)  It was fun and very interesting to visit with them and see them interact.   

This city is known for its fountains.

We rented a car and drove to a nearby town called Arles 

which is famous for its Roman Ruins!

A museum showed what the structures looked like originally:

This amphitheater held 10,000 people.  All the citizens could attend plays for free 

but the rulers sat on the first rows and the poorest peasants were in the nosebleed section.  Here is how it looks today...it is still used for concerts.

Now comes the huge stadium which held 20,000 people. 

 Today there are bull fights held here:

This model  gives a vision of what it was really like!

The view of Arles from the stadium!  Beautiful!!!

There was also a Roman Cemetary...very interesting!

Our last day was a "market" day in Aix and every square 

of the city had a different market......so charming!

olives, cheeses, cookies, flowers, sausages!

What a great experience!  We loved Provence!!!