Les Baux-de-Provence

Les Baux de Provence - in “the book.”

The very top part of Baux is known as the Dead City….ruins from long ago. It was very difficult for me to imagine living there – now or when it was built. I also can’t imagine how they built it. I think I can guess why they built here – easy to defend, and…..

The views in this area are breathtaking. But the wind was intense. Andy threw a rock and the wind brought it right back to him.

The lower part of Baux is a restored village filled with quaint shops and little restaurants. I did some shopping – hoping that part of the money I spend in places like this goes to helping keep it for future generations.

Baux is out of the way, but I am glad we made the trip.

Vincent Van Gogh was in a mental institution near here.

Arles Amphitheatre

Arles Amphitheatre - in “the book.”

It is pretty easy to find a huge coliseum / amphitheater / arena in a small French town. Arles has many Roman ruins, but the coliseum is the main feature. And…the ruins are in a compact area thereby limiting the amount of walking required.

The coliseum is being restored, but it is in really good shape considering its age. I am so amazed at what people built thousands of years ago without the technology we have today. The coliseum has many creepy, dark alcoves and hiding spots. I would not want to be there in the dark.

The other impressive ruin in Arles is the Ancient Theatre. The stage is now very modern, but most of the seating is original. Lying around the area are some of the original columns and other artifacts from Roman times.

Arles is also known as the city where Vincent van Gogh lived and worked near the end of his life. He apparently painted many of his masterpieces here, but the local museum does not have any original art; so we skipped it. Van Gogh was living in Arles when he went mad and cut off his ear.

We visited a local cathedral. It is not an ornate cathedral – pretty plain actually – except for the beautiful stained glass. One section of the cathedral contains boxes with remains. I saw a skull. I could have skipped this part.

Amsterdam March 2008

Spring break - Andy's senior year of high school

This was Andy and Jill's first trip to Europe. We selected it for a few reasons, in no particular order:
1. Most people understand and/or speak English
2. Most people would know how to pronounce our last name (it is Dutch)
3. We knew it would be easy to get around

Our first big decision was made after watching a Samantha Brown program - where to stay? We decided to rent a houseboat on the Amstel river. I would make the same decision again. We loved it. Granted, it was a bit cozy, but it was a fun experience. The boat was solidly anchored, so there was no movement at all. And, it came with a cat, who belonged to our hosts who lived in the other (bigger) side of the boat.

Amsterdam has one of the best science museums I've ever been to. We spent an entire day there - in part because the weather outside was miserable. I wasn't sure when we arrived if there would be enough stuff to entertain two teens, but there was. It was a really good day. Picture was taken at the science museum - Jill enclosing herself in a gigantic bubble.

We spent the equivalent of one day in art museums - Van Gogh's and the Rijksmuseum (sp?).

In keeping with being American tourists, we did have one meal at the Hard Rock Cafe.

We took a day trip to the Hague, and one to Delft.

Highlights - and places to check off my list:
Anne Frank house
Cafe society (No, I didn't)
Canal cruise - relaxing and a great way to see the city
Oude Kerk - old church (it is really, really old)
Red-light district (No, I didn't) - great people watching
Rijksmuseum - most of it was closed for renovation though
Van Gogh museum - loved it!
Delft - lovely town
Het Mauritshuis - great gift shop