Over the valley, from side to side, and ever so high in the air, stretch the three tiers of the tremendous bridge. They are unspeakably imposing, and nothing could well be more Roman. The hugeness, the solidity, the unexpectedness, the monumental rectitude of the whole thing leave you nothing to say at the time and make you stand gazing. You simply feel that it is noble and perfect, that it has the quality of greatness. From A Little Tour in France by Henry James (1884) People often write and ask me questions about Provence. A common one is “which site should we definitely see in…

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The Romans left a lot behind in Provence: temples, aqueducts, baths, theaters, forums, arches, and whole cities, to mention just a few of the larger structures we find in this region. Some of the best preserved Roman architecture in the world stands in Provence. Even the ruins left standing alone in desolate fields are pretty amazing. Arles and Vaison-la-Romaine are thriving cities today, whose residents indifferently file past Roman remains that are so interesting and beautiful, the rest of us would be stopped in our tracks. I know; I have been stopped in my tracks in both cities. Evidence abounds that these ancient Roman cities…

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On June 17th, some 2,000 years after its construction, the Theatre Antique in Orange, will lift the curtain for its 142nd annual Les Chorégies d’Orange festival, the oldest festival in France.  If you are traveling in Provence, don’t miss the opportunity to attend one of the lyrical and musical performances in this extraordinary venue:  the performers world renown, the acoustics considered perfect, and the venue extraordinary.  You are guaranteed to be transported to another world. If you know Provence, you know that the Romans, who hailed over the region from the 2nd century BC to 5th century AD, left much behind.  Besides its name–Provence comes…

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