As noted last time, due to its strategic location on the Rhone river, Arles was an important city in the Roman Empire. These days, Arles is more like a quiet little country town. But it wasn’t very quiet when we arrived. It was market day in Arles, so there was lots of hustle and bustle. That’s OK, though. It was a nice, laid back, country-style kind of hustle and bustle.
When railroads were built throughout France, they made it possible for cargo to pass by Arles and go straight to Marseille. Marseille replaced Arles as the port-of-call for shipping, and Arles became a quiet little place for tourists like us to visit.
These days, Arles is probably best-known as the place where Vincent Van Gogh came to paint. He wanted to escape from the heady art scene in Paris and paint in a place where there was sunshine. He could use some sunshine in his life, too. There hadn’t been a lot of it where he grew up in the Netherlands, and his childhood there wasn’t the greatest.
Vincent
As a youngster, Vincent was a handful for his parents. As he aged, he became a handful for anyone who got close to him. But most of all he was a handful for himself. Every time things seemed to start going his way — which wasn’t often — he’d manage to find a way to mess them up.
When Vincent was growing up, things were rough at home, so he went out on his own at an early age. He went from job to job and from town to town. He had great compassion for those who were down and out. Most of the time he could count himself among them.
Vincent wasn’t a life-of-the-party kind of guy. He could be moody and erratic in his day-to-day behavior. His only close relationship was with his brother, Theo. They corresponded by mail constantly. Writing letters to Theo was one of the few outlets Vincent had for communicating with anyone in a meaningful way.
Theo and Vincent both had a passion for art. Theo worked in an art gallery in Paris. He did well enough to send Vincent a little cash to help him get by. Vincent liked to draw, and he had a talent for it. After years of Theo’s persuading, Vincent started painting. He never stopped.
When it’s market day in Arles, the streets are full of vendors selling fruit and vegetables, but it’s more than just a produce market. It’s more like a small-town swap meet. Lots of folks come into town to sell whatever they have to sell.
Boules
We were walking around, looking at all kinds of things for sale when we came to a small public park. Some old guys there were playing boules. (Pronounced, “bool.” It’s also known as pétanque. In Italy, they call it “bocce”).
Boules is usually played by two teams of two people each. To start a game, one person throws a little wooden ball, (le cochonnet), 15-20 feet away. Then everyone takes turns throwing bigger balls made out of steel. These are the “boules.” The goal is to be the closest one to the cochonnet after all the boules have been thrown.
When each person has thrown their two boules, they walk over to the cochonnet and inspect where all the boules have landed. Closely. With a measuring tape, if necessary.
The team whose boules are closest to the cochonnet gets points. They tally up the points, pick up their boules, give the cochonnet another toss, and start another round.
Shhhh…
They do this until one team gets enough points to win the game. Then they stop, drink some wine, and then start another game. The sequence is repeated until they run out of wine. That’s the game of boules.
Shhhh… Let’s do a little eaves-dropping, shall we?
Marcel — “Ey, Jacques! C’était le plus mal jette que je n’ai vu dans ma vie!”
(“Hey, Jacques! That was the worst throw I’ve ever seen in my life!”)
Jacques — “Et à la même temps c’était mieux que le meilleur jette dans ta vie!”
(“And still it was better than the best throw of your life!”)
Marcel — “Se je jettais comme ça, je couperais mon bras.”
(“If I threw like that, I’d cut off my arm.”)
Jacques — “Couper le bras peut seulement improver ton game! Ah Ah!”
(“Cutting off your arm could only improve your game! Ha ha!”)
Everyone — “Ah Ah Ah Ah! “C’est un est bon, eh?”
(“Ha ha ha ha! That was a good one, eh?”
To be continued…
The photo of berries at Arles on market day is by Jenna Post/Wikimedia Commons
