Let's Go Europe 2019. Harvard Student Agencies

you’re lucky, you’ll snag a seat in the minuscule triangular square just outside the restaurant, although the air-conditioned interior is a nice break from the mid-August heat or windy fall days of Southern France.

       i Entrées from €12; vegetarian options available; wheelchair accessible

       NIGHTLIFE

       AOC

      5 Pl. Jérusalem; 04 90 25 21 04; www.aocavignon.fr; open M-T noon-2pm and 6pm-10:30pm, F-Sa noon-2pm and 6pm-11pm, Su noon-2pm and 6pm-10pm

      AOC is a fabulous wine bar in the heart of Avignon. AOC allows you to play the best game of pretend wine-connoisseur of your life. Here’s how to play: 1. Listen to the waiter describe the subtle notes of honeysuckle in such-and-such regional wine. 2. Pick up your glass (cup it from the bottom for red and hold it by the stem for white). 3. Stick your nose inside, gracefully. 4. Swirl it, take a small sip, don’t swallow, but instead swish it in your mouth. 5. Watch the waiter’s respect for you go up tenfold, we promise. Correctly pair your wine (red with meat, white with seafood), or your effort will go to waste.

       i Appetizers from €10, main courses from €15, lunch special €14.90; vegetarian options available; wheelchair accessible

       LALOGÈNE

      1 Pl. Pie; 04 86 81 60 76; open daily 7:30am-1:30am

      Lalogène is a lovely terrace café by day and the closest thing Avignon has to a club by night. Tourists are in the minority in this stylish, clean bar with blue bumping beats and extremely affordable drinks. Situated on the lovely Place Pie, either party inside or chill on the outdoor terrace, which is one of our favorite spots to spend a warm summer evening with old and new friends. The best part? Waiters constantly swing by to clear tables outside, so you won’t have to worry about empty beer bottles lying around as you’re trying to have a fun rendezvous at Lalogène.

       i Beer and wine from €2.50, coffee from€1.10

ARLES

      Picture sunbaked houses on narrow cobbled streets with off-kilter wooden window shutters and pink and green flower boxes. Fade-in on Arles and that’s exactly what you get. Arles looks straight out of a nineteenth-century impressionist oil painting. And, hey, now that we think of it, we’re feeling a little déjà vu because we actually have seen this scene before on a Van Gogh canvas. Van Gogh painted over 200 works around Arles, capturing its shady squares, Roman monuments, and lovely countryside. And, if you, for some reason, still aren’t sold, Arles also boasts a famous Roman arena where gladiators once fought to their deaths. The ruins of the amphitheater are quite well-worth a daytrip. The historic center of Arles is bordered by Boulevard Georges Clemenceau, which morphs into Boulevard des Lices, in the south. Boulevard Emile Combes constitutes the western border and the River Rhône runs on the northeastern edge of the city. The train station in the north is just a 15-minute walk from the entrance to Arles, which you will enter by passing a large roundabout and through La Porte de La Cavalerie. The main street from the gates leads you directly to the Roman Amphitheater (it’s ginormous—you can’t miss it). Continuing down Rue de la Gallade will take you right to L’Eglise de Saint-Trophime. Place du Forum is just a street away on your right, and the rest of sights are all within a few blocks from there.

      GETTING THERE

      There is a shuttle bus between Arles and Marseille-Provence Airport. Other nearby airports include Nîmes-Alès-Camargue and Montpellier-Mediterranee Airports. The Gare d’Arles (Av. Paulin Talabot) accepts high-speed (TGV) and regional (TEV) trains. The TGV is on the line from Paris-Lyon to Marseille-Saint-Charles train station. Paris-Arles direct trains connect Arles and Avignon (20min.), Marseille (50min.) and Nîmes (20min.). The fastest way to arrive from an international destination is via airplane to Marseille and connection to a train to Arles. The main bus station on is Bd. des Lices.

      GETTING AROUND

      Arles is easily walkable and requires no public transportation whatsoever. The tourist office provides maps that point out the best walking routes through the city to pass all the major sights. If walking isn’t your thing, there is a train that offers a 40min. tour of all the sites with commentary in six different languages from April to October. You could rent a bike, but roads in Arles lend themselves to bumpy rides.

       Swing by…

       LES ARÈNES (ROMAN AMPHITHEATRE)

      1 Rond-Point des Arènes; 08 91 70 03 70; www.arenes-arles.com; open daily May-Sept 9am-7pm, Nov-Mar 10am-5pm, Apr-Oct 9am-6pm

      Welcome to the arena. You’re in the middle of an enclosed sand pit and the stadiums are filled with 21,000 spectators. Let’s hope you brought your strappy leather sandals and metal vest because today you’ll be fighting against a fellow tourist to the death for an acceptable Instagram shot. The Roman amphitheater is where, centuries ago, gladiators fought bloody battles with wild animals before it became a fortress in the fifth century CE. Climb up the four towers added to each side of the oval for a great look down at the area and view of Arles on the opposite site.

       i Admission €9, students €7; limited wheelchair accessibility

       Check out…

       THÉÂTRE ANTIQUE (ROMAN THEATRE)

      8 Rue de la Calade; 04 90 18 41 20; open daily Jan 9am-noon, Feb 10am-noon and 2pm-5pm, Mar-Apr 9am-noon, May-Sept 9am-7pm, Oct-Dec 9am-noon and 2pm-6pm

      Eager for more oval-shaped, tiered Roman relics? You’re in luck! Just around the corner from Les Arènes is the less visually impressive, but still historically fascinating Roman Theatre. The theatre—not to be confused with its neighboring relic—was built in the time of Augustus and had 33 tiers to hold 8,000 spectators. Unlike its amphi-counterpart, this theatre has had a much harder time holding up over the years, mainly because it was employed as a quarry in the Middle Ages to provide stone for the surrounding town wall. Save two, all the columns are mere stumps, giving the ruins an ancient Stonehenge feeling.

       i Admission €9, students €7, with Liberty Pass admission €12, students €10; wheelchair accessible

       Grab a bite at…

       L’HUILE FAD’OLI

      44 Rue des Arènes; 04 90 49 70 73; open daily noon-midnight

      If you’re looking for a delicious meal that won’t break the bank, Fad’Oli is the spot. Just on the corner of Place du Forum, this brightly-colored, petite restaurant with four red and yellow tables outside serves gourmet baguette sandwiches, large “Fadola” sandwiches, and (perhaps strangely) sushi. Around the restaurant there are giant barrels of olive oil on tap since, if you couldn’t tell from the name, olive oil is their specialty. Drizzled on top of salads and sandwiches (and let’s hope not the sushi), this liquid gold adds rich flavor to even the simplest of ingredients. Inside, you can read the descriptions of each gold-medal winning oil (yes, there are competitions for these things), and you can even buy a bottle to-go.

       i Sandwiches from €4, salads from €6, sushi from €10; vegan and vegetarian options available

       Don’t miss…

       FONDATION VAN GOGH

      35 Rue du Dr Fanton; 04 90 93 08 08; open daily Apr-Sept 11am-7pm; open Mar Tu-Su 11am-6pm

      In 1888, when the renowned artist