Global Treasures ARLES Provence, France

GTR-DVD-1142 - A beautiful fountain with an Egyptian obelisk graces the Place De La République in the heart of Arles, an historic and charming small town in the south of France.

Next to the City Hall is the Romanic Saint Trophime Cathedral with its splendid church porch that dates back to the 12th century.

The town's Amphitheatre is the region's greatest building that has survived from the time of the Roman Empire and it is also the most important arena in the former Gallic colony. Three watchtowers that date back to the Middle Ages were left in tact by archaeologists as a reminder of the fortifications of the beautiful amphitheatre.

Arles and its magnificent cathedral soon became one of the Romans' most favoured towns and was referred to as 'Little Rome in Gaul' when more than twenty thousand spectators witnessed savage gladiatorial battle in its Amphiteatre.

Today Arles is closely associated with the name of world famous Dutch painter, Vincent Van Gogh. He completed around four hundred paintings in the town.

A visit to Arles is like travelling back in time but with all the unique atmosphere of the present.

Global Treasures - History's Most Protected Monuments - Heritage is our legacy from the past, what we live today, and what we pass on to future generations. our cultural and natural heritage are both irreplaceable sources of life and inspiration. Places as unique and diverse as the wilds of East Africa's Serengeti, the Pyramids of Egypt, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Baroque cathedrals of Latin America make up our world's heritage. Join us as we explore one of these protected monuments.

Climbing Mont Blanc, Alps on the border between France and Italy

Mont Blanc (French for white mountain) or Monte Bianco (Italian, same meaning), also known as "La Dame Blanche" (French, the white lady) is a mountain in the Alps. With its 4,810 m summit, it is the highest mountain in the Alps and Western Europe.[1]

The mountain lies between the regions of Aosta Valley, Italy, and Haute-Savoie, France. The location of the summit itself is a subject of controversy between the two countries, as each tends to place it within its own boundaries on maps. In a convention between France and Kingdom of Sardinia, in Turin (1861), the border [2] was fixed on the highest point of Mont Blanc. This was the last official definition of this border, but often the French maps do not respect this solution.
The two most famous towns near Mont Blanc are Courmayeur, in Aosta Valley, Italy, and Chamonix, in Haute-Savoie, France - the site of the first Winter Olympics. From Chamonix a cable car ascends the mountain side.