TALBOT9462

Nice Hotel de France

Thu Sunday Dec^r 13^th/68.

My dear Father.

I rather hoped to have found a letter from you on my arrival here. I did find one from Rosamond ¹ with advice as to what to see at Genoa.

Today (my first day) at Nice there has been a bad day for sightseeing viz very rainy weather, and very mild, but as tonight the stars are visible I think it likely that we may have a fine day tomorrow. –

I had also rather a rainy day for my journey yesterday from Marseilles to this place, but I could see that the country was in general very pretty. I did not stop at Cannes.

I wrote to you from Lyons, and went from there to Arles, not stopping at Avignon, but as the place looked picturesque as I passed it, I rather regretted that I had done so The last night that I was at Lyons there was a great illumination in honour of the festival of the “Immaculate Conception” – . The day I went to Arles was very fine, the sun very hot and the outline s of the mountains very distinct

At Arles I saw the Amphitheatre ² the theatre, and the church or cathedral of St Trophime, all of which I admired much, but I did not see the Roman Cemetery. ³ – The Cloisters of the Church of St Trophime, are remarkably fine. The whole church is Romanesque <illegible deletion> and part of it looks very early.

I also saw a large collection of antiquities in the Museum – . between the Museum and St Trophime is the Place, there is an obelisk ⁴ and on a pedestal which was discovered in the Rhone.

The hotel at Arles was indifferent though tolerable, and as the town is very dirty, I regretted that I had not rather stopped at Avignon and gone over to Arles from there. A French scientific association had been meeting at Monpellier, <sic> and were over at Arles. – I made acquaintance with one of the members who was staying in the same hotel, and talked archæology to him under difficulties as he did not understand a word of English.

I slept at Marseilles two nights and was pleased with the place. I climbed to the top of a hill f on which is a church called Notre Dame de la garde, ⁵ and from which there is a very fine view. – That day was very cold, with a high wind. – The country round Marseilles seems to be remarkably pretty. In the town I find the Parisian style of architecture being carried on. I got some money by means of my circular notes there without any difficulty.

I also went to the Zoological gardens where there is not a very large collection but the creatures in general seemed to be in good condition and I should think the climate suited them – Here I have so far only had an unsatisfactory glimpse of palm trees scarlet geraniums in flower, datura and various other astonishing objects.

When I arrived at Marseilles the Mediterranean looked beautifully smooth and glassy, but a gentleman who had arrived from Malta had had a very bad passage, and had nothing dry about him.

Your affect son

Charles. –