Nimes, Uzès, Pont du Gard

After lunch we linked up with our guide Thierry for a half day trip to Nimes, Uzès, and the Pont du Gard:

Nimes is famous for its Maison Carrée (“square house”), a temple devoted to the worship of Augustus etc, plus an amazing Roman amphitheatre that has been maintained, and is still in use. We weren’t able to see inside because the Nimes Feria (Festival) is on, and the arena is needed for bullfights! But Des did fall in love with a white horse being exercised while his rider was checking Facebook!

Uzès is a classic old French town, beautiful, and steeped in history. We walked through the gate used by Louis XI and his musketeers when they captured the town from the Protestants! And after dispossession by the Revolution, the local duke was able, once the worst was over, to re-acquire his family castle so that Uzès still has “Monsieur Le Duc” today. His coat-of-arms is tiled on the castle roof.

Pont du Gard is a Roman aqueduct (now also a bridge at the lower level) that was part of a 50km engineering feat that transported water from Uzès to Nimes. Over all that 50km, the water fell only 12m - an amazing achievement!

That was the plan, but it nearly came unstuck at our first stop! Around the Nimes arena there are low curved descending steps. I was so interested in what Thierry was saying that I missed the step and fell. I didn’t break anything except my pride, but I hit my head and gashed my left elbow, and was a bit woozy with shock for a while.

Des looked after me while Thierry raced off to a pharmacy for antiseptic & plasters.

We then carried on to Uzès and the Pont.

But it got worse. That night as I went to charge my hearing aids, I found the left one was missing - it must have been knocked out by the accident, but I didn’t notice. Insurance job! I’ve been thinking about replacing them anyway, as they are five years old. Time for an upgrade.

But as you can see from the photos, the trip was so worthwhile!Lue lisää