Day 140 River of Roman design!

Wednesday 08/08/2018 Day (Day 53 SZ) Appart'City Nîmes 364, allée de l’Amérique Latine, Nîmes, 30900, France

Setting off today we hadn’t as usual any real plans other than wanting to see Pont Du Gard and a suggestion from the lovely young girl yesterday at the info centre who suggested a few sights around the area... so John set Nav for Collias....Not really knowing what was there we were surprised by the huge bridge over the Collias River and below even though the water wasn’t deep were 100’s of canoes and canoe business set up along the river shore line..

Each business had a different coloured canoe ... so they could distinguish their own..
One business had 100’s of their own canoes all lineup one on top of the other..John and I was totally in awe as we couldn’t see how so many of the candies would b used and where on earth would they all fit as not that big of a river... when we pulled up the car park where we parked only had a few cars by the time we did leave there were 100’s of cars lined up... and as the day progressed we realised that they needed every one of their canoes as most canoed down stream to Pont Du Gard where you could see it from the water...

We wandered around the river and it’s bank for a while just so nice to be amongst nature instead of buildings and people, people everywhere.....there was a massive restaurant set up on the top side of the river bank so we had a cuppa in the breeze as the day heat as already knocking us... such a different heat to home even though ours is dry and this is also a dry heat but so, very different in the way you cope with it... once we were revived back to the car along the country roads following Nav who I am sure is stupid at times as she really does take us only some totally stupid roads when clearly there are better ones, but John for the life if me I dont know why insists he must follow her, only to discover many times I am right, but never tells me I am... that darn women has got him right where she wants him.... anyway...... we did make it and off to see it for ourselves...

Yes there is a cost hmmmmm.... and not a cheap cost either, but after actually spending our day there and it was a lot longer than planned I guess it was worth it...

The Pont Du Gard sure stands out and is very eye catching..... it’s actually an ancient aqueduct built as part of what was a 50k system around the 1AD the bridge was built in 3 different stages... info below gives more detail..

Our day consisted of a lunch 🥗 at the restaurant as we walked in not realising there were other smaller restaurants on the other side of the Pont Du Gard... meal wasn’t too bad but they had you being the only access to meals on this side... across the river which was afloat with canoes and people everywhere all worshipping the sun as only the Europeans can... there is a magnificent old 6 story building that appears to be abandoned, so sad as we got close up you could see it had been working not too long ago, had areas outside to eat as well as this beautiful old building so very French in its set up...

Being in the bridge you could appreciate it’s sheer size but just wall to wall people... we had to pick such a busy day... however it is summer holidays so guessing most days are like this.... views up and down the river gave us insight into why people would hire a canoe 🛶 to come under the Pont much better views I feel, being from the water than up here or even on the banks below it... still would be as good as in the water below it!

We wandered past some olive trees 100’s of years old along a path that lead us to heaps more shops, cafes and a massive museum and cinema complex.....very modern, kind of felt out of place in amongst the old buildings we were viewing...
however they had a fantastic movie about the aqueduct and you could see it from a drones perspective along the whole route used to place it along and see some of the other ruins along the path that are still there today..... ohh how I wish we had a 4x4 to explore that track and follow it through the Bush....

Next a museum all setup with how it was built so well done, a lot of thought has gone into this museum.... lastly totally out of place a graffiti display this felt really weird to see amongst the relics of days of old..... not sure why they would have this displayed but it was so we had a look...

Having finished this side which now appears to be the main side... we headed back across the bridge to the car... getting pics of the grand old olive trees, the Pont Du Gard from the lower banks of the river... funny yet again snails 🐌 all over the bushes no wonder the French love snails..... some pics of these as well before heading off through different villages to home... a very hot day but thoroughly worth the effort...

Another dinner in tonight... and a good rest needed for another day of sight seeing tomorrow.

Info thanks to the Crazy Tourist © 2018 THE CRAZY TOURIST
Pont du Gard
The magnificent construction that traverses the Gardon River is 20 kilometres from Nîmes, but is part of the ancient city’s infrastructure. The aqueduct brought water all the way from the Fontaine d’Eure, bypassing the high plateau directly north of Nîmes with a 50-kilometre crescent. Pont du Gard is the most astonishing section, standing at almost 50 metres, with three tiers of arches. And despite the awesome scale of the aqueduct there’s a difference in gradient of just 2.5 centimetres from one side of the Pont du Gard to the other, 275 metres away on the opposite bank.

Info thanks to Wiki
The aqueduct bridge is part of the Nîmes aqueduct, a 50-kilometre (31 mi) system built in the first century AD to carry water from a spring at Uzès to the Roman colony of Nemausus (Nîmes). Because of the uneven terrain between the two points, the mostly underground aqueduct followed a long, winding route that called for a bridge across the gorge of the Gardon River. The bridge has three tiers of arches, stands 48.8 m (160 ft) high, and descends a mere 2.5 centimetres (1 in) – a gradient of only 1 in 18,241 – while the whole aqueduct descends in height by only 12.6 m (41 ft) over its entire length, which is indicative of the great precision that Roman engineers were able to achieve using simple technology. The aqueduct formerly carried an estimated 40,000 m3 (8,800,000 imp gal) of water a day to the fountains, baths and homes of the citizens of Nîmes. It may have been in use as late as the 6th century, with some parts used for significantly longer, but a lack of maintenance after the 4th century led to clogging by mineral deposits and debris that eventually choked off the flow of water.
After the Roman Empire collapsed and the aqueduct fell into disuse, the Pont du Gard remained largely intact, due to the importance of its secondary function as a toll bridge. For centuries the local lords and bishops were responsible for its upkeep, in exchange for the right to levy tolls on travellers using it to cross the river, although some of its stones were looted and serious damage was inflicted on it in the 17th century. It attracted increasing attention starting in the 18th century, and became an important tourist destination. It underwent a series of renovations between the 18th and 21st centuries, commissioned by the local authorities and the French state, which culminated in 2000 with the opening of a new visitor centre and the removal of traffic and buildings from the bridge and the area immediately around it. Today it is one of France's most popular tourist attractions, and has attracted the attention of a succession of literary and artistic visitors.Read more