Rose Cantine

If you are in Languedoc-Roussillon or Provence, don’t miss the Pont du Gard outside Uzès, near Nîmes and Arles. The Pont du Gard is part of a 50-kilometer Roman aqueduct built in the first century AD, whose purpose was to bring water from Castellum to Nîmes. At that time, Nîmes was one of the most important cities of Gaul and had a population of 20,000. What people see - the aqueduct bridge over the Gard river - is only a small part of the actual aqueduct, much of which is underground.

Try to get to the Pont du Gard as soon as it opens, before most of the tourists arrive. In the summer when it is very hot, get there before 11:00. Otherwise bring a beach umbrella, floatables, picnic basket, bathing suits, towels and beach chairs. You can actually enjoy a day at the “beach” on the river, which has a restaurant and other facilities including kayaks for rent.

I bought a DVD at the museum on the site. The DVD contains documentaries on how the aqueduct was constructed and on the Roman buildings in Nîmes, specifically the arena and the Maison Carrée. The documentaries are in French with English subtitles - utterly fascinating.

Read up on the Pont du Gard here:

Wikipedia on the Pont du Gard

Official Pont du Gard website (French)

Nimes

The Maison Carrée (square house) and the arena of Nîmes are among the best-preserved buildings I have seen from the Roman era. The reason these structures did not fall into ruin is that the people of Nîmes used them over the years for different things.

The Maison Carrée, built between 19-16 BC by Agrippa, was used as a Christian church after the fall of Rome and starting in the 1800s, as a museum. The arena functioned for a long time as a fortress where people actually lived and defended themselves. At one time, there were houses and soldiers’ living quarters in the arena. Because people continued to use these buildings over the centuries, they maintained them.

Today the arena is used for bullfights and concerts. Then, as now, it could fit 20,000 people who came to watch the free gladiatorial combats. You can visit the arena and walk inside, and even see a detailed exhibit about the different types of gladiators who fought there, their short biographies (most did not live past 25 years of age) and their attire. To view a virtual tour of the arena, click here.

Travel recommendations: where to stay

Pont du Gard and Nîmes are in Languedoc-Roussillon, just over the border from Provence. It makes more sense to stay in this area if you plan to visit Nîmes, Arles, St. Rémy de Provence, and Les Baux de Provence. To avoid the crowds, stay in a small hilltown such as Uzès or Blauzac (right outside Uzès).

I recommend that you stay in Blauzac at a B&B called La Maison, which has a swimming pool and dazzling views over the valley. Blauzac is a tiny village where the only sounds you will hear are those of the church bells.

I will post more about Uzès and Arles later.