Lazy, zoomy Nimes

We decided on a quiet couple of days in Nimes as it’s just so lovely to wander about aimlessly or sit and watch the World.

Today started with Zooms. I had a Spanish test and then Jennifer had several hours of meetings.

I took advantage of Jennifer being tied up to go and see the ruins of the Roman water system. They piped water over 50 km to a cistern where it was then distributed around the city via lead pipes. The cistern sits open by the side of a road now.

After lunch in a very French creperíe we visited the Musee Romanie for a deep dive into Roman history, and some fabulous mosaics. Feels like we are now playing Roman antiquity bingo and scoring well.

in the evening, which was still hot at over 30 degrees, we climbed the hill above the Jardins de La Fontaine and stomped up endless steps to the top of the Tour Magne. The tower was built by the Romans and stands with a view over the entirety of Nimes and it surrounds. It is lucky to be there at all because one interpretation of a Nostradamus prediction has treasure buried inside it, and in the 17th century it was torn at in futile attempts to uncover the riches.

It was a national day of music festivals and our dinner in a small square was accompanied by a choir and street drumming; there were jazz bands, soulful French singing, rock concerts – something in every small square. The street outside our apartment was home to a samba band until late into the night – which went from very cool to mildly irritating as the night wore on.