We ventured out very early Saturday morning driving south towards our destination of Les Saintes Maries de la Mer. We stopped along the way to see the majestic Pont du Gard; an impressive sight since it was built nearly 2000 years age! The aqueduct was constructed by Agrippa in 19BC to carry water of the Eure near Uzès to Nimes, about 25 miles away.
We stopped at the city of Nimes where we visited the beautiful Maison Carrée (Square House) built in 1C BC probably overlooking the Forum. It is the best preserved of all Roman temples and shows strong Greek influence. The buildings length is twice its width, the podium and pediment are each one fifth the overall height.The capitals are Corinthian decorated with carved rosettes and leaves.
The Nimes Arena (50AD) is one of the best preserved Roman amphitheaters. It could hold 24,000 spectators that could vacate in five minutes by means of many internal stairways and galleries.
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