Monday - Drove to Nimes for the day
Today we were in Nimes by 10:30. We parked in the Arena lot. "Arena" refers to the Roman arena, which is similar to the Roman colosseum in Rome Italy, but our guide book says it is even better preserved. It is like a time capsule of A.D 100. Dan and I have toured it on our last trip, so we showed it to the kids from the outside and kept enjoying Nimes.
Now I'll back up a bit. Our drive to Nimes was gorgeous. It was 30 minutes, and amazing. For part of it we were way up high driving along a gorge, with no guard rail, just a rock wall. And the road was like a one lane road, but it was two way traffic. It swerved and zigged and was exhilarating. Similar to our other drives, there was nothing man made to scar the view except a bridge, some planted trees, and maybe a stone house or two in the distance.
As we got closer to Nimes that changed. Nimes is a city, so naturally there were gas stations, shops, houses, etc as we got closer.
Nimes as a long history. There is all the Roman stuff still around the city (from 2,000 years ago) - and also in the middle ages Nimes was busy making a fabric. It is called "denim" - jeans! It is named after Nimes (de Nimes = from Nimes and that became denim). Levi Strauss brought it to the US to be used in the West. It all started in Nimes.
We didn't have a check list of things to do in Nimes, since we've been here before we've done all those things - which is nice, since we just get to walk around and enjoy rather than try to see sites. The girls took everything in. It was another bright sunny day, warm, and breezy.
When we first stepped out onto Nimes Sara took Julia by the hand and they walked around together. Julia took two steps to every one of Sara's since her legs are a bit shorter, but Julia kept right up and scooted along the pebbly path with her sister. They looked mighty cute. It was windy. And I worried that Julia would blow away, so after a while I swept her up into my arms, then she wiggled back out again and walked with Sara.
Our first stop was a chocolate shop for a cup of chocolate mouse. That wasn't brillant, it seemed to super charge Sara, who was running top speed down the narrow streets of Nimes about an hour later. The old part of Nimes reminded us of Venice Italy, how the buildings are so close together and they seem to line tiny narrow streets that don't seem to bother keeping a direction - they just turn and zig and zag as they please. It was traffic free, so I didn't worry to much about our running Sara getting struck by a car, but I didn't want her to get whalloped by a bike or a scooter. That meant I had to run with her. She is fast - but she was impressed that Mama can run fast too.
We made lunch a priority. It may sound like all we do is eat. Anyway, Dan picked us out a great outdoor cafe right by the cathedral - it had carvings on the fresco from Roman times and the food was amazing. I had a salad with olives, greens, potatoes, duck, chicken, tomatoes and whatever else. Sara had ham and pasta. Dan had a crepe with stuff in side of it. Julia ate everything that came near her - though she was more interested in the pigeons wandering around the tables than she was in the food. Water is free here (a nice change from some countries) and they always give you a carafe of water and a basket of bread. It makes a meal 25 euro instead of 29 euro which is nice. Our table was in the shade, though we were near the sun so it was the best of both worlds.
After our bellies were full we did more walking around. We saw the Maison Carree, which "rivals Rome's pantheon as the most complete and splendid building that survives from the Roman Empire." For us it is neat since it is said to have inspired Thomas Jefferson (a Virginian) to build his house Monticello. I climbed the steps - marveling that those steps have been around for so long, and then we kept walking.
A high point of the day was when we got to the "Jardin de la Fountaine" or Fountain Garden. It is a huge open space, which was a Versailles style park, but built for the people! I loved all the statues, the steps, the grandness of it all. The girls LOVED running around - dashing behind trees, chasing each other in the sun, climbing up steps, playing "follow the leader", and even playing in a hollowed out tree - that served to entertain them for almost an hour. After all that fun, they were glowing, and we went to a park side cafe for ice cream.
Sara didn't finish her lunch (that we ate by the cathedral) so we pulled it out of my backpack (we had tupperware like we always do) and she had to eat that before getting ice cream. Lucky for Sara, Julia reached for some of it, so Sara finished her lunch with Julia's help and we all had ice cream.
Soon after that we saw the "Temple of Diana" that is "one of the best examples of ancient stone work." It is a ruin, free to enter, and I think it spoke stories to those who listened. I enjoyed walking around it, and Sara nearly insisted on playing hide and seek in the garden that is attached to it. Meanwhile, Julia napped. I did play hide and seek with Sara (how could I not?) and it was fun to hide behind pilars that have been there for thousands of years. Her hiding spots were usually plants - so it was pretty easy to spot her golden hair poking out behind greenery as she hid in the bright afternoon sun.
We walked back along the canal (the needed water to power their textile industry) and wandered back through the narrow streets to the parking garage. Along the way, Dan stopped in an artesian beer store and Sara and I stopped in a bakery. We had to try one of the decorated chocolate muffins, and it was mighty good. It cost 2 Euro, and hte nice lady re-filled our water bottle too. Sara is a distinctive customer, so she can usually get us anything we are hoping to procure. (Read: Sara is cute and shop keepers are amused by her.)
The drive out of town was a confusing set of roads, twisting under bridges, winding around round-a-bouts, and finally back onto a main road. We hit the big super market (spent 100 Euro on all sorts of stuff for meals to cook in the apartment) and then I gave the girls a nice warm bubble bath in their new pool. The apartment only has a shower, so it was a neat idea to use the pool for that, and it even fits in the shower area. They were squeeky clean for dinner. Chicken, melon, tomatoes, and a lot of milk to drink. Strawberries for desert.
Sara loved the day's adventure. Julia laughed a lot and both of them were good travelers.
Sara and I looked at the stars before she went to bed - and she was out like a light.
Quote of the day: The following occurred while Sara was sitting on Dan's lap, at an outdoor park side cafe waiting for the ice cream to arrive. Dan ordered the ice cream, so in Sara's mind it was going to be his -- and by what she said she was hoping to solidify her desire to have some of the tasty treat.
Sara: "You know Papa, everyday people share food, water, and love. You have to share."
Papa: "Okay Sara." (And he did. We all shared Dan's two scoops of ice cream. I think he even got to try some.)
End of Post. Happy Labor Day.
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