Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
About 7 years ago, Les & I started our summer with a week in Rome. We spent the whole winter before getting ready for our Roman immersion: read books, watched the TV series "Rome" (bravissimo!), listened to tapes, etc. And while we were in Rome, we did 4 tours with Context travel, whose guides are art historians or architects or someone with a very in-depth knowledge of the city's history. We were totally hooked. I became especially interested in Augustus, the heir to Julius Ceasar.
Returning to southern France after that trip, we realized the impact the Romans had on Languedoc, where we live in the summer, & started seeking out all things Roman. We've been to underground shopping centers, amphorae factories, ruins, & museums. But our favorite thing is the Roman road. It's called the Via Domitia, & it's the oldest Roman road built in Gaule (France before the Romans), built by Domitius Ahenobarbus in 120 BC. Running 386 miles across the south of France, it linked Rome to Cadiz, Spain. Today, as you roll along (or sit in horrific summer weekend traffic!) route A9, you are actually at times on it, or beside it.
Along this road, the Romans built stops, called "relais routiers", sometimes in existing cities. So the first Sunday we were here this summer, we went to Ambrussan, an old Roman "oppidum" (a cluster of dwellings, often on a hill), to rediscover the Roman road we'd found 7 years ago after our Rome trip. It's still there, in all its splendor, but now it has a new museum, full of artifacts & great information.
We live in a Roman village called Villevieille (old town), on top of a hill, about 25 mintues away. Down in our valley is a river called the Vidourle. The same river runs next to Ambrussan, & the Romans built a beautiful bridge over it. Originally (in 30 BC) 9-11 arches wide, the bridge is now down to one arch. Why? The Vidourle, of course. It's famous for the "Vidourlades", massive floods that happen usually during autumn or spring rains, when the water rushes down the mountains to the Mediterranean. The "crues" are enormous & quite destructive. To see this beautiful bridge in its setting, check out our picture album "Rediscovering the Roman Road".
Because of the river & its bridge, Ambrussan became an important "stop", complete with all kinds of amenities for travelers: inns, public baths, a forge to repair vehicles, a post office, & a northern & southern quadrant of quite sizable homes. For the century that Ambrussan was perched on top of the hill, the home sizes went from 40 square meters to 400 square meters. Each "domus", typically Roman, faced inward on an interior courtyard. To this day in southern France, houses tend to face inward, many times gated & quite private. The real living is done next to the terrace. Just like our "domus"!
But what is the "Thing" about the Roman road for Les & I? I think to the two of us, it means change, progress, accepting that the world keeps moving on. The Romans built this road to bring in their military convoys, which meant they were "taking over" Celtic Gaule. Okay, was that so bad? The Romans brought roads, bridges, a legal system, language, cement, &, of course, wine. And most of all, they brought the PAX Romana, PEACE! And founded a civilization that has lasted until today. Not so bad, really. But then I wasn't there, was I?
So...back to Augustus. Why is he so intriguing? He wasn't even Julius Ceasar's son, but became Emporer. Somehow he kept Ceasar's idea together, & took it to another level. To me, he's France's first in a set of the big 3: 2. Charlemagne, Gaule's (Celtic France's) leader who was crowned Emporer in 800 CE & 3. Napoleon, (France's Emporer after Louis XVI & the Revolutionary nuts), who brought back France's sense of self. Each of these fascinating people were self-made. They weren't born rich & famous, but had some really good brains. And they changed the course of French, & international history. I wonder if the French, as they choose their next president, have any idea who could become their next big catalyst for growth.
And finally, on a more practical level, there's something so very SOLID about a Roman road! This road is so OLD, & still there! Amazing!
- comments
GIGI Wonderful! I like SOLID! and I know about OLD!! Hope your summer continues so FRUITFUL!!