Bonne année à tous!

Bonne année à tous !

Even though we’re two weeks into 2024 now, I think it’s still okay to say that, even though the celebrations are over and some resolutions made might have already been broken, but one tradition we were certain to keep…

We brought in the new year at our favorite boite, Le Montis (above) Champagne gone and an hour and a half to go – and what shall we have? Ballons of course!
On 6 January I received a gift from my daughter, Jenn. I now have this blog! The contents of it will be past and future clips from these ramblings…

With January comes colder weather, and we’ve been having our share here along with some rain. After two days of steady rain, last Friday brought the return of brilliant sunshine, and even if it was still chilly we took the train over to Nîmes, less than an hour away.

Nîmes is a gem of a city, founded by the Celts in around 300 BCE, its streets are wider than Montpellier’s, and the Esplanade leads directly from the Gare de Nîmes to the heart of the city. The church of Sainte-Perpetue and Sainte-Felicite is now squeezed between and apartment block and a hotel under construction; nevertheless on the whole Nîmes does a remarkable job of preserving its antiquities, especially those from the first century CE Roman period.

Le Maison Carrée (Square House) was completed in the year 2 CE and is considered to be the best preserved Roman temple in the world. It has been classified as a historic monument since 1840, and in September 2023 was named a UNESCO world heritage site. Between the Esplanade and Maison Carrée is the Arènes de Nîmes, built almost 100 years after Maison Carrée, it is still being used for performances of all types including bullfighting, which has a long tradition in this part of France, although there is a growing sentiment to stop it.
But, on a cheerier note, we went to the Les Arceaux market the following day, one of our favorite Saturday morning pastimes, and were greeted upon arrival by this merry band of troubadours:

Le Maison Carrée (Square House) was completed in the year 2 CE and is considered to be the best preserved Roman temple in the world. It has been classified as a historic monument since 1840, and in September 2023 was named a UNESCO world heritage site. Between the Esplanade and Maison Carrée is the Arènes de Nîmes, built almost 100 years after Maison Carrée, it is still being used for performances of all types including bullfighting, which has a long tradition in this part of France, although there is a growing sentiment to stop it.

But, on a cheerier note, we went to the Les Arceaux market the following day, one of our favorite Saturday morning pastimes, and were greeted upon arrival by this merry band of troubadours: