This morning (Thursday) Jim went to the closest bakery for fresh bread for breakfast. Emmanuelle had told us that the Feria de Nimes was starting on Thursday 12th and it it would be best to give Nimes a miss until it was over as the city gets very crowded with lots of drunken people and , because the bulls are raced through the streets, it can be dangerous. We thought we might just chance a quick visit as it was unlikely that it would be so crowded at the very beginning of the Feria. So in we went and headed for the Office de Tourism for information on Nimes and on the area. We were advised that a more enjoyable visit would be had when the Feria was over but that there were some nice places to see now that we were there.

The first place we noticed was the Maison Carree, the only fully preserved temple from Antiquity. We will go in the next time we visit Nimes.

We made our way to the Jardins de la Fontaine where we would see the Temple of Diana  and the Tour Magne. The lady in the tourist office was kind enough to warn me that it was quite a climb up to the tower (those of you who know me well know that I will go to any lengths to stay on the flat) but I thought I would give it a go. And I got there. But I did need a little sit!

The spring from the Jardins de la Fontaine,

The view from the gardens to a wide central avenue in Nimes

The Tour Magne - this was one of the tallest towers of the ramparts but the last floor has now disappeared.

                                                               Part of the garden

The lower area of the Jardins de la Fontaine.

 The Temple of Diana.

I did not allow Jim to escalade because he is too old to do dangerous things and anyway it was forbidden! 

On our way back to the Maison Carree and to the car. The weather had been better than when we arrived but not yet warm which actually suited the amount of climbing and walking we did.

A cup of coffee under the bull - a reminder of the Feria if the gathering crowds and the marquees were not enough.

This evening we sussed out the Bar des Halles just up the road from us and it is much better than the Café des Sports and a great spot to watch the locals at play. The bar maid / owner is not quite a Bette Lynch but her husband is like a Jack Duckworth in his 50s. Everyone greets one another with the south of France bises - 3 kisses - or with a handshake. I wonder will we be included in that ritual before we leave? At the moment they say “Bonsoir monsieur dame” to us and “Bonne soiree” when we leave.