Our restful day in Avignon proved anything but.  After a fitful night’s sleep due to the relentless heat and the constant parade of revelers outside our windows, we awoke to another blistering day.  Melissa and I set off on a short walk through town and returned with bread, cheese, eggs and croissants for our breakfast.   Our only destination for today is the Pont du Gard, which is a Roman aqueduct built in the year 50 A.D. The goal seemed easy enough, since Pont du Gard is only 20 miles away.  But without a car we had to rely on the French bus system.  That didn’t seem a problem, since there are normally 6 buses daily to the site. As we checked the bus information however there seemed to be a problem on that particular bus run and there was only a single bus, leaving at 4:30 p.m. With the return bus at 6:45.

We decided to check with the tourism office in Avignon to see if we were misunderstanding the bus information.  The woman at the tourist office was not encouraging; there was only the single round trip, and she wasn’t sure we would have time to see the Pont DuGard and make the return bus.  “If you miss the bus there is no way back” she said in an ominous tone.

Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained. We boarded the bus for the forty minute ride to Pont du Gard.  The bus was air conditioned, but we noted a curiosity of French culture – they leave the windows and vents open, thus rendering the air conditioning nearly useless.

We arrived at Pont du Gard, and what a spectacle.  Below us the river, and towering above the massive three level aqueduct, still intact after 2000 years.  Many people came to view the aqueduct, but just as many or more were there to swim in the river. It was a pleasure to note the absence of lifeguards or roped off areas for swimming, and the freedom the swimmers had to enjoy themselves.  But we had a bus to catch, and no time to give it a try.  Back we marched in the swelter to the dusty bus stop; we made the bus, returned to Avignon for dinner at an outdoor cafe shaded by massive Plain trees, then home to pack for our morning departure for Nice.