Today was hot, but really hot. 36c at 1600 hrs! We pushed the day to get from the camp site to Nimes as we decided to stay there and take in some of its Roman history on Sunday. This just made sense as little is open outside of big cities on Sunday and we were due a rest day.

We didn’t take too many photos on the way in but I liked the pigeons in their little house in Bezouce.

My foot is doing ok, no sign of any problems. I change the dressing a couple of times a day minimum. It’s a pest that the wound is right where I pedal but of course it is !

We arrived in Nimes about 1630hrs and found the ibis hotel we are staying at tonight and tomorrow. A very helpful lady at reception showed us where we could store the bikes in a secure room. We then went to our room which is – in many ways basic but to us it is luxurious and we are grateful to be able to stay here.

We went into the city after a shower and a quick change. We went past the very nice station to the beautiful Fontaine Pradier.

A short walk from here is the superbly preserved Roman Arena. This is both an object of fascination / historical relevance and a disgrace to the city and indeed humanity. No matter how much I try to focus on it as a historically impressive structure I can’t get past the fact that people still come here to watch defenceless bulls being goaded and tortured. For that alone Nimes is tainted in my eyes. It’s 2022 and this needs to stop.

We went for dinner after this and then back to the hotel for what in our opinion is a well earned rest. We are here tomorrow then we hit the Mediterranean coast on Monday!