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During my stay near Nimes I visited the famous Pont du Gard, the famous aqueduct that spans the le Gardon (see pic in WORKSHOP). Here I illustrate the very beautiful Le Vieux Moulin. Converted to hotel and restaurant in the 1950's, this ancient 19th century flour mill, literally overhangs the river le Gardon and offers a grand and exclusive panorama on the Pont du Gard. A visit to the region would be incomplete without seeing this more than 2000 years old Roman aqueduct.

The pont (bridge) is 275m long and 49m high. Designed to carry the water across the small Gardon river valley, it was part of a nearly 50 km (31 mi) aqueduct that brought water from the Fontaines d'Eure springs near Uz鋊 to the Castellum in the Roman city of Nemausus (N螸es). Along its length it had a gradient of only 34cm per kilometre, an amazing piece of Roman engineering. Descending only 17 m vertically in its entire length it delivered 20,000 cubic meters (5 million gallons) of water daily to Nimes.