Saturday, June 11, we drove to Vaison la Romaine with Ginny and Steve Menninger, who were visiting from Virginia. Vaison la Romaine is an interesting village in the Côtes du Rhône region. This town has a population of about 6,000 people. This town is divided into two parts, the Ville-Basse, with its roman bridge and roman ruins, and the medieval Ville-Haute. The town is divided by the Ouvèze River. We stayed in the upper village called Ville-Haute in a charming B & B. The Verdiers, who are the owners of the B & B, have a passionate interest in books and art work. We loved exploring their antique home. Since the 4th century, Vaison la Romaine had a prince-bishop in power. In the 12th century, he came under attack by the Count of Toulouse. As a result, the prince-bishop built a château in the upper town in about 1195. Other people in the town began moving to defend themselves behind the upper town's fortified wall. About 6,000 people lived in Vaison la Romaine 2,000 years ago. This was a prosperous town in those years as Vaison la Romaine had a special relationship with Rome as a result of a signed treaty, and an economy of olives and vineyards. We explored the Roman Ruins called Puymin in the lower village. We explored the remains of a roman mansion. We could visualize life as it was in 100 AD. The Roman Bridge, which divides the upper and lower towns was cut by the Romans into the canyon rock 2,000 years ago, and has survived ever since. Until the 20th century, this was the only way to cross the river. Incroyable!!
Mme. Wallace
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