No car was necessary today.

We spent the whole day exploring this village, but we definitely didn’t see it all.

Vaison-la-Romaine is so full of history and we spent many, pleasant hours wandering through excavations and archaeological finds.

But before that, as it was not yet 10am, we found a wonderful patisserie called Gilles Peyrerol where we restrained ourselves with only one treat (a pudding) to share with our coffees.

There was also a small market taking place in the square opposite the Office du Tourisme so we checked that out too.

We spotted a man climbing a ladder to harvest olives from what appeared to be a public tree, and later we saw three men in this tree in front of La Poste. They had had a busy and productive day.

It cost €9 each for a 24-hour access to the sites here plus €2 each for headsets we used as we wandered around.

This area was a very important part of the Roman Empire in the 1st and 2nd Centuries and the extent of the remains is very large. There are thought to be even more remains buried below the current village.

We started our tour inside a museum that housed ancient artifacts found here and we were able to see an animated film that helped us understand what we were looking at once we moved outside.

There was even a full size statue of Hadrian. We’d last seen him in Istanbul at the start of this holiday. And yes, he had a beard – but nothing else on today.

The two sites we explored showed the remains of wealthy homes, artisanal areas, shopping streets and public baths. The Romans were pretty amazing.

We went in search of the theatre which could accommodate 6000 spectators. We took the scenic route to find it.

The theatre is occasionally used for special events and concerts but walking up and down those aisles and seats I can attest to them not being very comfortable or very accessible.

Before we could visit the next site about 300 metres away we needed some lunch. And Mick hit the jackpot. He had spotted a man selling Brittany oysters from a stall inside a sidewalk bar. Once we were seated, the bar owner asked us what we would like to drink and then the oyster man came to take our order. A dozen, cold, large, freshly-shucked oysters with lemon and some bread cost €14.

The only problem was that we were sitting outside and most people of course were enjoying the beautiful weather, and a cigarette or two.

The second site was once a small village with very fancy houses.

I read a funny tale as to how Vaison first became inhabited by the Romans. Dating back to 35BCE the city now known as Orange, 25 kilometres from here, was a Roman military colony.

After that colony grew in importance and size, the Romans in their short shifts found that the mosquitoes from Orange were unbearable; their legs and thighs were very exposed to bites. While at the same time, the other inhabitants, the Gauls, wore long pants and did not suffer the same fate.

“So the civil servants of the time took their wives, children scribes, goods and chattels to this land of milk and honey. “

I wonder if they ever thought of just changing their outfits. ???

By the afternoon there were more people out and about, like when we arrived at this time yesterday.

We have decided to save our tour of the city perched on the rocky hill next to where we are staying for another day. We were both pretty well exhausted after having spent 5 hours wandering around here.

Pre-dinner drinks on our balcony tonight.

But Mick couldn’t resist heading out after dinner across the road for a Pastis.

There was DJ playing tonight for the last night of the season. The bar is closed from tomorrow.

Perhaps that is a good thing !!!