Another bridge
Just below our village, and close to one of the approach roads, is Pont Julien. This was built by the Romans, probably in the first years AD, and took the Roman road, Via Domitia, over the Calavon river. The bridge has three arches and was built out of local stone. It takes its name from the closest city - Apta Julia (now Apt). This one replaced a wooden one, which was no doubt washed away at some point. Presumably the river at the time was much wider than it is now.
When we first came to this area the bridge was still in use (2000 years of use is not bad!) and we remember driving over it many times. Then, in 2005 a replacement bridge was built, just a little downstream, and now it is only used by cyclists and walkers.
The Via Domitia was a Roman road, over 500km long, linking Italy with Spain through Gaul. The current Cavaillon to Apt road, which we use a lot, follows the route of the Via Domita and a couple of the roundabouts close to us commemorate this.
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