Page 140 - Off the Tourist Trail - 1000 Unexpected Travel Alternatives (Part 1 of 2)

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ARCHITECTURAL MARVELS

FORGET PONT
DU GARD?

THE BUILD-UP Pont du Gard is without doubt
one of the Wonders of the Ancient World.
Ponte it, the 2,000-year-old aqueduct never ceases to
Whether it’s the first or fiftieth time you’ve seen
amaze. A gorgeous yet supremely practical piece
of engineering, the aqueduct probably says
delle Torri more about Roman civilization than any other
structure in the Classical World.

THE LETDOWN Your introduction to Pont du
Gard is likely to be the enormous parking lot.
Then there’s the stroll down the carefully
vs Pont du Gard constructed gravel path in the company of that
day’s quota of the aqueduct’s two million-plus
annual visitors. Then it’s past the visitor center,
restaurant, and finally the bridge itself.
While Pont du Gard stands isolated, with only a visitors’ center and a car park, Ponte
delle Torri leads you over a breathtaking chasm into the heart of medieval Spoleto GOING ANYWAY? To avoid the hordes in cars,
there are regular bus services from Avignon and
Nîmes to Remoulins, a short walk from the
entrance. You can swim in the river beneath the
you, its slender columns spanning a seemingly
NEED TO KNOW bridge; better still, rent a canoe from nearby
impossible chasm. Continue past the ruins of the Collias and glide beneath the aqueduct in style.
LOCATION Ponte delle Torri is castle guarding this end and head, breath held,
located on the eastern side of the 7FOJDF
.JMBO
Italian town of Spoleto in Umbria, along the narrow walkway across the bridge. The
north of Rome *5"-: fearsome Rocca, a medieval fortress, looms ahead.
10/5& %&--&
DIMENSIONS Length 774 ft 5033* Turn left and within a few steps you’re in the heart
(236 m); height 295 ft (90 m) "ESJBUJD
3PNF 4FB of Spoleto, one of the most beautiful towns in Italy.
CONSTRUCTED Between the /BQMFT
12th and 14th centuries No one is sure exactly when the magnificent
5ZSSIFOJBO
4FB
DAYTIME TEMPERATURES Ponte delle Torri was built. It’s possible that it was
*POJBO
Jan: 37°F (3°C); Apr: 55°F (13°C); 1BMFSNP 4FB built on top of a long-vanished Roman aqueduct,
Jul: 79°F (26°C); Oct: 63°F (17°C)
but it’s more likely to have been entirely
constructed in the 13th century. Either way, it was ABOVE Crowds gathered on the walking path along the
Pont du Gard, the most spectacular section of a used to bring water from the mountains to the Pont du Gard, Nîmes
30-mile (50-km) aqueduct, was built to bring water upper part of Spoleto, while simultaneously
to the Roman city of Nîmes in France. Emerging providing access to Monteluco. There are castles at
fully formed from the Mediterranean scrub, it runs both ends of its 774-ft (236-m) span and two of its
for 460 heroic feet (140 m) before disappearing supporting columns are actually hollow,
again into the scrub. After walking its length, all presumably to house guardrooms and storerooms.
that’s left to do is turn around and head back to The view over the thickly wooded Tessino Valley PRACTICAL INFORMATION
the coach-filled parking lot. from the middle of the bridge is breathtaking.
Conversely, a narrow, unpeopled track near The 10 pillars divided by nine slender and Getting There and Around Where to Stay
Spoleto’s nearest airport is The Hotel Gattapone
Ponte delle Torri guides you through the forested graceful arcades are magically lit from below, yet
30 miles (50 km) away in (www.hotelgattapone.it) is
hills of Monteluco. The path edges warily round a the narrow path across the gorge heads into Perugia, but most international spectacularly perched at one
ravine, and then the great aqueduct stands before impenetrable darkness. Come here at night and airlines fly into Rome, which is end of the aqueduct. Almost
chances are a courting couple will be somewhere a 1½-hour train journey away every room offers a stunning
ahead of you, arm-in-arm, incapable of resisting from Spoleto. view. Doubles start at US$155.
seclusion and the bridge’s romantic appeal. Where to Eat When to Go
There are many fine restaurants Spoleto is worth visiting year
From the bridge you can either climb up to the
in Spoleto, with the popular round, despite the hot summers
medieval Rocca or head into the center of Spoleto, tartuffo nero (black truffle) and cold winters. But it is hard
where, within minutes, you’ll be in the maze of featuring prominently on the to find accommodation during
narrow streets that cut through the town. There’s menu. The Apollinare (tel. +39 July’s music festival (see p268),
a Roman theater, several early Christian basilicas, 074 322 3256; www.ristorante so be sure to book in advance.
apollinare.it) is housed in a
and the lovely Cathedral of Santa Maria dell’Assunta, Budget per Day for Two
converted 12th-century
which houses the final fresco cycle created by well- monastery, around a 10-minute US$280 for accommodations at
known Florentine painter Fra Filippo Lippi. But it’s walk from the aqueduct. It also Hotel Gattapone and the train
Ponte delle Torri that will draw you back. While you has tables laid out in the tiny ride on Eurostar Italia from Rome,
which is about US$15 one way.
stand on the bridge, contemplating the silent piazza behind. The vineyards
of Montefalco are within sight Website
Apennines, it seems impossible to believe that a
of the city. www.english.regioneumbria.eu
ABOVE Cathedral of Santa Maria dell’Assunta, Spoleto thriving medieval town lies just yards behind you.

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