Indulging our interest in archaeology, we often tailor our
driving routes to incorporate ancient sites and today this was very easy as on
the direct route to Vendome was the Roman town of Gisacum. The ruins here are
sparse but, in typical French style, they were very well displayed with
reconstructions and good information panels. The interpretation centre was very
interesting and much money had been spent on it and the site in general. Surprisingly,
there was no admission charge. We spent some time at the site and decided that,
rather than arriving late in Vendome, we would stop at an aire on the way. We
chose an aire outside Dreux that, like the one at Incheville charged for the
stay but provided electricity and services. Many of the aires in France that
used to be free are now charging a fee and using automated barriers to enforce
payment. It is still possible to find free aires and we will probably use some
on this trip but I can understand the need to charge to ensure that the services
are available. This and last night’s aire use ‘Camping-Car Park’ cards that you
can obtain from the automated barrier machine. The charge at both sites was
just under €12 and they both included free wifi in the service although this
wasn’t working here.
The Dreux site was not as pleasant as the one at Incheville. It is on a small
industrial estate and had a railway line running in a cutting right behind it.
However, the trains were very infrequent and didn’t run overnight, so they didn’t
disturb us.
Photos: The baths of Gisacum.
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