Meet the Romans
Like the Gauls in the days of Asterix and Obelix, this trip also had a hard time. A bad weather forecast, getting up early, or other plans for the long Pentecost weekend ensured that we started this trip with a smaller group than expected. This time the group consisted of four Swiss people and Lucia with her daughter Angela. Two true Romans who mainly did their own thing, as Angela was more taken with the numerous playgrounds than the historical monuments.
Vindonissa
Our adventure back to Roman times began at Vindonissa. Vindonissa was a legionary camp inhabited by Roman legionaries between 14 to 101 AD in what is now the canton of Aargau. Located at the confluence of the Aare and Reuss rivers, the legionary camp controlled essential traffic routes. This is precisely the kind of legionary camp that Asterix and the Gauls must have faced in their time.
We discovered this camp through a kind of role-playing audio tour that was peppered with riddles. The riddles were not usually very challenging, but there were ever more moments where we had to closely examine individual sites to answer.
Augusta Raurica
After the well-deserved lunch break in the sun, we set off again with our bus to the next stop: Augusta Raurica. Augusta Raurica is the largest archaeological park in Switzerland and was once a sizable colony of the Roman Empire. The imposing buildings have been lovingly restored. By walking through the ruins located between the ordinary dwellings, we got more fascinating insights into the way of life at the time of the Romans. After another, we visited one spectacular relic from the vast, well-preserved theater to the crumbling and looted temple to long-forgotten fountains.
Last but not least, we rewarded ourselves with ice cream and a cold beer at the kiosk near the theater before making our long way back to the present.
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