Where No Roads Lead
I admire the Romans. They were marvellous polymaths; engineers, strategists, art-lovers, law-makers and all-round winners. That a small city state could conquer and command the majority of the known world almost 2000 years ago is rather remarkable, an achievement greater than the British or any other Empire, with the exception perhaps of McDonalds.
They were particularly gifted at road-building. At its peak, the Roman road system spanned 53,000 miles (85,300 km). Many of the routes are still in use today, including Ermine Street, the origin of the A1, the Great North Road in Britain. Luton airport lies very close to this road, as does my house.
The Romans tried to make inroads to the east of the country. They got as far as Norwich, took one look at the flat fog-shrouded fens, and turned around.
To this day there are Norfolk* Inroads worth mentioning!
* Pronunciation guide: nawr-fuh k
posted by Cherrypie at 6:43 pm
16 Comments:
you should have been in Norfolk this morning. Blowing a flipping gale, bitterly cold and and rain.
The birds had a lot more sense than we did!!
The Pub with fire was nice though!!
What Pete said. When the wind is from anywhere between north and east it fair whistles across us here!
Are you trying to make a point about something?
HA!
I cannot even say Romans without adding the Life Of Brian prefix 'BLOODY' ROMANS.
Oh yeah the aqueducts and roads were very nice and it is safe to walk the streets at night.. but what did the Romans ever really do for us anyway?
Crucifixion?
Nah Freedom actually..
oh well off you go then!
I loved learning about the Romans at school. And having never been to Norfolk I can't comment on whether it warrants inroads or not ;o)
It sounds like those romans were industurous little beavers. All those roads and the colleseum I think? As you say a marvel indeed, they should have come to Australia and built some roads here as there is plenty of space to build them.
And how can we forget their decadence. when ever those romans did something they seemed to do it in a really BIG way.
Graffiti
Hadrian's Wall is just up the road from us but them fierce Scots won't keep me from visiting my favourite British city!
Where are you, Cherrybabes?
I fear for your safety - you appear elsewhere confined to a black box! I can only imagine that the next time we see you, you will be sawn in half!
All true, but they owed a lot to the Greeks! It is amazing seeing old Roman walls still standing!
...and how about their aqueducts and viaducts. Even in death their mausoleums are awesome but their numeral system was no match for the east Indian invention of zero.
There's a Norfolk, Virginia in the US, and the only people who use your "proper" pronounciation are the ones who are from there. The rest of us say it like it appears.
There are other places like Oregon that have pronounciations based on where one lives. At a dinner party the other night I had to ask someone whether they meant Ore-gahn the town in Wisconsin, or Ore-gihn the US state. Bah. ;)
By the way, your cherry clock appears to be an hour out. is it running on Rome time?
cherrypie, hello!
i went to pompei while in italy last year and i was soooo turned off by the ancient well-to-do romans and their gross appetites and indulgences. their inguitity was all self serving, as was their sex and lifestyles. so i'm not impressed by their achievements any longer!!
so there.
And their unit of measurement was, apparently, the post-equus!
Hi!
(that's what I came by to say...)
Calling all cars
Calling all cars
Be on the lookout for ravishing British Lawyer
last seen in the vicinity of the McDonalds in St. Peter's Square
approach with caution
she appears to be having too much fun to Blog and should be considered charmed and delirious
that is all.
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