Bordeaux, France

Most people take a break from working and have a vacation once in a while, if they are lucky. We're taking a break from vacation for work.  On Friday evening we flew to Paris and took a high speed train for pleasant two hours one stop trip to Bordeaux.

National rail strikes and rude taxi drivers are cliche in France. We have been fortunate to avoid those kinds of misadventures for many years now. In Paris, on this trip, our luck nearly ran out. 

There was running and sweating and two old guys who couldn't really understand each other, getting madder and madder at each other. In the end everything worked out  and we made the train. 

It's good to remember that it's not a given that "smooth" will happen and to be mindful and appreciative of those who come to our aid when old Murphy does make an appearance.

I also mention this because the people of Bordeaux have been so incredibly kind to us during our visit. We really love this city which feels so welcoming. It strikes us as a very family-oriented community with down to earth residents.

Miroir d'eau is a misting fountain on the Garonne River just in front of the Bordeaux Stock Exchange.

Our AirBnB room is in the center of the old city, just a stone throw from Place Pey-Berland. In the square there is a Carillon which is also a museum. If you go in, you can walk to the top of the tower for great views of the city. We elected to enjoy the music from our room.

This was another wonderful AirBnB experience for us. Ground floor, well appointed and the hosts live right upstairs, if we need anything. We haven't needed anything, but we welcomed their advice on the best way to experience their city.

The Bordeaux Cathederal was consecrated in 1056.

We learned that these kids are getting ready for their Confirmation.

Outside the church there was a festival supporting the handicapped. In the picture above they were doing a dance contest. Two couples would dance at a time. Lots of smiles all around.

These guys were playing a modified game of tennis.

It was also Pride week and Bordeaux had a big celebration. The parade was wrapping up just as we arrived at 3pm and caused us some traffic delays (but no stress) in getting to our room.

The two groups intermingled as the  activities for the disabled were open to all. Maybe some of the wheelchairs were in the Pride parade for that matter.

We had some cheese and wine at the location of the Palais de l'Ombrière, just inside the medieval city gate called Porte Cailhau. The Palace was built about 1,000AD and named for the dark dungeon of Arbalesteyre,   It was initially the residence of the Dukes of Aquitane before becoming the seat of Parliament during the reign of Louis XI. It was torn down in 1800.

Bordeaux had been the capital city of France a few times in modern history too. In 1870 during the Franco-Prussian war and then again during World War I and II.

Bordeaux was originated by the Celts who developed a city called Burdigala. It fell to the Romans in 60BC. 

Burdigala was fortified with a spring fed well and fresh water from the Garonne at their gates. The Romans laid siege to the city, cutting off the river supply and then drilled into the spring, diverting it away from the city.

Without water, and believing their gods had abandoned them, the Celts yielded to the Romans and ended the Gallic war.

The Mirror Pond, looking back toward Place de la Bourse.

Now it's in full misting mode. The bridge in the background is Pont de Pierre. It was built during the reign of Napoleon Bonapart for his troops.  The bridge has 17 arches, one for every letter of Napoleon's name.

Sunday morning, at our hosts suggestion, we went to the market at the Quai des Chartons. We love going to the local market when we are traveling, so we were glad to find out about it. It is always interesting to see and try what the locals like to eat.

But we don't necessarily try everything. I wasn't sure what confit is, but now that I know I'm even less likely to try it....

Now this, on the other hand, was very cool. They were frying shrimp on this modified boat/grill.

I guess Mary and Shawn would need a bigger boat if they want to try this in Hawaii.

Oysters are very popular in France. They start acquiring a taste for them at very young age. That's 18 raw oysters being set in front of this young man. It's a photographic trick. His mother and sister are each having a plate, so he's only having a half dozen.

After our oyster lunch we wandered through some back streets in search of the wine and trade museum. The colored wine bottles drawn in the street helped us find it.

This was a separate part of town called Chartrons, where the wine merchants lived and had their business. The building of the museum is an example with a luxury home on the upper floor and the work going on the ground floor with aging cellars below that. There were 300 coopers living here in their own neighborhood during the heyday.

Winemaking in the region goes back to the Romans who planted vineyards here as recorded by Pliny the Elder in 71AD.

In 1152 Bordeaux was part of the dowry of Eleanor of Aquitaine in her wedding to Henry II. It stayed in British hands until the end of the 100 years war in 1453. 

The wine trade flourished during this period. The discovery of sulphur as an aid to aging wine brought about the French Claret prized worldwide.

A process called Return from India referred to the discovery that the wine aged faster and more evenly when used as ships ballast. Apparently it is from the warmer tropical climate and the rolling of the ship that was responsible for the effect.

This is a bottling machine. Having seen some highly automated bottling lines in California, it was interesting to see the origins of mass bottling.

Today 900 million bottles a year come from this region.

Lady Liberty is found many places in France. This one has the French colors on her cheeks and forehead so we Americans don't mistake her for ours.

Place Gambetta. During the Revolution this was the site of the city's guillotine.

Another of the old walled city gates.

This being the first Sunday of the month, all the museums were free. Our host suggested this one which he called a museum of interior design. That's true if you were 18th century nobility.

It's actually named the Museum of Decorative Arts and Design.

Looks like this is all her own hair. What do you think? Will this style come back?

We had time for one more museum so this time to the Museum of Antiquity, which also happened to be having an exhibition on Jack London's south seas adventure. They were both super interesting.

London was having his boat built when the San Francisco Earthquake happened. Rebuilding the city took precedence over building a boat. He sailed to Hawaii to complete preparations.

They barely made it. The boat was leaking badly.

Sure looks like a bad idea.

Hilo harbor

This is the largest conch shell I've ever seen.

Robert Louis Stephenson family. Jack and his wife Germain visited his grave during their trip. 

Some scary stuff from the Solomon islands. Jack and Germain had planned a 7 year voyage but had to cut it short at 18 months when Jack became quite sick and had to be taken to Sydney. He recovered, but the adventure on the Snark (from Lewis Carroll) was over.

Now back to the Antiquities. We really enjoyed the displays on prehistoric Cave Art.

The Roman mosaic tile is so beautiful.

As we move into the period of Roman Christianity the mosaics were applied to religious scenes.

I have a feeling this young lady is going to be a high performer academically.

Striking

This sarcophagus of a son of Bordeaux was completely restored. The detail is amazing.

Trade had always been a key part of the city's economy. 

It participated in the slave trade and the museum did not minimize that fact. 

African drums.

Place de la Victoire, a Roman arch and I think a column by Napoleon. I don't know what the tortoises are about. 

We noticed two things about the college age men and women in Bordeaux. Most are rolling their own cigarettes and many of them were drinking this red beer, called a Monaco. It is Heinekin, lemonade and grenadine. Surprisingly drinkable, but nothing at all like having a beer.

While waiting at the tram stop, a young girl of 5-8 years old was playing with her mother on the opposite platform. We were smiling at them and suddenly the girl came over and have us these dates. A total random act of kindness that really impacted us. 

After some of the horrible things we saw people doing to people in the slave trade it was particularly uplifting. It also inspires us to pass it on.

One last dinner. This time at the Grand Bar Castan.

The croque monsieur was different than we were used to and the beef bourguignon was not quite up to the level of what Lucie and David prepared for us. It wasn't bad but we are still waiting for the meal to remember from this trip.

Au revoir Bordeaux.