Bordeaux, France

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Bordeaux, France

Why Bordeaux? This was the question which our family and friends asked when we told them that we would have a city trip for 4 nights there. What drove us to go to this place was a discounted plane ticket deal by easyjet.com and I would like to speak basic French. Via booking.com we booked a hotel within the city square.

Video impression (see bottom of the page)

From the Netherlands is the flight 1 hour and 25 minutes. Upon arrival at Merignac airport, we had two alternatives in order to reach the city square: (1) ordinary bus which costs € 1.50 or (2) shuttle bus priced at € 7,20. We opted for the first one because aside from it being cheaper, we just sit in a bus like locals and not as tourists in shuttle busses. The bus is full with locals and yet we enjoyed it because we were not travelling like spoiled tourists. The bus heads to St. Jean train station. The ride to the city square is a bit long depending upon the traffic and people getting in and out of the bus, approximately 35 mins. It can be jam-packed because locals ride this kind of bus. Our hotel is in near Grand theatre in the city square so we got off at Meriadeck halt which is walking distance to the city square. There are 30 bus stops to reach this bus stop. Then we walked to our hotel for check-in. We were early so we had lunch at Comptoir cuisine ( 2 place de la Comédie); comptoircuisine . This is a cozy restaurant with a second floor. The ceiling speaks of artworks. There is a mirror which creates an interesting reflection of the trams passing by outside. For a homemade cannelloni with eggplant fillings topped with fresh herbs, we paid € 17 each and a glass of wine averages from € 4,50 and up. We opted for an authentic dessert of assorted cheese platter with a glass of red wine instead of the usual sweet dessert. It can be pricey because our bill amounted to € 75,-.

Info: restaurants and bars surrounding the city square is more expensive. You pay for the ambiance, too. It is good to know that locals eat here so the price is not really touristic.

TIP1: for an authentic French dessert, order assorted cheese platter with a glass of red wine instead of something sweet.

TIP2: Tourist information office is located at Cours Julliet XXX. It has a lot of offers like wine tours, city tours, cruise tours, cheese tasting workshop, cooking and wine tasting courses/workshops, etc. It also has a souvenir shop.

WINE TOURS:

A wine tour which can be booked at VVV tourist office starts from a ½ -1 day ranging from € 38-€ 88+. An exclusive tour with a maximum of 8 people is the expensive one. The guide speaks first in French then translates it in English. For those who want to practice their French, this is an excellent opportunity to listen to the guide in French before she translates the information in English. It is quite an unforgettable experience for us to join a wine tour. Do not miss this chance.

TIP3: Join a group of max. of 53 people if you want a budget tour. It costs you € 38 per person including bus transportation, tour guide to a village, a chateau visit and wine tasting of 2 kinds of wines inside a chateau. In our case, we went on a Wednesday from 1:30 pm-6:30 pm, destination St. Emilion village, a Unesco heritage site and a visit to Chateau –Despagne where we tasted two types of wine produced by the chateaus itself.

TIP4: Try to be early at the meeting point of the wine tour which is on the right side of the tourist office. There is no designated seat in the tourist bus so first come, first served. We were early so we could choose the front seat where I could film the wine trail.

EATING AND WINE TASTING TIPS:

One restaurant we recommend is Chez Yuri which is situated at 12, quai Richelieu. It offers a 3-course menu for only € 12,50 excluding drinks. It is open every day from 10 am to 14:30 pm and 18:00 pm to 22:30 pm. What a delicious meal that we had to come back once more! The restaurant is situated on the Quayside along the boulevard of Place de la Bourse.

La mama pizza restaurant at 21 Rue des Remparts is delicious. The price ranges from € 12,50-€ 19 just like in The Netherlands. For dinner, a pizza and pasta with ¼ liter red wine costs € 31,30.

TIP: For an affordable wine glass starting from € 2-6, go to Maison du Vin which is located opposite the Tourist office, Maison du Vin. Locals go here after work and it can be very busy. There is often a long line of customers so you have to wait before you can take a seat. In other restaurants and wine bars, a glass of wine averages from € 4,50 and up. A cheese platter with two types of bread costs ½ while in normal restaurants without bread, it costs € 10. Maison du Vin is very cozy with glass-in lead window. A plus point: the locals frequent here after work so you know as a tourist that you are in the right place.

TIP: The long street of Rue St. Remi has lots of international restaurants but we did not eat there.

TIP: There are a lot of bread shops and pastry shops in the nooks and corners of the city square. For one person, you can spend around € 6 for food. A shop far from the city square sells less expensive foods than shops near the square.

TIP: A cappuccino in a bar within the city square ranges from € 5-6,50 while far from the city square costs you € 3,50.

TIP: Pastries can be expensive at around € 6,50 per piece yet at the back of Hotel de Ville (Municipal hall), there is a cute pastry and bread shop called Le Boulanger de L’Hotel de Ville (76 Rue des Conils). The head patissier is called Greg who makes very delicious pastries from € 2,05 - € 4 per piece. We enjoyed tasting the assorted pastries here. They also sell baguettes and savoury breads which are very appetizing. For 5 pastries of different sizes, 2 cups of cappuccino, we paid € 21,80. The price is right.

At the city square where Grand Theatre is located, there is a pastry shop in the corner called Maison Georges Larnicol (1 cours de l’intendance). Try different pastries particularly Kouignette, a rounded pastry bread with different flavors.

TIP: Should you want to balance your food expenses between more than average French cuisine and ordinary ones, one practical alternative is to buy in bread shops or ready to eat foods at the supermarket called Carre four. You can find one at Grand Hommes mall. In the stretch of the street St, Catharine, there are a lot of cheaper shops.

SHOPPING:

At 1,2 km long shops and restaurants at Rue Saint-Catherine strating from Place de la Comedié to Place de la Victoire. If you go further form Place del a Comedié, the prices tend to decrease a bit.

Galerie Bordelaise is located at the stretch of the long street as well as Place du Sujet.

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATIONS:

Trams, buses, taxi and Gare St-Jean (a major rail transit station). Toulose city is 2 ½ hours, Paris city is in 3 hours, Nantes city in 4 hours.

To and from the airport is catered by a shuttle bus from St. Jean train station. It rides every 45 minutes daily. We prefer riding where the locals ride. From bus stop Meriadeck, you can ride to the airport in 30 minutes. It is difficult to get lost because Merignac airport is the final destination.

TOURIST ATTRACTIONS

Husband and I like to stroll in the city and avoid public transportationso that we can savour the city itself. The only disadvantage is that we do not see majority of the tourist spots. The advantage is that we have a reason to go back to the city in the future. Anyway, here are tram stops for practicality.

Place des Quinconces with the Girondins monument, a group of National assembly deputies during the French revolution.

Getting there: trams A and B. Tram stop: Quincones.

Nearby is the avenue Cours de XXX-juillet where the Tourist office is located (12 cours du XXX-juillet). Opposite is Maison du Vin, an affordable wine tasting bar and wine school (1 cours du XXX-juillet). The wine bar is open until 10 pm. The Grand-Theatre, a historic building is also located nearby. A block away, there is a towering building called Cour Mably, a former municipal library. Next to it is Notre-Dame church. Then Passage Sarget, a shopping arcade. Go back to the city square and walk to the right to reach Place des Grand-Hommes and its market. To the left you can find freshly made Canelé, a cylindrical pastry which is the specialty of Bordeaux. It has a thick crust exterior while the inside is a tender custard cake. There is a specialty shop called Baillardan which sells only canelés. Website: http://www.baillardran.com/ .

There are shops inside and there is a supermarket downstairs “Carre-four”. There is also a bar where it offers drinks and one plate dish for only € 6.

Place Gambetta square with Porte Dijeaux (an arch) leads to Rue Porte Dijeaux with lots of shops. and bars. The arch is well-lit in the evening so a nice subject for photography. La Mamma restaurant and Baillardan branch selling fresh caneles are nearby.

The Quaysides

Tram C. Tram stop: place de la Bourse

A nice spot to take evening and early morning photography is at Place de la Bourse with beautiful architectural buildings surrounding the square. In the square, you can have a look at Bordeaux heritage at Bordeaux Patrimoine MOndial (2-8 place de la bourse).

Opposite is the building Mirror of water. The buildings are reflected in water. On the far left side, there is a long bridge called Pont de Pierre.

Along the boulevard, you can have a drink at one of the oldest cafes in Bordeaux called Bar Castan where the décor is art noveau and the interior is cave-like. A block away is Chez Yuri restaurant with an affordable and very delicious French cuisine. It offers a three-course meal called formule midi for € 12,50 without drinks. A glass of wine costs € 4,50 and € 3,50 for a cup of coffee.

Saint Peter (Old Bordeaux)

Tram C. Tram stop: place de la Bourse

Place du Parlement square with a fountain. Nearby is Saint-Pierre church.

Porte Cailhau is a port gate. You can climb the tower for € 3,50. It is closed from 12 noon to 1 pm.

Place Saint-Projet, another square is the oldest square in Bordeaux. You can go down here to St Catharine street lined with lots of shops and snack shops. At the far end of this street, you can find Place la Victoire which was once the heart of the student quarter. It has an arch known as Aquitaine Gate and an obelisk. The Faculty Medicine of University of Bordeaux is also located here.

The Town hall district

Trams B and C. Tram stop: Hotel de ville

This square is called Place Pey-Berland. Palais Rohan (town hall) is situated here. Nearby is pastry and bread shop called Le Boulanger de L’Hotel de Ville (76 Rue des Conils) with reasonably-priced pastries, hearty breads and cup of coffee.

Nearby the town hall but outside the square is the Justice Palace with its modern architecture

Cathedrale St. André with its gothic French architecture is situated within the square. The cathedral is closed on Mondays.

Next to the cathedral is Tour Pey-Berland, a tall tower. We were not able to climb this tower but for € 3,50 you can go inside the tower which according to travel guides has magnificent panorama of the city.

There are also musea such as Musee d’Aquitaine, Musee des Beaux-Arts and Musee des Arts decoratifs but we were not able to visit them.

Not explored:

Saint Seurin and Public Park

Walk here from Place Gambetta

Basilique Saint-Seurin, the archeology site, ruins of the Palais Gallien, public park.

Saint-Eloi and Saint-Michel

Tram C. Tram stop: Porte de Bourgogne

We only went here for the Grosse cloche, Great bell. The street is narrow and cozy. Both sides are line with shops.

Not explored: Basilica church of St. Michael and The Steeple (tallest bell tower)

Les Chartrons and Bacalan

Tram B. Tram stop: Musee d’Art contemporain

Entrepot Laine located behind the Museum of Modern Art (CAPC) isan old harbor., Saint-Louis des Chartrons, gothic style church, Cité Mondiale with a nice architecture at Rue Notre-Dame, warehouses at Quai de Bacalan,

Sainte- Croix

Tram C. Tram stop: Sainte-Croix

Abbatiale Sainte-Croix (12th century church), Sainte-Croix fountain, a 13th century town walls, Chateau Descas

OUR OPINIONS:

We liked our city trip to Bordeaux city very much. The city has a lot to offer even if you do not like wine. The ambiance there is so relaxed. It can also be a starting point to visit other cities and other villages producing wine and have a visit at their vineyards. Discovering the city is educational not to mention our memorable experience in listening to information about the hard work people put into the whole year just to produce good quality grapes for making wine, visiting a Unesco heritage site village, visiting a chateau and learning about its history, its wine process and tasting its wine produce.

It is not surprising that Bordeaux is chosen the Europe’s city destination for year 2015. The city is worth revisiting.

A big tip to tourists who want to speak in French:

Aside from delicious French cuisine and good quality wine tasting, the people rendering services like hotel receptionists, waiters and waitresses, salesladies, bartenders, sellers from art galleries, etc. are not having a hurried pace like in capital cities. They are sympathetic and ask tourists like us if we want an English menu or if we want to speak in English. French people from Bordeaux are sympathetic and patient when I informed them that I speak only basic French but wanted to try to communicate with them in French. They listened attentively while I was trying hard to construct basic French sentences. They even took the time to correct my diction and grammar so it was so nice of them.

Tips for hobby photographers and videographers: husband, being a hobby photographer has a nice impression of the city’s architectural buildings and he can take photos in the evening because the buildings and numerous ports are well-lit. With intricate statues and decors in the walls it is such a delight to take pictures and videos.

VIDEO IMPRESSION

WINE TOUR VIDEO:

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