Bordeaux, France
by Céleste | April 28–30, 2015
Next stop, Bordeaux! The train we took was an Intercities, and it took about 4 hours to get from Nantes to Bordeaux. I was starting to feel sick at that time, so I turned off my audiobook of Outlander and took a two hour nap on the train. I felt refreshed, but still a bit sick when we arrived. For this AirBnB stay, we slept on a pull-out coach in the hosts’ living room. It was a bit strange, as they were also staying in the apartment and they were literally in the next bedroom. We’ve stayed in shared homes before, but we’ve always had our own room in the past. The price was excellent though, and the hosts were gracious. They even had bread and bananas for breakfast (this is pretty much what I eat for breakfast every day), so I couldn’t complain.
April 28
Rue Sainte Catherine
We walked down Rue Sainte Catherine to get to the Office de Tourisme first. We had 20 minutes to get there before it closed, so we booked it down the avenue, which was packed with people. This was clearly the shopping street, with tons of clothing, souvenirs, galleries, and more. We glanced briefly as we marched through. We saw it better a bit later as well, though it was just window-shopping for us.
We made it just in time to the tourism office, to pick up a map and a list of activities and restaurants in the area. After our excellent guides in Nantes, we were a bit disappointed with what Bordeaux had to offer. Two things that Bordeaux and the tourism office will not let you forget, however, are:
- Bordeaux’s old town is a UNESCO world heritage site.
- They just won some internet-voted contest declaring them the best destination in Europe for 2015.
We saw this plastered all over the place in Bordeaux, more so than any other accolades for any other cities.
Garonne River
Next, we were off to the Garonne River, for a nice evening walk along the river. We passed a market for antiques which was just closing up for the night, so we made a mental note to return the next day. The river was beautiful, and clearly everyone else had a similar idea. There were hordes of runners, rollerbladers, and skaters everywhere. Bordeaux definitely seemed like a fit city. We also saw the mirror pool, by the palace, which alternately sprayed steam and then filled up with water. Children were running through the water without a care, many of them totally naked. Some were fully clothed, which may have been a bad idea, as they ended up soaked afterward.
Calabash
For dinner, we went to Calabash, which is a Jamaican tapas restaurant. Vincent had found it on Trip Advisor, and we were intrigued, as we hadn’t had Carribbean food in France yet. Yes, I know, we should be eating French food, but honestly, I think eating food from immigrants is just as interesting, as they usually change the flavors to fit the area. For example, Indian and Asian restaurants in France do not make their food spicy. French people don’t like spicy food, so they change their dishes accordingly. Also, we’ve been living in France for 5 months now, I think I’ve had enough French food, thank you.
Anyway, the food was excellent and the drinks were just what we needed. Vincent had a rum punch, which he enjoyed, and I had a virgin mojito, which was really delicious. No one ever serves virgin mojitos, and when they do, they put in extra sugar to make up for the missing rum. The bartender at Calabash didn’t do that, however, and it was perfect.
We ordered meatballs, cucumber dip, calypso chicken, and veggie fritters. Everything was great, but the veggie fritters were the star dish for me. They were well-seasoned and not soggy, which tends to happen with fried vegetables. Vincent and I both agreed that we would definitely return to Calabash. It was in a questionable neighborhood, according to our hosts, but we never felt unsafe. The restaurant was surprisingly empty when we were there, so we hoped they would get more patrons later in the night. When the bartender found out we spoke English, he brought out his mother, the chef, to speak with us. She was a sweet woman and I sensed that she was relieved to be able to speak English with someone! We thanked her for the wonderful food.
April 29
Cathédrale de Saint-Andre and Église Notre Dame
We started our full day in Bordeaux at a cathedral, and then on to another cathedral. It probably seems like we seek out churches, but honestly, they are just everywhere, so we usually just walk into them when we see them, to see if they have anything interesting.
Bar à Vin
Our host had recommended the Bar à Vin for a cheap glass of Bordeaux wine, so we headed in right at opening time, 11 am. They probably thought we were strange. It was 4 am in Minnesota, I guess. We had two glasses total of gold white wine, which our hostess said is special in Bordeaux and difficult to find elsewhere. I wrote down the names of the wines from the menu: Blanc d’Or Domaine Lavialle and Château de Roland.
Vincent said the wines were the best he had ever had, and that they were difficult to describe because they were so amazing! I only had a sip of each, so I can’t really comment, but they were very full-bodied and maybe sort of fruity? I don’t know wines, so I’m sure some sommelier would scoff at what I think. But that’s okay, I don’t know any sommeliers.
Porte de Cailhau
While walking to our lunch spot, we passed the Porte de Cailhau, which was once a door through the ramparts around Bordeaux. It looked like a proper castle.
Label Terre
For lunch, we got sandwiches and drinks, with cakes for dessert at Label Terre. We had wanted to have a picnic near the river for the past two days, but it was raining when we arrived in Bordeaux, and it was windy and cold the last day in Nantes. This was the perfect day for a picnic, and we sat next to the river to eat our meal. The food was all local, from within 200km of Bordeaux, as the restaurant proudly proclaimed. Everything was made in-house and it was so fresh. Even the cakes were homemade, strawberry and white chocolate — amazing! And reasonable prices, too. I would definitely return.
Victor Hugo Bridge
We decided to walk off our meal by crossing the bridge, which was built during Napoleon’s time. The view of the river was beautiful, and it was the first time it really felt like summer was coming.
Basilique Saint-Michel
Next, we went to the Basilique Saint-Michel, where there is a flèche, or spire, that you can climb, for beautiful views of the city. We went in and asked for tickets. The people at the ticket counter were surprised I was American, and said, “But you don’t have an American accent when you speak French!” It was such an ego boost. The tour of the spire starts in the basement, which was once a crypt. It was used as such until the 1700s, when dozens of mummies were discovered in the very room in which we were standing! There was a gruesome video (all in French) that we watched, which projected the images of the mummies onto the walls where they were discovered. It was quite ghoulish, so I loved it. I’ve seen a lot of crypt tours, I’ve been to the Parisian catacombs twice, and I’ve even done the Parisian sewer tours. I love the macabre, especially true stories and historical events. The mummies themselves are unfortunately no longer in the spire, but buried in anonymous graves in a Bordeaux cemetery. The room was too dark to take pictures, but Vincent managed to take one of the only statue in the room.
Up, up, up! We climbed 200-ish meters to the top of the spire. The views were beautiful, but clearly the basilica was worried about jumpers, so there were nets surrounding the whole thing. Oh, and pigeons everywhere, though the tour claimed that there is a kestral living in the spire that keeps the pigeons away. Here are some aerial views of Bordeaux:
You might notice that the church itself is shaped like a cross (see above).
Jardin Public
After the basilica, we went to the Jardin Public for a nice walk through the gardens. They weren’t as good as Nantes or Rennes, but they were still nice. Writing this up now, it doesn’t really stand out in my mind after so many fabulous parks in the north.
Santosha Indonesian Restaurant
For dinner, we decided on Santosha Indonesian. We had eaten such delicious Indonesian food in Amsterdam, so we wanted to get it again. When we arrived, there was a long line, so we knew the food must be good. We stood in line and it only took about 20 minutes to get seated. The food was tasty and there was plenty of it. Vincent had sate, which he loves, and I had som tum, which had rice noodles, chicken, and vegetables. We finished everything (Vincent helped with mine). It was a satisfying meal for our last day on our French intercity trip.
April 30
Back to Aix
The next day, we took the intercities train back to Aix-en-Provence. This time, it was a six-hour train ride. I had my book to listen to, so I wasn’t worried. We were sitting in a 4-person chair, though, with our two seats facing two other seats, like a restaurant booth. And two people sat across from us for about 2 hours. There was not enough leg-room, to say the least. We made it back, though, and with sore legs and tired eyes, we were home.
