Bordeaux, world's wine capital (France)

 

For the long weekend of July 14, 2021, I wanted to go to Bordeaux, a city I have never visited, to see my long-time friend Jenny.

I took the train at Gare Montparnasse on July 13, 2021 at 7:53 pm and the journey lasted 2h31.

Day 1

The day after my arrival, I walked around Bordeaux, and it was raining a bit.

My hotel, the All Suites Appart Hôtel Bordeaux-Marne, is located a 9-minute walk from the Gare Bordeaux Saint-Jean and a 20-minute walk from the city centre.

I passed by the Abbatiale Sainte-Croix de Bordeaux before arriving in the city-centre near the Pont de pierre.

I was able to take a picture of the magnificent Porte Cailhau listed historical monument.

I walked along the Quai Richelieu until I reached the Place de la Bourse and the Miroir d’eau.

I then went to Place Camille-Jullian and in front of the Church of Saint-Pierre de Bordeaux where I took shelter from the rain.

Once the good weather's back, I passed in front of the Opéra National de Bordeaux.

I continued until the beautiful Place Quinconces and the Monument aux Girondins.

I then went under the Grosse Cloche, another marvel of Bordeaux listed historical monument.

I finished with the Basilique Saint-Michel and went back to my hotel to get some rest.

I went out early in the evening to meet my friend Jenny, we had arranged to meet in front of the Lion de Veilhan located on Place Stalingrad just after the Pont de pierre that I had to cross.

Jenny and I had dinner at Bistro Régent known for its famous Charmélcia sauce. I ate an absolutely delicious duck magret.

We had to eat in 1h maximum because we had not booked and customers were expected 1h after our arrival.

On leaving the restaurant, we booked train tickets to go to the Dune du Pyla the next day.

Day 2

We woke up early to take the train at 7:35am to go to Arcachon; the ride took 53 min.

Once arrived in Arcachon, we took a bus to go to the Dune du Pyla (30 min ride).

The ascent of the Dune can be done via 160 steps or directly in the sand of the Dune.

We opted for the sand.

I expected the climb to be long and difficult, but in reality it was fast, maybe 10-15 minutes.

Of course, it wasn’t easy to walk in the sand because the Dune is very steep and the sand makes us slide, but we can’t say that the climb was hard.

Once you reach the top, the view is magnificent: on one side you have the forest and on the other the sea.

We did well to catch the train early because the crowd started arriving by the time we left.

We took the bus again and had lunch in Arcachon.

We walked in the city and came back to Bordeaux.

At night, we ate at the Guinguette chez Alriq with a childhood friend of Jenny and her boyfriend. The place was very nice and an Afrobeat concert was given.

Day 3

For this third day in Bordeaux, I walked along the Garonne in the morning and I met up with Jenny in the afternoon.

Saint-Michel Basilica

Church of Saint-Louis-des-Chartrons

Marthe Adélaïde Modeste TESTA statue

Bourse Maritime

Porte de Bourgogne

We stayed at the Jardin Botanique before taking the Batcub, a small boat that allows you to navigate on the Garonne.

In the evening we had dinner at a Korean BBQ restaurant, Mokoji.

The meat was excellent but the prices were exorbitant: 35€ per person for pork, 45€ for beef and pork, 65€ for beef.

Not being too fond of pork, we wanted to have beef but considering the prices, we took a mix.

The meal was actually a menu consisting of a starter (flavored chips), a main course (meat served with rice, various vegetables and salad) and a dessert (vanilla ice cream).

We were disappointed with the dessert, because we thought we had a choice and especially a Korean dessert. Also, we don’t like vanilla ice cream, so we were really disappointed.

After the BBQ, we separated because it was for me my last night in Bordeaux.

Bordeaux is a very bicycle-friendly city, there are many bike paths but also paths reserved for joggers.