Bordeaux

it took 200 years to build the Gothic Cathédrale Saint-André de Bordeaux

the 15th century Grosse Cloche was once used as a prison

the Basilique de Saint-Michel is a gothic church from the 16th century

the Porte Cailhau was built in 1496 and served as a Royal entrance

the Fountain of the Three Graces dates from 1869

le Monument aux Girondins for those that were sent to the guillotine

the Grand-Théâtre from 1780 sits at Place de la Comédie

the Royal Eagle protects the Bishop's Chair

inside the Cathédrale Saint-André

the Porte de Bourgogne is from 1755

Bordeaux is an important port city and cruise ships frequently call port here

the Miroir d'Eau was created in 2006 in front of the 18th century Place de la Bourse

the Pont de Pierre spans the Garonne with 17 arches and was built in 1821

Notre Dame d'Aquitaine tops the freestanding Tour Pey Berland

the base off the monument features many heroic actions

Place Pey Berland with the statue for Jacques Chaban-Delmas

Located at the banks of the sediment laden yellow-brown Garonne, Bordeaux is the wine capital of the world and also the proud capital of Nouvelle-Equitation.
The Bay of Biscay may be 100 km away but the tide here is still a hefty 4 meters.

Bordeaux has Celtic roots; around 500 BC the Bituriges Vivisci tribe lived here and called the settlement Burdigala. And they already made and sold wine.

Under Roman rule the Bordeaux wines became popular under soldiers and citizens alike and even Pliny the Elder wrote about it. Bordeaux and wine has been a winning combination ever since.

In the1630's Dutch engineers under Leeghwater drained the swamps around Bordeaux. As a result the area for wine cultivation increased dramatically.

The city's heydays came in the 18th century and most of the downtown housing dates from that period.

In WWII German and Italian U-boats were stationed here for the battle of the Atlantic. Despite heavy allied bombing the fortified pens survived the war.

We visited Bordeaux in May 2019.