J'adore Bordeaux

Picture this if you will: it's early in the morning and there is a light mist hovering over the world, a thin layer of blue sky peaks out just above the horizon and you can see the sun inching up over the snow-peaked mountains. As you drive, the trees speed by and you get glimpses of rustic shacks and cabins; there is no one to be seen except a farmer and a fisherman every few of kilometers. The world is all shadowed, and it makes the scenery that much more mysterious and beautiful: this was the start of my journey to one of the best days I have yet had in France. We set out early to Bordeaux and, obviously, it was the most beautiful morning. Amid the groaning of tired college students, I was practically bursting out of joy and appreciation for this beauty.
Our first stop was at the chateau "La Peyrere" (chateau's are not necessarily castles, most vineyards are called chateau's). The proprietors were a single family, which included two enormous dogs (you can imagine my excitement when I first saw these majestic animals:

I want to be her when I grow up.

   

















We got a tour of the vineyard and the cellars and she told us how everything was made and processed and aged (all in French with wine-words). It was absolutely incredible; here are some pictures of the vineyard:

Les barriques

Pretty

This whole place was gorgeous.

*sigh*

Le "Chateau" 

Imagine waking up to this...

Bienvenu

I was absolutely engrossed in this place; I'm sure you can see why. The dogs, the trees, the buildings, the wine. We tasted three different wines; a rosé and two rouges. I ended up buying three of the rosé (I tried to buy 2 rosé and a clairet, but they were out of clairet and gave me another rosé instead), one of which I gave to my host family and the other two will be for transporting back to the states eventually. We ate lunch at the vineyard, then departed for Bordeaux.
Bordeaux...this was the most beautiful city I have yet seen; the 18th century architecture mixed with the river, the fountains and the chocolat made for a breathtaking afternoon. Right off the bus a large group of bikers road by, all waving and shouting out to us; across the street, a circus was in town, which meant that the large group of protesters outside of the tent were fighting for the fair treatment of animals (we assumed); there were a few people dressed up as lions and elephants (sadly I didn't get any pictures). Across the square from this was another demonstration of some kind outside the theatre. It was a very lively day in Bordeaux.
We began with a tour (naturally), at which time my mouth hung open about 90% of the time as I stared in awe at the buildings, the church, and the cathedral. When I walked into the first church and saw the pillars, the paintings, the stained glass windows, and the statues I couldn't help but laugh aloud to myself; it was just so amazing! The next cathedral was even more spectacular and I had to ask my friend if this was seriously happening. After the tour we were free to wander; many of the girls in my group were eager to go shopping, but my friend and I decided just to explore a bit. We grabbed a kebab (which is like something you would buy at PitaPit), then we set out in search for chocolat. :) We only got to spend about 3 hours total in Bordeaux, which was sad, but I am, without question, going back there for a weekend. The following is just a sample of all of the pictures I took during this perfect day:

The statue of Montesquieu  

Le Monument des Girondins

18th century architecture: iron rails & carved faces

"Place de la Bourse Trois Grâces" Three graces fountain.

First church

Confessional

Holy water sans water

Blackened limestone.

Grand entrance for important people.

I love these windows and iron railings.

Down a sidestreet.

La Cathédrale St. André

Inside la Cathédrale St. André

The organ

My favorite.

In front of the fountain of le Monument aux Girondins.

Fountain

So concluded a wonderful day. Wine, chocolat, friends, sites; this day was wonderful. I cannot wait to return to Bordeaux and get to see more of its beauty.

Bonne nuit, Bordeaux