From Baltimore to Bordeaux and Everywhere in Between: Discovering Downtown Bordeaux

When I first arrived at my residence, I was a little disappointed. The place itself was about what I had expected, but after all the time I had spent in European cities, I was a little surprised by how modern the surrounding neighborhood was. Modern is fine and all, but I was expecting quaint cafés on every corner and people selling baguettes in the streets. Where are the cathedrals? Where are the ruins? Don't they have plazas/piazzas in France?

They do. They're just downtown. I found them.

Hunter had taken me on a brief tour around town after school on Tuesday and I got my first glimpses of the city. It was everything I had hoped for and more. For every major street, there were a dozen little side streets shooting off in every direction, holding hidden gems of restaurants and shops. There were fountains and parks and promenades. Everything had that feeling that is so distinctly European: this has been around since before your country was even a country. It felt familiar and foreign all at the same time and it was wonderful.

He took me by the ruins of an amphitheater left over from the Roman Empire. They are basically in the backyard of a residential building. What?!? In my back "yard" in Baltimore there are tangled power lines and rats that could take down one of those yappy ankle biting dogs. We went to the transit office so I could purchase a pass that allows me to ride any tram or bus unlimited times a day, every day for a year. A lot better than paying 1.40 euros for every trip. We grabbed kebab from a little hole in the wall down a narrow side street. We passed through the ritzy shopping district, Bordeaux's 5th Avenue. We even made a quick stop in the Cathédral St. André.

If you have never been in a real European cathedral, you don't know what you're missing. I am almost the opposite of religious and I am still incredibly humbled when I visit these massive structures. I instantly get this feeling that I am so small and so are my problems so I should appreciate what I've got and not stress about what I don't. I try to live by that mantra daily but it's just so much more apparent when you're about the size of one of the thousands of bricks used to build this place...

Since I didn't have class yesterday, I went back downtown to do a little more exploring and this place just gets better and better. Got off at the Cathedral and wandered around toward the Grand Théatre, the opera house in the heart of the city. I discovered the Monument aux Girondins, dedicated to some assemblymen who were executed and became political martyrs and symbols of the republic. Just past the monument is the Garrone River and it reminded me so much of the Rio Gadalquivir in Sevilla. It was stunning. More government buildings, nice fountains, random grassy knolls for picnicking... Perfectly picturesque. I found Rue Sainte Catherine, which is a giant pedestrian commercial area with all kinds of stores and restaurants that Rick and Steve had told me about before. There's tons of stuff off Ste. Catherine, as well. I walked the length of the street and finally ended up in Place de Victoire, which is where all the bars and nightlife is. It was pretty calm but it was only 5:00 so I made a mental note to revisit when I have some friends to go out with.

All in all, it was a delightful little adventure and left me thirsty to get to know this city better. I can't wait.

Oh yeah! Pictures! (The abridge version from facebook)