We arrived in Bordeaux at 10am, after getting up at 3:30am for a 6:45am flight! But this is what the luggage carousel looks like in Bordeaux wine country :)
After dropping off our backpacks, we strolled the Old Town, then found a meaty place for lunch. Mmmmm meat.
Our first glasses of Bordeaux wine!
Matt is very happy with the big glass, despite the ridiculous overpricing of Bordeaux wines (seriously! Every other French wine region is cheaper EVEN WHEN IN BORDEAUX!).
Bordeaux's lovely theater/opera house, the Grand Theater.
The requisite Conquering the Opera House photo :)
The interior of the Theater (we weren't allowed any farther in without a ticket, dammit).
The grand staircase of the Grand Theater.
Bordeaux's famous Place de la Bourse
Place de la Bourse, or Plaza Royale, was built by King Louis XV, and sits right on the Garonne River.
The Three Graces Fountain on Place de la Bourse- this used to be where a statue of King Louis XV stood, but it was destroyed in the French Revolution.
Me in Bordeaux!
Across from Place de la Bourse is the Mirror Fountain, which is a new symbol of Bordeaux. Depending on time of day, it offers up a mist, solid water, or dancing spouts.
It's misty time on the Mirror Fountain!
Walking along the pedestrian path by the River Garonne, the entry gate to the Old Town, Porte Cailhau, is a striking sight.
Porte Cailhau is one of the most Disney-fied structures I have EVER seen
The Joneses conquer Porte Cailhau!
Entering the Old Town through Porte Cailhau!
Matt conquers Porte Cailhau!
....and then, Bordeaux has a SECOND surviving city gate! This is La Grosse Cloche, with a massive belfry.
Bordeaux