Bordeaux
Wednesday, November 02, 2011
Bordeaux, one of the many famous wine regions of France. Well, unfortunately I didn't go to any of the vineyards or attend any wine tastings, but I still got to drink a lot of (good, cheap) wine.
I have been meaning to visit Bordeaux since it was close to my French 'home town', La Rochelle, but only managed to do so now. One of my French sisters study in the city, and another of my French high school friends moved here a few months ago, so it was a good excuse to visit and to catch up with them.
Unfortunately they were both incredibly busy with uni, so I only got to see glimpses of them, but it was fine, we still had some good times. I felt bad that I was on holidays while they didn't have any... Which is weird, though I'm glad I still do have breaks.
I went to this restaurant off rue Sainte Catherine for lunch with a friend. Rue Sainte Catherine is the longest pedestrian shopping mall street in Europe. It's really long. So many people. Any way, at this restaurant, the chef goes to the markets each morning and decides on the menu based on whatever fresh produce he finds there. We had duck with caramelised apples. Miam !
For dinner one night at my French sister's we had Raclette. It's a traditional French dish with ham, potatoes and lots and lots of cheese melted on special plates. Accompanied by wine, of course. We ate so much. A lives in a two storey flat with 5 others, plus 3 visiting boyfriends and me. It was definitely a good dinner party.
Since A could not show me around, her boyfriend offered to be my guide one afternoon. We walked along the long rue St Catherine, passed the Grand Opera and the Quinconces. Apparently that place is the biggest plaza in Europe as well. Lots of the 'biggest's in Bordeaux! In Quinconces there was a fair, which was pretty big in size. The noise was excellent, with kids walking around sucking on their apple toffees. Apparently summer is not yet over for them.
It's definitely Autumn in France, now. The leaves are yellow and orange and brown. The sky is blue but the air is crisp fresh. It's a romantic weather, Autumn, don't you think?
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