Bordeaux: from port city to wine haven

Although Bordeaux is 50km from the Atlantic, the Gironde estuary is navigable, so it has been a port city since around 300BC. 

Trading expanded massively during the reign of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II, and a second expansion in the 17th Century saw Bordeaux become the world's second busiest port after London, trading slaves, coffee, cocoa, sugar, cotton, indigo and wines. 

Look at a map and you can see the crescent shape of the port which gave rise to its name; Port de la Lune. To keep the port open, no bridges were constructed across the estuary, so historically the city developed on the west bank. The entire 18th and 19th Century city centre (containing 347 listed buildings) is now a Unesco World Heritage Site. The excellent Musée d'Aquitaine explains this history and is well worth visiting.

While exploring the historic centre, keep an eye out for the city's symbol; three overlapping crescents. Also look out for plaques decorated with scallop shells which mark the route of the Chemin de Saint Jacques de Compostelle (the Way of Saint James) running through the city. (Small bronze plaques are set into the cobblestones.)

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'Sleeping Beauty'

By the 1960s, the warehouses lining the waterside were falling into ruins, pollution had blackened the graceful facades of the elegant buildings, and Bordeaux was nicknamed “Sleeping Beauty”.

When Alain Juppé became mayor in 1995 he launched an ambitious regeneration programme. The warehouses were replaced with parks, walkways, and the famous Miroir d'eau (water mirror), in the Place de la Bourse The facades were cleaned, bike paths and tram lines were constructed, and the Cité du Vin, a museum dedicated to the history of wine, opened. 

Bordeaux now attracts around six million visitors a year. One slight glitch is the rush-hour traffic. Back in the 20th Century, the council decided to combine the ring road (La Rocade) with the A10/A63 motorway from Paris to Spain. To make matters worse, the A62 from Toulouse also feeds into La Rocade, leading to significant traffic jams.

The bridges over the river act as traffic funnels, making commuting in and out of the city a nightmare. The council says it aims to increase the population to a million, but it is hard to see how the current infrastructure would cope. 

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Five quirky facts about Bordeaux

1) In 1888, Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi was commissioned to build a giant fountain in the Place Picard, a copy of his famous Statue of Liberty. This was melted down by the Nazis during the Occupation – or was it? Legend has it that railway workers spirited it away to Soulac-sur-Mer where it stands to this day. 

In 2000, a new Statue of Liberty was erected, and in 2001 it was dedicated to the victims of 9/11. This symbol of the US has been targeted by protesters, who have dumped paint on its head and defaced it more than once, including trying to burn it down in 2003. The statue was refurbished in 2012 and so far remains in place. 

2) The Jaguar du Parking Victor-Hugo is a 1955 Jaguar car painted British racing green, which in 1994 was positioned by the architect Jean-François Dosso to hang out of the car park over the Cours Victor Hugo. Originally intended to be temporary, it has become a permanent fixture beloved by the Bordelais. 

3) Canelés came into existence because winemakers used egg white to clarify their wines, and gave the yolks away. These were then used to make a batter which was baked in a fluted (ie. canelé) metal tin. When were they invented? The classic answer is anytime between the 15th and 18th Century. 

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Nuns are often mentioned. But some historians say they were invented just after World War Two. In any case, the Confrérie du Canelé de Bordeaux (Bordeaux’s canelé association) was only founded in 1985.

4) Échoppes are single-storied, terraced houses, not shops. Originally built for workers, each has three ground floor rooms and a garden at the back, making them much sought-after. Some have had discreet first floors added which are not visible from the road.

5) One of the best free entertainments in Bordeaux is the raising of the Pont Jacques Chaban-Delmas, (aka le Pont Chaban) near the Cité du Vin. The entire central section glides skywards like a lift, to allow ships into the Port de la Lune. This is often to let tall ships pass, and you can get a perfect view from the Cap Sciences museum's first floor café/bar (open to the public). Check the timetable here.