Our further journey takes us from La Rochelle to Bordeaux and then back north to St. Emilion
We reach Bordeaux on a Sunday in midsummer. The city is almost deserted. There are hardly any cars on the streets. All the French have obviously gone on holiday. So we have the city almost to ourselves to explore, which we use extensively in the next two days.
The partisan series offer wonderful little delicacies that you can’t resist in fact. The French have an independent philosophy of life for such pleasures. Between the main tangents of the major thoroughfares we find winding narrow streets where you can rest in shady places. The Bordeaux Opera House is located in the middle of the city in an exposed location. We explore the city on foot and roam through narrow pedestrian passages of the old town. Again and again, the shady narrow streets open up and widen into large open squares that invite you to linger.
We do as the French do and enjoy the sunny warm day and let our souls dangle in one of the many shady restaurants. The restaurant we have chosen has few guests but excellent cuisine. We are served a fresh seafood plate with oysters, various types of mussels and shrimps. In addition, the maître brings us a bottle of well-chilled white wine and the obligatory crisp French baguette. We take all the time in the world. The service is perfect and we enjoy the wonderful day to the fullest. The next day we continue north again.
St. Emilion is a small but famous wine town with a lot of charisma. The famous French St. Emilion red wine of the same name comes from this area. The city has about 3000 inhabitants and has to cope with many times as many visitors in the high season. Early in the morning, the first streams of tourists descend on the city in buses.
In the late afternoon, the locals have their city to themselves again. There are only a few guests who stay here overnight. Since we have rented a small hotel in the city, we enjoy the peace and quiet in the early evening and explore the sights first. The cityscape is characterized by winding narrow alleys.
There are some gourmet shops that offer the local products. Of course, you can get all kinds of pies, cakes and all kinds of cheese. There is no shortage of opportunities to supply yourself with the best regional wines. In the many small wine shops, mainly the local wines are offered. In addition, you can also get many other little things around the product wine, such as carafes, books and corkscrews in a wide variety of variations. A treasure trove for many a collector’s heart.
In the evening we follow the recommendation of our concierg and have a table reserved in the Francis Goullee restaurant. The restaurant has only five tables, but offers excellent cuisine. Here, the chef himself cooks. After the three-hour menu with 8 courses, it is difficult for us to say goodbye and we promise to come back next year.
Narrow, narrow streets and streets covered with coarse cobblestones characterize the image of St. Emilion. A little away from the city center we find the remains of old historic buildings that have fallen into ruins. A beautiful backdrop that we use for a series of photos and film recordings.
