Maison Manege
27 Rue de Manege
///loosens.generals.part
44°50’27.2148″N, 0°35’7.8756″W

to

Bordeaux Wine Museum
///visual.patch.install
44°51’16.4052″N, 0°34’10.0668″W

Today we toured the Bordeaux Wine Museum. This was a very interesting place.

The city tram is very close to our hotel & we found the line that would take us directly to the museum.

Photo above – city tram. Very reasonable cost at €1.50 per person & that includes transfers within an hour of the first ride.

Photo above – Bordeaux Wine Museum.

This building has a very unique shape & the exhibits/displays are unique as well. Each visitor is given a headset & handset which is about the same size as a large smartphone. Visitors walk from one exhibit to another.  When you see something you want to learn more about you tap your device on a special symbol beside the exhibit & you get an audio commentary about that exhibit. There are also multiple short video exhibits.

Photo above – a video explaining the history of vineyards throughout the world.

Photo above – the tour also includes a scent sniffing section.  This was very interesting & fun to try to identify the scents associated with various types of wines.

We wrapped up the tour with an elevator ride to the top of the building where there was an outside viewing platform that gives you very good views of the city. This was accompanied by a free wine tasting – but only 1 glass.

We really enjoyed this museum. It was very well done & a great way to spend a few hours learning more about wine.

After the tour we stopped at a market beside the museum & had a light lunch. Then we were back on the tram for a ride back to the center of the city.

Photo above – this statue is in Place des Quinconces. At 12 hectares it is one of the largest city squares in Europe.

The square is beside the tram terminal at the city centre. The main monument commemorates the victims of the reign of terror during the French Revolution.

Photo above – the bronze statues from the fountain at the base of the monument were removed by the Nazis during the occupation in 1942 & were supposed to be melted down to make cannons but were later recovered, restored & put back in place.

Photo above – the Opera National du Bordeaux, built in 1780 is just a few steps away from the square.

Photo above – carousel & a wedge shaped building at an intersection across the plaza from the opera house.

Bordeaux is a very walkable city. The opera house is only a 20-30 minute walk from our hotel. Even I can do that!

Tomorrow we plan to do some more exploring in the historic center of the city. We will also check out (sample goods from) one or two of the many patisseries we passed by today.

Cheers!