Last updated at 15:44, Saturday, 21 January 2012

IN a region renowned for its vineyards and tipples, PAUL TURNER discovers there is much more to Bordeaux than just wine

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MENTION Bordeaux to anyone and the first thing they think of is wine.

So let’s get one thing straight from the start – I’ve never liked wine, never had a glass of it that I’ve liked and never thought it tasted like anything but vinegar.

With that in mind, a trip to one of the most prominent vineyard regions in the world might seem a strange choice.

But Bordeaux is not a city built on wine, its lifeblood is not the red liquid poured from a bottle, but rather the frothy brown water flowing through its heart in the River Garonne.

It is this roaring, captivating artery which dominates the city, which led to its prominence in history and which still today provides the foundation for any visit.

It is along the Garonne that locals and visitors alike spend their days, walking in the sun, soaking up the atmosphere and enjoying the spectacular riverside architecture that guards the old city beyond.

Not a single day went by during my visit when I did not find myself pulled towards the Quai Louis XIII, Pont de Pierre and the spectacular Miroir d’Eau. The latter, a sheet of water which reflects the buildings of the Place de la Bourse, provides a gathering point for people of all ages, to play in the water or just enjoy the lively vibrance of the city encapsulated in a single spot.

Few visitors to Bordeaux can fail to be charmed by its character, with families splashing about as runners and cyclists glide by on the riverside pathways with not a care in the world.

That feeling of relaxation and serenity is one which permeates every sinew of the city.

Sitting outside the popular quayside bar of Le Grand Castan – enjoying a cool soft drink as opposed to anything that has ever been close to a grape – I’m delightfully surprised to be served by Steven, a Keighley Cougars fan who is working as a waiter in the city to fund his travels and whose eloquent French would not identify him as a West Yorkshire rugby league supporter.

Even when the weather is as hot as today – with both autumn and spring benefiting from the southerly locale and proximity to the Atlantic to boost temperature regularly into the high 20s or early 30s – everyone seems cool, calm and collected.

Steven tells me this is always the case, that the people here do not conform to that usual city stereotype of being absorbed with work and their own lives and not appreciating all that surrounds them.

It’s easy to see why this would be the case when you explore the UNESCO World Heritage Site that is the city centre.

There are more than 300 buildings in Bordeaux classed as historic monuments – only Paris can boast more in the whole of France – with Roman amphitheatres, a Victor Louis-designed theatre and a spectacular 14th century Gothic cathedral drawing the eyes – and the feet – around a city easy navigable on foot but with a clean, new and efficient tram system to take you wherever you desire should you want to rest your legs.

That is not an option if you want to climb the striking Tour Pey-Berland, an imposing bell tower just yards away from the cathedral.

The 15th century structure is admirable in itself, but is at its best after the long slog up narrow stone spiral staircases to its summit, from where the streets of Bordeaux open up beneath you.

The modern and the ancient are all within view, but it is the building right next door which is best glimpsed from these heady heights, with the Cathedrale Saint-Andre viewed from a unique perspective.

With its giant twin towers and flying buttresses, whose intricacies can only truly be appreciated from above, the church is magnificent from the outside and just as engrossing within, where the stained glass windows cast an eerie light on parishioners and visitors dwarfed by its walls.

You get some sense here of what performers in the ancient Roman amphitheatre must have felt.

Today, this centuries old structure is hidden away off a small side street not far from the large open spaces of the Jardin Public.

Little remains of the amphitheatre now, but what there is gives some idea of the scale of the structure which stood here thousands of years ago.

A smaller example of its famous cousin in Rome, it was here that the Roman inhabitants of the city of Burdigala came to be entertained and archaeologists are still investigating the remains.

You can wander among the ruins on a guided tour – though they are only available in French and mine is nowhere near the standard of Keighley Steven – to get a better feeling of things.

And when you’re finished go lie on the grass or sit on a bench in the Jardin Public, read a book, relax and feel part of a city that has been laid back and absorbing for centuries before you ever arrived. Some people were even drinking wine.

First published at 13:26, Friday, 20 January 2012
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk