Day 2 - Bordeau & Cadillac
Today started with a tour of historic Bordeau - we took the bus to the city center, got out and walked around while our tour guide - Jamie, same guy as last night - explained the highlights. The best of which was the Statute of the Girondins. This was built as a memorial to the political party from the French Revolution that tried to be "reasonable" during the Reign of Terror. The fountains on either side were really spectacular.
We had about half an hour of "free time" after the walking tour and so I revisited the fountain before we came back to the ship just in time for lunch. After lunch we boarded buses for a one hour drive to the small village of Cadillac for a walking tour through the medieval city that is a perfect example of a "Bastide" - which is a city design with straight lines/grid system. The French brought this to the US and it is the reason we have what we call "blocks!" We saw the two remaining gates to the city (which were constructed in the late 1400s) and heard many interesting stories.
Certainly the highlight of the day's tours was the final stop when we went to Chateau Giraurd for a tour of their winery and wine tasting. The "Sauternes" region of southwestern France is a very, VERY small area that is very unique in their wines and it is due largely to the geography of the land. The Garone River, which we are on, is a warm river, lying nearly completely in the sunlight. It meets with a smaller river inland which is nearly entirely shaded in a forest, making it a very cold river. Where they meet and the waters "collide" leads to a lot of fog. This fog and the accompanying humidity causes a fungus to grow on the grapes in the region....this in turn leads to enrichment of the sugar in the grapes and thus to the sweet wines that the region is known for. I admit I am relatively knew to the world of wine, and that I do not really care for red wines. But the two sweet wines we tasted today were the best wines I've ever tried. So much so that I got the website of this chateau and plan to order some of their sweet wine for enjoying once I return home!
At dinner the ship "sailed" on a two-hour cruise up and back to "make-up" for the fact that we did not get a sailing today. But the best story of the day came at dinner itself. My major concern sailing solo was being alone on the trip. But, I believed that I would be outgoing enough that at dinner I would join a table and conversation would flow. So has been the case for the first three meals. So after the happy hour/briefing (where I did sit alone, no one joined me) I found a table with an older lady who was waiting for her companion. But shortly after I joined them she was told her friend was at another table and so she excused herself to join her friend, leaving me alone at a table for six. :( But the five people at the table next to me immediately asked me to join them! We spent the evening together, literally closing down the dining room at 9:25 pm! I was so very appreciative of their offer to provide me with company for the evening. Before heading back to my stateroom I went to the top deck to take a shot of us cruising.
Tomorrow we have a final tour of another part of Bordeaux before we finally sail to another town. Only one outing tomorrow (in the morning), but I am sure I'll have photos from the first actual river cruising of the trip! One of the things I was most looking forward to on the tour was the actual cruising.
A BIG THANK YOU to everyone who has enjoyed the photos and let me know that through either Facebook comments or messages!
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