the more, the merrier in bordeaux

first of all, sorry for the long dry spell!! the past 10 days have been filled with everything from trips to bordeaux to intership interviews to my first friends visiting for the weekend. this post will be about bordeaux, but i'll write another one about the other hecticness that is my life in france.

so, BORDEAUX.

my trip to bordeaux came out of a mishap, as does many of my life's experiences happen, i have now come to realize. i was supposed to visit daniel, a really good friend of mine from toronto, in london, uk, where he's doing his masters studies. not wanting or having 200euros to spare, i started looking at the carpooling site in france. i found one for 50euros return and jumped on in. initially, the driver said yes but as the day of departure approached, the driver wouldn`t answer my emails. finally, i found his number and called him when he said "oops! i forgot to email you to tell you that i`m cancelling the trip..." by that point, tickets to london were definitely out of my price range so i began looking for somewhere else to go, when i stubbled upon 30euro tickets to bordeaux. without hesitation, i bought a return trip and began investigating what i could do there. within a few hours, i had gone from being set to go to london to being set to go to bordeaux. i booked my train and a full day wine exploration tour on their tourism website. the only problem was accomodations. because in europe the prices are quoted to you on a per person basis on the basis of 2 people, i forgot to factor in the fact that the 25euros a night really meant 50euros a night for one person and thus for 2 nights - 100euros... definitely NOT being in the budget, i remembered my friend asking me whether or not i had ever done couchsurfing. never having done it but knowing that it was a way of having free accomodations, i joined couchsurfers.org and quickly found a place to sleep.

a small aside:
joining couchsurfers.org is a little long, but it`s definitely worth it. i really found that it was a great way to see the city, meet the locals and have a good time while staying within budget. honestly, as a single person travelling, i would not have done it any other way. couchsurfing essentially makes you feel like you have a friend waiting on the other end of your trip ready to share what`s special about their city and introduce you to their friends. while a little bit of a toss-up in regards to cleanliness (the place that i stayed at was horribly dirty BUT very welcoming - let`s just say that i was very happy that i brought my own sleeping bag that `protected`me from whatever happened to be on the cushions...)

the day of departure - of course - my alarm didn`t go off properly. thank god i set a second alarm telling me when i had to leave because otherwise, i would have never made it to the train station on time. i literally threw on some pants and my sweater, stuffed my sleeping bag into my knapsack and ran out the door. after all my careful planning to find out when the tram was supposed to come, i got to the tram stop only to find out that i had a 15 min wait before it was set to arrive. thankfully the metro isn`t too far, so i "ran" as fast as my crutches would let me to the metro and hopped on. i probably looked like a hobo but i didnt care. i didnt have time to stamp my bus ticket before stepping onto the metro because the metro was just pulling in as the elevator doors were opening so i just ran. having been ticketed for not having a stamped ticket before (it wasnt my fault, their ticket machine wasnt working!) i spent the entire journey looking around to make sure that no ticket police were on the platform... so stressful. anyway, i got to the train station and went directly to the ticket office to pick up my ticket. thankfully there was no line up, but when i got there, they said, "of course we can get you your tickets. can i have the card used to make the reservation please?" i froze. the card. how could i forget the card??? i used my canadian card to make the reservation and pay because my france one hadnt arrived yet. but, because it was my canadian one, i didn`t bother to take it with me as i always use cash here. it was too late for me to cab back to croix and too expensive for me to buy new tickets (100euros one way!!!) so i did what any self respecting student would do: i begged.

hahaha, the guy at the ticket counter just looked at me as i tried to reason with him and show him the inside of my wallet and thus LACK of card. he just said "i`m sorry. our systems wont let me print them without the card..." ok, fine. i give in. no card. no tickets. BUT, that doesnt mean i dont have a reservation... i asked him to print my reservation proving that at least i did have a ticket bought. he shrugged and said "i can't guarantee anything, but it might work. it all depends on the guy on the train." he explained to me that since my tickets were non refundable and non-exchangeable, theres really not much that can be changed BUT just in case, i asked him to write it on the reservation and stamp it officially (lucky that i did because on the way back, i was questioned and only because all of that was written, was i not kicked off the train...)

Ready to go Bordeaux!

anyway, "ticket" in hand, i head to the platform and await my train. when i climb aboard and fumble my way to my seat, i find someone else sitting in it... gah, fine. its early. i`m non caffinated and i`m sleepy. i was planning on taking pictures, but i realized that i probably wouldn't be because i was sleeping. so i sat down and settled in for a 5 hour trip. within minutes, i was knocked unconcious and when i woke up 4 hours later, it was sunny outside and i was looking at rolling hills of vines. ahh... i had reached wine country and i was itching to get off. wanting to capture every moment, i took out my camera and began snapping away. then i saw the red "low batt" sign blink on and said `wow, arent i smart? i even brought my battery charger and adapter!` i crawled on the floor looking for an outlet - none. i ask around - none. i`m informed that they only exist in first class... oh, thinks I, how lovely. then, ingenuity strikes and i say "eureka! the bathroom has an outlet for a razor! i'll use that one!" so i stand up to get my bag and everything begins to spin... motion sickness takes full control and i`m forced to abandon my quest for at least the next few minutes. gulping down, i quickly grab what i need and head to the bathroom. i set everything up and check the battery charger when i see that nothing is happening... i wiggle the plug around hoping for something... nothing. crap, all the work and spinning head in vain. deflated, i head back to my seat, close my eyes and wait til i arrive in bordeaux.

i hear, in my subconscious, the sound of the ticket man coming so my eyes fly open and i "hide" in the bathroom. while i really had nothing to be afraid of, i still didnt feel like having to take that risk if necessary. i come out only because someone has tried to open the bathroom door 3 times and i start to feel guilty. i pop my head out and look around... phew... ticket man has passed my seat and i have nothing else to worry about. i fall back asleep and wait for the nausea to pass and for bordeaux to arrive.

Bordeaux - Gare St. Jean

On the way into the station...

i wake up just outside of the main station and just in time to see a beautiful bordeaux sign. the station is beautiful - full of old metal framework and cloudy glass. i know that there`s a tourist office nearby, so i go there and check their opening times. nope, everyone`s on lunch break until 2, so i go back to the old sign and snap a few pictures and laugh silently in my head (you know, in case i had on-lookers) about the fact that my dad would have spent hours making me pose in front of the sign while i couldn`t even figure out how to get me into the picture... then i head back to the waiting area and notice plugs near one set of the chairs... hmm... time for a battery charge? so i set everything up, make someone move and oop, yet again, my charger isnt working. so i change plus. agian, no charge. in my head, i start figuring out my budget to buy a new charger, when i spot another one behind some machines. i head over and plug up again.... there`s charge! and then there`s none... i touch it again and the light blinks on. ok... just don`t touch it and leave it be... i head back to my seat to have my sandwich while never taking my eyes off of the little red light.

i stay until 2:10 charging my battery before heading to the tourist office. i pick up a map, some pamphlets and ask where to buy a tram ticket. i head over to my couchsurfer`s place to leave my stuff before going to explore but am taken aback by the beauty of the seaside and the difference between lille and bordeaux. none the less, my pack is getting heavy and i wanted to take it off so i leave the riverside to look for the apartment. when i get there, i`m greated by 2 guys completely glued to their computer screens. one is apparently the roommate and the other a friend. not exactly the warm welcome i was expecting, but at least i could leave my bag and regroup my stuff before heading out. looking around, i realized that everything was dirty. there was no dining table, just an assortment of tattered cushions to sit on and a bunch of flipped over wooden wine boxes. i couldn`t help but think, "wow, how different this is to the way that my mom travels... she would die right now..." hidden in the corner, a delapidated ikea sofa hidden under a mountain of opened sleeping bags."make yourself at home. you can choose pretty much anywhere to sleep. sorry about the mess..." says the room mate. "thanks. and no problem..." says I - insert fake smile and a small but nervous laugh. "how on earth am i going to sleep in this place!?!?!" is really what i`m thinking... i look down and the cat is helping himself to some pâté left over from lunch... gulp. note to self: buy your own NEW food...

The Medival Bell Tower

with that in mind, i say goodbye with a promise of returning around 6. off i go, down the street and towards the largest outdoor shopping street in europe. - la rue st. catherine. there`s a small book store near the intersection that`s calling to me, so i go in and head to the cookbook section where i find french cook books with recipes from the middle ages and from around the regions of france. while i wanted to buy them all, i decide on saving my money for soemthing else and settle with `la cuisine de nos terroirs`- "The cuisine from our regions". Just a little further and i stumble upon one of the largest remenents of the 13th century. The large bell tower was left intact at the end of the 13th century and is still used to day to tell the time by sounding every hour. just a little further and i`ve found la rue st. chatherine and am ready to go for a walk. watching the city change on a friday night, from teenagers in the late afternoon to young professionals in the early evening to familys getting a treat at the end of the evening is truly facinating. seeing as crepes are 3euros or more in lille, i grabbed a nutella crepe as a snack for 2euros and happily munched it at the side of the street. window shopping, i happily hopped down the street to the place de comédie and then around the block to a small grocery store to pick up a bottle or 2 of wine and some french basics - ie cheese, pâté and baguettes. i get home thinking that i`ll be dining alone, when i`m told that a bunch of friends are coming over and that dinner is set to be at another friend`s house, except that that friend doesn`t cook, doesn`t do dishes and doesn`t have any drinks. essentially, we`ve been asked to bring everything over to him... logical? not so much. we
convince him that it`s better for him to come over and begin making dinner. another couch surfer

Vin chaud, a ukalele and lots of good times

arrives and joins the party. the more the merrier is the motto for the evening. she`s from australia and doesn`t speak french very well. i invite her to join me in the wine tasting set for tomorrow and she agrees. finally all of the friends arrive and then more couch surfers, and more friends. we`re 20 around this little make-shift table and all i can say is, it`s awesome. i couldn`t have bought this experience anywhere and all i needed to do was ask. everyone leaves around 3am and i set my bed and alarm for  6 hours of much needed rest.

wine tasting at the school of wine

9am and julia, the other couchsurfer, and i are already out the door heading to our wine tasting. she hadn`t yet bought her ticket and we wanted to make she that she could come so we left early. tickets in hand, we go to a near by chain patisserie - brioche dorée - for a quick breakfast before immersing ourselves in the world of bordeaux wine. from it`s history to its current, very controlled state, bordeaux has worked hard to make itself one of 9 wine capitals of the world. we tasted a red, a white, a fortified white and one of high standing (think about 45$ a bottle -hehe, and yes, it was the best) before being left out of "class" for lunch. a quick sandwich with more students and we were off to the vineyards for further tastings.

A famous wine house near the 2nd wine tasting in Medoc

the first one is very rustic. i loved learning about how wine is made, but i can`t say that i really cared for the wine made by that particular "chateaux" or wine house. the second however, was absolutely gorgeous. it was evident that they had a lot of money put into the place but it made everything look that much better. they let us taste a pure merlot -rare for that area because houses usually mix varieties to achieve the desired style of wine, and i have to say, i didn`t really care for it. it wasnt horrible, but it wasnt something to be served alone. it should be served as an accompaniment for a dinner. that way, it really shines. the second wine, from haut-medoc, was complex and required unraveling. it was spicy and fruity. really cool. very much enjoyed that bottle and look forward to finding a similar one in canada :)

after a long day of wine tasting, i can honestly say, that i couldn`t smell or taste another bottle for at least another day, but julia and i decided that we`d cook dinner that night and so wine was a necessity. we passed by a supermarket for some pasta, sauce, fresh veggies, bread and wine and headed home to make a thank you dinner for our host. with no surprises, everyone (and more) was back for another night, but this time, the festivities went until 5am. thank god i didn`t have any plans for the next day other than church and the market. at 5am, i closed my eyes and slept a deep deep sleep.

St. Michel by night

my final day in bordeaux started quietly with no one awake and me sneaking out to go to church and the market. the church, st. michel, is another piece of history stopped in time. i`m not quite sure why it was so famous, but i do know that i was beautiful inside. not like the notre-dame, but beautiful none the less. its bell tower still rings every now and then and plays the european national anthem (ie the ode to joy). i was surprised to find an african choir singing mass and thought it was a great. after mass, i wandered to the nearby flea market to people watch some more and soon, like all french towns on a sunday, everything closes and i head back to the apartment to apply to some internships. before i know it, it`s time for me to pack up and say my good-byes. the train awaits and i don`t want to miss it.

Pont de Pierre, my final view of bordeaux

my final view of bordeaux is the pont de pierre, a beautiful manifestation of old old old architecture once the only form of wheeled connection between the two sides of bordeaux river backs. lit by night, its a beautiful last memory of the city.

i get to the train station in good time and i decide to sit down in the only space available. an old man starts to talk to me and tells me his life story. he`s a wine harvestor, has been for ever and ever. he`s lost the only woman he`s loved due to cancer and can`t seem to find himself again. i swear, sometime i think i have something that says "tell me your life story" written across my forehead! as i leave he gives me a hug and promptly tries to feel me up... seriously?!?!  anyway, i don't say anything because i prefer not to think of my last moments in bordeaux in that way, but seriously... it always happens to me...

on the train, i pass out and wake up just before we pull into lille. a quick, but expensive, taxi ride home and the weekend in bordeaux is done and a new week began...