When our car crossed Pont de Pierre and we saw the whole skyline with the long row of stately buildings along the Garronne and Porte de Bourgogne at the end of the bridge was like a symbolic city gate, Bordeaux welcomed us with its really grand appearance. This was my second time I visited Bordeaux, but last time I travel by train and did not have a chance to see this fantastic view. After hotel check in, we drove our car to see the city, the traffic was really bad as there were many junctions, and the new tram system also added more traffic lights. Bordeaux’s city center was like little Latin Quartier of Paris with many fine buildings, nice but nothing remarkable.

In my opinion the only part of the city that made Bordeaux stunning is the riverside, all the beaux art buildings seem to be transported from Paris grand boulevards of Baron Haussmann. The crescent shape of the riverside made the whole view of these buildings more magnificent and looked endless. We decided to park our car near Place des Quinconces that unfortunately closed for preparation of city festival. We walked to see the famous Place de la Bourse, the square was indeed very grand and the best sight of Bordeaux. The riverside terrace was a popular place for evening exercise, I saw many joggers, cyclists and many safety patrols. Flèche Saint-Michel, the gothic tower of Basilica of Saint Michael was a landmark dominating the southern part of Bordeaux while the twin towers of St Louis des Chartrons Church marked the nice visual landmark of the northern part. To our big disappointment, the much photographed Le Miroir d’eau, the modern fountains and pool that create the water reflection view of Place de la Bourse were not opened and the pool was dried. Then we walked around Place du Parlement to find a place for food. After lovely dinner, we walked back to Place de la Bourse to see the beautiful night view of the whole riverside buildings before we backed to our hotel. In the morning, we went to see Place de la Victoire for another city gate, Porte d’Aquitane and Marche des Capucines, the big market hall to see many local fresh products and Bordelais lifestyle. Before we departed the city to Poitier.

Even though Bordeaux is a great city and beautiful, I did not see anything remarkable as in my opinion the city was like a small copy of Paris. Even its skyline was strikingly similar with Parisian skyline height control. But again, compared to other big regional cities in France, like Toulouse, Lyon and Marseilles, Bordeaux really look different for its grand and prosperous appearance of beaux art riverside. Since World Heritage Site of Paris is only limited to the Seine Riverside and excluded many grand beaux art avenues i.e. the famous Champ-Elysees or Boulevard des Capucines, then the grand buildings along the quay of Bordeaux and its city center seem to be unique indeed at least among current UNESCO's list.