bordeaux: a photographer's soggy quest for light and wine
i'm in bordeaux and i think my camera strap is giving me a blister. that's how you know i'm a real traveler - sore shoulders from hauling around a full-frame dslr and three lenses. i'm typing this in a tiny cafe near the garonne river, trying to dry my lens cloth on the chair. it's not working. the humidity here is insane - my camera feels like it's sweating. i just checked the weather: 12.15°c but feels like 11.27, humidity 71%, pressure 999 hpa. basically, it's cold and damp. hope you like that kind of thing.
bordeaux is split by the garonne into the left and right banks. i've been crisscrossing the pont de pierre and the newer bridges like a maniac, trying to catch the sunrise over the place de la bourse. someone told me that the water basin in front of the bourse is drained every tuesday for maintenance, so i showed up at 5 a.m. on a tuesday and found a dry concrete pit. lesson learned: always verify with a local. the city's roman past is buried under layers of 18th-century grandeur - those limestone buildings that gleam (when it's not raining). it's a unesco world heritage site, so they keep it clean, maybe too clean for my gritty taste. but the light on those columns at dusk is something else, when the sky turns pink and reflects in the river.
to get your bearings, bordeaux sits at about 44.84°n, -0.58°e, about 15 miles upriver from where the garonne meets the dordogne and 60 miles from the atlantic. the city's port still handles ships, though mostly river cruises and freighters. i've been using this map to navigate the streets:
the weather here is oceanic, which means mild but wet. i packed a rain cover for my camera, but i still got caught in a sudden downpour yesterday near the quais (the riverfront). the westerly breezes off the atlantic bring a constant drizzle in winter, and even in summer you get those warm, humid days with afternoon showers. i've been told the annual average temperature is around 13°c, but it feels colder because of the humidity. i'm dreaming of that one sunny hour when the vineyards glow.
speaking of vineyards, bordeaux is the heart of one of the world's most famous wine regions. the surrounding gironde department is huge - over 10,000 km² - with médoc to the north (gravel soils) and entre-deux-mers between the two rivers. i took a day trip to a vineyard outside the city, and the symmetry of the vines is a photographer's dream. but beware: some of those private estates are closed to the public unless you have an appointment. i managed to sneak a few shots from the road.
back in the city, i've been hunting for good coffee (cheap is a bonus) and a place to edit without my battery dying. the cafe culture is strong, but most places close early. i usually rely on yelp to find spots with good wifi and power outlets. someone told me that le petit commerce is touristy and overpriced, but i had a solid duck confit there and the wine list was decent. i also read on the bordeaux tourism site that the marché des capucins is the place to go for fresh oysters and local cheese - do go early before the crowds. here are some links that helped me: bordeaux tourism board and tripadvisor bordeaux.
the locals are a laid-back bunch, focused on food and wine. you'll hear gascon occitan sometimes, and the basque influence is there if you look for it. the city proper has about 220,000 people, but the metro area is around 700,000, so it's not a big city feel. i love how the river dominates the landscape - the garonne is wide and slow, and old cargo ships still dock near the port. the contrast between the elegant 18th-century buildings and the gritty industrial zones along the gironde estuary is striking. i've taken some moody shots of warehouses and cranes that might become favorites.
if you get bored, mérignac is just a short drive to the west and houses the main airport (bordeaux-mérignac). also, the atlantic coast is within an hour - the landes beaches are popular for surfing. but i'm staying put; there's too much to photograph here. the city is flat (elevation only 66 ft), so walking is easy, but my feet still complain after a full day. i've also heard that the best light for the saint-andré cathedral is in the late afternoon, but the clouds usually intervene. still, i got a decent shot of the pey-berland tower at blue hour. the cité du vin is a modern building that looks like a bunch of wine glasses stacked - it's controversial but makes an interesting subject. i haven't been inside (too expensive), but the exterior at night is lit up nicely.
i'm currently sitting on a bench near the water basin at place de la bourse, waiting for the sunset to hit the mirror effect. the basin is shallow, and they turn on the water to create a perfect reflection of the buildings. it's one of the most photographed spots in bordeaux, and i can see why. i uploaded a few pics to my instagram stories, but i'm saving the good ones for my portfolio. i hope the rain holds off.
anyway, that's all for now. i need to find a charger before my phone dies. if you're coming to bordeaux, bring a waterproof camera bag, a good pair of walking shoes, and an empty wine bottle (they'll fill it at any cave). and check the tuesday schedule for the water basin. cheers.
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