Sunday, July 21, 2013

Main sights

Porte Cailhau Column of the Girondins on the Esplanade des Quinconces The church of St Pierre Façade of the Church of the Holy Cross Place de la Bourse at night with the Miroir d'eau and tram Rue Sainte-Catherine Church of Notre Dame

Bordeaux is classified "City of Art and History". The city is home to 362 monuments historiques (only Paris has more in France) with some buildings dating back to Roman times. Bordeaux has been inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage List as "an outstanding urban and architectural ensemble".

Bordeaux is home to one of Europe's biggest 18th-century architectural urban areas, making it a sought-after destination for tourists and cinema production crews. It stands out as one of the first French cities, after Nancy, to have entered an era of urbanism and metropolitan big scale projects, with the team Gabriel father and son, architects for King Louis XV, under the supervision of two intendants (Governors), first Nicolas-François Dupré de Saint-Maur then the Marquis (Marquess) de Tourny.

Buildings

Main sights include:

Esplanade des Quinconces, the largest square in Europe. Monument aux Girondins Grand Théâtre, a large neoclassical theater built in the 18th century. Allées de Tourny Cours de l'Intendance Place du Chapelet Place de la Bourse(1730–1775), designed by the Royal architect Jacques Ange Gabriel as landscape for an equestrian statue of Louis XV. Place du Parlement Place Saint-Pierre Pont de pierre Saint-André Cathedral, consecrated by Pope Urban II in 1096. Of the Original Romanesque edifice only a wall in the nave remain. The Royal Gate is from the early 13th century, while the rest of the construction is mostly from the 14th and 15th centuries. Tour Pey-Berland (1440–1450), a massive, quadrangular gothic tower annexed to the cathedral. Église Sainte-Croix (Church of the Holy Cross). It lies on the site of a 7th-century abbey destroyed by the Saracens. Rebuilt under the Carolingians, it was again destroyed by the Normans in 845 and 864. It is annexed to a Benedictine abbey founded in the 7th century, and was built in the late 11th and early 12th centuries. The façade is in Romanesque style The gothic Basilica of Saint Michael, constructed between the end of 14th century and the 16th century. Basilica of Saint-Seurin, the most ancient church in Bordeaux. It was built in the early 6th century on the site of a palaeochristian necropolis. It has an 11th-century portico, while the apse and transept are from the following century. The 13th-century nave has chapels from the 11th and the 14th centuries. The ancient crypt houses sepulchres of the Merovingian family. Église Saint-Pierre, gothic church Église Saint-Éloi, gothic church Église Saint-Bruno, baroque church decorated with frescoes Église Notre-Dame, baroque church Église Saint-Paul-Saint-François-Xavier, baroque church Palais Rohan (Exterior:) Palais Gallien, the remains of a late 2nd-century Roman amphitheatre Porte Cailhau, a medieval gate of the old city walls. La Grosse Cloche (15th century), the second remaining gate of the Medieval walls. It was the belfry of the old Town Hall. It consists of two 40 m-high circular towers and a central bell tower housing a bell weighing 7,800 kilograms (17,000 lb). The watch is from 1759. Rue Sainte-Catherine, the longest Pedestrian street of France The BETASOM submarine base

Saint-André Cathedral, Saint-Michel Basilica and Saint-Seurin Basilica are part of the World Heritage Sites of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France.

Contemporary architecture Fire Station, la Benauge, Claude Ferret/Adrien Courtois/Yves Salier, 1951–1954 Court of first instance, Richard Rogers, 1998 CTBA, wood and furniture research center, A. Loisier, 1998 Hangar 14 on the Quai des Chartrons, 1999 The Management Science faculty on the Bastide, Anne Lacaton/Jean-Philippe Vassal, 2006 The Jardin botanique de la Bastide, Catherine Mosbach/Françoise Hélène Jourda/Pascal Convert, 2007 The Nuyens School complex on the Bastide, Yves Ballot/Nathalie Franck, 2007 Seeko'o Hotel on the Quai des Chartrons, King Kong architects, 2007 Museums Musée des Beaux Arts (Fine arts museum), one of the finest painting galleries in France with paintings by painter such as Tiziano, Veronese, Rubens, Van Dyck, Frans Hals, Claude, Chardin, Delacroix, Renoir, Seurat, Matisse and Picasso. Musée d'Aquitaine (archeological and history museum) Musée du Vin et du Négoce (museum of the wine trade) Musée des Arts Décoratifs (museum of decorative arts) Musée d'Histoire Naturelle (natural history museum) Centre d'arts plastiques contemporains (CAPC) (contemporary art museum) Musée National des Douanes Vinorama Musée Goupil Casa de Goya Cap Sciences Centre Jean Moulin Parks and gardens Jardin botanique de Bordeaux Jardin botanique de la Bastide La Maison des Chameaux (Camel Park)

"Le Jardin Publique" is a park in the heart of the city.

Shopping

Bordeaux has many shopping options. In the heart of Bordeaux is Rue Sainte-Catherine. This pedestrian only shopping street has 1.2 kilometres (0.75 mi) of shops, restaurants and cafés; it is also one of the longest shopping streets in Europe. Rue Sainte-Catherine starts at Place de la Victoire and ends at Place de la Comédie by the Grand Théâtre. The shops become progressively more upmarket as one moves towards Place de la Comédie and the nearby Cours de l'Intendance is where one finds the more exclusive shops and boutiques.

No comments:

Post a Comment