The
Bordeaux metropolitan area has a population of 1,105,000 and constitutes the
sixth-largest urban area in France. Bordeaux is the world's major wine industry
capital. Bordeaux wine has been produced in the region since the 8th century.
The historic part of the city is on the UNESCO World Heritage List as "an
outstanding urban and architectural ensemble" of the 18th century.(WIKIPEDIA)
The city
long known as La Belle Au Bois Dormant (Sleeping Beauty) is well and truly
awake after years of slumber. The turn of the millennium was a major turning
point for Bordeaux, when the former mayor, controversial ex-Prime Minister
Alain Juppé, roused this graceful city, pedestrianising its boulevards,
restoring its neoclassical architecture, and implementing a high-tech public
transport system. These days, bolstered by its high-spirited university student
population, La Belle Bordeaux never seems to sleep at all.(LONELY PLANET)
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