This post should have started with details on my tour of Libourne with an outing to either a flour mill, chateau, bike ride along the river, or an in-town villa along with a trip to the farmer’s market. Instead my stomach rebelled. After more than a week of French food (all those sauces!!) and drinking at all hours of the day (lots of wine tastings adds up), my system just couldn’t do it anymore. I had an exceptionally tough night. No dinner, no breakfast, no lunch. Our cabin steward worked hard to put the room to rights and I stayed aboard experiencing the mascaret, but missing all the touring in Libourne. We are cruising back to Bordeaux this afternoon, so I hope to enjoy that. At least I won’t be missing more tours The meal that tipped the scales was not on board the ship, but rather in Saint-Emilion.

The afternoon touring was lovely. One of my complaints about this itinerary was that we didn’t move along the river very much. Of the seven nights, we were docked in Bordeaux for five nights and Libourne for two nights. There was plenty to see in this small geographic area, but I really enjoy afternoons like this where we can just relax and enjoy the sights along the river (with a camera at hand if you are like Natasha).

The SS Bon Voyage did make a technical stop just before reaching Bordeaux. They refueled, got rid of waste, and added supplies. It made docking right in town easier rather than trying to do the loading and unloading in the middle of the city. Refueling at these pontoons is probably not safe, encouraged, or easy.

I did my best to not eat or drink anything that might upset my tender tummy. No alcohol for Natasha today. We arrived in Bordeaux right at dinner time. We are eating at 6 pm, an hour earlier than usual because we have a very special nighttime excursion. We will take buses at 8 pm and be back on the ship by 10 pm. I have been extra careful today so I didn’t have to miss this.

Tonight we are going to a WWII German submarine base. for Bassin des Lumieres. “Dating from 1941-43, the base is one of five built by the Germans on the Atlantic coast for U-boats during the Second World War. This gigantic bunker is a veritable honeycomb with eleven alveolus linked by an inner street.” Bordeaux-tourism.com.uk There were 32 Italian submarines in the 11 bays. Some were dry bays, others wet. Netting was used to camouflage the openings. 6,500 workers were used to build the base, many of whom were Spanish prisoners.

The concrete roof of the base is 9 meters (almost 30 feet) thick. On top on that roof, there was a fangrost or “bomb trap/screen” to further protect the submarine base from aerial attack. The fact that it is still standing suggests the detailed construction served its purpose. “During the 22 months of its existence, 43 U-boats were assigned to it in order to carry out attack missions in the Atlantic Ocean, near the American coast, and resupply missions in the Indian Ocean.” bassin-lumieres.com

After WWII the base was taken over by the French Navy and the U-Boat Bunker was entrusted to the port of Bordeaux. The bunker was mostly intact. It was used by various companies from the 1960s to close to the turn of the century. In spite of its bleak history, today it has been repurposed to serve as a museum and a theater for an amazing light and sound show. The site was both created and is managed by Cultural Spaces. These types of productions are set around the world and sometimes travel. The Museum of Fine Art, Houston had one of the expositions. We also saw another one of types of presentation in an old quarry in Les Beaux de Provence, France.

After arriving at the base, we walked through between the bays for an introduction to the facility and the show. It began with a powerful piece in the bay as if a submarine was entering. I wish I had videotaped it, but I just lived the moment instead. This venue accommodates the disabled and those that are less mobile. I stayed in the auditorium type seating area so I was close to a restroom, but the best way to experience the show is to move around the venue. There were lots of alternative locations from which to watch the show. We were fortunate that Uniworld had rented the entire production venue for our event.

The projections are on the wall, floors, ceilings, and even on the water in the bays. Like the show we saw in Les Baux de Provence, there is a long segment followed by a short one. Our long program was on the Egyptian Pharaohs and the short program was the Orientalists. I enjoyed both. You could walk right up to the front of the bays, on platforms over the water, and all along the sides. There was limited seating in the other bays.

It was a short ride back to the ship after the show. I am so glad I didn’t have to miss this. No nightcap for Natasha though. Time to take it easy. Tomorrow there are tours of Bordeaux. As we have done the city tour on a previous trip, our plan is to do a little shopping on St. Catherine Street. It is an incredible city and there is a lot of construction going on. New areas are opening up as people flood in to the city, not just as tourists, but as residents. New housing districts have been developed since our last visit. That said, Boris and I saw a lot of the city the last time we are here and I suggest you check out my previous post on Bordeaux for some of the city highlights.

The next morning, Boris and I had a lazy breakfast. We are going to go out after the tours have left. However, the tours included tram tickets to take us to the heart of the city-that’s a big plus on a hot day-and Boris went to collect our tickets from the tour guide since it is included in our cruise. Riding the tram was fun and look us directly to St. Catherine Street. I saw a lot of the old landmarks I enjoyed on our last visit.

The tram was actually fun, very clean, and easy to use. We took a long walk down the pedestrian shopping street. It was Saturday and it was crowded. We both bought some shoes, gifts for a new niece and nephew, some food products, and an antique spyglass. We had lunch back on the boat and relaxed and spent the afternoon packing. I would definitely have taken advantage of the easy tram ride and our ample time in the city if I felt better. Anticipating the long trip home that begins tomorrow with the train back to Paris, I didn’t want to overdo it.

We had a great trip. We reverse the travel process with the train to Paris. Uniworld made all the arrangements to get us to the train station, but only transportation to and from the airport on embarkation and disembarkation days is included so we have to cover the cost of the cab. We are just going to stay at a hotel near the airport on points. Our flight out is the next morning. We have to make connections again. I can highly recommend Uniworld, the SS Bon Voyage, and this itinerary. However, if you are looking for more scenic river travel you might want to check out over options. Love the ability to cover a region without having to unpack and repack at every new spot and also to have all the touring arranged. We loved our floating hotel, getting to know other guests, and the amazing meals and accommodations. Boris is on a French kick, so I know we will be back soon.

On to the next adventure…Natasha