Bordeaux, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France

We chose this not because it is a famed wine producing region--in truth, we don't know much about this wine, and we have not had great success in drinking it--combined with it's price point, we were going to need education in this area. No, it is because we have been exploring France, region by region, for thirty years, and this was one we had never been to before. It is a port city on the Garonne River in southwestern France. Bordeaux is an ancient city. Around 300 BC, the region was the settlement of a Celtic tribe, the Bituriges Vivisci, named the town Burdigala, probably of Aquitanian origin. The 18th century, however, was the golden age of Bordeaux. The Port of the Moon supplied the majority of Europe with coffee, cocoa, sugar, cotton and indigo, becoming France's busiest port and the second busiest port in the world after London. Many downtown buildings (about 5,000), including those on the quays, are from this era. In the “never forget” side the of the equation, Bordeaux was also a major trading center for slaves. In total, the Bordeaux shipowners deported 150,000 Africans. It is quite beautiful, despite that, and full of excellent food and wine.