Bordeaux

Location:

Bordeaux is located in the Aquitaine region of France.

Presentation:

Bordeaux is located near the European Atlantic coast, in the south west of and in the north of the Aquitaine region. The city is built on an arch of the river Garonne, and is thus divided into two parts: the right bank to the East and left bank in the West. Historically, the left bank is the most developed of the three. In Bordeaux, the Garonne River is accessible to the ocean liners.

• Population: 230,600 inhabitants.
• Density: 4,658 inhabitants/ sq km
• Wine:

- Bordeaux is the largest wine region in the world with about 117 000 hectares of vineyards, 57 appellations, 9,000 wine-producing châteaux, 13,000 wine growers, 400 traders and sales of 14,5 billion euros annually. With an annual production of over 700 million bottles, Bordeaux produces large quantities of everyday wine as well as very expensive wines. 
- Red Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes and may be made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Malbec, and, less commonly in recent years, Carmenere. White Bordeaux is made from Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, and Muscadelle.
- The Bordeaux wine region is divided into subregions including Saint-Émilion, Pomerol, Médoc, and Graves. The area's five 'premier cru' (first growth) red wines (four from Médoc and one, Chateau Haut-Brion, from Graves), established by the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855 are among the most expensive wines in the world: The first growths are: Château Lafite-Rothschil - Château Margaux - Château Latour - Château Haut-Brion - Château Mouton-Rothschild.

• Laser: The Laser Megajoule will be the most powerful laser in the world, allowing fundamental research and the development of the lasers and plasmas technologies. This project, carried by the French Ministery of Defence, involves an investment of 2 billion euros. In 2009, the 600 experiments programmed each year with the Laser Mégajoule will begin. The "Road of the lasers", a major project of regional planning for the optical and lasers industries, will be born. Therefore, the area of Bordeaux will shelter the most important concentration of optical and laser experts in Europe.

• Aeronautics: 20 000 people work for the aeronautic industry in Bordeaux. The city has some of the biggest companies including Dassault, Sogerma, SNECMA, Thales, SNPE, and others. The Dassault Falcon private jets are built there as well as the military aircraft Rafale and Mirage 2000, the A380 cockpit, the boosters of Ariane 5, and the M51 SLBM missile.

 Colleges and universities:

With almost 100,000 students, the city's university is renowned for its research units in crop science, new materials and nanotechnology
Bordeaux accommodates approximately 70 000 students on one of the largest campuses of Europe (235 ha). The University of Bordeaux is divided into four:

• The University Bordeaux 1 (Sciences and Technologies).
  
• The University Bordeaux 2 (Medecine).
• The University Bordeaux 3 (Liberal Arts, Humanities, Languages and Social sciences).
• The University Bordeaux 4 (Law, Economy and Management).

Easy Access:

- By plane: Aer Lingus, Air France, British Airways ans KLM Dutch Airlines provide a non-stop flight service from Dublin airport to Bordeaux airport  (1h45)
- By train: by TGV Paris- Bordeaux: 3h
- By car: 20minutes from the airport
- By bus/tram: Bordeaux has an important public transport system called TBC. This company is run by the Connex group.