I visited Bordeaux, France, for the first time and loved it. Here are 8 things I did in town and why I want to go back.

Most visitors know the Bordeaux region of France for its famous red wine and long history of winemaking. It's also how I thought of Bordeaux, as someone who was born just two hours away and grew up in Aix-en-Provence in southeast France.

Growing up, I had the impression Bordeaux was probably like its heavy red wine — stuffy and old-fashioned, and just not for me. But over the last few years, I heard from more and more friends that Bordeaux is a fun and buzzing city, so I decided to give it a chance and visit for the first time.

I planned a solo weekend trip in June 2022, and was pleased to find it's a buzzy and sustainably minded-city. Here are eight ways the city surprised me and things I found that exceeded my expectations.

I first spent a few hours wandering the central area of Bordeaux, which was filled with beautiful cobbled streets and ornate facades. Bordeaux is made up of centuries-old public buildings, houses, and magnificent mansions, most of which are made of limestone.

I learned that Bordeaux, which is also called the Port of the Moon, was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2007. One of the most iconic landmarks in the Old Town area is Porte Cailhau, which was one of the gates built to protect the city from invasion and completed in 1496. I only walked by the port, but visitors can also climb to the top of the 35-meter tower for unobstructed views of the city.

Growing up in southeast France, I tried Bordeaux wines but never particularly liked the heavy, oaky reds. But on this trip, I decided to give Bordeaux wines another chance, so I booked a tour of the Cité du Vin for a crash course in viniculture.

Cité du Vin is a museum in town focused on all things wine, from the history of wine to the traditions of winemaking in Bordeaux. Inside, it had many interactive displays, like a scent bar to learn how to describe the wine's bouquet, aka the wine's aroma and tasting notes. I thought these displays made it fun to learn about wine making processes from across the world.

I also learned that Bordeaux became known as the wine capital of the world because the region has been growing grapes and trading wine since Ancient Roman times. By the 1700s, the region was a huge exporter of claret, a heavy red wine that the British particularly loved (and the one I don't like). I was surprised to learn that the region now also produces some mineral whites and even rosé wines.

I ended my museum visit with a glass of delicious white Bordeaux wine, which was included in my ticket, on the building's panoramic rooftop overlooking the city. I highly recommend exploring the museum's immersive experiences like I did — it took about an hour and a half, and I thought it was a great way to start my Bordeaux trip by learning about the region's history.

On my trip, I went to the annual Bordeaux Fete le Vin. It's a four-day festival that showcases local wine producers and took place at Les quais de Bordeaux, which is the promenade along the river Garonne that cuts through town.

My pass to the festival came with a wine glass and holder that I used to sample wines at various booths. I was impressed that the wine glass was actual glass, and not plastic. The pass also included a free tram ride to reduce people drinking and driving after the festival. Walking around the festival, I thought all of the people serving wine were helpful and friendly, and I didn't feel any pressure to drink. From my interactions, it was clear to me that the local winemakers are extremely proud of their famous export, and they were all more than happy to talk to me about the winemaking and flavor profiles.

But unlike other wine festivals, this one wasn't only focused on drinking. I was impressed to find one stand at the festival had VR headsets that visitors could try on for a virtual visit to a vineyard. With the headset on, I was transported to a country chateau to learn about the wine process.

Then I played some wine-related table games, listened to live music, and ate some oysters. I also saw a dozen tall ships, which are called Les Voiliers, on the river, and read online that these come up to Bordeaux every year for the wine festival. I admired them from the shore, and saw several of the ships welcoming passengers aboard to explore and see inside.

I love sound and light shows, particularly those that are projected onto iconic buildings and reimagine classic works from artists like Van Gogh or Gustave Klimt. So I was really intrigued to watch the show in the Bassins de Lumieres.

The Bassins de Lumieres is a building that was formerly a WWII submarine base. It's located in the Bacalan district outside of the city center, so I took a bus to get there. The light show took place in the cavernous, warehouse-type rooms, which had walkways over water and was where 32 submarines were once kept.

I watched a 45-minute show called 'Venice, from Caneletto to Monet.' It had classical artworks related to Venice projected onto the wall, and classical music filled the room. I thought it was magical to see the art rise out of the darkness and paintings of Venice reflect on the water. I read on the website that the show's theme changes periodically, so I'd definitely go back to see a new version the next time I visit Bordeaux.

The old town neighborhood was very walkable, in my opinion, and the rest of the city was reachable by tram, bus, electric scooter, or bicycle. I didn't have a car so I mostly walked and cycled around, and also tried riding an e-scooter for the first time.

I rode the e-scooter across the Pont de Pierre bridge to get to the right bank of the river Garonne. It was easy to book on the Lime app, and since it was my first time riding, the app also set a limit on the maximum speed my scooter would go. I felt safe sharing the dedicated cycle lanes with cyclists, skateboarders, and other e-scooter riders.

I also cycled over to Darwin Ecosystem, a former military barracks on the east side of town that's now a sprawling, eco-friendly hangout spot. There, I saw a skatepark, an organic general store and restaurant, an urban farm, a bookshop, and a store by sneaker-brand Veja. I walked around taking photos of the street art and the event spaces, browsed in the bookshop and grabbed a bite at the restaurant in the general store, Magasin General.

I was blown away by everything I ate in town and wished I'd had more time to eat. I tried traditional regional fare at Zéphirine, a countryside-style inn and deli in the center of town, and I thought the dishes were hearty and delicious.

At another restaurant, les Tables Vatel, I tried a unique dish of carrots prepared four ways — roasted in a pistachio crumb, pureed, grated, and sorbet. At the cheekily named Pince-Fesses (which translates to 'ass-pincher,' but is also a French expression for a dinner party), I had little plates of sea bream with yuzu dressing and a white chocolate mousse dessert with Lotus biscuits.

I also enjoyed the variety of dining options at Halles de Bacalan, a food hall where I saw several young professionals spending their lunch break. I saw pinxtos from the nearby Basque country, fresh Atlantic seafood, tartiflette (melted cheese with potato and lardons) from the cheese counter, freshly-made loaded pizzas, generous pastrami sandwiches were all on offer.

I joined a long queue for a fried chicken Caesar wrap from Poulettes, which I thought was delicious and worth the wait.

The city is full of preserved old buildings, and I also saw a lot of stencil graffiti, murals, and posters dotted around the city. I took a street art tour with Caneles et Chocolatines, which is a local tour operator run by a female duo who were born and raised in Bordeaux. They were our tour guides, and for a couple of hours, we cycled around the Old Town and St. Michel areas of Bordeaux, and they pointed out various murals and shared interesting facts about the artists.

I learned that one local artist, A-MO, layers up tags, or graffiti signatures, to create portraits of endangered animals on dilapidated walls. On the east side of town in the Chartrons neighborhood, we saw climate-activist art, and along the river, we stopped by Fabrique Pola, which is an art center where local artists work and host events.

I enjoyed the tour, because it felt as if I were exploring the city with friends who knew all of the cool street art spots, rather than tour guides. For those who'd rather see Bordeaux's street art on a self-tour, there's also an online map that shows all of the street art around town to help plan your route.

I wasn't expecting to go shopping in Bordeaux, but I was quickly drawn in by the many locally-owned boutiques, which I saw sold everything from handmade shampoo bars at Ciment, to delicious nougats and dried fruits at Le Serviteur Muet.

There were beautiful vintage posters and wall art at Marcel, and games, kitchen gadgets, and eco-cleaning products at Bon Endroi. I also stopped at a local bakery, Cassonade, to taste Bordeaux's most famous cake, the cannelé. The cake is made of cane sugar, rum, and vanilla, and it's been a favorite treat in Bordeaux for centuries.

Near the center of town, I found the Saint-Michel district, named after its eponymous church. I'd stopped there on my street art cycle tour, and went back to explore its markets and vintage homeware shops. I stumbled on a bargain antique shop called Les Brocanteurs du Passage Saint Michel, and browsed vintage decor, furniture, and knickknacks.

Later I headed to Chartrons, the former wine merchant district, to browse antiques at Le Passage Notre Dame, vintage fashion at Saint Kilda, and ethically-made clothes at Mat' Green Concept. I managed to squeeze some extra cannelés into my hand luggage, but I'll definitely come back with a bigger suitcase next time to fit wine, chocolates, and clothes.

I especially enjoyed exploring the different neighborhoods and learning about the city from locals during the wine festival and on the street art tour. The food scene and independent shops were impressive, and I already miss the taste of cannelé.

I think Bordeaux makes for an enjoyable trip for wine enthusiasts and non-drinkers alike. The wine museum was interesting even if you don't drink, and the wine festival definitely changed my impression of the variety of Bordeaux wines.

My visit gave me a new taste for all there is to discover in the famous wine region. Next time I visit, I plan to spend two days in Bordeaux and another two days visiting a vineyard and exploring Arcachon, a nearby seaside town that's famous for its oysters.