Oui, We Went to the Olympics!
- Katie Johnson
- Jul 31, 2024
- 13 min read
Bryan and I can check off another item on our bucket list: We went to the Paris Olympics 2024!!
We have done a lot of traveling since moving to Spain, but this was the first trip we actually planned- all the way back when we were still stationed in Japan! We knew we were headed to Europe, so we entered the Olympics ticket lottery and received the email near midnight during our Taiwan trip saying we had a time slot to login and purchase tickets!
So after a few long, hot days of traveling around Taipei, Taiwan, we sat in our hotel room and purchased Olympic tickets on May 14, 2023. After telling Bryan I wanted to see swimming or gymnastics, he explained those tickets started at $250 a seat...not happening. So he made the executive decisions and bought us seats for two Men's Football games in Bordeaux, France and the Women's Rugby quarterfinals in Paris! We then filed those tickets away until September, when I booked our accommodations and flights!
Friday, July 26th: Overnight in Barcelona Airport
The problem with purchasing flights almost a year out is the risk of flight cancellations..and that's exactly what happened to us about a month before our Olympic adventure. Instead of a lovely direct flight from Sevilla to Bordeaux, we ended up stuck with an overnight layover in Barcelona.
Saturday, July 27th: Bordeaux for Men's Football
Bordeaux Airport: Aéroport de Bordeaux
So we flew out at 10:55 pm and landed in Barcelona around 12:30 am, where we found a quiet restaurant booth to sleep in until our 6 am flight to Bordeaux. Not ideal, but at least this time I didn't purposely choose a sleepover in an airport!
Hôtel Première Classe Bordeaux Le Lac
After landing in Bordeaux, finding our hotel, and dropping our bags, we headed out to find lunch before our first soccer game! I will admit, we weren't blown away with our hotel...it had AC, a bathroom, and a bed, but it was a pretty lackluster stay. I remember booking these hotels back in September 2023 and being flabbergasted at hotel prices. Knowing we were trying to ball on a budget, I did skimp on hotels for this trip. Worth it for us, but I wouldn't stay here again if it wasn't for Olympic pricing around the city!
Hippopotamus
With not many options for lunch by the stadium, we ended up with steaks at Hippotamus. The food was good and we were lucky to arrive before a lot of the crowds. We watched as a lot of people were turned away once we were seated and waiting for our food.
After our meal, we headed to the stadium and enjoyed seeing all the decked-out cars filled with fellow fans heading to the game!
New Bordeaux Stadium: Stade de Bordeaux
Remember when I said we bought these tickets over a year ago?! We had no idea who we would see compete; we were just happy to be going. Once the schedule came out, we were stunned to see the two soccer games we were attending:
🇪🇸 Spain vs. Dominican Republic
🇯🇵 Japan vs. Mali
That's right! We happened to buy tickets for our two homes-away-from-home teams! What a God thing!!!
After watching Spain win the Euros a few weeks back, this game was a reminder of our luck for living in Spain! While this team doesn't have any of those Euro players on it, it was cool to see these younger Spanish players win 3-1 against the DR!
Del Arte
We had a few hours of break time between our two matches, so we did some Olympic gear shopping and then grabbed a bite to eat at Del Arte before heading back to the stadium for our final game of the day!
New Bordeaux Stadium: Stade de Bordeaux
We made our way back to the stadium and were shocked by the number of Japanese jerseys and women in full yukatas in the area! That's right, we saw ladies decked out in the traditional Japanese outfits that Bryan and I bought for the Obon festival in Sasebo! Seeing the cultural representation outside the stadium made me remember how much I love our old home!
A little note about the ticketing system for the Olympics: Our tickets were issued through the Paris Olympics App and the tickets weren't available until a few days before the event. We couldn't see a QR code for the tickets until 30 minutes before the gates opened, and even then, when I took screenshots of the ticket there was no QR code!
Tickets for the Olympics were impossible to sell second-hand. If you wanted to sell your tickets, you had to sell them back through the app and then the Olympics would re-sell them at the same price. This also prevented any scammers from selling fake tickets. After seeing the chaos of Ticketmaster and Stubhub surrounding the US Taylor Swift Eras Tour, it was nice to see a large event stay honest and keep prices reasonable for all visitors!
Back in the stadium, we found our seats and stood for the playing of both national anthems. Hearing the Japanese national anthem took me back to living on base in Sasebo and hearing that 8 am colors where both the US and Japanese anthems played every single morning. What a memory!
Did that video clip bring a small tear to my eye? Yes.
Did seeing the entire Japanese team bow before walking on the field make my heart ache a little? Yes.
Spain is great, and living in Europe has been a dream of Bryan and I's, but Japan stole our hearts. Seeing the small nuances of Japan's culture around the stadium brought that love to the forefront of our minds!
We ended our first day of the Olympics with a Japan win against Mali! This first full day was the way to kick off our Olympic trip as both our homes won their games!
Sunday, July 28th: Saint-Emilion Wine Tour
Café Brazza
With a break in sports events, we had our entire Sunday to explore Bordeaux, so we started the day off with a quick cup of joe at Café Brazza before finding our meeting point for the first tour of the day!
OLALA Bordeaux Wine Tours
Once on the bus with Emmanuelle, our tour guide from Olala Tours, we left the city of Bordeaux and made the 45-minute journey to Saint-Emilion. Known for growing Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, Saint-Émilion is one of the principal red wine areas of Bordeaux!
Cloître de l'église collégiale & Église collégiale de Saint-Émilion
We started by visiting the small town of Saint-Émilion. The main attraction is the 11th century monastery & church that is carved entirely out of a limestone cliff. It is one of the largest underground churches in all of Europe!
Matthieu Mouliérac - Les macarons de Saint-Émilion
Saint-Émilion is known for its macaroons, so we knew we had to try one at the traditional shop, Moulierac. The recipe has been passed down through generations by Ursuline nuns since 1620. These macaron traditionnels are made from ground almonds, sugar, and fresh egg whites, and are more like a sugar cookie than what we normally think of as macrons! For €2.70, I will say it was an expensive cookie-macaron!
Porte de la Cadène
As we continued our short tour of Saint-Émilion, we reached the Porte de la Cadene, an ancient gate that divided the rich and the poor people in the village. The rich lived higher on the hill, meaning the latrines alongside the cobblestone streets kept flowing downhill and away from the wealthy. Pretty gross!
But what wasn't gross was that view from the wealthier part of the town. Wow! Overlooking the town of Saint-Émilion, we spotted acres upon acres of vineyards in the distance! Bring on the rest of this tour!
As we left the town and made our way to our first of three wineries of the day, Emmanuelle explained a little about Bordeaux's wine regions and terminology. One of the most interesting things I learned was that Saint-Émilion has over 800 vineyards. Each vineyard in the area is called a château, French for castle. I guess you can say they think highly of their facilities!
We also learned that wines from Bordeaux can only have château on the label if the grapes are grown, then made into wine, and finally bottled all within their plot of land. Only the final vineyards we visited had that classification!
Château la Rose des Vents
The first vineyard we visited was Château la Rose des Vents, which is a small family-run team! The husband handles the vines, the wife is the winemaker, and the woman's father maintains all mowing and maintenance needed around the grounds. This vineyard only grows Merlot, so their wine is a little on the sweeter side.
After we toured their facilities and enjoyed a tasting including some other small vineyards' wines, we enjoyed a lovely picnic lunch in the shade surrounded by grapevines! We passed our lunchtime meeting our fellow wine tasters- one from Nice, a French town along the Meditteranean, one Brit who was originally born in Japan, and two Aussies!
Château Grangey
Eventually, it was time to head to the next winery. We arrived at Château Grangey, an organic vineyard that focuses on organic wine production. The owner of this vineyard is a third-generation winemaker who decided to go organic back in the early 2000s.
During our tour, we learned that less than 12% of the winemakers in Saint-Émilion are organic grape farmers, and since COVID-19, the numbers have continued to decline. Château Grangey even said they may not last as an organic vineyard because at least 50% of their grapes die due to their lack of pesticides and mold control sprays.
With that said, Château Grangey does have an entire plot of vines that were originally planted in 1912. One of the wines we later tasted was from the 112-year-old vines!
Château Le Châtelet
Our final winery of the day was Château Le Châtelet, the only vineyard today able to include Château on their label since they complete the entire process on their grounds! This was also the only vineyard that had a working wine cave cellar, where they stored their bottled wine awaiting shipping. Since they do ship internationally, these bottles weren't labeled yet, since the labels have to meet specific requirements depending on the country it is exported to!
Château Le Châtelet is also special since it earned the award of Grand Cru Classé. This classification is specific to the Saint-Émilion region and is awarded every ten years and is based on their selection of wines, their tourism options, export potential, and, in recent years, their use of marketing.
Emmanuelle later explained that with the addition of marketing and tourism to the Grand Cru Classé, many winemakers are not able to compete for this award. It also costs €30,000 to even apply for this award, meaning a lot of smaller vineyards can't afford the chance to earn this award. This was all a reminder that there are great, cheaper wines that come out of France! A new life motto: Don't knock a wine until you taste it!
After finishing our wine tour, I can say it was a little bit on the pricier side of tours that Bryan and I normally do, but it was well worth it for all we did! Not having to rent a car, research vineyards, and make our own bookings in English made this tour worth it! If you decide to book, know that the company has partnered with over 30 vineyards in the area, so you will probably visit different ones than us, but I would 100% do this tour again!
Space Factory Craft Beer
We had an hour to kill before our next tour, so we stumbled upon Space Factory, where Bryan and I enjoyed a beer in the AC. With the temp hitting 95 degrees in Bordeaux, we were more than happy to spend time indoors!
Then we met Mark at 6 pm for our free walking tour of Bordeaux's city center! We have done all kinds of city tours- walking, segway, TukTuk, golf carts- and the free walking tours have always been great! For a flat, smaller city, we always opt for these since they are tip-based at the end and we feel like we get a good bang for our buck!
Pey Berland Tower: Tour Pey Berland
Our tour started at Pey Berland Tower, where the local cathedral and bell tower were built separately. In almost all churches, the bell tower is connected to the main church building for the convenience of ringing the bells and for aesthetic purposes. Since Bordeaux is built on marshlands, it was a strategic building decision to keep the bell tower separate to prevent it from sinking into the soil.
Place de la Bourse & Miroir d'eau
The stunning open courtyard of Bordeaux was originally built by King Louis XV to house the tax offices of the city. Since this city square is right by the water, it was meant to collect taxes from the ships unloading goods into the major port city.
Nowadays the square is more known for the shallow water pool across the street, Miroir d'eau. When we arrived around 7:30 pm, there were tons of families enjoying picnics and children playing in the water! This 2007 addition to the city was dedicated to the people and it stands as a fun area for kids, families, and couples alike!
Porte Cailhau
During our walking tour, we learned that Bordeaux used to be owned by the English during the 12th century. In 1137, Dutchess Elenore married King Louis VII of France as a way to unite the country. Together they had two daughters and later an annulled marriage, since they didn't have a son. Elenore remarried Henry II, King of England. Since the previous marriage was annulled, Elenore’s land went to the English when she remarried.
All that history just shows that the English and French hatred goes back for centuries! Since the English built the walls around Bordeaux, the French tore them down once they gained control of the city, following the Hundred Years' War, to remove the English fingerprint from the city. Grudges run deep! The Disney castle-looking building was built by the people of Bordeaux as a monument to Louis XI in the mid-1400s to show their support of their new French rulers.
L'Entrecôte
As our tour ended, our guide mentioned the famous L'Entrecôte restaurant. With no dinner plans, we endured 20 minutes in the direct sun while waiting for a table. For a place that doesn't take reservations, the line moved quickly! So what makes this place famous? L'Entrecôte opened in 1959 serving only one meal: steak and fries! And it was just as good as it looks! The €22 set meal included a fresh salad, a steak, and unlimited fries! It was well worth the wait in the sun!
Monday, July 29: Paris & Women's Rugby Sevens
Our day started early at 6:30 am. Our hotel was north of the city so we were closer to the football stadium, but that meant we were on the opposite end of the major train station.
Gare de Bordeaux Saint-Jean ➡ Montparnasse
Since an Uber ride took 20 minutes, while public transit was an hour and fifteen minutes, we chose the pricier ride option to save time. We arrived at the train station with extra time for a Starbucks before catching our speed train to Paris!
Our train made two stops on the way to Paris and took a little under three hours. Bryan enjoyed a nap while I read a huge chunk of my book. (I'm a little behind on the Fourth Wing phenomenon, but I flew through the first two books once Kelly told me to read them! It's been a while since I have enjoyed a series this much!)
Le Prince Racine
We arrived in Paris and headed to Le Prince Racine for lunch! After telling Bryan I really wanted French Onion Soup, my loving hubby found a restaurant to meet my request and made us a lunch reservation!
Lucky for us, the restaurant was more of a local hub, so we enjoyed classic French food while surrounded by locals! We were also happy to see Paris allowed their restaurants to pop up their COVID patios onto the streets to accommodate all the extra tourists!
Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris
After a relaxing lunch in the shade, Bryan and I passed the time wandering around the Parisian streets. We sent several pictures to Jennifer and Kevin as a reminder of all the places we visited together back in the spring!
Place de l'Hôtel-de-Ville
While the city was a blazing 97 degrees, it was cool to see entire buildings decked out in Paris 2024 Olympic signage! Entire hotels closed their parking lots to cars and converted them into viewing locations!
REŸS
Trying to stay cool, we were sure to grab a scoop of REŸS ice cream! You may remember this unique shop from our last visit; this time Bryan got a scoop of a mango/lime/ginger/java pepper ice cream, while I had a lemon and fennel scoop! It was just as good as the last time!
BrewDog Le Marais
With two hours left before we needed to check in at our hotel, we found BrewDog and enjoyed a pint while watching some Olympics (Bryan) and more reading (me!) This is the third BrewDog we have visited- one in London during the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child intermission and I enjoyed BrewDog's sour in Singapore- so BrewDog may have to be another Mikkeller Brewery that we look for when we travel!
hotelF1 Villepinte Parc des Expositions
Eventually, we made it up to our hotel for check-in and it was a bigger disappointment than our Bordeaux hotel... considering I had booked these hotels almost a year ago, I had forgotten this was a shared bathroom/shared shower booking...and that's not the kind of surprise you want after backpacking around the city all day!
Lacking AC to help cool us down, we took a few minutes to catch our breath before heading back to the train station!
Stade de France
Our final Olympic event was the Women's Rugby Sevens Quarterfinals! After Bryan saw a rugby match in Brisbane, he was extra excited for this event and I was eager to see the sport that rules across Australia!
I didn't realize that rugby sevens only lasts 14 minutes, so we actually got to see several matches including:
9-12 Placing Matches:
Japan (15) v. South Africa (12)
Brazil (28) v .Fiji (22)
Quarterfinals Matches:
New Zealand (55) v. China (5)
USA (17) v. Great Britain (7)
Canada (19) v. France (14)
Australia (40) v. Ireland (7)
I'm now a Rugby fan! I freaking loved watching this sport! It was fast-paced, tough, and showed true athleticism! It was also really cool getting to see the USA team compete; not only to cheer on the good US of A, but also because I have been following Ilona Maher on TikTok! This woman promotes positive body image, and femininity while still being a badass athlete!
Bryan loved attending this event too since we got to see all three medaling teams LIVE in person!
Tuesday, July 30: Home & More Olympic Watching
Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport: Aéroport de Paris-Charles de Gaulle
After a few days of attending the world's ultimate sporting event, it was time to head home. Lucky for us, we had these two waiting at home to snuggle us and watch the Women's Rugby Finals from the comfort of our couch! Seeing the stadium on the TV was pretty surreal, considering we were there less than 24 hours ago! In the end, the USA placed bronze, Canada placed silver and New Zealand won gold.
This was a huge spectator event and I already told Bryan I want to attend the next Olympics in LA! Bring on 2028- I need more Rugby! ...or maybe just a trip to Australia to see it in the homeland when Brisbane hosts in 2032!
--Katie
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