Mairie Garden, Public garden in Bordeaux, France
The Jardin de la Mairie is a public garden in central Bordeaux, tucked behind the city hall known as the Palais Rohan, with entrances on Rue Élysée Reclus and Cours d'Albret. It covers roughly one hectare and is laid out around a round basin with a water jet at its center, from which straight paths radiate outward.
The garden was laid out in the 19th century and its overall layout has changed little since then, as old postcards confirm. The entrance from Rue Montbazon was closed in recent years to make room for a parking area.
The main gate facing Cours d'Albret is made of wrought iron decorated with gold details and bears the coat of arms of Bordeaux. The 19th-century buildings that flank the garden now house the Museum of Fine Arts, which visitors can enter directly from the grounds.
The garden is open every day and is within easy walking distance of the Mériadeck and Palais de Justice tram stops. It pairs well with a visit to the adjacent Museum of Fine Arts, so combining both in the same outing makes sense.
The garden is one of the few in Bordeaux that still has the old-style metal chairs available for visitors, which most other parks have replaced with fixed benches. In autumn 2015, the main gate hosted a large red ball as part of Kurt Perschke's Redball Project, an international art installation that was touring the city at the time.
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