When the level of the Garonne drops, the waters of Bordeaux's port reveal some rather strange shapes. These carcasses, which look like alien crustaceans, are actually the remains of a vast sabotage effort. In August 1944, when Allied troops entered the city, the occupying German forces deliberately sank more than 200 ships before beating a retreat. The wrecked vessels paralysed the port, and the river was impassable until 1949, when the city cleared away the piles of metal. This undertaking was one of Bordeaux's largest post-war projects. Despite the city's best efforts, a few scraps remain strewn on the river bottom, and every once in a while they can be seen from the quays of the left bank.
Read more
