We trained from Avignon to Strasbourg through beautiful farms, vineyards, forests, and villages. The iconic red poppies are blooming all over the place. Our lodging was only about a long three blocks away, so we walked. It was an apartment/hotel, meaning that rooms were efficiencies. In this case, very efficient, as our second bed had to be pulled out from under the first. But it was cozy, and had everything we needed.
Strasbourg has 500 km of bike lanes, and, at least in the central area, one needs to be constantly aware of where one is walking lest one becomes run over by a bicycle. They are all over. This may be partially because Strasbourg is home to the second highest number of students in France.
We walked over to the old town to find something to eat. It is everything that is promised. Canals all over the place, and the old buildings with cross-hatching timbers decorating them. It was also a holiday weekend in Germany, and the place was crawling with tourists, most from Germany, but many from as far as Asia.
The second day we set a goal of seeing the clock at the cathedral at 12:30. We were waylaid by the cheese shop and charcuterie, which was ok as the clock is under construction right now anyhow. W queued for tickets for a canal tour, got some tickets for a bit later, then went off to a flea market and lunch.
The canal tour was fascinating. We went from the old city to the Neue Stadt, or New City, which was built in the last century. This was where the rich lived, and the architecture was strongly influenced by the Jugendstil style. This is also where the European Parliament has its seat.
We walked to the Orangerie, Empress Josephine’s favorite hangout where we saw storks, a wedding, and lots of people enjoying the long weekend. On the way back we found bread and wine. By the time we got home we’d probably walked over 10 miles (10-12 seems to be about average these days), hand had a nice dinner before collapsing to sleep.
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Thanks for sharing your adventures with great writing and pictures. Meg and I enjoy this post – reliving our visit to Strasbourg just a few months ago. We never got to ride the canals as the water was too high. It’s nice to see the areas we missed from the water.