Alsace, Neither German or French

We Could Spend Hours Walking these Streets

After spending a few days in the Strasbourg region, one thing became abundantly clear. Throughout the history of the region, the people have alternated between German and French control, which has left the citizens feeling more independent than identifying with any particular country. When our guide drove us down the wine road through some of the smaller towns, he made the statement that he only speaks French or German when he has tourists who speak those languages, otherwise he only speaks Alsatian.

Petite France in Strasbourg
Wonderful Bergheim
Buildings along the River in Strasbourg
Extremely Popular Riquewihr
History Around Every Corner
Wine, History, and Culture

Regardless of the political and cultural conflicts that may exist, the area is truly spectacular for its history and the medieval buildings that can be found throughout the area. We only spent a day traveling through some of the smaller towns, but every moment was a glimpse into hundreds of years of history. Regardless of the actual size of the towns themselves, crowds were in abundance as locals and tourists alike traveled to enjoy the small Christmas markets that each of these locations had to offer. We were able to purchase a Christmas bread, which is a gingerbread loaf, as well as some other handmade items both for Christmas as well as just for display.

Interesting Building in Eguisheim
Riquewihr
Strasbourg
Bergheim
Feeling Like a Local in Bergheim
Medieval Buildings

Strasbourg also has some wonderful medieval buildings, both the patchwork wooden buildings for the poor as well as the opulent mansions for the rich. There was much to love about our time in Strasbourg, France, and we will focus on those in some upcoming posts, but we thought that we would start with what struck us most about our time in the area and that is the incredible architecture and a true sense of history. It is a different feel than some of the larger, historic cities, it was all about the medieval villages, the castles, and towns surrounded by ancient fortress walls. It is certainly an area that deserves to be visited, although the intense marketing of the wine road has made it a definite tourist destination, so expect large crowds throughout the year.

More of Riquewihr
Tiny Street in Petite France in Strasbourg
Beautiful Architecture

Historic Buildings
Old Town Square

 

We Have Arrived in Strasbourg, France

We took the ICE train from Frankfurt to Strasbourg, France, yesterday and arrived around midday. We spent the afternoon walking around the old city and Petit France. Today we will see the city in greater detail and plan to take the river tour that goes around the entire city. Tomorrow we will take a tour of the wine road, seeing some smaller, historic towns and hopefully a wine tasting. We are going to be fairly busy, so we will share all of adventures when we arrive back in Frankfurt. We didn’t take too many photos yesterday, but here are couple, just to give you a sense of what we are seeing.

The Notre Dame Cathedral of Strasbourg
Christmas Tree at one of the Markets
Christmas Market outside of the Cathedral
Decorated Store Fronts
Hotel in Petit France
The Cathedral Dominates Everything
Close Up of the Cathedral Window
Sunset from our Hotel
Another View One of the Christmas Market

 

Notre-Dame Cathedral – When Churches Were Beautiful

We’re not sure when places of worship went from being the most beautiful buildings in a town or city to being mega-churches that look more like warehouses than churches, but that has become the case in a lot of cities and towns here in the US.  Obviously you don’t need to be surrounded by ornate artwork, stained glass windows, or marble columns to express your faith, but it used to be an expression of the citizens to make sure that the church was more beautiful than any of the homes in town.  Notre-Dame de Paris is one of the most well-known churches in the world and its French gothic style is absolutely stunning.  It is definitely a shining example of how glorious a church can be when the citizens come together to create something that stands the tests of time and is as wonderful today as when it was first built.

Detailed Architecture
Artwork Inside of the Cathedral
Amazing Details

The intricate sculptures and gargoyles have made Notre-Dame the centerpiece of stories since it was built in the 14th century.  As gorgeous as it is to visit during the day, it is even more stunning at night when it is lit up to reveal all of the details of its architecture.  Taking one of the river tours that takes you around the cathedral is another great way to see Notre-Dame from another angle.  We wish that we would have had more than a couple of days to see Notre-Dame since there is truly so much to see.

Relief on the Wall
Memorial in Church
Notre-Dame de Paris

Although there is definitely a lot to see when visiting Paris, we highly recommend that you take the time to really enjoy the Notre-Dame Cathedral.  It is worth more than just stopping by for a couple of quick photos of its ornate façade, there is so much more to see.  It is one of those iconic locations that everyone knows about, but if you take your time when visiting it, you will enjoy all of the little details that make up the entire experience.

Looking Up at the Sculptures
Observing a Service – We Did Not Use a Flash