Strasbourg

I am glad we went to Strasbourg because it turned out to be a gem. It really is a beautiful city, and if the cynical Rough Guide to France says that then it must be true. It has a bit of everything - old half-timbered, medieval buildings which are so predominant in Alsace, and in contrast it has the very modern architecture of the European Parliament and institutions. Both are impressive.

The cathedral, which is dedicated to Our Lady - Notre Dame de Strasbourg, must be one of the loveliest cathedrals in France. Its single and very ornate spire dominates the city. It rises straight up out of the medieval buildings which crowd round its feet.

The old city, which is quite compact, sits on an island formed by the River Ill and various canals. There is water everywhere. We took a lovely boat trip along various water courses to see the sights of the city. This included the old section full of medieval houses called La Petite France. The boat then took us out to the buildings of the European institutions - the Court of Human Rights and the European Parliament.



We had visited both of these areas the day before, just wandering through them quite slowly as we like to do. We had taken the tram out to the European Parliament for the city has an impressive tram system. The campsite was about 3km south of the city centre and we used the tram each day to get in and out.

We enjoyed just wandering around the city, stopping often, as we do, for coffee and icecream. To cap it all, I could get a Guardian each day.

We are now in Molsheim, a beautiful wine town about 25 km west of Strasbourg towards the Vosges Mountains. We are having a quiet, relaxing few days here really doing nothing. We read and walk into town for coffee. Sadly, we have just about run out of books. We need a Kindle each! We have to make up our minds in the next couple of days whether we should stop in Nancy on the way back and visit its famous square, or just stay here and go directly to Calais at the end of the week. It's a hard life.