Monday, 22 April

Kehl Germany & Strasbourg France: We awoke to clear blue skies! It was still chilly, but much more pleasant to walk around -- and walk we did! We met our guide at the gangway, then walked for about 20 minutes along the river to the bus.

 It’s parkland, with views of the river and 3 bridges across it and the path is lined with trees, most of which sport brightly coloured birdhouses. We took the scenic route into Strasbourg after crossing the bridge from Germany to France. 

 

It’s a very old city, dating from Roman times and has passed back and forth between Germany and France several times. The result is a mixed French-German culture. Along the way we saw many storks’ nests on top of trees, with storks in many of them. They’re recently back from northern Africa and soon will be raising chicks. We walked through the old town, along canals where people used to dispose of all their waste, wash all their clothes, swim and fish.

The very old buildings are fascinating and the streets all seem to curve rather than running straight. Passing along one street, we were offered cheese and macaron samples. I’m sure lots of people went back later to buy more. Eventually, we arrived at

Gutenberg Square, which has a lovely old carousel and a statue of Gutenberg. Apparently it’s unclear whether he printed the first Bible here or in Mainz, so they share credit. Or so we were told (Google tells a different story.)  

 Onward, then, to the cathedral -- Notre Dame. What an amazing place! The original stained glass is mostly still there, having been removed and hidden elsewhere during Nazi times, then returned after the war. The organ dates back many centuries. But the most amazing thing is 

the clock. It takes up one whole large wall and is all mechanical, but extremely accurate and tracks and displays all kinds of information. We saw it on the half-hour, when a cherub hit a bell twice and a man also hit something twice and walked across in front of a skeleton, representing the 2nd stage of life. Other figures move in different ways at different times. By the time we left the cathedral, clouds were rolling in again and it was windy and cold. We had already walked a lot, so we opted for the first bus back. Today the chef welcomed us back onboard with macarons. We chatted over lunch with some of our acquaintances of the day before and eventually retired to our stateroom for a rest. It’s interesting watching the river from our stateroom. Lots of traffic, including cruise ships, freighters and barges with loads varying from gravel to garbage. Waterfowl. And in the trees -- stork nests. Foot and cycle traffic along the banks. Dinner was a wide variety of traditional German dishes, with beer, wine and schnapps. Delicious and fun. The staff were all dressed in traditional German clothing,  some in dirndls or lederhosen and the tables were set in a traditional German way, with pretzels hanging in the middle. Delicious and fun.

More Photos of the Day