Strasbourg

Strasbourg Through The Rain

Mom & Babies

Cathedral

June 8, 2011- Viva la France!

No cheers for the weather. We opened our curtains to very happy swans-a- swimming around our boat in the rain. We struck out for our covered canal boat parked next to ours so it wasn't a long walk in the rain & we were cozy and dry once inside. Since most of the important buildings are along the canal this was really a good way to see the old and new cities. Located in Alsace-Lorraine, a French/German area, Strasbourg is two weeks by canal from the Seine in Paris.

The canal trip was all about locks, docks, ducks, barges & bridges with history thrown in. Let me get this over quickly: Celts, Romans, Franks, independence, Germans, French, Germans, French. Seen through rain cascading over the glass-enclosed boat the city looked like an Impressionist painting. We passed some modern buildings housing the Court of Human Rights, Parliament for the EU, among others, then sailed into petite France, the old city where Guttenberg built his printing press.

A couple of the more interesting tales were about one bridge where torture took place. First prisoners were covered in sewage while people watched and did needlepoint. There must have been a change of heart because the punishment was lessened and criminals were only caged before being lowered from the bridge into the water. Who were the offenders? Why they were prostitutes and "loose" women. Who did the needlepoint? It must have been the "innocent" men.

The story about the old port building was that there was a fire long ago. People escaped through the one window until a fat monk tried to squeeze out. He got stuck and twenty people behind him perished. We traversed back and forth through locks passing a modern shopping center built where an old synagogue and train station had been. But the most enthusiastic reaction from the people on the boat came as we passed a swan and her cygnets paddling in the canal. C'est la vie.

We arrived at the dock in the old city and walked to the famous Cathedral. That site where a spring exists was originally where Druids worshipped. The present building was started in the 12th century and this gothic sandstone edifice took 300 years to complete. There were financial problems, fires, & wars, but my theory was they didn't treat their donkeys well. If they'd only used hoists to allow them to access upper scaffolding I'm sure the construction time could have been halved. As it was they ran out of money and faith and only one tower was finished. With that, it's a magnificent example of tracery work that creates lace out of rock. Dewi pointed out a column built next to what is now a store. That's where men wanting to work on the upper levels of the cathedral applied for jobs. If their bodies could fit between the column and the wall they were hired. If they were too wide they had to find other work.

Dewi was a bit rushed this morning and forgot her transmitter. She did fine without it on our short walk and could be heard, but one man insisted she'd fallen down on her job and it was unforgivable. I suggested we cut her some slack. He stormed off now angry at me. I wonder what he thinks about the fact that all the tour directors miscalculated how many people would leave town on the early bus to return to the boat. That error resulted in this man being able to go back to the boat in a taxi paid for by GCT and get there before the bus. I'm certain his tip to her will reflect that. Yes, the trip is drawing to a close and people are figuring tips, converting amounts needed in euros and dollars, and comparing results.

Speaking of forgetting stuff, each day I have to be sure that hanging from my neck is my name tag, receiver, & purse. My hat is over my shoulder if it will be sunny. Sometimes an umbrella is in my jacket pocket unless my jacket is tied around my waist. David is in charge of the camera although it has at times been around my neck.

After lunch we took the shuttle into town and did some serious strolling and window shopping. The streets are not as hazardous as I remember from fifteen years ago. Not any dog poop. They must have changed their ways. But some things stay the same. Public toilets don't pretend to afford men any privacy at urinals and when the women's line got too long, the attendant herded us into the men's section to use their stalls.

Dinner was yummy duck. Not as good as the lamb chops the other night but close. We get wine with dinner and I know I haven't drunk so much in my life. I have a glass each time or maybe a bit more.

The puzzle is coming along. A couple we hadn't eaten with asked if they could sit at our table. I told them they could but had to promise to help on the puzzle. She was delighted. I still don't think we'll finish.

Tomorrow we'll day trip out of Strasbourg for a drive through the Alsatian countryside and a trip to see storks. The couple at dinner went to Baden-Baden and hated it. They said they were treated like interlopers by the locals and even the taxis are Mercedes. The black forest cake wasn't as good as what we had on the boat and the black forest was foggy. Glad we didn't go.

Toby