6.23 THURSDAY – STRASBOURG

OR

We'll Have A Hot Time in The Old Town Today…

“Now What?”

“I Dunno… guess we wander around here until the Giancarlo shows back up.”

“Oh Lovely… my feet are killing me.”

“Ditto That!  Let’s find a spot to squat for a pastry and maybe a beer… at least they do THAT well here. I'm still pissed about the cancelled…”

Uh… let’s start the day properly...

Last night’s briefing for today included information that we were stuck in Mannheim until some of the docks upstream cleared due to one of the locks being closed for repairs thus backing up all river traffic.

This did not bode well for our Alsatian Wine Tasting and Tour, as we found out that the trip to Strasbourg from Mannheim would take at least 1½-2 hours putting us way off schedule.

 

Sure enough, after a hurried breakfast we struck out late for Strasbourg, at the height of rush hour, and 2½ hours later we pulled into our stop at Place d’ Letoile, with a 30 minute walk to the restaurant for the “included” traditional lunch.  This spot had to be arranged hurriedly on the fly by Bojan [pronounced BOYan] since half our crowd was scheduled for an optional "Taste of Alsace" tour that was cancelled and the Lunch Group had outgrown the original location. 

While still on the bus, we were advised that due to our late arrival and the planned City tour taking 1½ hours, the optional tours, our wine tasting included, were cancelled and refunds would be applied. 

Oh Joy… 
And just when I thought it couldn’t get worse, the heat index for the day was slated to hit 100F.  We soon found out that since Strasbourg is so tightly packed, not a breeze could be found, it was gonna be a sweltering day.

To top it all off, both of our legs and feet have become increasingly swollen ever since arriving in Paris.  To the point that She was swelling everywhere and it was becoming painful to walk for long periods.

Yeah… the Trip Goblins, just won’t let up.

{Chucky Note- Pics from here on will be limited for reasons to be explained towards the end of the trip… dontcha just love the suspense?!?}

But now… It’s all about Strasbourg.

The Largest port on the Upper Rhine, Strasbourg is the cultural center of France’s Alsace region.  Thanks to its location at the border of France and Germany, it boasts an interesting mix of cultural influences, with the Alsace-Lorraine region sporting as many as 8 distinct dialects.

The well preserved Old Town is enclosed on all sides by the little ILL River, with sites so compact that it is easy to explore this “island” on foot.

[Four particularly painful ones I might add]

Its cobblestone streets [more pain] are lined with wooden houses, intersected by “Que Cute” canals that indulge the Alsatian Café Culture.

The Traditional Lunch was so crowded in the downstairs banquet room by the unexpected overflow that 6 of us had to be seated upstairs, which put Susanne and Jeff from Detroit, Us and a delightful couple from London, Muriel and Arthur together for a delightful visit [Arthur regaled us with several tales from WW II  and on] and a mediocre meal of German/French cuisine.  But the German Riesling was Good.

After lunch and connected to our Guide by our “Q.V.’s”, we are lead through equal parts of French and German culture including the German imperial District that houses many institutions of the European Union and Council of Europe, past Renaissance architecture, and into the area known as Petite France, the former Tanners’ District and more canals.  
Quaint covered bridges with defensive towers lead us to Cathedral Square to view one of Europe’s great Gothic cathedrals who’s 465-Foot-Tall spires make it the tallest medieval building in Europe.  It also houses a remarkable Astronomical Clock that puts on a show every quarter hour.

Our Guide Giancarlo, A Frenchman from Milan [go figure] is a veritable font of anecdotes and details of the city, region and culture and one of the most entertaining guides we’ve had to date.

The tour concluded in Cathedral Square with instructions to be at the Corner of “over there” at either 2:45PM or back at the restaurant [wherever in the hell that was] at 4:45PM for transfers back to the boat.

Soooo… after exploring the cathedral and all its nooks culminating with the Giant Astronomical clock show, we sought out a pharmacy around the corner for some sort of remedy for the swelling.  

Then it was back to the Square for the beer and petite patisserie noted in the opening.

The heat was unbearable, and we couldn’t wait for Giancarlo to get back to escort us back to the bus, another 45 minute walk during which he gave us a cursory lesson of the economics and living cost of the Alsace-Lorraine region.  
And of course the “Short Cut” back to Mannheim that Bojan promised still took 2+ hours to get back.

Tired, sweaty and miserable, we grabbed a quick shower and headed to IRO our Hero for some well-deserved Cooling Libations before dinner.

But First… The pre-dinner 7:00PM briefing for the next day brought more upsetting news... but that will have to wait till tomorrow’s post…

I’m headed back to the Lounge after dinner to see how much damage I can do to that bottle of Johnny Walker before IRO sends me off to nonny-nonny land.

Ciao für Jetzt

Uncle Chuck & The just plain achy and tired,

Dragon Lady