A few days in to our trip and we still weren’t used to how late the sun rose each day— after 8am! It felt much earlier than it really was when we navigated the twists & turns of the underground metro system in Paris to catch our train to Germany.
The plan was to hop off in Kaiserlautern (K-town) where my brother Johann would meet us and then we’d drive to Strasbourg. Strasbourg, Colmar & Basel are in the Alsace Region (a cultural region covering the geographic area where France, Germany & Switzerland come together) and are near where our Gluntz (my maiden name) ancestors originated. In addition to that, the Christmas markets were still going strong in this area despite being cancelled in most of Europe so we were very excited about our time there!
The ride was uneventful until the K-town stop! We stood near the door with our bags waiting for the train to halt. I was closest to the door and hopped off first to find 3 people with massive suitcases running towards me and then turned to see them frantically board the train- blocking Brian and Ellyn from getting off. I remember thinking “why the big rush? The train barely just stopped so there’s at least another 3-5 minutes until the doors close”, when to my surprise, the doors actually CLOSED right behind them! Brian was pounding on the door from the inside and I was pushing the button on the outside but the train was already starting to move away. !!!!! We were all in a little shock because it happened so fast! I’ve never even see a metro train with such a brief stop much less an actual train! After a brief moment of panic, we realized the next stop was only 40 minutes away. So I hopped in the car with my brother and we drove to meet them in the next town. Whew!!
Strasbourg was a lovely slower pace from the big cities and the added beauty of Christmas markets was that there were street food vendors everywhere, making it really easy for us to try lots of local foods without having to sit at restaurants for every meal. All the delicious vin chaud & tarte flambé! Also the oldest Christmas market in France!
Strasbourg is a city that has more than its fair share of dark history- from medieval times to WWII- but it’s now home to several European institutions such as the EU Parliament, Eurocorps, European Union & International Institute of Human Rights. Fun fact, it’s changed hands between Germany and France FOUR times throughout multiple wars.
The historic city center is a UNESCO World Heritage site and full of interesting nooks and crannies, curving streets & canals. It’s Cathedral- Notre Dame de Strasbourg - is in the gothic style and is over 1000 years old.
We wandered around until well after dark and left with bellies full of delicious food!
Up next: Colmar
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.