Strasbourg

Strasbourg is advertised as having the best Christmas Markets in France, possibly in Europe, so we hopped a train for a daytrip. We are hoping to do more visits outside Paris this trip. To that end B got a special train pass for discounted fares. 

My brother Patrick spent time in Strasbourg as a college student and has sung the praises of Alsatian cuisine ever since. Thus, we arrived and immediately had lunch. Patrick did not oversell the point.

 

While researching our journey we came across a font-based problem. B was trying to figure out the name of the river through the city. But zooming in on maps only showed what appear to be ferry crossings. It turns out the name of the river is Ill (ill). Which, in a sans serif font…. could be roman numerals, and can be mistaken for ferry crossings, and is absolutely hilarious.  

 

We wandered the Petite France district, then the old town and main plaza. The line for the cathedral bell tower visit was too long, but we did enter the main part of the cathedral and admire the red sandstone. Central Strasbourg is picturesque, and also a bit incongruous. Petite France used to be the industrial area with tanneries and warehouses (which meant back in the day it smelled awful). All of that has been tidied away and the canals and locks are now water features to the neighborhood. The Protestant Reformation was a huge impact on Strasbourg and its role in both France and Germany, and yet the central church is Catholic. I think spending more time in the town would peel back more layers, but we were only day tripping.

 

As for the Christmas markets, they were as advertised. There was an enormous tree in front of the Maire (City Hall), which was lit with musical accompaniment at 4pm. There were carousels and trees and all the stalls. The vin chaud blanc was particularly good, with lots of chopped up orange and honey added to the Alsatian wines. The locals go beyond just the markets and decorate the storefronts with elaborate displays.

 

However, I may be done with Christmas Markets. I’ve now visited them in Aachen, Vienna, Salzburg, Prague, Madrid, Toledo, Granada, and Paris. They add color and light and scents to the dark winter days. But they have also become (in my definition of the word) pornographic. That is to say: they are meant to be titillating, but they are repetitive and ultimately numbing. There is stall after stall of the same wares: ornaments and creches (at least a nod to the holiday), sweets, nougat, honey, cheese, wine, scarves, jewelry, and all manner of knickknacks. We are not instinctive shoppers, so beyond a cup of wine and a “bretzel” (I have no idea why the spelling variant), we’re not participants in the markets. I sound terribly jaded. I hope I’m not. I think it’s a bit like our Alaskan midwinter carnival Fur Rendezvous. It’s a chance to get out and have a break from the gray and gloom, but after a while it’s a bit manufactured. Since we aren’t tied to work and school schedules, we are regularly finding the joy in everyday things. 

 

One more funny: it was warmer in Strasbourg than Paris, flirting with 50 degrees when out of the wind. B commented on the bugs. After a bit of cogitation, I hypothesized that they weren’t really local. The sheer volume of vin chaud on offer – steaming cauldrons every third stall – introduced…. fruit flies.

~Lucy 

Bad photo of a beautiful tree

So many people

Baccarat lights all along this street

Vin chaud to go, always

Lights are coming on

Pretty or creepy?

Cathedral at twilight

One of the many entrances to the old town

A street just for brewers

Naughty or Nice?

Not a photoshop, that was the night sky

Pretty canals in Petit France

More pretty

Festive or creepy?