Au Revoir !

Our last evening in Strasbourg and we are sad to leave this great little town. Although we did a lot of sightseeing (and eating), there was one thing we didn't get a chance to do...take the tram! But we'll do that in the morning, as we decided to take it to the train station.

Walking back through cute little streets....

Au revoir!

...good bye!

Floating through the city....

Today I have good news and bad news.

Let's get the bad news over first. I'm not even officially in Germany yet and I'm so over the food!

I mean, really....what is this? Insulting us with food?


I'm not kidding, we didn't touch it. This is how it was served.
I don't even want to know what it is, but Michael has to take a pic.

In the meantime - yep - you guessed it - I'm still keeping it safe!

Now for the good news, we get to ride on a boat with a another hundred or so tourists, in the scorching sun. Yes, scorching. Now, I'm not really complaining, I'm used the heat and sun, but I didn't bring a hat, so the good news is there's more shopping involved! Yippee!

From coats, to scarves to wide-brimmed hats. I've never had this much trouble packing for a vacation.

I'm ROCKING in my new hat! I'm OWNING it! Vogue...watch out!

Pics from the boat...

Warming up in Strasbourg :-)

Oh, I forgot to mention that yesterday morning I finally gave in and bought an inexpensive "just in case" coat. It was an impulse buy at the train station. I knew that as soon as I bought it, I wouldn't need it, Murphy's Law, right? It was also my plan to fight Mother Nature. Sure enough, I haven't had to use it.

This morning, I also put my scarf away!

Now, off to explore some more on this beautiful sunny day...

First item on our list is to finalize our train to Munich, so we walked to the train station in order to ask some questions and possibly print our tickets. When we arrived, we were told it would be better if we return tomorrow, as "they" were on strike "today" and there were only a few people working.

O-k-a-y..... That's some strange way to strike, but, hey, it's France, right? The workers make a demand and if they don't get what they want, well, they strike for 24 hrs. Take that!!

Later in the afternoon, while Michael is trying to study and nap (not at the same time, of course), demonstrators were outside our street with megaphones, flares, flags, chanting and loud music.




I thought they were celebrating a World Cup win, but that's not for another few weeks. Hey, what do I know? Anyway, this was all over in 30 mins. (Michael never heard a thing!)

Now - back to beautiful scenery and quiet streets.

Meanwhile, on the eating front, we find a great place for lunch right by the stream.

Great service, excellent food and magnificent view!




















My turn! Cheers!

(Oh, you'll see a picture of the restaurant again tomorrow, but from the boat tour)

Walking around this adorable town is breathtaking in the late afternoon.

Bicycles everywhere! I wanna bike too...Waaaaa!

From this bridge, you can see a cafe/restaurant on the other side where I just took Michael's picture above.

And finally, a picture together. Thanks to Mr. Friendly Tourist!

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Strasbourg, France

Petite-France, Strasbourg
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We are moving on....so today we traveled East to the Alsace Region of France. Another quick train ride and "poof" we are in beautiful Strasbourg.

Located on the border near Germany, Strasbourg is a combination of both countries as it has belonged to Germany, then France, then Germany, then France and so on... Currently, it belongs to France. Strasbourg is over 2000 years old and was founded by the founded by the Romans in the year 12BC. The river Ill runs through the center of Strasbourg and then branches out into numerous streams and canals. Where there is water, there are islands and we are staying in the historic center, or Grand-Ile.

As soon as we arrive we immediately go explore. Entering the main plaza we are greeted by the impressive size and beauty of the Strasbourg, Cathedral. Following the cobble stone path between the buildings behind me, we reach rows of restaurants, each totally different in design, but in the same German half timbered style.

Below is the Strasbourg Cathedral.
A combination of Romanesque and Gothic architecture, it was a masterpiece of it's time
and was the world's tallest building from 1647 to 1874.
Today, it is considered the sixth tallest church in the world.

Photo credit: Michael Mort

By contrast, La Gare de Strasbourg, (the train station), is an example of continued use of modern and older architecture. Designed in 1883, the station was renovated to include a glass cocoon all around the front which measures 130 yards long. At night you can see the original structure through the glass "bubble".

From inside the bubble

Back to eating....we find this quaint little restaurant and enjoy
our lunch in great weather! Still wearing that scarf I bought in Montmarte!

Playing it safe with Chicken Cordon Bleu

Don't ask.....The start of my eating nightmares,
as the sausages begin to haunt me.

After lunch we walked down the street which ends at one of the many canals. Of course, I have to have an ice-cream. Hey! I'm on vacation and on a mission to "roll" back home!

This is a typical example of the half timbered
style homes throughout Germany

We head back to our hotel as Michael needs to do some studying

while I catch up on blogging (boy, this takes lots of time!)

Our hotel - traditional on the outside....

...very modern inside.
Here I am using Skype with mom.

Michael has to read 180 pages A DAY for one of his classes.
Poor guy.

After a short rest, we head out again.

The sun is starting to go down and it's
getting cooler again - but it feels nice.

Walking across the bridges during dusk, making our way to Petite-France for a nice stroll.

Strasbourg is very picturesque, and the area of
Petite-France with all the small bridges is absolutely gorgeous.

Our first night in the village is majestic and the moon enhances
this already romantic place. I feel like I'm walking around Disney World, except this is real.

When we arrive back to our hotel we continued
to enjoy the full moon from our window.

More tomorrow....Good night!
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Château de Versailles

Today we traveled again by regional train to Versailles. I'm really enjoying all the traveling we're doing by train. It's a new experience for me and part of the adventure.






Palace view from the gardens.










Once we arrived at village of Versailles we had to stand in line for tickets to the palace. How shocking, a line!

Waiting an hour was not as bad as making the line go through tacky souvenir shops complete with wind-up dancing Louie the XIV's, Christmas ornaments and Eiffel Tower keychains... Lucky for you, I didn't take pictures.

But here's one Michael took...We're almost at the end of the line when he noticed the sign:

"Excursions with a departure from Paris
on sale here from 2:3o - 6:30pm."

Now, isn't that conveniently French? I'm already in Versailles. Why didn't you mention this before we left Paris? Duh?

Entrance to the Palace

The Palace of Versailles was originally the royal hunting lodge in 1624 and was a simple vacation chateau during King Louis XIII. King Louis XIV expanded it into one of the largest palaces in the world. For more information about the Palace, click here.

I can't remember the last time I saw as many chandeliers, mirrors, marble, carvings, gold paint, frescoes, wall paper, manicured lawns and water fountains all in one place. What an impressive collection of antiquities, architecture, design and of course, self portraits which were at the time, a manner in which to portray importance and hierarchy.

Michael listening intently during our self-guided tour.

(Not a cell phone!)

A perspective of the height & size of the rooms
There's about 10 more feet above him that I can't fit in the photo!

The Hall of Mirrors.

This is the principle and most remarkable room in the palace. Grand festivities and formal dinners were often held here, which also overlook the grounds and gardens. The left wall has 357 mirrors placed in 17 arches. Each arch was designed to be in front of each window on the right wall. There are nearly 51 hanging chandeliers, each approximately 3 to 4 feet in diameter.

Entering the Hall of Mirrors

There are approximately 34 standing candelabras placed in between the mirrored arches.

You can see Michael's reflection along with awindow, which overlooks the manicured
gardens and fountains.

View of the grounds from the palace...
The first picture at the top of today's post was taken from the far end of the lawn.
There are more pics from there later!

The number of frescoes is overwhelming, as well as the detailed carvings of the moldings and mantles.

Typical artwork and design above the fireplaces

Frescoe on the dome of the ceiling and detailed carvings from the mantle piece.

The king and queen maintained separate bed chambers. Her bedroom was quite a fairy tale in design. The canopy and bed cover are all handmade tapestry designed to match the wall covering. The canopy was also used when the queen traveled and is designed to come apart for that reason.

More frescoes in the queens bedroom...

The Gardens of the Chateau

Finally, we get outdoors to enjoy the magnificent and warm weather! Much to our surprise, classical music is playing from hidden speakers throughout the entire grounds and the fountains are on! The fountains are only turned on four hours per day...lucky us!

Spectacular fountains!

Manicured lawns and flower gardens add to the splendor of these water "canals" that were designed all throughout. Row boats were available for rent and lots of people were enjoying doing that!

But for now, we decide to relaxing on the lawn and enjoy people watching, the views and sunshine...

The palace far away in the background.
Earlier I pointed out the view of the grounds from a window in the palace.

Rowing in the gardens....


But we decide to explore ALL of Versailles' grounds
and for that, the only thing you need are....

Bicycles!

After enjoying a nice afternoon on the palace grounds, we walked around the town for a little while...
















Then we headed home to begin packing as tomorrow we leave for Strasbourg, France.

On a sad note...Michael lost his reading glasses during the train ride home.


More to come....wallpapers of Versailles....

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