Strasbourg

We took advantage of the bright sunshine to take the "tourist boat" around Strasbourg's historic part of the city. There were headphones in many languages which one could listen to, or not.

The wide boat filled the narrow lock where we rose almost to the level of the road and the curious bystanders.

A delightful row of houses in a mixture of architecture,  sizes and colors intrigued us.

Part of the system of walls, gates and lookout towers which were used to protect the city from invaders.

A cafe under a large old tree,  more than 150 years old,  is popular with local artists and musicians.

We continued along the peaceful canals

St Paul's church built in 1897 was next on our circle tour around the central part of the old city. It is considered Gothic revival  architecture and was built for the German Army.   Strasbourg was part of the German Empire until the end of World War I.  

Strasbourg is home to many of the European Parliament buildings,  so modern compared to the antiquity seen so far and very dramatic in their own way.

Every French city must have its Carousel each summer, always in perfect condition, with cheerful music and whimsical animals and cars for children to ride, alone or accompanied by their grandparents.

An organ and flute concert playing J. S.  Bach and other compositions was to be held at St. Thomas' Lutheran church later that evening.  The site has been used as a church since the sixth century.

The organ is a 1741 Silbermann which was played by Mozart while he lived in Strasbourg.

After the concert,  we ran to the main square for the exciting "Illuminations", or sound and light program at the Cathedral of Notre Dame of Strasbourg. Dramatic, colorful scenes are projected on the facade with loud music and the program is very popular with everyone including us! Some people were even lying on the street to get the best possible view.

Sunday morning, wandering through the city, we discovered this troupe performing in Gutenberg square.

They were all wearing costumes circa 1860,

Including this one of the Mayor of Erfelden in Germany.

All next to the statue of Guttenberg, a former resident of Strasbourg.

The ancient cathedral, now crowded in the center of the city. In 1524, it was assigned to the Protestant faith, and in 1539, the world's first documented Christmas tree was set up inside the Cathedral.

In 1681, the Cathedral was returned to the Catholics. Many stained glass windows were taken away during the war and stored in salt mines for safety.

The enormous, elaborate astronomical clock dates from 1838 and is unusually accurate, almost like an early computer.

Walking back to our hotel, we heard organ music coming from another church, St.  Pierre le Jeune, and curiosity made us stop in.  There was a Russian organist practicing for a recital.  The church has wonderful frescoes which are now sadly deteriorating.

This was also a Silbermann organ built in 1780 and had the most lovely sound of all of the three that we heard in a 24 hour period. The organist got a standing ovation,  then played an encore with notes tumbling over themselves in a waterfall of sound. 

So we said farewell to Strasbourg,  a city that appealed to our great enjoyment of history, art, music and much, much more!

Basel to Strasbourg

We started along the bicycle path on the French side of the Rhine with a variable but reasonable surface.  The French side of the Rhine had many deviations for local towns so we had planned to cross the River and continue our trip on the German side of the river despite a warning that there was construction.  Little did we know that the construction continued for many miles and that the lack of signs in and around the construction was only one of the problems.  While most of  the surface was marginal for a road bike there were areas where a mountain bicycle was the only reasonable way to travel.

Up and down around and then steeply down with no warning,  we went over on our side.

The side of the track we were on disappeared into grass and trying to regain the main path the bike slid out from under us.  Down we went.

Luckily there were no permanent injuries to us or our bicycle.  Now  I know why most of the users of this path are riding with much wider tires.

So after a few more miles we found a way off the path for some local R &  R.  A lovely park with a first class cafe gave us the needed rest.

We continued along the river and while the view was lovely with ever changing scenery the path continued to be less than desired. Signs  were infrequent and the surface variable,  usually uneven with large rocks.  We did get to our next stop for a restful overnight in Oberrimsingen,  a small German village. A Gasthaus provided a safe refuge and a neighboring small hotel adapted their menu to give us a delicious dinner.   Proudly offered were vegetables and salad from their large garden.

Early the next morning we crossed the Rhine into France and rode away from the river to see Neuf-Brisach. Built in 1697 across from Brisach on the German side of the river is the most fortified town that we have ever seen. Its massive walls with surrounding moats survives today.

We were delighted to find the local farmers market in the town square and purchased our picnic lunch and enjoyed it right there. Sal enjoyed conversing with the man watering his veggies since he said they would get "sleepy" in the intense mid day heat.

We really loved riding on the long paths next to the Canal du Rhon au Rhine with plenty of old trees providing shade.

We often stop to talk to local people (just for fun, never to ask for directions of course) and they are always fascinated by our trip, usually offering to take a photo of us in their neck of the woods. If you look carefully, you see a sailboat passing behind us with the mast "unstepped".

Here approaching Strasbourg, we thought we could be in the Netherlands because the bicycle path is lower than the canal!

It was fun to take a break and watch some people learning how to row. This bridge looks unimpressive compared to most that we see, but it had a very nice safe bike path to keep us separate from the speeding traffic....

...  and then we were in Strasbourg where the local population were busy enjoying the summer weather.

We roamed around a large and shaded local street fair, aka flea market, enjoying the many "antiques" and curiosities offered

Next our visit to the historical city of Strasbourg, home to the EU Parliament. 

Basel

Our AirBnB host,  Pete,  very kindly offered to meet us at the border and guide us back to his place which took a lot of the stress away and allowed us to save time.  He was proud to treat us to a mini-tour of some of the interesting sights of his city on the way. This is the start of the navigable part of the Rhine where a Hydro-electric power plant has a convenient bike path across the river above it. 

 We watched the canal barge tanker,  Jessica, coming through the lock below us. It was empty and sitting high out of the water.

Pete took us across several bridges and to the Tinguely museum which has a fascinating moving fountain.














 

We enjoyed wandering through the old town and stopped at the Rathaus/City Hall which dominates the large square.

Underneath the main archway to the inviting courtyard,
frescoes and interesting ceiling decorations are everywhere.

We had some things to mail at the Post Office and looked up to see another unique piece of architecture.

Continuing around town,  we discovered what we learned is a very expensive boutique hotel. This man didn't fall off his perch while we were there... 

   

We found the gate to the old city. Crooked roof lines and old timbered houses add to the character and interest of the side streets.

This was advertised as a river view property, however we were delighted when we realized we were right at the water's edge.  We were also directly above the water-powered ferry, one of several in Basel that cross the Rhine river.  They are attached to cables, and one can be seen at the right edge of this photo, the ferries need no engine as they are powered by the force of the fast-moving water.  

Our room was in a 400 year old building with lovely furnishings and ancient beams supporting the structure.

 Basel has many fountains,  all the water is potable,  and they abound with symbolic decorations,  the flying dragon appearing on a great number of them.

There had been unusually cold and rainy weather for the last few weeks when it suddenly became summer and everyone rushed to "the beach"!  We boarded the ferry for a closer look.

The locals were all having a great time at the riverfront. Barbecuers,  sunbathers and swimmers were happy to have the warmth and the sunshine.

Another walk around Basel led us to the" Munster".  The ancient cathedral that was the center of power in the middle ages was built in the eleventh century. The interesting decoration below was added later.

The colors of the pinkish limestone shone brightly in the sunshine.

As we left the city the unusually high water became even more apparent.
Pete again saved the day by leading us out of the city and past several of the large factories. The hardest part of navigating on a bicycle is often getting into and out of the center city. Gaining the bicycle path in France we said our good byes to Pete with many thanks.