It has been a little while since I have posted, so I may change the post date on this to highlight the fact that it took place last month during the Christmas Season.
One thing that has been really nice about living here vs Korea is how easy it is to go from one place to another without all the paperwork and passports. Jari and I took a long weekend and decided to take a quick trip with the kids to Strausburg, France which is home (so they say) to the first/original Christmas Street Market. I have heard a lot of people talk about other markets being original in one way or another and I have not done the research to either prove or disprove the claim about Strausburg - but either way we decided to check it out
Hard to speak ill of the view here. Scenic drives no matter where you go.
On the way there we happen to stop by the town of Bitche I don't speak French so I will not attempt to educate anyone on how to pronounce the name, but my ignorant American tongue struggled and then I chuckled as I tried to pronounce it a few different ways which we not so offensive
We did not know it but this town is home to a very large fort (citadel) that has an interesting place in history. In the picture above you can see it on the hill. We had to learn about it on the fly because - well, we never knew this place existed.
We basically drove closer and closer until we could get out and walk around it and find a sign to let us know what it was.
The first attempt was a no-go. Fenced off. But check out these lovely ladies
The town was very quiet and seemed to be frozen in time. Few people were out and about which made looking at the buildings and walls the thing to do. Doesn't sound fun? Well for me it is. So much history has occurred in this area of the world that one can almost feel it just by walking down a street.
A fun door at someone's home. Mom: Unique doors are very European. Everyone who can afford it has a door like no one else's door. Each one is beautiful.
Just a street but when you take in all the detail between the cobblestone, worn down walls, pipes, old shutters, it gives you a sense of the lives that have been lived here. How many people have walked this road before and for how many years?
Finally, we found a way in
Kind of a steep climb but the kids did great. I tried to take this shot with my camera looking straight ahead to give you a sense of how steep the road was.
We later learned that this fortress was built in the 1300s and served as a stronghold for the French in the Franco-Prussian war where the French (3000 strong) held out against the Prussian/Bavarian (20,000 strong) for 8 months. The surrender occurred only after a cease-fire was called and the French Government ordered the surrender.
As we walked up these little roadways I could imagine the wagons hauling food or prisoners or other important folks to and from the fort
Standing outside of the fort one can understand how they held out for so long. It is quite the stronghold
Unfortunately, there were closed at the time so all I could was take a picture across the small draw bridge into the outer portion of the fort
It was very windy up top. But the view was great.
The wind catching Jair's hair
*Not sure why I cannot get my videos to embed anymore in Blogger but here is a link to a short video we took on top: https://youtu.be/15TI39p8VkU
Charlotte was pretty negative about the whole site seeing so we offered her pizza afterward at what seemed to be the only open shop in town. Let's just say they will never win the "Best Pizza of the Year" award...
I ordered a "chicken taco" and this is what came out.
Random house. It looked neat so I pulled over and took a picture
On to the Market. The weather was chilly but not too cold to be out and about. Rain is a constant threat here so we went prepared with umbrellas in hand.
Here is the main stage where they would light the official Christmas Tree which you can see in the background. It was not cut and moved to town but this tree is firmly planted. I am not sure how old it is but compared to most pines in the area I am sure it has been around a long while.
While wandering through the streets and passing all the booths we had to stop in this old Romanesque cathedral. This particular church as we learned was established by someone famous which unfortunately we can no longer remember... but it was a name in religious history that struck me in a way that made me feel humbled to think we were walking in such historic footsteps. Sorry to ruin the moment of awe by not remembering his name.
Amazing woodwork which I am sure is post WW2.
They had a neat display of the entire Bible around the church.
I always find these tombstones amazing to look at. So very old.
Their version of primary I guess complete with a kids' corner.
Around the corner is the main Cathedral of Strasbourg. So huge!
https://youtu.be/kqYPbH_jgfA
Here are a few photos from inside
This was a unique thing to have in the church. A giant celestial clock tracking phases of the moon.
With it being Christmas there were many Manger Scenes.
Stained glass is always nice to look at.
My one regret was not buying this manger scene.
The reward of being good in the church was this amazing Gelato which was shaped like a rose. Each cone was 4 Euro ($5) which of course is expensive but for good gelato that came with a French macaron, it was worth every penny.
Even Camille loved it.
Street performers.
No smile but they do make great hot drinks that people love, mostly because they are usually hot wine but they did have some kid-friendly versions for us.
Zachary is not exactly good at walking around. He is SO slow. On occasions, we give him a ride just so we can keep moving.
We decided to wait for the lighting ceremony which took forever! There was a nice performance but it seriously dragged on forever.
It of course started to rain. Charlotte was kind enough to share her umbrella with a couple next to us.
After a few false count downs and the actual performance:
https://youtu.be/UnKXB8aeABM
We finally saw the lights come on.
It was beautiful but late. So while Jari enjoyed it Camille slept through the festivities-
As did Zachary.
Hazel on the other hand was overjoyed.
We stayed the night as an AirBnB out in the countryside which was really nice and the next morning we took a stroll through town.
Not sure what this was, other than an old wall this medical center decided to preserve.
And this huge old tree.
A little comparison in size.
Lovely weather though a bit colder than the day before.
Sorry, random building but there is something charming about these old buildings that connects you to the past.
Here we are taking in the sites.
Mom: Picturesque Medieval Half-timber homes. The timber framing is both outside and inside, and the infills is wattle-and-daub (woven sticks daubed with mud with straw and animal hair) then stucco (today).
While we made our way back to the Markets we were able to watch this boat enter the water lock and water was pumped in so that it could raise the level of the river upstream. Pretty cool
Overall it was a fun trip. The kids did well.
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