Round The World and other travel

Exploring Strasbourg

After having breakfast at the hotel, I was ready to set out by about 0930. The weather was better than forecast : not warm by any means, but mercifully dry apart from an occasional feeling of dampness in the breeze. I walked the short distance to the nearest tram stop and decided that a simple one-way ticket would be sufficient, as everything within the city centre is an easy walk. I started off by making my way to the main landmark, another huge cathedral in a country that is famous for them. This one has an odd appearance in that, while it was clearly designed to have twin spires, it actually only has one, with the other tower ending in a flat top. Apparently they ran out of money during the construction! Like others that I'd already seen on this trip, it was on a huge scale and in places incredibly ornate, and this one had the added attraction of a large astronomical clock. I was somewhat dismayed by the lack of respect shown by some large and noisy groups of teenagers viewing the interior, but I'd better not moan too much about that in case I start to sound old

Having seen the cathedral, I strolled around the streets and found that I was taking pictures with every few steps that I took. It's that kind of city I made my way to the Place de la République where, despite the name, the architecture changes to a solid German style. Again, I found that every few steps opened up attractive views. I then made my way to the area known as La Petite France, perhaps the most photogenic of all, with its wooden buildings and network of canals. I had lunch in a touristy, but attractive, restaurant beside the St Martin Bridge. I continued my stroll after lunch and had been hoping to meet up again with chrissxb and flysurfer on their way back from the Reims Do. They were running behind schedule, however, so alternative arrangements were made to meet chrissxb for lunch the following day. By about 3pm, I realised that I'd been on my feet for a long time and headed back to the Hilton to relax for a bit and to catch up with this diary, which had fallen far behind! I also decided to open the half-bottle of Champagne that I received with my welcome pack in Reims