Beautiful Christmas Markets in Strasbourg- France

  Strasbourg, France
Saturday, December 2, 2006

NOEL à STRASBOURG
I have had the most beautiful weekend away in Strasbourg, France- renowned not only as the central Strasbourg as it is the seat of the Council of Europe, of the European Court of Human Rights and of the European Parliament- but also for its famous Christmas (Noel) Markets- one of the most famous Christmas markets in Europe. This as you can imagine- rather than anything parlimentry- was my reason for visitng this beautiful city!

I spent this weekend with a new au pair friend- Maria- who l met in Switzerland but is from the USA. We caught our first train from Lausanne Switzerland, into France and after a 6.30am departure we arrived around 10am and set of into a land full of the magic of Christmas!!!

You couldnt wipe the smile of our faces all weekend!! Strasbourg is the place of dreams at this time of year!! The markets were simply beautiful- but the food was amazing!! We spent the weekend eating flams (a very thin pizza traditionally covered with cheese, onion, bacon and mushrooms- though we also ate the chocolate flam!) savoury and sweet bagels (like donuts), gingerbread, churros, chocolate fondue apples and fruit, pahinas- topped with amazing cheeses, crepes, waffles- you name anything full of sugar and we ate it!! It was wonderful!! The highlights of the food was definetly the £1 Euro chocolate covered toffee apples, the caramel waffles covered in whipped cream made right on the spot and the nutella crepes! We also drank the traditional Vin Chaud - hot wine- which was sold on nearly every street corner- and really warmed you up in the winter air. On the first try it was rather nice- after about 5 mouthfulls l was ready to throw it away! Much to rich for me!!  

Ok enough about food and a little bit of information on Strasbourg:
Strasbourg, the 7th city of France, prefecture of the Low Rhine, is the intellectual and economic capital of Alsace. Its privileged geographical situation as a center of international communications and its position of Latin sentinel by the Rhine as well as its rich history, ensure its exceptional importance. It was therefore natural that Strasbourg was chosen as the home of European institutions.

One of the rare cities where the whole city center is classified as world heritage.The 17th French site gaining this acknowledgement, Strasbourg is the first urban area, encircled by the two branches of the Ill river.This honor reveals the universal value of the historical Strasbourg which is composed of, other than the magnificent Gothic cathedral, the churches Saint-Thomas (XIIe - XVe centuries), Saint-Pierre-le-Vieux (XIIth - XIVth centuries), Saint-Pierre-le-Jeune (XIIIth - XVth centuries), Saint-Etienne (XIIIth century), the Museum of Notre-Dame, the Palais Rohan and the Covered Bridges. Along with this admirable set of monuments are banks, bridges, squares and alleys, all filled with history and culture.
Being two steps away from the Black Forest, from the Vosges, and Wine Routes. Strasbourg is also the starting point of beautiful excursions- needless to say we had to try one!!!

We had been told that the German border was very close by- so after eating so many sweets me and Maria decided it would be a good idea to go for a nice walk across to Germany!!! Our receptionist at the hostel had told us it should take only 1/2 hr to an hour on the shortcut she had showed us on the map- we soon found out that she was actually meaning more an hour and 1/2- and we were not exactly walking through the most scenic areas of Strasbourg- rather the warehouse and slum areas!!! We held tightly on to our bags which were containing all our possessions for the weekend- and walked as fast as we could through this area. We tried hard not to look like two English speaking tourists- but with us getting constantly lost due to the bad signpostings and thus me always holding the map- that idea didnt work too well! After about 1hr 45 mins of walking we finally made it to the bridge, which passed over the famous Rhine river which seperated France from Germany. We crossed over and decided to have a hot chocolate at a lovely club on the otherside overlooking the Rhine in the German suburb of Kehl. I suddenly realized that l had to try and remember some German- which l had no practised for at least 7 years- all l could remember to say was how to say my name and how to say sorry and shut up- that wasnt going to be very helpful!! So l said sorry to my waitress in german- that l didnt know how to speak anything but English, and then l remembered how to say thankyou (danke) and just said that for the rest of our visit there. We drank our rather expensive hot chocolates over looking the beautiful Rhine and the french border and decided that our aching feet could not walk back to France- so we caught the number 21 bus- which had been following us the whole way- and takes you right back to Strasbourg from Kehl- a great tip for those visiting this city l think!! It was a fun little experience to be able to say l walked to Germany from France, and in one day l had visited France, Germany and Switzerland- and our passports were not checked once!! All a bit surreal to an Australian!
 
Highlights of my weekend in Strasbourg:
1. Walking to Germany from France, and crossing the Rhine river on Sunday arvo.

2. Eating, drinking and eating more at the Chritsmas market beneath the beautiful illuminated cathedral at night! And watching the children, family and lovers experience this magical place together at this special time of year.

3. Walking along the Ill river Saturday afternoon and around the beautiful Petit France

4. Visiting the Aviators bar sat night (which took us 45 mins to find) and meeting my first real French man with a very thick accent (long story- but our conversation mainly comprised of oui and no- very funny). (Not a highlight was drinking this strange seaweed tasting drink this guy bought for us- l ended up drinking Guava juice the rest of the night- who knows what Maria drank!) And seeing the French dance to .....the biggest disco song from the 80s in France! Iam in love with it!! The man who sang it died tragically at a young age changing a light globe while in his bath!
5. Simply walking around the streets at night and looking at all the Christmas lights and decorations was something l will never forget!
6. Attending my first Catholic mass in the beautiful Strasbourg Cathedral (not understanding a word as it was all in French but having Maria there to translate what was happening as she is Catholic helped).
7.  Watching the astronomical clock do its thing at at 12.30! Amazing!
8.  Watching the people ice skate and fall over under a beautiful Palace.
9. Climbing up the 350 stairs of the Cathedral to catch the view of Strasbourg over the Rhine river towards the Black Forest of Germany- beautiful!
10.  Attending a Baroque classical musical concert containing Noel en musique at en l'Eglise du Temple Neuf and listening to Handel, Bach and other famous composers and compositions l have studied in a beautiful church listening to a wonderful soprano, traverso, violoncelle and lute! Wonderful! (Lis if you are reading this- l missed sharing this moment with you!!!) And then visiting a beautiful photography exhibition on the lights of Christmas!
11. Biggest highlight was watching Maria walk around in high heels on cobbled stone pathways for 6 hours ( l warned her!) and then decide to buy slippers (as it was the cheapest most comfortable thing to wear) and go out dancing in them that night- very funny- and then the following weekend she wore gumboots all weekend in Venice and out at another bar! And then watching her buy a christmas cookie- which l told her was an ornament as it was beautifully hand painted- but she insisted on eating it and nearly broke her tooth- it was rock hard!
So they are my top 11 highlights of my time in Strasbourg- l could have done another top food highlight list but it would have been endless!! If you are ever in Europe in December the markets and this beautiful city is a must- it will not disappoint!! It was a magical time and as l said l could not wipe the smile from my face! Enjoy the photos!!!