The Alsace Region includes the Departments of Bas Rhin (67) with the city of Strasbourg and the Deparment of Haut Rhin (68) with the city of Colmar. The dialect and archtecture of Alscace are different from other areas of France. We toured this Region of France in the 90's. It is scenic and has very good food. It was in the 17th Century the Region was placed under French rule.

Information on towns available - select links listed to the left.

Colmar

After Obernai we headed up to see Colmar which is located about 71 km from Strasbourg. Colmar is the Capital of the Haut=Rhin Department and it is a busy town.

The charm of this town inspired the work of french illustrator Hansi who became a leader of the French Resistance during World War I. There are lots of great buildings to see, a canal runs through the town for the scenic water shots.

The town has great food. We have a great picnic here.

The cathedral is rather bare with the exception of artwork. I am sure it was all famous but at the time it was kind of a blur! We just were doing too much at the time and we will have to return as the Colmar Museum is the most popular museum in France, outside of Paris! The altarpiece is reported to be stunning. It was created for the Issehheim hospital chapel.

La Petite Pierre

We stopped here on the way to Strasbourg. We had flagged the town as it was one of the many named as "The Most Beautiful Village in France" in the various travel books we had read before the trip.

Some of our stops, based on that declaration were disappointments, but Petite Pierre was not.

La Petite Pierre is worth a slight deviation and we enjoyed our short time here.

 

Neuf-Brisach

We also plan to return so that we can visit Neuf-Brisach. It has a fortress built in the 17th Century by Louis XIV. Octagonla in shape it has canals, bastions and forts. Two of the four gates remain. Always have a reason to return!

 

Obernai

This town was the birthplace of St. Odile, the patron saint of Alsace. We found a breif stop here to be worthwhile. Its a pretty little town with fine old buildings, in good condition. There are flowers hanging off every possible option.

 

Strasbourg

We have not been back to this area of France for a number of years. It was in the 90's that we devoted time to travel through the Alsace Region.

We visited the town of Strasbourg, drawn to the town by the canals and the river that runs through it. Would this be the Venice of France? The short answer to the question is Strasbourg is not Venice but it is a very charming city, despite being large in size. We took one of the boat tours along the river. It goes a good overview of some of the major sights along the river.

Two parts of the Ill River and a number of canals run through Strasbourg so if you are interested in water, this is one of the French towns to visit. There are quays with 16th Century houses covered in flowers so there is plenty to see.

Walk along Rue Mercière to view numerous half-timbered houses and this will lead you to the cathedral.

The Cathedral of Notre-Dame stands out as one of the sites to be seen in Strausbgourg. The spire can been seen from various locations in the town. With the spire, the Notre-Dame was the highest building of Christendom until 1800's.

The church dates from 1284 and has Gothic architecture. Constructed of red Vosges sandstone, the cathedral has large proportions. The stained glass , from the 14th Century,is stunning when the sun shines through. This is due to the unique clear hues that the glass makers of Strasbourg used at the time.

The cathdral is open from 7 to 11:30 and then from 12:40 to 7 pm. No charge to visit the cathdral, there is a charge to visit the Tower.

The astronomical clock is still in operation. Plan your time to be there at 12:30 noon to see the show. If you are rushed, there is an event on the 15 minute cycle.

You can climb the 300 steps up to the platform and from there see a great panoramic view of Strasbourg.

The Palais Rohan is the palace of the Prince-Archbishops. It was built in 1731-42. It now houses three importanat museums.

Important people have stayed here including Louis XV, Marie Antoinette and Napoléon Bonaparte. When he stayed here he actually had some of the rooms changed so they would be more to the liking of his wife Joséphine!

The palace was damagted during World Wa II by both English and American bombs, but it was completed restored as late as 1990.

Petite France is the area between the two rivers - the river splits into canals. Make sure you have a spare memory card for you camera as there are endless photoshoots as you walk about this area of Strausbourg. This much-photographed tower dates from the 13th Century.

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