Walking Around Strasbourg and Riquewihr
I have heard of people on river cruise ships having to be bused up rivers to different ships because the river was not deep enough for the original ship to continue its journey. This is due to lack of sufficient precipitation to provide enough water between the bottom of the boat and the river floor. In contrast we had the opposite problem. Just before we passed near Mainz we were informed that the ship needed to go as fast as possible up the river because excess precipitation mainly in Switzerland had made the river too deep. When the river becomes too deep there are two major problems. There may not be sufficient clearance between the top of the ship and bridges that are built across the rivers. The other problem is: when the river level is high the water displaced by river cruising ships can flood property on the banks. Once we were informed of this problem it was noticable how small islands in the river had been flooded. The effect was that some trees were partially submerged in the river.
The result of our rush up the river was that we missed visiting a couple of places and our journey was terminated in Strasbourg 72 miles north of Basel.
On our cruise up the river we did visit Dusseldorf, Cologne and Mainz. When we were in Strasbourg we were bused to the center of Strasbourg and a day later we were bused to Riquewihr.
I have selected Strasbourg and Riquewihr to describe. My motive is mainly because we spent more time there, walked around the centers of each of these charming cities, and probably saw more than a bus tour around them.
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital city of Grand Est region of France, formerly Alsace in northeastern France. It’s also the formal seat of the European Parliament. Speaking of Alsace Riquewihr is a town on the Alsace Wine Route. Alsace has been in part of either Germany or France for many years. In his book entitled “The Rhine” the author Ben Coates stated that Alsace has change hands more times than an ambidextrous octopus.
The inner city center of Strasbourg is on an island (Grande Ile) and is a cornucopia of architecture and stunning
The Cathedral of Notre-Dame, Strasbourg
Strasbourg is a masterpiece of Gothic art. The construction of the original Romanesque cathedral, of which only the crypt and footprint was started in 1015. The spire of the current building, in Gothic style was completed in 1439. The cathedral was build from pink sandstone, its facade is an amazing example of the Middle Ages. There are hundreds of sculptures to be seen . Up until the 19th century, the cathedral was highest building in in the whole of the Christian world. Below I have included some images of the exterior of the building.
Below are views of the interior of the building with some amazing scientific, artistic items and at least one questionable item.
On the left is an example of many stained glass windows.
In the center is an astronomical clock that integrates artistic work, mathematical knowledge and technical ability to combine everything.
On the right is what appears to be a likeness of a sleeping dog, questionable because I have no idea why it is in a cathedral.
