Strasbourg, France
For our final trip in France we decided to explore the beautiful city of Strasbourg. Strasbourg is the capital city of the Alsace region in eastern France. It is located close to the border with Germany. The city has a German name because the region is historically German-speaking and the proximity with Germany. While we were in Strasbourg we felt like we were in two countries at the same time: France and Germany. All the restaurants had great french wine and also excellent german beer. Plus they had the best of french and german cuisine. We were amazed by the variety of food what we found. For example we finally tried the Foie gras which is goose liver pate invented by the Strasbourg cook Jean Pierre Clause in 1780. We also tried the Spatzle which are thick noodles and we accompanied them with coq au vin. Delicious! And for the dessert we stick with some simple fruit and cheese tarts and frozen meringues. It was the perfect dinner combination!
In the city there are many must see tourist attractions, all of them very beautiful. We started by visiting the cathedral of Notre-dame. This magnificent piece of art was finished in 1493. It was super tall and we were astonished when we found out that up until the 19th century the cathedral was the highest building in the Christian world.
After visiting the Cathedral we went to the picturesque Petite France Quarter. The quarter is a small area that is between the rivers. There are a lot of beautiful houses and the most photogenic streets and buildings I had seen in France. Most of the houses in the Quarter date from the 16th and 17th century. Overall it was a nice walk by the rivers with plenty of terraces, bars and restaurants to enjoy.
While in the city we also found out that Strasbourg is home of the European Parliament, and we had to visit the building. It was a very modern and sophisticated building. In contrast with the rest of the city it had very contemporary architecture. The Building is surrounded by a nice green area, with lots of trees and flowers.
At the end we were very happy with out last city being Strasbourg. It had an old town and new town. It had history, and it also had a little bit of France and German to it.
