The Hills are Alive

Day 4 Strasbourg

I don’t know about the hills being alive but the air conditioning certainly is. We have a ghost in the machine. I could find no earthly reason as to why the a/c came on at midnight but I switched it off and it didn’t come on again.

It’s Strasbourg day today. The strange city where the EU bureaucrats see fit to spend over 114 million euros a year moving their parliament from Brussels to Strasbourg each month just to keep everyone happy – not the ordinary people like you and me but the politicians.

On to less expensive things but vastly more important- I left the tuna sandwiches we bought at Lidl last night in my rucksack. We have a cool box plugged in, ready to go but instead I let them fester in the little side room we have where it probably got up to 100 degrees. Back to Lidl then.

Quick sarni grab and we were in the queue which was relatively short. We were hoping to be able to catch the next train to Strasbourg which was due to arrive in 15 minutes but the curse of Lidl struck again. The poor old boy in front had a trolley load of wine go through the till then couldn’t remember his pin. Gah! We really must go somewhere else. But the sirens keep calling.

The train station is about 10 minutes walk from our hotel which is very handy. We then spent 15 minutes queuing for tickets. And I thought it was Brits who liked queuing. We have company.

Two return tickets to Strasbourg cost 21 euros and it takes 20 minutes. Molsheim is a great commuter town.

Strasbourg station is mega and very close to the centre of the city. Trams, buses and bicycles abound – as do the scourge of the pavements : electric scooters. I hate them.

The old part of Strasbourg (Petite France) is also conveniently close to the train station. Petite France is incredibly pretty with rickety old houses and cobbled streets. There are lots of Alsace restaurants in the area along with Christmas shops! Apparently Strasbourg is the Christmas capital of Europe. I think it would be a lovely city to visit in December, if a little crowded.

Next, a wander past the cathedral. It’s so massive it’s really quite insane.

Close by is the Palais de Rohan. The Rohans were very powerful within the Roman Catholic Church and with the monarchy. They ended up in near poverty after the French Revolution .

Strasbourg centre is short on free public loos so a useful tip is go and see the very interesting and free cultural exhibition at Le 5e Lieu (near the cathedral) and use their loo.

We stopped at a cafe in Petite France which translated as suspenders. The building is very old and the stairs were leaning a bit but the coffee was good.

After our delicious Lidl sandwiches it was off to the Orangerie park which is very pretty followed by a quick gawp at the EU parliament. For me, It’s difficult to get excited by buildings and concepts that seem to be a waste of money and resources but at least I can say I’ve seen it along with the equally useful ECHR.

It took us an hour to get back to the city centre and we decided to catch the train home rather than look for somewhere to have refreshments.

Tired from the day, we had planned to find a restaurant close by for our evening meal but ended up instead in the old town at a restaurant called Metzig. Serving hearty local food, Steve had what can only be interpreted as faggots (liver with spices and pork )which he declared the best he’s had, and I had a flame. (Square pizza with fromage frais instead of tomato purée).

On our walk home, it felt as though Autumn had arrived, and that winter was just around the corner. But that could have been the Christmas shop working its magic.