Strasbourg in the Spring

Last December, Mike surprised me with a birthday trip to the Christmas markets in Strasbourg, France with his sister Kelly and her boyfriend.  It was a ton of fun and we immediately fell in love with Strasbourg. It's such a picturesque French town. I knew that, in my attempts to get Karen to as many countries as possible, Strasbourg would have to be on the itinerary.  We only had a few hours because Karen had to be back in time to work, but it was totally worth it. I loved coming back in a different season because I could see a huge difference in the feel of the town, as well as the weather!

If you only see one thing in Strasbourg, it should be the cathedral.  It's in the center of town and hard to miss.  It's massive inside and out and every angle has something to look at 

The astronomical clock is also in the cathedral.  We didn't stick around to watch it go off (we also didn't want to pay to see another astronomical clock), but you can still go and check it out for free when it's not on the hour. 

After the cathedral, we wandered to the wine cellar that holds one of the world's oldest bottles of wine!

 So many barrels. So little time.

Me thinking I still understand French...

The oldest barrel of wine!

The wine has only been served three times....

1. first tasting by the Sqiss delegation in 1576
2. after the renovation of the hospital in 1716
3. after the liberation of Strasbourg in 1944

When will the next time be????

A man walked by and goes "Qu'est-ce que tu fais?" (What are you doing? in French)
I responded "Bilmiyorum" (I don't know in Turkish)

If you're in Strasbourg and remotely interested in wine, the hospices Strasbourg is worth a visit.  Our last stop was La Petite France, which is just a picturesque part of Strasbourg. 

La Petite France is exactly what you picture a European/French city would look like.  The water makes for a great backdrop and all of the little buildings and streets add to the feeling.

We headed back around one hoping to make it back in time for Karen to work at 3:00. Unfortunately, we got stuck in MAJOR traffic and didn't make it home until five.  It was kind of a sour note to end on, but it was a great day and Strasbourg is worth the traffic.