After being home only one day we were off again on three local buses to get to the train station and then to Strasbourg. The train journey was to relieve Gary of the driving and to enjoy the scenery for once. This idea was really worth it as the scenery on the way was beautiful.

We checked into our hotel and were quickly on foot again to explore. We are only a couple of blocks from the Notre Dame Cathedral that is in the centre of the old city. The ultra modern inner city tram service runs right by the hotel and we noted to use that when we were tired of walking. The cathedral was very easy to find by its sheer size which in 1439 was the world’s tallest building. When we were close up to it the pink sandstone sculpturing on the church was staggering..

The square was full of tourists and diners at numerous restaurants. As we were starving ourselves we found a café a little out of the way and had lunch. We were surrounded by buildings that had been built in medieval times. One could only imagine the scenes that this area had witnessed for hundreds of years. Just before lunch we had been to the Tourist Office and picked up a handy little book of walks with maps of the city and the various periods of buildings and their history. A plan of attack was worked out over lunch and coffee.

The first stop was the cathedral and this time we moved inside and were overcome once again by its beautiful stained glass and sculptures. We have never seen so many sculptures in a cathedral of this age. The astronomical clock at the rear of the cathedral was also an amazing feature. The altar was just as spectacular with many frescos adorning the dome. Another wonder was the wooden folding icons featured on the other side of the cathedral from the clock, one dating from 1522. Their condition is amazing and the features on the faces are so detailed. We both agreed that this one of the most stunning churches that we have seen so far this trip.

We weaved our way through some of the streets which wet our appetite to spend the time doing a detailed walk of this part of the city, weather permitting tomorrow. This afternoon’s heavy showers put a stop to the walking and we caught a tram back to the hotel. Only problem was that we had reckoned that the tramway was around the centre of the city and we didn’t count on there being four separate routes. Eventually after a bit of hopping on and off we found the correct tram and the correct hotel.