Strasbourg; summer seat of the European Parliament and manic tourist destination. I have had Strasbourg on my list of places to go for some time, and this seemed the time to do it. So here I am, sitting in the lovely Hotel Rohan a literal stone’s throw from the Cathedral.

Things started out a little rocky, and that will be tale for another time, but fortunately once I got myself sorted I was under the spell of this beautiful place.

Strasbourg Cathedral

First off, there is this ginormous, gorgeous, amazing cathedral. Of course, because we are in France, it is called the Notre Dame de Strasbourg; or if you prefer Strasbourg Minster.

Sweeping arches are topped with cherubs who look down on the masses. The stained glass windows are over the top, as is the huge pipe organ and the towering altar. This place was built to be impressive, to remind you that you are here by the grace of God and we all had better get that now.

Two things truly struck me. The first is that the Catholics really do get stage setting. I mean, wow; there is the elevated and ornate pulpit that meant the priest was literally looming over you. The altar itself is an imposing as well, up a set of wide stone stairs, and reaching back to where a large gold cross sits directly below an ancient stained glass window.

The second is the light in this place. All that stained glass dances colors everywhere when the sun hits them. The cathedral is built of red stone from the nearby Vosges Mountains, and the colored light hitting it seems to highlight different aspects. A green light lands upon the pulpit, red, blue and yellows pop up when you least expect it.

I found myself getting emotional just being inside the place. Maybe it is the beauty of it, maybe I am thinking of those I love who will never see this place but would have loved it. I don’t know why I was so moved, but I know that I was.

La Petite France

One of the most well-known parts of Strasbourg is La Petite France. This is a little jewel box of a an area; really the heart of the tourist center. The area is full of beautiful French styled buildings; square, stone affairs with wrought iron balcony railings that are usually overflowing with flowers.

Roads wind and turn with no real plan except to go over there, and often I found myself in dead ends or ducking up narrow alleys. That’s just fine with me, I love that feeling of exploration.

Down one alley I passed an exquisite patisserie with stacks of brightly colored macaroons, beautiful tarts with glistening mounds of fruit, and a variety of Alsatian pastries including the brioche based Kougelhopf that I have learned can be either sweet or savory; and of course the ubiquitous pretzel!

Around another corner I find a shop selling Alsatian themed pottery. Still another turn and I am in front of a bookseller. It is a fine way to waste a morning, this wandering.

Strasbourg Pizza

Alsatian food is a wonderful thing. Pretzels are Alsatian and served with pretty much every meal. There is knack, the meaty sausage which is named for the sound it makes when you eat it. You see it advertised proudly on menu boards outside Winestubs. Food and wine are terribly important here.

Win a smile from your waiter by asking for an Alsatian wine to go with your meal. Tonight I will head out to sample a local dish – the Tarte Flambe or Flammekueche. This oddly named dish is basically Alsatian pizza. A thin bread crust covered with a cream sauce, onions, and lardons and baked in a wood oven. I will most likely have it with a nice Alsatian Riesling, the dry and minerally white wine produced along the Rhine.

Strasbourg is awash in restaurants, the traditional dark winestubs, the up and coming restaurants that proudly name the chef de cuisine on a brass plaque by the front doors, the ones with tables that spill out into the squares or crows the side streets. Food is a blend of hearty German cooking and French flair.  At lunch I had a delicate chicken cooked in mushroom cream sauce; very French. The chef paired it with a hearty dish of potatoes fried in bacon fat and it worked perfectly.

Germany and France

Strasbourg sits on the border. The Rhine divides the city from Kehl across the way. This area was part of one country or the other over the centuries and it is reflected in everything.

Half timbered buildings sit next to French stone. Street signs are in French and German. Most everyone here speaks both languages, I find (and are quite adept at English!). An old boss of mine referred to a region of Italy at the base of the Alps as “Swissaly” because of how much influence Switzerland had on the area.

Strasbourg would then be what – Grance? Fremany? I think I will go with Grance, as it sounds a bit like “Grace.” Graceful is a good word to describe Strasbourg. The old town melds gracefully with a vibrant university and the aforementioned European Parliament. The Cathedral gracefully anchors the town (it is the 6th tallest church in the world)and the region.

I am so glad I came. Now – off to find that Tarte Flambe!