On Friday, we had our first full day in the city of Strasbourg. After a taste of the cathedral, having visited the Museé de l’œuvre Notre Dame on Wednesday, we spent the morning touring the historic and architectural centerpiece of Strasbourg. A local priest and good friend of the lycée teachers led our tour, providing us with great detail about the significance of the history, the architecture, and the iconography of the cathedral.
We started by climbing the 330 steps to the roof, which provided a picturesque view of the surrounding Strasbourg neighborhoods. After descending a different set of 330 steps, we toured the outside, noting the blend of Romanesque and Gothic architecture. Inside the cathedral, students snapped pictures of the stained-glass windows, the largest of which, we learned, was lost during WWII. None of the people charged with hiding the window, to protect it from the bombings, survived the war, so the church had to send out search teams to recover it. They eventually discovered it in a mushroom field. We ended our tour of the cathedral watching the astronomical clock chime.
After the cathedral, we headed to Le Chaîne D’or, a nearby winstub, for a traditional Alsatian lunch. Students chose from poisson (fish) and viande (meat) plates, which offered a sampling of various local proteins stacked atop a pile of sauerkraut. The meal closed out with a profiterole filled with ice cream, topped with whip cream, and drizzled in chocolate sauce.
After meeting their French hosts, students closed their day in Strasbourg with a scavenger hunt around the city. This provided a fun way to navigate Strasbourg’s winding streets while seeing the sights.
Monsieur Greg
We started by climbing the 330 steps to the roof, which provided a picturesque view of the surrounding Strasbourg neighborhoods. After descending a different set of 330 steps, we toured the outside, noting the blend of Romanesque and Gothic architecture. Inside the cathedral, students snapped pictures of the stained-glass windows, the largest of which, we learned, was lost during WWII. None of the people charged with hiding the window, to protect it from the bombings, survived the war, so the church had to send out search teams to recover it. They eventually discovered it in a mushroom field. We ended our tour of the cathedral watching the astronomical clock chime.
After the cathedral, we headed to Le Chaîne D’or, a nearby winstub, for a traditional Alsatian lunch. Students chose from poisson (fish) and viande (meat) plates, which offered a sampling of various local proteins stacked atop a pile of sauerkraut. The meal closed out with a profiterole filled with ice cream, topped with whip cream, and drizzled in chocolate sauce.
After meeting their French hosts, students closed their day in Strasbourg with a scavenger hunt around the city. This provided a fun way to navigate Strasbourg’s winding streets while seeing the sights.
Monsieur Greg