Strasbourg is about a two-hour drive from our home in Wiesbaden and on this particular weekend, we just needed to get out of Germany and into a place where at least one of us speaks the language. French-speaking areas also just happen to be good for French lessons so Strasbourg was the perfect destination for us.
The multicultural city of Strasbourg exhibits both French and German influence due to its location along the Rhine River at the border of both Germany and France. The half-timbered buildings picturesque little streets and the canals that run through the city give this city a very old feel. We had lunch as soon as we arrived. A nice glass of Riesling with lunch helped set the tone for a very relaxed day. We spent most of the day just enjoying being outdoors walking through the beautiful little streets. 
We browsed the city's Saturday market as well as a small antique market. We didn't find anything but it is always look at the items for sale in the little markets along the sidewalk.
Next, we stopped for an afternoon snack. With all of the sweet options, it was tough to decide until we passed by this gerlateria with fabulous looking Italian gelato. We couldn't resist! They told us to pick a size and then as many flavors as we wanted. We each tried four flavors and each was fantastic. The dark chocolate was particularly memorable. The Gothic Cathedral of Notre Dame de Strasbourg was quite impressive with it's 465-foot tall, massive spire. The cathedral was built in 1284 but the spire pictured below was not complete until 1439. The church has so many intricate details that we spent more time than we usually would looking at all of the interesting features.
Strasbourg is a beautiful town and we saw all that we wanted to see in one day and headed back home. It was well worth the drive. We plan to head back to this region in the spring for a drive through the Alsace wine route to see the beautiful French vineyards, the castles and of course to taste the wine!
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