Romance of the Rhine and Mosel - River Cruise 2

Hi, Our first stop in Germany was the spa town of Baden Baden.

The town has a good size park that includes this fountain and

compass design.

On the other side of the park is the theater for performing arts.

Across the street from the theater is the casino. Here are some exterior views (above and three below).

While photos are generally prohibited in the casino I got permission to photograph this staircas as long as there were no people in the picture.

Also in the lobby of the casino was this antique slot machine.

The casino has parkland in front (above) and

on the side (above and below).

Across the park and perpendicular to the casino is the spa.

A creek runs through town.

Walking back to the bus through more park land we encountered this fountain,

a Mandarin Duck,

a really neat bridge and

a number of trees in full bloom.

Ruthe found the branches of a Linden Tree to be intriguing.

Thanks for looking.

Romance of the Rhine and Mosel - River Cruise 1

Hi, The first port on the river cruise was Strasbourg, France. As is usual the morning was given over to a walking tour.

The city has a varied history being part of both Germany and France over the years.

Ruthe really enjoys photographing bicycles which, fortunately, are abundant in many European cities.

A river running through the old part of town provided many angles for photos (above and 6 below).

As in Lucerne, this house along the river had extensive Wisteria.

Windows facing the river provide a great view of the passing scene.

After the walk along the river we came to a square with a market.

Among the booths was one selling a variety of cheeses.

The square had numerous restaurants facing it

where people enjoyed a glass of wine or a hot beverage al fresco.

Also within the square were a carousel and

a church.

Here are some other locations along the river. Note: this is not the Rhine, which of course is much wider.

In the afternoon, Jim and Cathy Kleeman, and I went back into town. A florist had added some stuffed animals to his displays.

Pretzels are very popular.

We encountered this group singing songs from the Balkans (above and below).

A tram took us to the headquarters of the European Union (above and two below). Strasbourg is one two European capitals: the other is in Brussels. The European Parliament spends six months here and six months in Brussels.

The tram passed the Strasbourg Synagogue on the way back to downtown and the boat.

Thanks for looking.

Romance of the Rhine and Mosel - Switzerland 4

Hi, Today we traveled by bus to Basel, Switzerland. The afternoon was at leisure so Jim and Cathy Kleeman, and I took a walk; naturally ending up at the railroad station.

The next day we had a walking tour in the morning. This neat dragon statue is in St. Johann's park along the Rhine just above where our ship was docked.

As we left the park we passed the home of the Basel Model Railroad club.

After a few blocks of walking we reached St. Johann's Plaza from where we took a tram downtown. This was the location of St. Johann's gate which once had been part of the city wall (above and below).

Once we arrived downtown we passed the fine arts museum (above and below).

In the courtyard of of the museum is this statue titled the Burghers of Calais. It is a copy of a work by Rodin. The original stands in front of the city hall in Calais, France.

Our walk took us along a number of streets (above and four below).

Many of the buildings had interesting doorways (above and below).

We explored Basel Munster, a 12th century red sandstone church (above and two below).

Passenger ferries crossed the Rhine here. They are tethered via a cable and use the river's current for power (above and below). A "sail" hangs from the bottom of the boat at an angle to the current. As the ferry is tethered the current forces it to move across the river.

This square includes the Cardinal's residence.

I believe these are doors to the Cardinal's residence (above and below).

Here is a sign for a public men's room.

Our last stop was the town hall. The photo above was taken the day before. The day of our walk there was a market in the square in front of the town hall.

We had an opportunity to go inside the courtyard of the town hall.

On our return to the riverboat we passed this interesting statue in St. Johann's Park.

Thanks for looking.