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.

Romance of the Rhine and Mosel - Switzerland 3

Hi, The city of Lucerne provides tourists with a 72 hour transit pass which can be obtained from the desk of their hotel. On our last day in Lucerne Ruthe and I used the transit pass to visit some places in the city.

Our first stop was the Hotel Gutsch located on a high hill overlooking the city.

After leaving the bus we took an incline to reach the hotel..

Here is the city wall as viewed from this really elegant hotel.

Our next stop was the Synagogue (above and below). While there were children about we did not see any adults to ask permission to enter the premises.

That afternoon I took a walk to visit some of the spots between our hotel and the city wall (above and five below).

This is the end of the city wall visible in the third photo from the top.

The side of the building next to the wall was covered in Wisteria.

Here is another example of building decoration.

One last view of the Chapel Bridge from the side of the river on which our hotel was located.

Thanks for looking.