Strasbourg

Strasbourg, for those of you who do not know, is the border between France and Germany. Although I personally didn't hear any, they do speak another language called Alsatian (according to my tour book it has been outlawed but somehow continues to exist, but according to a friend who lives there, only the older generation knows the language so it's all but died out). Strasbourg, let me just say, is beautiful and calm. Leaving all the hustle and bustle of Paris and arriving in Strasbourg is just what I needed to relax. Like Bordeaux, it has a perfect mixture of tradition and modernity, BUT unlike Bordeaux, the traditional side of Strasbourg leans more toward the German side. I personally loved the old village setting of Petite France while also being awed by the modern train station. On my petit tour de France I saw tons of train stations, but the one in Strasbourg was particularly impressive... what i mean by that is that the outside of it looked really cool and futuristic. I really loved the atmosphere... it was a complete departure from the über-frenchness of Paris to something on its very own, which I can only describe as pride for its culture/history/traditions.

Food
The food in Strasbourg is heavily influenced by German cuisine.. thus, I took the opportunity to try Sauerkraut for my very first time. I must say, I've never eaten so much meat in my entire life!! I liked it... but I think I could really only eat something like that once a year. They also have these places called Winstubs and Bierstubs which are bars/wine rooms that offer snacks of the traditional meat variety. Unfortunately, I'd pretty much had all the meat I could have for a while, so we didn't hit up a winstub, but that's okay because I'd love to go back to Strasbourg! Aside from the Sauerkraut, I also had a the classic Tarte Flambée for the first time... it reminded me of pizza on a toasted tortilla, but that's probably a bad explanation. It was good, try it.

Petite France
The old-town part of Strasbourg, that is very traditional and well preserved is Petite France. Once we walked into it, my friends and I couldn't stop squealing, it was just so cute.

What is there to do in Strasbourg anyway?
Like I said, the town is calm, but quite beautiful. If looking at old houses and rivers isn't your thing, then perhaps you will really enjoy a tour of the Kronenberg Factory. I know I did!


The tour starts off as most tours, with a history of beer and the company. We then move onto a little hall-way filled with old beer propaganda and paintings of the old-town. The tour comes to a fabulous conclusion with a tasting. Our tour guide was super sweet and let us taste all of the beers available. I have to say, I drank beer that I would have never otherwise tried and I was very pleased. The tour only cost 4€ and we had an amazing time. Don't you dare leave Strasbourg without a tour of the Kronenberg Factory!

As a random side note, while we were touring the Kronenberg I became quite a novelty as a swarm of French tourists found out I was Mexican and they all flocked to me saying, "C'est une Mexicainne!" and asking me all sorts of questions... I guess they don't get many of me out there! Although, there was a very, very decent Mexican restaurant (the first one I've eaten at since my departure) called La Taqueria. So if you go out to east in France and need some of that great comfort food, don't hesitate!

Musée Alsacien
The museum was adorable... they had tons of displays and once again, the sense of pride and yearning to preserve the culture was ever-present. It's a wonderful thing to see and experience.