Weekend in Bonn: The Dom

I went to Bonn to visit my cousin. Nothing prepared me for the vision right outside Cologne station: Cologne's absolutely awe-inspiring cathedral. Coming within a day of my last rapturous visit to the Strasbourg Cathedral, it still managed to be impressively magnificent.

Check out the Cathedral's own website for the photos I did not take.

And look at the beautiful sky! It was a lovely day to be visiting, and a completely uplifting experience. Really, you understand why height is an important feature of religious architecture when you look up at the Dom. 

Upon my return, I found a postcard my father had bought at the Cathedral almost fifty years ago, and I finally realised that the small metal cathedral replica was from this place. A nice sentimental postscript!

Dinner in Luxembourg

Sounds like an Audrey Hepburn movie. The idea of stopping for tea in Luxembourg had no particular rationale. It just seemed like a nice thing to say to those imaginary people who would ask about our trip: Oh, we stopped in Luxembourg for tea. Well, it was dinnertime when we reached Luxembourg, and so here are some photos of this very beautiful city just before sunset.

Leaving Alsace

Wherever you go, there I am

From the Strasbourg Modern Art Museum...

As a postscript to this, I have to say: Note HOW clean the glass is. 

Tram tour around town

Leery of the endless 'just here' walking that sightseeing in Europe entails, I suggested a tram tour which took us around the larger town of Strasbourg comfortably. So take the tour with us, but for the guide, you will need to actually visit the town!

Place Gutenberg

St. Thomas' Church

Grand Ile... truly special

There is something magical about Strasbourg. As I look at these photos six weeks after my visit, I can still feel that. It's like you stepped into a storybook, into another age. And yet, as the home of many European institutions and a University, it's also very today. An irresistible combination!

This part of Strasbourg, like many older cities, is really a series of squares connected by narrow alleys.

The statue of Johannes Gutenberg sits in the middle of Place Gutenberg. Gutenberg worked on the idea of the movable press in Strasbourg. 

This type of roof is supposed to be special to Strasbourg.

When you turn the corner here, you come to the Cathedral, but this building is also special for its facade. Unfortunately, I cannot remember exactly how but it's certainly pretty enough to record here. 

And more, taken from the Cathedral square