Playing Catch Up 2

After getting back to Paris, I took the train to Strasbourg to visit Paul. We visited the modern art museum there and I took this picture because this piece was done by someone from St. Brieuc!!


After a few days, Clare joined us and we took at a day trip to a castles whose name I forget, Riquewihr (with is on the Route du vin / Wine Route) and Munster. The castle was on top of a mountain and we were allowed to go in because of the high winds but it was still really cool to see it from the outside.


view from the top:

view from far away (it's possible that this isn't the same castle. Also ignore the scary black smudge next to the castle. It seems like I somehow managed to take a spirit picture or something)


vineyards of Alsace:


cute town in a valley:


Riquewihr was a really cute town where they make and sell really delicious wines (mostly whites). We went to a cave and got to do a taste test before selecting some to buy. Even though these wines were really high quality, they are not expensive at all in France (about 7 euros a bottle or around 10 dollars). In the supermarket, spending over 3 euros for wine is pretty classy. Here are some pictures of the town:




Munster was cute but less picturesque. I was able to buy some real Munster cheese (not at all the same as what they sell in the US.) I loved it but I'm not sure how pleased my car companions were to have me with them because it was a little bit smelly. When we were in the bakery to buy bread to go with the cheese we heard the cashier and another worker speaking Alsatian, which is a dialect of German spoken in that region of France. (It's right next to Germany and the area has been under both French and German control during its history.)

I was pretty sad during this trip because I had found out that morning that my dog Sandy had passed away. She was 16 so it wasn't a huge surprise but it'll be hard to go home to a house without her!!