June 12 - We cross into France, and this time, there is no passport check. Transit through Metz, another city of the Alsace-Lorraine region, then into Strasbourg station.
Easy tram ride from the station into the middle of the old city, where our hotel is located.
Strasbourg, or at least the Centre-Ville district between the rivers, has a completely different feel than the other cities we’ve visited. It is crammed with historic buildings, winding alleys, and people riding old bicycles in that iconic French way. Much of Centre-Ville is pedestrian, with barriers that let only permitted vehicles to pass through. This makes for a relaxing walking experience.
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There are loads of tourists here, though their numbers plummet off of the main streets of interest. Expensive cafes and restaurants abound, populated by cigarette-wielding women with heavy makeup and men with scarves wrapped around their necks like artists or authors. As we are in a hotel without kitchen facilities, we are bound to the food available at these establishments.