Strasbourg, France – 23 August 2026

The Viking River Cruise itinerary has caught up with what we originally booked. After ignoring Strasbourg yesterday, today I’m doing the tour I signed up for: “Strasbourg from the Top.”

A short bus ride to the train and take the train to the city centre. There are only four of us on this tour along with our tour guide who is very knowledgeable of the history of Strasbourg.

As soon as we board the train, he starts his education – something like this: The city was founded by Roman soldiers who camped here, then Attila the Hun’s came here and destroyed the city, then it was a free city of the Holy Roman Empire, then it became part of France, war with Germany and became German, then war again – French, seemed like forever until after WW2 when it permanently became part of France. The city is considered the cultural center of France’s Alsace region and the old town is an island on the Ill River.

Off the train, the walking tour begins walking through the streets lined with stores and cafe – very quiet because it’s Sunday.

Continuing along, our guide leads us to UNESCO World Heritage Site area of Strasbourg known as Petit France. Here you find four channels that flow through the area with defensive bridges and a system of locks and dams. The houses here are half-timbered and the canals are lined flowers. Very quaint and picturesque! The trend of placing padlocks onto the railings along the canal bridges is happening here like other places in the world.

A hotel with a side street entrance to their cafe, leads to a very old building where the wooden pole is still holding up part of the building. There is also one of the old wells of the city (no longer working). A legend about the wells in the city along with the storks is quite whimsical.

“According to this legend, nestled in the heart of Strasbourg, lay an underground lake hidden beneath the cathedral. It is there that unborn babies frolicked and played, awaiting their arrival into the world. Women longing to become mothers would lean over the well and whisper their wishes into the attentive ear of an elf. Touched by their heartfelt wishes, the elf boarded his silver boat, guided by a golden thread, to retrieve a precious baby from the depths. With infinite gentleness, he brought the newborn to the surface, where a stork awaited him. The bird, with grace and tenderness, carried the baby in a basket suspended from its beak and entrusted him to its family.”

The reason this tour is called Strasbourg from the Top is because after our walking tour, we climb the 300+ steps to the platform below the tower of the famous church in Strasbourg – Notre-Dame Cathedral. “Strasbourg Cathedral was the world’s tallest building from 1647 to 1874 (227 years), when it was surpassed by St. Nikolai’s Church, Hamburg. Today it is the sixth-tallest church in the world and the tallest extant structure built entirely in the Middle Ages.”

The narrow stairs wind up and up with periodic openings to see the views of the city below.

There are no bells in the tower anymore. Interesting inscriptions in the stone along the doorway from various masons and early tourists. Also, the stone carved statues and gargoyles are incredible in their preservation.

There is a mass being held this morning so no entry to the church is permitted. Once we are climbing down and arrive on the cathedral square, our guide leaves us to wander for an hour. The homeless are visible in this city near the church square.

There is a festival underway in the Gutenberg plaza celebrating Strasbourg’s sister city of Zurich. This festival is a big deal only celebrated every ten years. Here’s more info: https://www.enjoystrasbourg.com/hirsebreifahrt-2026-in-strasbourg/

Herr Gutenberg is overseeing it LOL. Because Gutenberg built his printing press here, the city of Strasbourg was known for many years as the printing capital of Europe.