Crossing into France.
Spent the night in Verdun, a town made famous by being having one of the deadliest WWI battles, now known for its Peace Center.
In Verdun for enough time to have good Moroccan food,
...and buttery pastries, priced by weight.
Brioche raisin.
The French countryside and towns are softer around the edges and less orderly compared to Germany.
In Paris! The famous Velo bikes, a system of bikes for rent scattered around the city. There are bike kiosks seemingly everywhere, and you can rent one for free for less than 30 minutes. Alexis said the locals use them for quick trips and for going home late at night. In some places they are so popular that its hard to find a free bike, or open place to park one.
What fun to all be together in Paris! Just like that.
I don't know what you can say about all these berets, except that for ironically, none of them were bought in Paris.
L'Institut Du Monde Arab, one of Lesley's favorite Paris buildings.
Dinner at a new hip cozy Paris bistro. Great to see you Mom and Dad and Lex!
Left Paris Sunday morning to head East to Alsace-Lorraine, regions in northeast France where Lesley's mom's family (Hoeffels, Nafzingers, et al) come from.
Back to the countryside
Dinner in Colmar, a picturesque German-French-Swiss hybrid near the borders of them all. The language is an amalgamation of all three, with Bon Abends all around.
That is not a pizza. It's a tarte.
Another local dish is raclette, a melted swiss cheese served over boiled veggies and broiled to form a crispy crust.
This place was one of the many visited on our trip that was a model for future endeavors. They served local beer, glasses of cremant, tartes, and a few other things. It was owned and run by one woman who's sisters were there having wine while we dined.
Before leaving on our trip, Lesley's Aunt Karen provided us with extensive research on her family line. The most detailed records are for the Nafzingers, Lesley's great X 7 grandfather's line. They were from the Alsace Lorraine region in what is now northeastern France, southwestern Germany, and western Switzerland. There are records placing this family in several towns in the area, we decided to visit two of them--Neuf Brisach, France and Naefels, Switzerland. We drove into Neuf Brisach Sunday evening, and immediately learned that the town name referred to the nine old stone walls that surrounded the city. The small town is laid out in the shape of an octagon, with walls and moats built in several layers to provide optimal defense. As we've mentioned in previous postings, stumbling upon places like these has been a delight--no expectations, and suddenly you are in a tiny, perfectly geometrically shaped town steeped in history.
Entering the city.
Our hotel in Neuf Brisach.
Some of the remaining walls.
an aerial shot of neuf-brisach, thanks to wikipedia
Off to Switzerland, our last day of touring by car.
