Hello there, Haut Koenigsbourg!

Mardi, 17 juin.
 
My day trip to Haut-Koenigsbourg Castle could not have been more fun ... or less anticipated!

When I wrote down my schedule for this leg of the trip, my plan today was to visit the museum / memorial that I came all the way out to Strasbourg to see. But due to some transportation complications, the visit was postponed until demain and I was left with nothing to do for the day! I started flipping through some brochures left out by my AirBNB host and decided that since I had already had a chance to explore Strasbourg, I should venture a little further into the beautiful Alsace region. And if it's only an hour (and a couple euros) away, why not hop on a bus to a medieval castle?

 

Le château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg perches on a rocky outcrop in the Vosges Mountains in Alsace. (It's really cool; the castle actually seems to grow out of the rock.) It was named a monument historique before the American Civil War, but remains an enormously popular tourist site. Today, the whole mountain was packed with visitors from all over France and Germany.

Built in the twelfth century, the castle was used by a succession of German ruling families, who made the castle progressively larger and well-defended. The size of the fortress, combined with its unassailable location (at 700 meters above the surrounding countryside) made for great publicity. While under the possession of the Holy Roman Empire in the 17th century, the castle was besieged, burned, and mostly destroyed by Swedish forces during the Thirty Years War. Given its almost impeccable condition, it's hard to believe that the castle actually sat in ruins for over two hundred years!

Early attempts to restore the castle failed; it was not until Alsace came back under the control of Germany that Haut-Koenigsbourg would receive the attention it deserved. This sketch reveals the extent of the restoration work, undertaken by German emperor Wilhem II just before the start of World War II.

Modern scholars tend to question some of the decisions made by Wilhelm and his architect Bobo Ebhardt (especially the ones that chose to glorify the German empire at the expense of historical accuracy). However, no one ca deny that the restoration was an incredible feat of architecture and engineering.

The architect, Ebhardt, was a student of medieval and Renaissance architecture and studied both comparable castles and old accounts to inform his decisions. Ebhardt restored some of the castles most striking features -- like this spiral staircase and the wooden balcony (which provided access and privacy to the nobles' bedrooms), that had been entirely destroyed generations before. If you're interested, you can read more about the restoration of the castle here.

 

Although it was really interesting to walk through the castle and see the reconstructed rooms and courtyards, the best part of le château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg had to be the view.

 

View? What view?

Oh, you mean ... this view?

A Sunset Stroll through Strasbourg

Lundi, 16 juin.

Bonjour from Strasbourg!

As you might remember, my original research plan was to spend the summer in Paris and take short day trips down to museums around the country. In doing some initial research into travel expenses, I quickly realized that it would be more cost-effective -- not to mention a lot more fun -- to travel from place to place. And so the list of destinations began to grow, slowly including Lyon, Bordeaux, La Rochelle, and eventually Grenoble. Strasbourg was a last-minute addition to my list of summer adventures research destinations ... but what a wonderful decision!

The last time I visited the city was in December 2013, when my friends and I popped up for a few days to visit the world-famous Marchés de Noël. The city was absolutely beautiful then: covered with twinkling lights and packed with eager tourists. But after arriving earlier today I've realized that I had NO IDEA exactly how beautiful this city can be.

There are flowers literally everywhere, brightening up practically every bridge and street corner in the city. I had a great time walking along the banks of the river, watching passers-by ... and taking pictures of the beautiful buildings, of course!

In Review: Paris, Part One

Lundi, 16 juin.

Wow ... can you believe that I've already been out of the States for a full week? Because I CAN. After walking around Paris almost nonstop for the last six days, it sort of feels like I've been living in this exhausting city for months. What's more, I'm starting to develop a look of permanent displeasure when looking at everything from tourists to metro times. (How very Parisian of me, right?) Although I've definitely experienced some of the less attractive parts of city life here, I feel incredibly blessed to have been given so many amazing opportunities!

It will be hard to leave this gorgeous place, especially after such a lovely morning of exploring and pastry-eating. But I'm excited to move on, because I know that there are bigger and better things to come. And luckily, there's no need to say adieu to Paris just yet, as I'll be coming back for just under two weeks at the end of my trip!

In case you missed any, here are all the posts I wrote during my week in Paris:

   -- Je suis arrivée! (le 10 juin)
   -- Museum Tour: le Mémorial du maréchal Leclerc de Hauteclocque et de la
       Libération de Paris AND le Musée Jean Moulin (le 11 juin)
   -- A Day of Why Nots (le 12 juin)
   -- Museum Tour: le Musée de l'Armée (le 12 juin)
   -- A Home away from Home in Auteuil (le 13 juin)
   -- Playing Tourist in Paris-Centre (le 13 juin)
   -- Museum Tour: "Paris Libéré" Exposition at the Musée Carnavalet (le 13 juin)
   -- A Day in Le Marais (le 14 juin)
   -- A Seriously "Inspiring" Photoshoot on the Seine (le 15 juin)

(Please note that a few of these posts -- namely museum tours -- are still arriving on the site. I did not have great computer access for a while, so I'm doing my best to catch up.)

Au revoir, Paris. Next stop? Strasbourg!

A Seriously "Inspiring" Photoshoot on the Seine

Dimanche, 15 juin.

Today was one of those "why not" days. As in ... why not conscript your friend and her friend to participate in a random concours de photographie?

I found about the "Inspirations d'été" or "Summer Inspirations" photo contest online. The event is basically a publicity stunt run by Olympus in an attempt to publicize their new camera, the OM-D EM-10. (Doesn't that sound like something a teenager would text? Too funny.) Participants had to sign up online, then show up at the location on les Berges de la Seine. After a brief introduction to the camera and its features, they could borrow a camera and shoot photos along the banks of the Seine. (And did I mention that this was all completely free?!) Lynn, her friend Sharon, and I spent a couple hours walking around, taking photos, and having a blast!

I'm going to start a collection of the photos I've taken of my feet... 

I loved getting a chance to spend more time on les Berges de la Seine. The whole area, which includes a long stretch of the quays bordering the Seine River, was a recent city project designed to "reclaim" the riverbank. (If you'd like to learn more, you can read about the project's history here.) Les Berges now include paths for walking and biking, spaces for exercise and children's activities, and even little cabins that you can reserve for an afternoon nap! The whole place is lively, colorful, and -- on a beautiful day like today -- absolutely packed.

Most of the activities are permanent, but there are also several temporary projects. I loved this quirky art installation!

One of my favorite surprise locations was the Pont Alexandre III. With its decorative lampposts and gold trim, this bridge looks totally classy from the outside...

 

... but it's actually ultra modern on the inside! I loved the straight lines of the steel beams and the bright light streaming in from just outside.

 

IMPORTANT. The photo of the young model is one of my favorites, so I chose to enter it into the Concours Photo. If you'd like to vote for my photo (and I really really wish that you would), click here. You might have to scroll through a few entries to get to mine (just click "afficher plus de photos" to keep loading more pictures). Once you've found my photo, click "J'AIME" to cast your vote by liking the photo on Facebook. The first place recipient wins an Olympus OM-D EM-10!!

A Day in Le Marais

Samedi, 14 juin.

After four days of alone time (punctuated by my day-brightening interactions with lost tourists), I finally spent today with a friend! A friend of mine from school has spent the past semester studying abroad in Paris and, luckily for me, she's hanging around for the summer! We met up for lunch in the Jardins du Luxembourg -- what a gorgeous place. (Molly and I spent time there last fall and absolutely loved it. It's not exactly a "secret" but it does feel somewhat isolated from all the hustle and bustle.) After lunch, we walked around the neighborhood, stopping by the Eglise de Saint-Etienne-du-Mont (where they filmed THE steps from Midnight in Paris) and the Institut du Monde Arabe. (They currently have THE Orient Express on display outside. I'll have to go back an check it out!)

We were headed for a photography museum, but wound up just wandering through Île Saint-Louis (where I took some of my photos yesterday) and back into Le Marais. Le Marais is one of "those" famous Parisian neighborhoods. Located within the third and fourth arrondissements, it has an incredibly rich history ... although not quite as rich as the people who now shop in its extremely expensive boutiques!

Although it's now home to posh boutiques and fancy scooters, the area's origins are pretty humble: it was originally a swampland on the outskirts of Paris. (The term marais means "marsh" in French.) The area first belonged to religious orders, who grew food in the fertile soil, but was eventually developed by nobles looking to expand. Le Marais first became truly chic in the 17th century, under the reign of Henry IV, who built a royal court in the center of the neighborhood.

 

Over the centuries, Le Marais has experienced several waves of decline and resurrection. Its "Pletzl" district was established as the Jewish Quarter in the late 19th century and although it was heavily affected during German Occupation in the 1940s, there are still streets bustling with kosher bakeries and falafel stands. In the 1960s, however, the area was in such bad condition that it was in danger of being entirely demolished! However, the city government decided to renovate and restore instead of tearing down. Now Le Marais is welcoming new populations, with a reputation as both an elite shopping/art gallery district AND as the home of Paris' gay community.

As you can see in the photos below, it also contains some of the only remaining medieval houses in Paris. The two in these paragraphs were only recently 'uncovered' -- their wooden beams had been plastered over centuries before!