Sunday, September 8, 2013

Colmar, France


We spent one day of our Alsatian mini-holiday driving an hour south down to Colmar and then back up to Strasbourg via the Route des Vins.  Here are few shots of Colmar, near the south end of the wine route.
Not quite what you were expecting?  Bartholdi, the sculptor who designed Lady Liberty, was born in Colmar.  This mini-version greets you as you drive into town.
On to "old town"...
hat shop
  Maison Pfister from 1537.  Many of the buildings in town had these dragon scale type shingles (on the towers here) in green or red.  Better photo of this building here

more tarte flambée across from Maison Pfister.
And across from that, really super extra good ice cream
the main churches were both surrounded by busy parking lots 
The most famous and picturesque area of Colmar is called Petite Venise.  So here are some picturesque pictures:



I love how "I am an American Tourist"  Pete looks.  Baseball cap, backpack, polo shirt, Rick Steves guidebook.  Rock it!
Colmar verdict: mixed.  Beautiful, but overrun with people and cars.  Specifically, many of the most picturesque spots were the worst for motor traffic infestation.  We took refuge in the pedestrian-only areas the best we could, but we spent most our morning trying to avoid being run over.  We might opt for the small boat or train ride if we came again.  And we should have left the scooters in the car, as there weren't many breaks from the cobblestones.

Still thinking about that ice cream, though...

No comments: