Strasbourg & Colmar: A Jaunt into France

Bienvenue and Willkommen to Strasbourg. It is in the Alsace region of France, sharing a border with Germany. A town of dual identity, it has been passed back and forth between French and German rule throughout its history. A brief, summarized history would be that it was German in the Middle Ages, French when Louis XIV took it over during the Nine Years' War, German after the Franco-Prussian War, French after WWI, German during WWII, and then French again after WWII.

This unique dual identity is present everywhere. It borrows the classic half-timbered houses from Germany, has patisseries serving both pretzels and croissants, and even features dual-language street signs. It is not officially bilingual in that people are not required to speak both German and French, but hearing either language is pretty common.

It seems that I cannot get enough of France. Or rather... last year in Paris I found a medicine that helps immensely with period cramps, and I had run out! It's been a lifesaver during the first few days each month, so since I was going to be so close to France, Strasbourg was added to this year's route.

Reunited with Jill

I met up with Jill, my friend, colleague, and "always game for a trip" buddy. She arrived a little later than I did, so I settled into our very funky hotel, Hotel Arok (filled with images and puns surrounding the word "rock"), before we headed into Strasbourg's Altstadt for a wander and dinner.

We watched some street performers outside the cathedral, balancing on tall chairs and using impressive core strength to perform pole tricks.

I was excited to eat galettes again, my favourite meal from France, and we went to a Japanese-inspired galette café (Breizh Café Strasbourg) that served both traditional galettes and ones rolled up like buckwheat maki rolls. We also had galletes again on our last night here at (Creperie La Bolée de Cidre) but I preferred Breizh. 

Notre-Dame de Strasbourg

While Notre-Dame de Paris is the most famous, many French cathedrals are named Notre-Dame ("Our Lady") because they are dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The Strasbourg Gothic Cathedral took 400 years to build and was finished in 1439. It wasn't really complete, though, since the second tower was never built. Theories include a lack of money, unstable ground (it was built near the river), or that after the Reformation it became Protestant for a time, and Protestant churches tend to be less extravagant. Whatever the reason, it now has its unique one-tower appearance. We were even lucky enough to grab a spot outside on a patio for some happy hour (6€) aperol spritzes. 

This cathedral also has some original medieval stained-glass windows because they (rather smartly) removed them during the wars, stored them for safekeeping, and then put them back afterwards. The astronomical clock displays local time, the positions of the sun and moon, planetary alignments, a calendar, and the changing date of Easter. It also has animated figures, but we didn't catch the noontime show. 

In the evening, they project a light and sound show onto the outside of the cathedral for summer tourists. It was reminiscent of the one I saw in Bayeux last year, although a little less to my taste (it was more crowded and there was a smaller viewing area). That being said, it was still an impressive sight, and I'm glad we were there to see it.

Altstadt Walking Tour

We did a GuruWalks tour that explored the areas around the cathedral and La Petite France. We learned:

• Gutenberg lived here for about 10 years, where he worked on ideas that would eventually culminate in the invention of the printing press, so they created Gutenberg Square in his honour.

• The stork (la cigogne) is the main symbol of Alsace. They migrate to this region in late winter and leave again in the fall.

• Maison Kammerzell is one of the oldest and most famous medieval houses in Strasbourg. Its wooden façade contains many carvings, including astrological signs, and I found Scorpio! The windows are made of "bull's-eye" glass that looks like the bottoms of wine bottles.

• La Petite France, while quite picturesque now, used to be the tanners' and fishing district during the Middle Ages. The name "Petite France" comes from a hospital for syphilis patients because syphilis was once known as the "French disease."

While our plan to continue eating more galettes fell short because everywhere was full, we enjoyed a delicious bowl and avocado toast at Avotoast while dodging the evening rain clouds.

Colmar Day Trip

The following day, we took the train to Colmar, a French town south of Strasbourg in the Alsace region. This place looked exactly like a storybook or a movie set. You think they made up Beauty and the Beast? Naaaahhhh... they just modeled it after towns in Alsace, it seems.

We grabbed a walking map of the town and explored for the day, visiting sights like Maison des Têtes (which has 106 sculpted heads on its façade), La Petite Venise (which even had little motorized boats taking people up and down the river), the Marché Couvert Colmar (a covered food market), and Place de l'Ancienne Douane with its gorgeous half-timbered houses and fountain.

After wandering for three hours and making a "fast" (definitely the opposite) food stop at O Tacos for me, we grabbed a patio where Jill enjoyed a local radler and I had a local Riesling, one of the signature wines of the Alsace region.

We ended our evening back in Strasbourg enjoying some 4€ delicious grocery store wine at our hotel. Back to Germany tomorrow and a hike in the Black Forest!

Here We Go, Heidelberg!

This Euro summer has me heading off to southern Germany with cheeky little jaunts into France (Strasbourg) and Austria (Salzburg). My first stop? Heidelberg!

When deciding where I wanted to adjust to my jet lag, I wanted it to be a smaller German town, a little away from Frankfurt Airport (but not too long after that 8-hour red-eye). I also wanted at least one tourist attraction (a castle) and an easy connection onwards to Strasbourg, where I would be meeting up with my friend Jill. All those roads (and one 1-hour FlixBus) led me to Heidelberg.

Upon finally settling into my hotel (Premier Inn Heidelberg City Zentrum), I had a quick power nap and then headed out for dinner. I knew I wanted to try something local and very German, so I found a restaurant (Krokodil) that served up a delicious dish called Flammkuchen. This is like a very thin white sauce-based pizza, originating from the border areas of Alsace in France and southwestern Germany. It was delicious, and I devoured most of it. I paired it with a Radler because... when in Germany, one must drink beer!

To try and stave off the jet lag sleepiness, I walked to Bismarckplatz, a transit hub close to the Altstadt (Old Town) and the Neckar River. I was super tired, though, and despite my best efforts, was back in bed before 9 p.m.

Heidelberg is mainly known for two things: its University and its ruined Castle. The University plays a major role in this city, being Germany's oldest university and producing numerous Nobel Prize winners and academics (e.g. Dmitri Mendeleev - created the Periodic Table of Elements, Max Born - quantum physics, Max Weber - "the father of modern sociology"). While I didn't have time to visit it, there is also a student prison museum (Studentenkarzer) because the university used to operate its own autonomous legal jurisdiction until 1914 and used to jail students for things like disturbing the peace (often while drunk), playing pranks, or participating in illegal fencing duels... en garde!

I started my day in Heidelberg by wandering down the Hauptstraße (main street) in the Altstadt. It's a 1.8 km pedestrian zone full of shops, cafés, and restaurants.

 I had lunch at a unique place called Matcha & TofuTasche where I had these delicious things they called TofuTasche (tofu pockets made out of the same stuff as in Inari sushi and then filled with vegetables and sauces). So good, even if not very Germanic.

I visited two churches in the area, as one does whenever in Europe: the Heiliggeistkirche (Church of the Holy Spirit) and the Jesuit Church. Both held different beauty inside, and I thought the Holy Spirit one was a bit more impressive.

The Holy Spirit Church used to be physically split by a wall for over 230 years to allow Catholics and Protestants to simultaneously worship until eventually returning to being solely a Protestant church in the 1930s. There was also a beautiful note in the church celebrating acceptance and inclusivity, which my agnostic ideology appreciated.

Speaking of acceptance, there was unfortunately a very terrible homophobic terror attack that took place in Berlin four days before. Outside of the Rathaus (the Town Hall), there was a lovely memorial set up to honour the victims.

I mentioned earlier that Heidelberg is known for two things, and while I didn't go to the university, I did go to the castle! I booked a tour through NiceGuides, and while it wasn't the best tour I've ever been on (hats off to my D-Day Beaches tour guide last year), I did appreciate having someone share information about what I was seeing, as if I did it solo, I wouldn't have learned anything (no info signs anywhere except in the random Apothecary Museum). 

Heidelberg Castle was the residence of the Counts Palatine of the Rhine (medieval lords), who later became the Prince-Electors ("High-ranking princes of the Holy Roman Empire who had the special privilege of voting to elect the German king and Holy Roman Emperor."). Each ruler built different buildings and wings until the French destroyed it during the Nine Years' War. It's now maintained as a historical ruin, with one section being more fully restored with interior rooms depicting the bygone age (but that was extra money and a different tour I didn't partake in).

Some highlights I learned:

* The whole castle is primarily built from local red sandstone.

* The moat didn't have water in it and was considered a dry moat where they kept animals to hunt/eat... like a live grazing refrigerator since meat didn't keep well.

* Elizabeth Gate was made by Frederick V for his English wife, Elizabeth Stuart, as a birthday gift. It led to the Princess's private garden. Legend says that the gate was built in one night as a surprise and that for every animal she found carved into the pillars, she would get a kiss.

* Our guide told us the original silver coat of arms on the gate was taken by the French and melted down into memorial coins depicting the burning of Heidelberg, leaving only the outline of the shield today.

* Legend tells of a knight who leapt from a castle window after being discovered visiting a lady-in-waiting, leaving his footprint in the sandstone. Legend says if your foot fits in it, you'll live a happy life. Mine fit... so I'm choosing to believe it. 😏

* There was an Apothecary (Medicine) Museum in the castle that showcased different displays of pharmacies from the medieval to Renaissance periods. If I had a nickel for every time I went to an apothecary exhibit in a small offbeat European town, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice, right? (See last year's adventure in Beaune, France.)

One of the coolest things in the castle, though, was a world record... the world's largest wine barrel! Built in 1751, the Heidelberg Tun holds 220,000 litres of wine. Winegrowers paid part of their taxes in wine, which was stored together in the enormous barrel. Needless to say, not a tasty vintage. So instead, this became the servants' wine, and they reportedly received three litres of wine per day. There's also a dance floor built on top of the barrel!

After taking the funicular down the hill back to the Old Town and having a delicious apple cinnamon bun at Zeit für Brot (best name! "TIME FOR BREAD"!), I headed to the Old Bridge. Now made of stone, but previously of wood, it provided a gorgeous view of the castle from below.

Despite having to double back, I ended up finding the Heidelberg Monkey Statue. It was meant to mock political rivals across the river and holds a mirror to remind people of their own vanity and human flaws. Somehow that has now morphed into "if you touch the mirror, you will gain wealth." There are also two little mice beside the statue ("if you rub them, you'll be blessed with many children") and a poem from the 17th century that translates to:

Why are you staring at me?

 Haven't you seen the old monkey in Heidelberg?

Look around and you probably will see—

more monkeys like me!

After gaining my wealthy superpower and determining that I too am a monkey, I headed back to the hotel for a classic jet lag blunder. My 15-minute nap went on for 45 minutes, and I woke up with a start. This would prove bothersome, as later that night I couldn't fall asleep until 3:30 a.m.!

I stumbled out of the hotel and to a nice local restaurant called Schwarzer Peter, where I tried an Alsatian/southern German dish called Spätzle and, in pure Susan style, ordered the cheese version (Käsespätzle). It was incredibly rich and extremely cheesy. Not the ideal dinner for a tired girl in 37-degree heat. I unfortunately only ate about a quarter of it, but did enjoy what I could eat.

Next up is a bus to Strasbourg, France, where I will be meeting up with my friend Jill.

Tschüss, Germany! I'll be back in 3 days. :)

Paris: The End of The France Adventure!

Well, all good things must come to an end, and my trip is ending back in Paris.

Jill had one last day in France, so we filled it with a few misadventures and classic sights. First, we tried to check out the Jardin des Plantes (Botanical Gardens) since our Lyon tour guide praised it. Well, we didn’t think a garden could be closed on a Tuesday, but there you have it. The greenhouses were all shuttered, and we ate bench lunches surrounded by terrifying crows eyeing us. A bust.

We salvaged the rest of the afternoon with a visit to Shakespeare & Co., an English bookstore in France steeped in history and vibes. We souvenir-shopped a bit before checking into our hotel. I treated Jill to a birthday dinner (hers was in two days) at a fantastic vegetarian fusion restaurant near our hotel called Slow, where she had stuffed eggplant and I had a delicious black rice, mushroom, and pea risotto. 

The rain cooperated and stayed away while we headed to get our nighttime sparkling photo of the Eiffel Tower. We played Instagram boyfriends for each other and enjoyed the 5-minute sparkle. I followed a TikTok tip to a different street to get a less crowded view. Predictably, all the influencers were there in full glam with their Instagram boyfriends, but we still found a spot to snap some great shots.

After Jill’s departure, I had a lazy last day in Paris. It was overcast and threatening to rain, so after a leisurely French breakfast (I love this toast, croissant, coffee, and fresh orange juice combo), I chilled in the Jardin du Luxembourg to write a blog post and scout the statues. It did eventually start to rain, so after a quick detour past the Panthéon, I headed back to get ready for...

Rock en Seine!

When I was planning this trip, the first thing I bought (even before my flights) was a ticket to this Paris music festival! I’ve wanted to see Chappell Roan for a while now, and she was headlining the first night of the festival! An additional bonus was London Grammar too (I only knew one song, but they were great).

I was worried about the rain, but luckily it only drizzled a bit upon entry and when leaving. The concert gods were smiling on me today. The festival was cashless, so you topped up your wristband via credit card, and this system really cut down on the queues for merch and food/drinks. I had a delicious tofu banh mi for dinner, finally tried mirabelles (a small peach-like fruit from the Lorraine region that I’d seen everywhere), and was impressed with their flushing toilet porta-potties (less so with the lines for them!). London Grammar were amazing, and Chappell Roan blew the roof off the show! Apparently she had to cancel a Paris show last year, so she made up for it tonight. Incredible sets and a very enthusiastic—and very pink—crowd.

As I wrap up this France trip, here are some cumulative notes on food, blunders, and tips for future travels in this country.

French Food (for the Pescatarians out there)

France is heavy on the meat, but most places had at least one veggie option (even if it was just a salad). Baguettes were a lunch staple, with my go-to being either caprese or tuna salad. Boulangeries were a constant stop. Grocery stores (specifically Monoprix or Monop’—the convenience store version) had plenty of premade lettuce, pasta, and grain (couscous, tabbouleh, bulgur) salads. Unfortunately, a lot of the lettuce-based ones had meat added. Have I mentioned how much I love galettes? These are savory crepes made of buckwheat (gluten-friendly!) and packed with cheese and vegetables (and meat if you choose that option). I adored these as my lunch option.

But the pastries—oh god, I loved them. The croissants and pains au chocolat were consistently good, and please do not pay more than €1.30 for them. Dessert-wise, I tried Nonettes (gingerbread-style cookies in Dijon), canelés (tiny cakes from Bordeaux), macarons, caramel butter crêpes (*drool*), crème brûlée, and chocolate mousse. Chef’s kiss for the sugar and butter in this country.

Cheese and wine are classics for a reason—amazing brie and camembert for under €2 at the grocery store, and wine ranging from €2 to €50 (I often settled for a solid €7 bottle).

I’ve raved about it before, but French orange pressé juice is absolutely amazing. I found another blogger who loves them as much as I did, so please read more about it here.

Trip Blunders

Every trip has its missteps. Here were mine:

• Leaving my necklace in my Airbnb in Bayeux (they said they’d mail it to me 🙏) and then leaving all my contact lenses behind in the Airbnb in Dijon.

• Forgetting snacks I purposely bought for Mont Saint-Michel, then having to buy overpriced ones there. With nothing open for takeaway at the train station, I ended up with Pringles and a banana for dinner.

• A bus mistake in Caen—took the bus the wrong way, adding 25 minutes to a 40-minute trip to a museum (that in all probability I didn’t even need to go to).

• The Paris transit system is confusing. You can’t buy an airport train ticket on the same metro pass if you have metro tickets on it as well. This technical error cost Jill an extra €2 for another transit card.

• Helpful hint: Paris transit isn’t unlimited travel for 1.5 hours like Toronto. It’s one way per ride but with unlimited transfers on that ride.

• Left my passport on the counter at the Pret in CDG after security. Luckily, I got it back no problem—I must have horseshoes shoved somewhere.

France Overall Travel Tips

• Transit: Almost every city has its own reusable metro card that you load per ride. Sometimes 24-hour passes are useful.

• Money: They use euros. Taxes are included in listed prices. Carte (credit card) is widely accepted, but it’s good to carry small bills for markets and small purchases. Tips for service in restaurants aren’t expected, but welcomed for great service (unlike Canada, where they’re expected).

• Trains: Trains are often late, but the SNCF (France’s rail system) is very flexible and good at rebooking if you miss a connection. They even sent me a proactive email when I was waiting for my first train!

• Customer service: French customer service stereotypes are... kinda true. The customer is not always right here, so adjust your North American expectations.

• Paying for meals: You often pay at the bar/entrance for dinner—don’t expect them to bring the machine to you.

• Language basics: Even a simple “Bonjour,” “Merci,” or “Pardon” goes a long way. “Parlez-vous anglais, s’il vous plaît?” was my go-to phrase.

• Sundays: Many shops close early and/or don’t open Sundays. Plan ahead for groceries.

• August closures: Outside major tourist zones (Paris, Annecy, Bayeux, etc.), many shops and restaurants are closed because locals go on holidays.

• Restaurant hours: Lunch is usually 12–2 pm, and dinner 7–9/10 pm.

• Water: You can always ask for une carafe d’eau (a jug of tap water) instead of bottled.

• Bathrooms: Public toilets aren’t always free, especially in train stations and tourist areas—carry coins (50 cents to €2).

• Travel apps: Citymapper works well in Paris and Lyon. I also really liked using Omio for booking trains.

Overall, this trip was a mix of great food, new adventures, and a few classic travel blunders. France charmed me and fed me very well. Until next time—au revoir, France!

Lyon et Lumières

Our next city we visited was Lyon. Centred between two rivers, the Saône and the Rhône, it’s a perfect mix of history and everyday life with cozy streets, good food, and cultural heritage.

Fourvière Hill

After our bus journey from Grenoble, we explored the Fourvière Hill area to see the famed Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, which overlooks Lyon. It was incredibly gorgeous and impressive inside, but since we arrived right as Mass was starting, we quickly snapped a few photos and slipped out before accidentally joining the service.

We also saw some Roman ruins of an odeon/theatre nearby. When the Romans took over, they renamed the city Lugdunum, and it’s quite impressive to still see the ruins standing amidst modernity.

Movie Madness – Musée Lumière

My only must-do in Lyon was to visit the Musée Lumière, the home and museum of the famous Lumière brothers, Auguste and Louis, who “invented” modern cinema. They created the Cinématographe, which improved on Edison’s Kinetoscope and other early devices by allowing films to be projected to an audience rather than viewed individually through a peephole. The Cinématographe was a big leap because it was lightweight, portable, could both record and project, and made cinema a shared, theatrical experience. Omg, I am in my element right now.

The Lumière brothers created the first projected film in history (Workers Leaving the Factory), a 45-second video showcased to the public in 1895. They also famously showed Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat Station in 1896, where it is said that audiences ducked in fear as the train came toward the camera, thinking it was going to burst through the screen.

I also had the chance to interact with and explore other early moving picture inventions like the Praxinoscope (1877), which used mirrors to project images, and the even earlier Zoetrope (1834), which you looked through slotted holes to see a moving picture. There was a VERY impressive sculptural model by artist Émilie Tolot where figurines were placed on a rotating platform and paired with stroboscopic lighting to recreate the illusion of movement (much like early motion pictures).

Movie Madness Part Deux – Musée Cinéma et Miniature

I also visited the Musée Cinéma et Miniature to satisfy my modern cinephile obsession. This museum was a must for any film fan, as it houses a wealth of film props, costumes, practical effects, and memorabilia.

The first room was fantasy-themed with Harry Potter (costumes, wands, a pair of Harry’s glasses), Narnia (animatronic head of a satyr), The Dark Crystal (Kira’s costume), and Lord of the Rings props (Legolas’ ears, Uruk-hai prosthetics). It also had an homage to the ’80s/’90s and movie fandom of that era.

There was a room dedicated to Beetlejuice. Props of the Sandworm, the waiting room, and stop-motion models for when Barbara turned into a pterodactyl-type monster were some highlights.

I geeked out extremely hard in the small Star Wars area, which housed original items like an Ewok head, Leia’s bikini top, Han’s blaster, and Darth Vader’s helmet (originally from The Empire Strikes Back when Vader enters the Rebel base. Apparently, the design changed a bit after this scene, which makes this item a little more unique).

The rest of the rooms were a smorgasbord of different movie items. Some highlights from this mishmash included Mary Poppins’ umbrella, Lestat’s fake head when Claudia slices his throat (Interview with the Vampire), Edward Scissorhands’ aptly named hand, the hoverboard from Back to the Future Part II, the animatronic claw for the raptor from Jurassic Park (*click, click, click* on the floor), Robin Williams' mask for Mrs. Doubtfire, and the Queen Xenomorph from Aliens.

At the end, there was a cool room full of miniature sets (not for movies) that the artist Dan Ohlmann had created. They were incredibly detailed and about the height of one and a half of my hands and the length of my pointer finger to elbow. My favourite was one of a Natural History Museum. 

Walking Tour

We did a walking tour on our second day there, exploring some street art, classical churches, and getting a good layout of La Croix-Rousse and Vieux Lyon (old town).

We learned a little more about street artists in Lyon on this walking tour. Pixel artists (not Invader!) like In the Woup, who creates pixelated Super Marios, and MifaMosa, who creates pixelated images representing street names (like putting a whale beside Place de la Baleine or a bottle of wine beside the sign for Rue Bouteille). There was also Zon, who creates monkey head sculptures, and Ememem, who creates mosaics covering up potholes (which I also think I stumbled upon in Dijon!).

Great Eats & Drinks in Lyon

Along with the two complimentary glasses of champagne at our hotel (plus a free breakfast — their attempt to make up for the sweltering AC situation, including one night when it didn’t work at all, ugh), we had a few really good dining experiences here. The first was at Betty’s Bar — if you can call beer and vibes dining, which we will. It was super cute, but due to everyone in France being on vacation in August, their chefs were away and therefore our dinner that night was… French fries! But the beers were tasty and perfect after a long travel day. Later that night, we went to Suzette Crêperie to satisfy my craving for another caramel crêpe. It all balances out with the 18k steps per day, right?

I also had a wonderful mushroom and cheese galette at La Table Brestoise, complete with a very French waiter/cook and a hilariously obvious ENGLISH menu. I continued this mushroom and cheese tradition for dinner that night with a quesadilla at the very yummy and Instagrammable Tiger Milk (you can take the Jill out of Mexico but not the Mexico out of Jill). Unfortunately, I think I was hitting a wall of exhaustion, and my tummy wasn’t feeling great, so I couldn’t fully enjoy the very delicious meal there.

Tomorrow we head to Paris for Jill’s last day, and I go to the Rock en Seine Music Festival to see Chappell Roan! Our trip is almost over!

Grenoble: Bubbles & Tags

We swapped the riverside cobblestones of Annecy for the small-city feel of Grenoble on our next stop in France. Grenoble is another "in the shadow of the Alps" kind of town, but with a twist... There's street art and tags everywhere!

Grenoble is famous for street art thanks to its annual Street Art Fest Grenoble-Alpes, launched in 2015, which has transformed the city and surrounding villages into an open-air museum with more than 450 murals, stencils, and art installations dotting the city streets. I absolutely love this style of guerrilla art, and my eyes feasted on it whenever we walked about town.

But the weird thing about visiting Grenoble in the first few weeks of August? It's basically a ghost town. Similar to Caen in emptiness, most of the shops were closed for two weeks (opening up on the following Monday when we left on Saturday) and, due to its heavy student population who are not in session yet, streets and shops outside of the city core remained desolate. Nevertheless, we explored this new city as well as we could!

The Bubbles & The Bastille

Our first adventure was to head to the Téléphérique Grenoble, affectionately nicknamed “Les Bulles” (“The Bubbles”). Celebrating its 90th anniversary last year, this cable car was built in 1934 to link the city centre with the Bastille fortress, a 19th-century stronghold perched above Grenoble.

It was really affordable and a fun way to access the Bastille for its breathtaking views of the city and surrounding mountain ranges.

AcroBastille

While Jill opted to hike higher past the Bastille, I decided I wanted to test my nerves on an open-air high ropes course that went through the remnants of the Bastille. This was Acrobastille. It had five trails (ranging in difficulty from green, blue, purple, red, and black with four zip lines). Ladder bridges, a fun swing, ropes to traverse, and simple rock climbing areas with ladders... it was A LOT of fun. However, being under direct sun in the heatwave and my lack of upper body strength eventually took its toll and I didn't attempt the two hardest runs. Regardless, this is MY kind of adrenaline. :)

Heatwave continues...

Speaking of heatwave, man... France is definitely in the throes of it! It literally started the day before I met up with Jill in Annecy and we haven't caught a break in the heat! Our AirBnB had a portable AC which only cooled the bedroom, not the sofa bed living room, so we opted for a sleepover style with the couch mattress on the floor. It actually worked out perfectly. We even had a really cool dry storm one night with heat lightning, but alas no rain to cool things down.

Solo Adventure Day: Musée dauphinois

Jill and I decided to do a solo day of exploring our own interests. She loves hiking and took on a challenge of a longer day hike while I love museums and exploring cities, so I chose that avenue.

After exploring the mostly empty city, I went to a mostly empty museum! Musée dauphinois was an eclectic mix of art installations, special exhibits, and alpine history. It lays perched about halfway up the hill to the Bastille (no bubble gondola for me this time!) with a great view of the city.

Expecting mostly to learn about the history of living on the Alps, I was surprised to find the first exhibit I came across was about the African community of the Bassari. The Bassari live in southeast Senegal (and partly northern Guinea) and are recognised by UNESCO for its exceptional cultural landscape. The exhibit highlights the cultural practices of five ethnic groups that live there, with sensitivity and collaboration (e.g. involved Bassari communities in selecting objects & texts that would be displayed).

They also had some artistic reflections on Africa, environment, and globalisation at the end of the exhibit. I was particularly drawn to an artist's creation of a Bassari mask out of tyres that reflected "the intensification of transport and its environmental and social consequences as well as the commoditisation and exploitation of people and nature" by the artist collective Culture Ailleurs.

After that exhibit, I came to one highlighting Alpine life from Neolithic to Roman to modern life in the Alps. I saw some coins discovered in the Alps that predated the Roman conquest by 20 years, indicating how trade was developing long before Rome took over. I saw a portable wooden shepherd's hut that the Alpine shepherds would sleep in while they followed their flocks. I saw artefacts indicating how people lived, ate, learned, and survived up there. I also saw some more cowbells.

There was another section on the 1968 Winter Olympics that was held in Grenoble. Fun fact: the first ever official "Olympic mascot" was created and marketed in these Olympics. Its name was Schuss. It was a little abstract skier with a red ball head, long blue body, with skis shooting forward in a “schuss” position (French skiing term for straight downhill).

The unique thing about this museum was that I saw like nine people total in the whole museum, two of which were security guards. It lent itself nicely to visiting the completly empty art exhibits that dotted the grounds like this textile one from Kaarina Kaikkonen called "I would love to Blossom" which was located in the gorgeous former chapel in the museum.

Musée de Grenoble

After a quick pitstop for happy hour cocktails and crepes (is this my love language?), I headed towards another free museum. But this time, the focus was on art. Musée de Grenoble houses both Renaissance/classical art as well as a larger modern art collection. While overall I'm not a huge fan of Renaissance art, I did find a few that I enjoyed. 

This museum also had an interesting strategy of intermixing a modern artist, Guillaume Bresson's paintings in with those antiquated ones.

I do love a mid-20th-century art piece, and I was not disappointed by this collection! Here were some of my favs:

After our separate adventures, Jill and I finally reunited. Her mountain photos are incredible! We enjoyed a final evening drink at Bar Cent Un before we head to our next destination: Lyon!