We started the morning with a drive up into the Vosges Mts. above Andlau. It was a windy and picturesque drive that eventually got us to the Nunnery at Mt. St. Odile, overlooking the Rhine Valley above Obernai.
It was a little overcast and the views were a little limited, but this was Sunday and therefore our religious experience for the day. Apparently there were some movie stars here today.
Our route down from St. Odile took us into Obernai, so we took a little excursion up to the war memorial with its nice overview of Obernai.
From there we jumped on the A35 autoroute and went about 45 kilometres south to the Plus Beaux Village of Eguisheim.
Since it was Sunday we expected these picturesque villages to be overrun with visitors and we were not disappointed. It was challenging to get pictures without hordes in the foreground. Having whined about that, I must say that a visit to Eguisheim, which is a little ways from other Alsace highlights, is always worth it.
The general consensus was that we should next visit the ultimate tourist trap of the walled mediaeval village of Riquewihr. Before that, we stopped at a roadside cafe on the Route du Vin for a tarte flambe and glass of wine.
Riquewihr does have some of the most spectacular half-timbered houses in the Alsace, overflowing with flowers. You might have noticed some flowers in my pictures. You need to visit this region at this time of the year to get the full impact of their horticultural prowess.
Today is the first day since we arived in France that it hasn't rained and that allowed us a nice stroll down the main street of Riquewihr. Our visit was accompanied by a small mass of humanity, some of whom were female and in really tight pants - according to Claude.
I should mention that among its picturesque attributes, Riquewihr is the centre of an exceptional wine region with many excellent vintners including Hugel and Dopff & Irion.
To get home, we meandered north along the Route du Vin back to Andlau. At Ribeauville, we caught the chateau in some exceptional light.
We also made a final stop at the Hotel Arnold in Itterswiller, forever photogenic.
Now we faced the task of packing and preparing to depart for our next destination, Annecy. We did this accompanied by some fine Louis Sipp wines, which made the job much easier.
It was a little overcast and the views were a little limited, but this was Sunday and therefore our religious experience for the day. Apparently there were some movie stars here today.
Our route down from St. Odile took us into Obernai, so we took a little excursion up to the war memorial with its nice overview of Obernai.
From there we jumped on the A35 autoroute and went about 45 kilometres south to the Plus Beaux Village of Eguisheim. 
Since it was Sunday we expected these picturesque villages to be overrun with visitors and we were not disappointed. It was challenging to get pictures without hordes in the foreground. Having whined about that, I must say that a visit to Eguisheim, which is a little ways from other Alsace highlights, is always worth it.
The general consensus was that we should next visit the ultimate tourist trap of the walled mediaeval village of Riquewihr. Before that, we stopped at a roadside cafe on the Route du Vin for a tarte flambe and glass of wine.
Riquewihr does have some of the most spectacular half-timbered houses in the Alsace, overflowing with flowers. You might have noticed some flowers in my pictures. You need to visit this region at this time of the year to get the full impact of their horticultural prowess.
Today is the first day since we arived in France that it hasn't rained and that allowed us a nice stroll down the main street of Riquewihr. Our visit was accompanied by a small mass of humanity, some of whom were female and in really tight pants - according to Claude.
I should mention that among its picturesque attributes, Riquewihr is the centre of an exceptional wine region with many excellent vintners including Hugel and Dopff & Irion.
To get home, we meandered north along the Route du Vin back to Andlau. At Ribeauville, we caught the chateau in some exceptional light.
We also made a final stop at the Hotel Arnold in Itterswiller, forever photogenic.
Now we faced the task of packing and preparing to depart for our next destination, Annecy. We did this accompanied by some fine Louis Sipp wines, which made the job much easier.
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