the capital of Noel

Frederique (my native French ESL colleague at the Elementary School), Murilo, Zizou and I joined the 7th grade French class on a bus trip to Strasbourg, France. Strasbourg is right over the Rhine River from Germany and (as you can see) has many German influences. Plus, it is home to a multitude of Christmas Markets going on simultaneously!

Here, Murilo (and I) are waiting outside a cafe. Frederique was in search of the "perfect" cafe for us to enjoy lunch (decent price, good atmosphere, and - most importantly - with room inside for us to actually sit and eat). After nearly 40 minutes of searching, this was the winner - Cafe Tinta!

We had a great time and returned home exhausted - mostly from the crowds. It was amazing to see how many people there were. Zizou, of course, was a big hit in his backpack. People were snapping photos of my backside everywhere we went!

As evening drew nigh, the lights came on and everything sparkled - and the crowds swelled!

Murilo and Frederique shivering on one of the bridges over the canals. It was cold (7 degrees Celsius) but the wind was blowing so it felt much colder!

The poster advertising the Russian Christmas Market in Strasbourg.

Storks are everywhere - the region's mascot!

A nativity scene carved from wood.

The front of the cathedral in Strasbourg (bearing many similarities to Notre Dame in Paris).

Hope the owner of this last car doesn't need to leave any time soon.