Tiny Christmas Tales. Part IV. StrasbourgMapJanuary 3–4, 2014 Interestingly enough, nine out of ten respondents believe that Strasbourg is located in Germany. Sorry to disappoint those 90%, but Strasbourg is actually in France.  Then again, there are some obvious typically German features here, like the fachwerk timber framing.  Look at how elegant a simple sidewalk barrier can be.  How elegant a park fence can be.  How elegant a moveable bridge can be. Part of the bridge swings to the side, the boat passes through. All this takes just a couple of minutes.  How elegant a pedestrian street with simple benches can be. Municipal chiefs in Russia, take note: things can be incredibly beautiful even with no symmetry whatsoever.  How elegant the suffering of drivers can be. If you want to park downtown, you’ll have to wait in line for half an hour for underground parking. Or you can park on the outskirts and take the tram downtown.  How elegant a nine-story apartment building can be. It’s the exact same nine stories as the buildings in Medvedkovo, the Moscow suburb where I grew up. But the similarity between the two ends there.  |
