Home >
France >
Car Hire in Strasbourg
Strasbourg
One of France's major ports, Strasbourg is also one of the country's greatest cities. Today, the city is famous as the home to the European Parliament and host to the Council of Europe, but it also has the University of Strasbourg, once attended by Napoleon, Goethe and Lois Pasteur. The city's greatest building is the Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg, with its pyramid-shaped tower of rose-coloured stone standing 141 metres tall. There are many aspects of the cathedral which stand out, but look for the "Rose Window", which looks like real stone lace, and the astronomical clock with its changing allegorical figures. The area around the cathedral is famous for its evening entertainment of dances and other performances. Spectacular under the illuminations of the cathedral! South of the cathedral is the Palais de Rohan, which is noted for its facades and rococo interior. On the first floor is a fine-arts museum, with works by Rembrandt, Van Dyck, El Greco and Goya, among others. There is also a decorative-arts museum housing the original machinery of the cathedral's first astronomical clock. Strasbourg has many shops offering traditional antiques such as Soufflenheim rococo pottery, named from a nearby village where the style originated. Tablecloths and other linen items produced by the Beauville textile mills can also be found in the shops, together with other products created by local artisans and craftsmen.