Freiburg im Breisgau

We left Strasbourg this morning, within 5 minutes had crossed the Rhine River and were immediately back in Germany. We stopped in the small town of Kehl, where the grownups enjoyed a cup of coffee in the square while the kids played on a playground. Our French breakfast earlier consisted of croissants and baguettes eaten with butter and cheese while sitting on a cold stone wall near the train station. Not what I was hoping for (nothing beats dipping a buttered slice of baguette into a steaming bowl of café-au-lait), but the French cafés were not open yet and it was either that, or breakfast at McDonald's. A cappuccino in Kehl helped cool my acute disappointment.


You never know what you're going to find at a European playground. In Strasbourg, it was wooden sculptures to climb on, here in Kehl, it's a big mosquito to slide down.

Our next stop was Freiburg, located on the western edge of the Black Forest. This is the Martinstor (Martin's Gate), one of the the two remaining old city gates and part of Freiburg's original fortifications built at the beginning of the 13th century. On our next visit, we'll look for the tablet mounted on the tower in 1988 in memory of the numerous victims of the witch hunts. Among the victims named are three Freiburg women who were convicted in 1599 of being witches and beheaded.

Click on the photo to see what eating establishment is located on its right.

We made our way directly to the Cathedral square or Münsterplatz to grab a bite to eat.

St. George, Freiburg's patron saint, adorns a fountain in the square.

The Historisches Kaufhaus, or historical marketplace, is a Renaissance building constructed between 1520 and 1530 which was once the center of the financial life of the region. Its façade is decorated with the coat of arms of the Habsburgs.

The Münster, a gothic gathedral constructed of red sandstone, built between 1200 and 1530. The Freiburg Münster is noted for its towering spire.

David and James climbed up to the cathedral's bell tower.

View from the cathedral of the Schwabentor, the other old city gate.

James doing a pretty good imitation of a hamster at the playground as we made our way to the Schlossberg, the mountain at the edge of city that we had every intention of hiking up.

After an arduous climb up to the top of the Schlossberg, there was still this tower to climb to get the best view.

Grandma, Rebecca and I were quite impressed with the view of the countryside from the ground, thank you very much, so we opted to rest a while. That's us, those tiny little specks down below.

View of Freiburg

Making our way back to the car, we came across this ring of amusing fountains.


What we wouldn't have given to see these fountains running.



The inner city is crisscrossed by small canals or Bächle running along the streets. These canals are constantly flowing with water diverted from the Dreisam River and used to be the irrigation system of medieval Freiburg. No, they were never used for sewage, as such usage could lead to harsh penalties, even in the Middle Ages. Legend has it that anyone stepping (or tripping) into a Bächle is deemed to stay in Freiburg and marry a Freiburger.

Detail on the corner of a house