Obernai, France

[expedition_retirement]

We stayed in Obernai for the final two nights of the bike tour. Located at the northern end of the Alsatian wine region, this medieval town was smaller than Colmar, but certainly had its charms. A considerable portion of the town's fortifications were still intact, and in fact, our hotel was located at the inner wall and used the dry moat as a courtyard. The cathedral here had some lovely stained glass, and there was a gorgeous old well in the center of the town. We also saw the local synagogue, although I didn't recognize it as such at first because it looked like a Romanesque church.

As we wondered the town on the first day, we met a couple from England who were also taking in the sights. They had just finished a week's stay in Belgium, and had received an unexpected invitation to stay at a friend's place in Italy, so they were driving south, taking their time and enjoying the sights along the way.

By the second evening, we had seen most of what there was to see here, and we were ready to move on. Luckily, that also marked the end of our bike tour. The following morning, our tour guides would walk us to the train station, where we met another guide who would escort us on the train to Strasbourg and give us a walking tour there.