Colmar, France

Let’s go to France! We recently had the opportunity to visit the Alsatian city of Colmar, in southeastern France, while we were visiting friends in the Black Forest region of Germany.

It’s an easy drive if you’re near Freiburg, or the Swiss city of Basel, and makes for a good day trip of walking, relaxing, and shopping. Our German friends like to come here to shop now and then, so they did that while we wondered in awe of buildings, homes, and churches that date as far back as the 13th century.

Sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi – the creator of the original Statue of Liberty – was from Colmar, so he has a museum here and one can find little tributes and symbols to his work around town.

That was really cool to see, but we really found the architecture here to be amazing. The town has survived a lot of wars, so it’s not at all difficult to find buildings still standing that are over 500 years old.

There are also several buildings we walked by that had tons of bric-a-brac hanging on the outside. We never found out why this is, but it was quite a trip.

Canals also cut through the city here and there, which lends a lot of history and romanticism to the city. In my mind, anyway.

Colmar has long straddled the border of France and Germany, and has a very Alsatian feel in style. I won’t pretend to know much of anything about the politics or history of all that, but I really like how it feels French while also feeling somewhat Alpine with a hint of German.

One of the most important things we did was to stop at a local café for coffee and cake. This is essential to life, people! And it’s one of our favorite things to do. Fortunately, our German friends are always into it.

This place is family-run, and is most definitely a favorite of folks in the neighborhood. It was crowded, and the owners seemed to know a lot of the clientele. Of course, it was also invaded by a few tourists like us.

Who could resist these faces though, really.

Or this!

Many noms, indeed.

We also popped into the central market right before it closed, to have a look at all of the local, Alsatian treats. I also snatched up some beer from the region, which was pretty tasty.

We ran into this newer park as well, which was about the same time as the sun came out to greet us. Bonus!

And that wraps up a day in Colmar! If you’re ever in the region, we can definitely recommend a visit to this beautiful and historic city. I have no doubt that we’ll return some time in the future when we’re back in the area.

Be sure to check out our other France posts right here.

A very special and very big thanks to all the fine folks in Colmar, and to our friends for taking us along for the ride!

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Have you ever been to Colmar? If so, what’d you think? If not, what say ye? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!