Euro Trip--The Cathedrals

OK, here comes the standard tourist stuff...  great cathedrals of Europe (or a few of them anyway).  On the river cruise, the standard day tour usually included a major cathedral.  Then we found a few on our own (we couldn't always keep to the program!).

The first biggie was in Cologne.  Gothic style...  centuries to build.

Curiously, the Raiders of the Lost Ark contributed their discovery to this cathedral...

Tourists...

The next major religious edifice was in Strassbourg...

A cool organ loft...  and an amazing clock that tracked almost anything that had to do with time.

In the town of Colmar, a featured stop on the cruise (and home of a great Alstacian Pinot Gris!), there was a cathedral apparently of Romanesque style but, due to long construction times (centuries), it evolved into a Gothic style (flying buttresses).

We finally decided to play hooky from the tour schedule to rest up a bit then explore on our own.  While the boat (ship?) was docked at the little town of Breisach on the German side of the Rhine, and everyone was taken into the Black Forest, we walked up to this cathedral on the hill overlooking the town.  Had a great apple strudel in a little cafe as well.

But my favorite was the Romanesque styled cathedral in Speyer.  There was something minimalist about this church that quite moved me after all the ornate excesses of the Gothic styled cathedrals.

This cross really defines the Romanesque style...

Somehow I don't think these organ pipes are original, but the style really fit the minimalism of the cathedral... and they look really cool!

OK, so much for European cathedrals...  at some point, we'll get to the castles...

PS...  The Tour de France is coming up.  The Tour actually begins in Holland, in the major city of Ultrecht...  Ultrech was a major center of the Catholic religion before Martin Luther came along.  The cathedral here is quite spectacular...  and the Tour will ride through the arch that can sorta be seen in this pic...