View from Barrage Vauban
The Barrage Vauban is an old defensive structure which was meant to flood low lying areas with water in case of an attack. There is no need for such a thing these days but the old structure is still here. The Barrage Vauban is actually open to visitors. While I don’t think it functions much as a barrage anymore, it is still a convenient bridge to cross the river. When I went in the barrage, I thought it would just be a simple walking across the thing but there was a flight of stairs off to the side and I thought to see what is up there.
Defensive Towers at Petite France
It turned out to be a large open area above the barrage. From here you can see the Petite France quarter of Strasbourg. This is a different angle because you can see the Ponts Couverts or what remains of it. The defensive towers of the Ponts Couverts are also in full view making it a different but interesting view of Petite France. I thought there were only three defensive towers remaining but it seems that there are some more off to the sides. I can also see that I am not the only one who knows about this place because I see couples walking about here. I think I would agree that this is a nice spot for a walk. There aren’t too many people here and the view is actually quite good.
[xmlgm {http://www.worldwanderings.net/kml/BarrageVauban.kmz} zoom=19]