Visiting Strasbourg

Last month, my sister and I both took a day off and travelled to Strasbourg as part of a group organized by our hometown's Community College. We had a comfortable bus and a chatty driver, but no proper organization which was a bit daft if you consider that we were supposed to be booked for a visit at the European Parliament as a group. Well, it all worked out in the end; we had a long question-and-answer session with one of the Vice Presidents (who is originally from our area; I've met him before and he is a really decent man, one of the few who seem to be able to maintain their personal integrity in the middle of the swamp that European politics sometimes appear to be), had a guided tour of the building and were then taken back into town by our chatty driver and left to our own devices until late afternoon when it was time to board the bus again for the drive home.

It was a very interesting day altogether, and I'll show you pictures of Strasbourg's old town center in one of my next posts. But first, here is where the European Parliament meets:

There is a roof garden up there, you can just about see the trees. I wonder who has access to it.

Inside the building, there was a lot of natural light from the top and the glass walls. Certainly not the worst of work places. The room where we met "our" Vice President, though, was windowless and filled with a most unpleasant smell coming from a combination of the dark blue leather armchairs and whatever cleaning stuff had been used on them.

Here is where parliament sessions take place when in Strasbourg:

You should now be able to work out where my "puzzle" picture in the last post is from :-)

Is this a way to leave one's work place behind?

The wood-covered cupola above the Parliament Room seen from outside, and the entrance to the visitors' gallery where we were allowed:

Media court and the background for countless pictures of politicians and visitors:

Your very own European Librarian! Now, would I make a good member of Parliament or what? (Of course I'd dress up for that, I promise!)