Hansi - Strasbourg

We arrived in Strasbourg, about a one hour's drive from Colmar, after sunset. Not a good idea when you are looking for a hotel in an unfamiliar city, in the bitter cold, and half the roads are closed to traffic. We parked our car, figured out how to use the meter, and treaded our way through the old town to our hotel. Our GPS failed us and insisted we were standing in front of the hotel. There was a store and a restaurant but no hotel. We walked a block in all directions, dragging our suitcases...no hotel. We asked some Christmas market stall owners and they had never even heard of the hotel Chut or the street. We wandered around aimlessly. When booking the reservation I was intrigued by the description “nestled in the heart of the historic Petite-France district.” Boy, was it nestled! After another 1/2 hour of looking at the map, aligning our bodies with the compass rose, and cursing the GPS, we found the hotel. Finding hotels like Chut is the reason I make it a point not to book chain hotels. Although it was hard to find, it was perfect. The atmosphere was appealing and the desk clerks were friendly. Staying at small, local hotels make trips more interesting and, as a bonus, is cheaper than large, luxury chain hotels. I recommend this hotel, but don’t ask me for directions!

We found a small restaurant and ordered dinner, along with, of course, wine. The plate that dinner was served on was, in my opinion, corny. It had, what I thought, was a silly picture of children in traditional Alsatian clothing. It looked like a bad souvenir your grandmother would buy. The next day, while strolling the streets of Strasbourg, we went into a pottery store. And there, among all the pottery, sat the same ugly plate. I pointed it out to Michael and the shop owner said,

“Vous savez Hansi?” (Do you know Hansi?) The storeowner opened a coffee table book and entertained us with stories of Hansi. Jean-Jacques Waltz, an artist known as Hansi, was born in Colmar in 1873, two years after one of the annexation of Alsace by the Germans. Alsace, a region of France by the German border, has been attacked by Germany and then returned to France several times. Hansi's political satire brought him fame and problems. He was imprisoned several times for making fun of the German military. Due to his outspokenness and advocacy for Alsace, he was hunted by the Gestapo for years. He fled to Vichy, France, and then to Switzerland. He died in Switzerland in 1951. He is well loved and respected by Alsatians, and now, by me as well. Turns out the picture on the plate is a Hansi reproduction. The plate I deemed so ugly now was not a mere plate but a story that needs to be remembered. That same plate is now proudly displayed in my home.

Although there were many drawing by Hansi in the coffee table book, one in particular caught my eye and heart. It is of three Alsatian children looking quite forlorn. One of the children, a boy, is holding an umbrella with a ribbon displaying the France flag colors tied around the handle. The caption reads, “On vous attendons” (We are waiting for you).

I was born in Alsace but left when I was three years old. Therefore, I had no emotional connection to it. Looking at that Hansi print, I realized that just as the Alsatian children were waiting for the French, Alsace was waiting for me. Although I only spent three days in Alsace I fell in love its culture and history.