In the center of Strasbourg, squares literally flow into each other: Place Gutenberg (the inventor of printing in Europe) into the l’Homme de Fer (Iron Man square, in honor of the knight tournaments held here), Place Kleber (Napoleon’s companion) into Place de la Cathedrale. The best view of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Strasbourg opens from here. Have a moment standing there and admiring the “pink angel,” as the locals call it. “Pink” because it was built of Vosges sandstone of this shade, and even after 600 years, the cathedral didn't change its color. “Angel” because it seems that the building is about to rise in the air: it looks so weightless and so beautiful as if it was not built by people but by celestial creatures. It’s hard to tear yourself away from the cathedral as it is almost magnetically attractive, so walk along the facade, studying biblical stories of its sculptural groups, go inside and throw your head back to see stained glass windows, vaults, frescoes, a large astronomical clock, and an organ of truly royal size and decoration.

Don’t forget to throw a penny for luck! You will easily find the place: from under the floor grate, there shines golden light of the offerings of visitors. Let’s go up to the roof! Maybe that is where angels live? To climb to the observation deck, you need to leave the cathedral and go down to the basement of a low tower standing next to it. And now, 5 euros less and 300 steps behind, you can see the entire Strasbourg spread before your eyes. What a huge shadow the local Notre Dame casts!

In Place de la Cathedrale, there is another statue connected with the construction of the Gothic monument. It is made of the same sandstone as the cathedral; on one of the faces, you can see the stages of creating an openwork lattice. The material is soft enough for stonecutters to do such a fine job. In the center of the piece, in an embayment, is an image of a laughing chimera and scattered construction tools.

At least two more houses of the square deserve your attention: the black and white half-timbered house is the oldest pharmacy in France, the Cerf Pharmacy (Pharmacie du Cerf) of the 13th century, and the Gothic Kammerzell House, covered with wooden carvings from the basement to the roof, dating from the 15th century.