Viva Gregory Palermo

Not only does Gregory Palermo enlighten us on trees and the examples in Plainfield -most interesting reading- but he is an authority on European Cities . The picture is from Strasbourg , on the Rhine River.The canal, if it not just a local branch from the Rhine,is the Marne-Rhine canal. This canal traverses Alsace and Loraine to the Marne River and thence to Paris. Near Nancy there is a connecting canal passing Epinal to connect with the Saone River and the Rhone.

Wlkepedia's entry on this canal

The Marne-Rhine Canal (French: Canal de la Marne au Rhin) is a canal in eastern France. It connects the river Marne in Vitry-le-François with the Rhine in Strasbourg. Combined with the canalised part of the Marne, it allows transport between Paris and eastern France. The 312 km long canal was opened in 1853. The canal is suited for small ships (péniches), maximum size 38.5 m long and 5.05 m wide. It has 155 locks. The Marne-Rhine Canal is connected with the following navigable waterways: Marne River in Vitry-le-François, Meuse River/Canal de l'Est near Commercy, Moselle River/Canal de l'Est in Toul, Moselle River in Pompey, Canal des houillères de la Sarre in Gondrexange, Rhine in Strasbourg

More interesting facts from other sources
"With its forests and lakes, the landscape around the canal is simply outstanding. On your way you'll see a number of monuments including castles and windmills. When you arrive in Alsace you will be using the Artzwiller lift with its tunnel and inclined plane, a feature unique of its kind in Europe! The boat lift carries boats and canal barges from the upper to the lower canal, travelling up a 41% slope for a distance of 128 metres. The Marne-Rhine canal crosses Alsace and Lorraine for a distance of 152 km including 58 locks, travelling via Nancy, Lagarde and Saverne."

"The Saint-Louis-Arzviller inclined plane is a part of the Marne-Rhine Canal. Located on the territory of the commune of Saint-Louis, between the towns of Saint-Louis and Arzviller in the department of the Moselle, it enables the canal to cross the Vosges Mountains. The structure opened in 1969, replacing 17 locks to provide for a change in level of 44.55 metres (approximately 138 feet). The inclined plane comprises a single chamber, reminiscent of a giant bath tub, which is called a caisson and slides laterally up or down the hillside on rails set at an angle of 41 degrees. The caisson is counter-balanced by two weights each of 450 metric tons, and the length of the lifting ramp is 108.65 metres (about 335 feet). The design is believed to be unique in Europe. Prior to the construction of the incline, barges needed 8 to 13 hours to traverse the 17 locks and 10,200 cubic metres of water was needed to operate the series of locks. The incline can be traversed in 4 minutes and requires only 40 cubic metres of water. Because the design uses counterweights to balance the weight of the caisson being moved, the entire operation can be run by two 120 horsepower electric motors, which causes a surprisingly small energy consumption."

The vast European canal systems connect the Baltic, Black, North, Mediterranean Seas; the English channel ,the Atlantic Ocean; the Oder, Elbel, Rhine, Danube, Rhone, Marne, Garrone, Mossel and other navigable rivers to afford a slow but safe inexpensive inland transportation system. The more expensive trucks and railroads have not replaced the barges as has happened in the United States.

There are many so called hotel barges that travel on many of the French Canals. They carry between 6 to 32 passengers and tie up at night. All have day excursion trips and are an ideal way to see local areas of France. There are also on some canals small boats for up to 8 that can be rented.

We had enjoyed our two barge trips as well as river boat trips on the Rhine, Moselle and Danube. They are perhaps the best way to get to know the countries.

Strasbourg shares with Brussels as the home of the European Union's Parliment, and also is the site of many of the Council of Europe's agencies. I would recommend reading about Strasbourgh in Wilkepedia its history and historical sites including the oldest continually operating Apothecary (Pharmacy) in the world.