The cold finally lifted today, giving us an unseasonally warm 15 degrees in the afternoon. Even early in the morning – we started cycling before 8am – we could already feel the air wasn’t as icy as it had been. We had fun getting out of Strasbourg. Compared with the polite, play-by-the-rules Germans, the French clearly take things like walk lights just as a suggestion. Cars never stopped at crossings for us, even when a green light indicated we should have right of way, but the local cyclists were just as bad, darting every which way no matter what was going on around them. We decided the only way to get anywhere was to tag onto the back of a few locals and follow closely. About 30 minutes after leaving our hotel, we reached a calmer canal and followed it for a good 30km or more along the Rhine. We passed through a few villages as well, when the path diverted from the canal, and noted many war memorials and plaques thanking the liberators who passed through some 60 years ago. So close to Germany, the people in these villages must have spent some of the longest times under occupation. The bicycle path we were on runs all the way to Basel, although we won’t go that far on it. Tomorrow we head inland a bit with the goal of getting to Mulhouse by the end of the day.