One thing that’s hard to miss when you visit the Alsace (Northeast) Region of France is their obsession with STORKS! Yes, I said STORKS!
We started spotting them in Ribeauvillé:
The stork is delivering a baby in this window display!
So, what’s the story behind all of the storks?!
After some research, I discovered that the stork is a popular subject of many legends told to children here—due to its prevalance.
However, the bird practically disappeared around 1970! In 1983 the government started a program to help repopulate the storks in the area. They’ve been quite successful! You’ll find huge “Alsation stork” nests on rooftops, churches and other public buildings.
Storks are believed to be symbols of happiness and faithfulness, and they also bring fertility and good luck. This makes sense considering they delivery babies…right?!
One thing I didn’t know is that storks are mute, so they communicate by clattering their bills. Supposedly, this clattering can be quite loud, but we were never fortunate enough to witness it!
Also, storks have brought a financial boost to the area—due to the all the stork products now sold in their honor.
These storks were spotted in Colmar, France:
Storks=France
Who knew, right?!!
And…now you know 😉
