Buongiorgno Italia

From Munich I took the train through the Alps to Verona starting my Italian adventure.  As much as I would have loved to cycle through the Alps, it would have taken too much time unfortunately.  I did add another country to my growing list as the train passed through Austria (ha).  The Alps were beautiful, I'm afraid not as beautiful as the Rockies though. 

When I arrived at the Verona train station I had instructions from my B&B hosts to get on a regional train to Caldiero (a small village about 10km east of Verona where the B&B is located).  After several circles to find firstly where the regional train was and secondly how to get a ticket for me and my bike, I of course met my first Italians.  Two guys who just finished a tour to Florence and back (they live in Verona) commented on how large my load is while we waited for the elevator.  It's always amusing to see the looks on peoples faces when I tell them I'm on tour for ten months, after which they decided I didn't really have very much stuff at all! I didn't have much time to catch the next train I needed to be on but ran into them again in the line up for tickets and was able to chat a bit more with them.  

At the ticket booth I was given two tickets, one for me and one for my bike and then rushed off to catch the train leaving in less than ten minutes.  But when I got to the train I was told I was not allowed to bring my bike on board.  Seriously! I couldn't understand why I was sold a ticket for my bike in the first place. arg! So back to the ticket booth I went to discuss the situation and of course didn't get on that train.  The whole thing was frustrating, plus someone was meeting me at the train station in Caldiero to show me the way to the B&B, which I wouldn't be arriving on.  I was then told it was the last train to Caldeiro at the ticket booth and given a refund.  Lacking any other option had to take a taxi, which took a bit of convincing to find one that would take me, all my gear and my bike.  Good thing I am charming when I want something... 35 Euros later (uck!). Although it was nice to see how traffic works in Italy, not at all the same as North America.  At one point the taxi driver was tailgating a Polizia car, for quite a distance actually. In Canada that driving behaviour would have resulted in a ticket for dangerous driving.  

Calderio is mostly residential villas and two and three storey apartments all closely tucked together.  The streets are narrow and considering it was about 8pm was not surprised that it was fairly quiet about.  At the B&B, it's named Happy Days, I rang the door bell to be greeted by a gentile man in his mid forties who only spoke very little english.  He then called my welcoming party at the train station to let him know that I was not on the train and had arrived.  I was then welcomed inside and given a cold glass of water (which I had tried to refuse, but given anyway).  When Giorgio, the one waiting at the train station arrived, we were in the middle of finishing paperwork.  The guesthouse is around back and upstairs and absolutely perfect.  There is a small make-shift kitchen, two rooms and a large bathroom.  But considering it's mid-week I had the whole place to myself.  

 

Giorgio also asked me if I had eaten dinner, which I hadn't as there was no food options on the train.  He told me there was a pizzeria near that would deliver, which was fine for me.  But I knew I wouldn't eat a whole pizza, maybe one or two pieces.  But given my limited options....hmmm.  After getting settled and showered, I came into the kitchen to find a plate of pasta on the table for me! Linguini with fresh tomatoes and olives and herbs. Sooo yummy and so very kind to receive! Outside there is a park in the back and kids were still playing about even though it was after dark.  Really it was an amazing place to find myself in for my first night in Italy. 

While Giorgio was showing me everything during my check-in he waved at the espresso machine a bit pointing to the buttons quickly then exclaimed "But you are a woman and know how these things work already" and moved on.  I had to laugh.  Perhaps Italian women are better at espresso machines because this Canadian did not do so well the next morning.  Oh my! I'm very glad no one was around to see me as it was not a pretty sight.  Buongiorgno Italia! 

I also discovered that Verona is the place where Romeo and Juliet lived and had their brief romance and died.  Both are buried there.  The city itself is very nice, but was so full of tourists by the end of three hours had had enough.  I'm also back to cycling on vehicle roads due to no bicycle paths, which took some adjustment. And in addition to everything being closed on Sunday's, everything is also closed in the afternoon between 1pm and 3:30pm (if business even chose to open up again after 1pm actually).  I was late getting started and so didn't arrive into Verona till after 1pm as the B&B is about 13km from the city (about a 45 minute ride).  Thus I had to wait till 3:30 for the bicycle shop to re-open.  I headed downtown to look around and entertain myself for the next couple hours.  It was also stupid hot out and all I wanted was to find something cooler to be clothed in and shade!  I found an outdoor market, bought myself a cheap sundress and a cup of fresh fruit for a treat and proceeded to find a toilette to change in.  Okay so the paying for bathrooms in an epidemic here in Europe.  Next option, change in the park.  

The sundress I got is bright and colourful, suits me well.  And I felt so much better after removing thick cycling shorts and my sports bra.  I was amused to also discover that all it takes for everyone to think you're Italian is to put on a sundress and ride your bicycle around the city.  I had quite a few people try to ask me for directions (in Italian of course) and all I could do was smile and say "Non parlo Italiano".  At one point I had three young guys ask me in English right off the bat, not that I could help any more.  But I did have a tourist map of the city I didn't need anymore, and gave it to them.  They were ecstatic with me.

Unfortunately the bicycle shop was unable to help in the map department, which I wasn't really surprised by.  All I was hoping was that could send me to a place where I could get maps.  After checking at the magazine store around the corner for me, they sent me to the Tourist Information office and back downtown I went.  

In Verona there is an old stone Arena downtown, it's quite spectacular, but is being renovated so there was no access to it.  The Tourist office was near it, but I was still having trouble locating it.  I ended up in a city or parliament building that I'm pretty sure I wasn't allowed to be in, but the door was open so how was I suppose to know.  Nonetheless, I was pointed to where I needed to go across the street.  I now know to start at bookstores for things I need for navigation (not that I succeeded in finding a stellar map though, but have something).  

The next morning I was up early and on the road by 9am.  I wanted to get in as many kilometres before noon as I could get as the past several days were at about 30 degrees mid day.  I have to rely on my offline maps on my ipad for routing through Italy, as the physical map I have is terrible.  Plus I'm blind to where camping places are and am just hoping things work out mostly.  I got on the road and headed towards Piacenza with the idea of finding a mid place for a night.  I spied Mantova on the map and kinda headed in that direction.

After cycling all morning, getting through my nerves and settling into a new country and new things, it was a lovely ride to Mantova (about 55km).  I did accidentally exit onto a major highway, which was dangerous and scary.  I turned around though and went back instead of going towards the next exit.  I didn't know what else to do but knew I needed off the quickest way possible.  

So my first sight of Mantova....I cannot believe places like this still exist!  An ancient city with cathedrals and dome towers surrounded by a stone wall.  Mantova is where Romeo was banished to, more history.  Even though I was only at 60km for the day, I by chance saw a camping flag on my offline map and decided to stay put.  I could also see there was a storm coming in and didn't want to be on the road stuck somewhere in the middle of it.  

So sleeping in a tent during a thunderstorm is not so much fun, and will not be repeated if I can avoid it!

On the road after leaving Mantova I was struggling to keep my speed up, sometimes lingering at about 13km/hr.  That's slow fyi.  Usually I try to cycle around 20km/hr on flats touring.  But that morning it was just a constant struggle to even get up to sixteen.  Plus it was stupid hot with high humidity.  I had stopped off to the side of the road under some trees to re-apply sunscreen and was treated to the dinging of a bicycle bell.  An Italian man (with half the load of me) pulls up beside me.  Meet Mauro.  Mauro is maybe in his fifties was cycling in my direction so we agreed to cycle together.  It was so nice! Mauro doesn't speak much english and besides had a cold or something that was affecting his voice.  We spent a little while trying to have a conversation then both decided that silence was just better.  Mauro kept a fast pace and took the lead and it was just what I needed.  That day we cycled in silence on a long, flat road with nothing to really look at, stopped for a couple breaks (Mauro shared his spare sandwich with me) and I was given the key to getting through my day!  It ended up being a 105km day and if it wasn't for Mauro it would have been disastrous in my world alone.

When we reached Cremona I knew that I had to route differently than Mauro, I think he was hoping I'd just follow him endlessly....lol.  I guess we all have our dreams, unfortunately I don't fit into the follow category.  I had already made arrangements with another Warmshowers host in a small town about 20km from Cremona in the other direction that Mauro was going.  After goodbyes, I got myself on the right road and headed to the boonies!

Meet Diego, Luciana and Tiago (Hello to all three of you and thanks again for such a wonderful time staying with you!). This family was like being wrapped in a warm blanket after coming in from the rain, the kindness and generosity I was given there are sometimes rarely given so freely.  They live in a very small village called Cornovecchio.  Diego greeted me with open arms when I arrived.  We laid out my tent to dry from being in it the night before during the thunderstorm and was allowed to shower right after as I was gross from cycling in 30 degree weather all day (a shower is pretty much the first thing I want when my day of cycling is done).  After returning to a clean normal state I was able to greet the everyone a bit better.

Diego took me on a two day tour of life in Italy, small town style.  From local wine bars, to family run winery tours and food, and finishing with pizza with his mom.  My time there gave me a break, some rest and a whole ton of fun! It was so much fun playing with little Tiago too, I simply adore the little man! Gracie Mille Diego!

From Cronovecchio I headed towards Piacenza and then west to a small resort village called Salice Terme near Alessandria. After a great day cycling following the mountains I checked into a hotel I'd booked the day before and headed to a patio across the street for a cold cocktail and snacks.  So in Italy at bars you only order drinks or wine and food is automatically given, sometimes cheese breads and pasta in addition to the meats and olives.  It's brilliant!  (Something Diego taught me during my time with him).  The Pizzeria across the street was rock'n out with some early 80's rock music, creating a fun atmosphere to enjoy my Mojito and snacks.

The next days ride was about 80km taking me through Alessandria towards Piemonte.  The morning was cloudy, but no rain (perfectly cool and a welcome break from the sun).  I stopped in Alessandria (a fairly large city) to find some food for lunch at a grocery store and sat in the park nearby for munch and rest and figure out navigating out.  The original downtown part was quite spectacular.  Large five storey apartment buildings all completed in a golden yellow with small stone balconies and crown mouldings laced throughout each building.  Maybe about fifteen square blocks all tucked closely together with narrow cobble stone roads in between.  

I was heading towards a Guesthouse on a farm and winery called Agriturismo La Mussia.  It's near an old village called Castelnuovo Calcea (south of Asti) that sits high on a hill surrounded with a stone wall.  The church sits at the highest point with the village tucked closely below. 

After seeking directions from a local man who explained to me, entirely in Italian, how to find La Mussia - a wonderful encounter I might add as he was amazed firstly by my load and secondly that I'd survived the hill to get up to the top Castelnuovo Calcea, considering I had just reached the top before talking to him I'm sure I was quite the sight (some things don't require me to understand the words in order to understand what is being said).  I usually try to find places on my own because it's a good feeling to navigate and always discover something new, but this time because Castelnuovo Calcea is on such a high hill and the road immediately went down I thought it best to ask as I didn't want to go flying down the long steep hill to the bottom only to discover I'd have to go back up.  Thankfully I was headed in the right direction and enjoyed the speedy long descent to cool off and dry some of the sweat dripping from me (lovely thought eh ha). 

Dinner that night at La Mussia was absolutely delicious!.  It was set menu dinner, basically I was told to arrive at 7:30pm and it would cost me 20 Euros, everything included.  On arriving I had a table set for one, that's me ha, in a room with four other tables set as well, two couples and a family of five.  This room is straight out of an old fairytale.  Yellow painted walls with a brick shelf that is part of the wall to my left made stocked with bottles of wine, the ceiling is exposed brick slightly curved up in four rows.  The tables have yellow and red checkered tablecloths with wooden chairs.  The estate family eats in the kitchen, which I'm sitting next to and also helps serve everyone.  I enjoyed the estate Barbara d'Asti with my dinner (I'm just south of Asti and this region is most known for their Barbera's).  When I sat down there was fresh Bruschetta and an egg frittata with zucchini.  For the main course I was served fresh homemade Spaghetti with a tomatoes (fresh from their garden) with a few herbs.  Simple and absolutely delicious!  I had two bowls full! For the next course I was served fresh steamed greens with a roll of chicken rolled with ham and cheese in the middle. Desert...oh my god desert!  Freshly poached peaches with cocoa brownie in the middle drizzled with amaretto.  I licked the plate as much as I could with my finger.  If I could have I would have picked up the whole plate and licked it!  Then of course espresso and an aperitif of Barbara grappa. And during coffee and grappa time I was told about the winery and grapes the estate has and about their cellar!  Highly recommend staying there is you are ever near Asti!   (Thanks Laura and family for a wonderful stay and amazing experience!).

The next day took me on a routing tour of Piemonte before ending up in a village just above the city of Barolo. (well more than just above!).  I passed through Barbaresco, Alba, Castiglione Falletto and Barolo before discovering that the town of Novello (where my hotel was at, sigh) was at the top of mountain (or in Canada what we'd call a large large large, holy crap large hill).  It was a 10km climb to reach it in direct sun in 28 degree Celsius sun. At one point I plastered myself against some grape vines for five minutes to seek the only shade I could find.  That was certainly a feat of determination.  I was suppose to make it to an evening tour of Paolo Conterno in Monforte d'Alba, a nearby village where some famous and delicious Barolo's come from, but up arriving to the absolute top of the hill was thoroughly exhausted and rescheduled for the next day.  Thankfully Daniele was very understanding and accommodating. 

I'll reveal the details of the rest of my time in Piemonte and Italy soon.  Here is the link to pictures for Italy thus far as well!

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/s0zd9vbz9bvf3px/GJNr7mxcnQ

Ciao!

Germany In Pictures

It is very difficult and time comsuming to post individual pictures on my blog (Apple ipad limitations).  And as there is so many.... Here is a link to my dropbox folder for the pictures from Germany.  I hope it works.  If not please post a comment and I will try to find another solution.  Hope you enjoy!

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/kkyfk4ojn1spj0u/lVE54aukwA

PS.
I am working on an update for what is happening now as I have been in Italy for the past week.

Germany Till the End

As much as I loved Schwabish Hall, I was starting to get itchy feet to be on the road again.  Bye Schwabisch Hall, till next time!

I've abandoned the castle route as they are beginning to look all the same and change is nice.  The new route follows old wooden bridges like the ones in the movie Bridges of Madison County.  It routes through farm land in a valley with again lush medium sized mountains around and follows the Kocher River towards Aalen. I still hadn't found a place to get my derailleur fixed so had to suffer hills till I could.  Okay so welcome my day of wrong turns that lead to 17% grade hills that I have to push my bike up....this happened about four times that day, four unnecessary steep hills I didn't have to climb.  I may have started my day looking fresh due to a day off the previous day, but that did not last long.  Maybe I just like making things difficult for myself unconsciously but seriously the being on the wrong path was an issue for the whole day.  I'm going to complain about it for sure but I survived and made to the top of every damn hill I didn't need to climb! 

Besides the unnecessary hills it really was a lovely ride that day.  The landscape changed quite a bit to farming communities rather that lush mountains of the Neckar Valley.  The villages are different too, not so Medieval like, but still old though. The buildings are more made from cement stucco rather than stone bricks with the dark wood crisscrossed throughout.  There is still an old church in every village and I'm still finding many castles littered about but the farms, in addition to the fields, have more livestock.  Between Frankfurt and Schwabisch Hall the farms only had horses, if that. Now I came across cows and sheep and goats (and even saw some Llamas, including a baby Llama).  Not many horses anymore though and it's interesting because here all the cows are brown and white, not one single black cow have I seen yet. In North America cow farms have almost always black and white cows. 

In Galdorf, the next large village after Schwabisch Hall, I found the bike shop and was able to get my derailleur adjusted and have full range of gears again.  Jurgen, the bike mechanic was so excited to learn I'm Canadian.  He keeps a Canadian flag in the back bike shop hanging on the wall even.  The bike shop was such a treat! It was nice to chat with someone and was even treated to a cappuccino and biscotti before I left.  So now I have full range of gears again, yeah!, but my derailleur still needs another adjustment as many of the gears are now noisy.  Not that that helped on a couple of the hills as the grades were so steep, the only option was to push my bike up...not a pleasant task when fully loaded! 

It was getting to be after 6pm and I so took the time to look at the map to see where the nearest campingplatz was.  I was only around 60km for the day but the next campingplatz was too far away and the one nearest to me would still take me another 10km to reach it off route.  Although I got on the wrong bike path to the campingplatz and of course ended up having to a climb another long steep hill unnecessarily, sigh, I was happy to discovered that there was a lake this time (Germany does not have very many lakes and this was the first I'd seen).  This is when I learnt that every campingplatz has BEER! And this one had delicious pomme frites!  Huge rewards for my day of wrong paths and big hills later.  

So campingplatz's here are very different than in North America.  There's no assigned sites, it's usually a large open grass field and everyone puts up where they want.  Mostly people camp with small vans or small campers.  One couple had their small camper set up complete with a full tent covered porch and had wooded flowers placed in front to make it oh so pretty.  

I was also excited by the prospect of going for a swim in the lake.....up until I got a closer look and discovered the lake had the colour and consistency of milk chocolate (so close to swimming in a lake...sad face).  People were swimming in it though (um ew).  In Canada we'd call it a pond, not a lake and no one would dare stick a toe in it.  But they had paddle boat rentals, canoes and several other blow up devices all in this medium to large sized pond.  I guess I'm spoilt being from Canada and enjoying clean, clear water rather than brown water (although I've noticed that even the river water is more brown rather than clear).

Whatever though, I found a place near the shore and was happy nonetheless, after all I'd just had my first German beer and fries and was about to shower.  Happy girl!

This brings me to, I don't even know what to call this day actually, the next day.  I ended up being on the wrong path three times costing me a total of an extra 40km, which is a big deal! I struggled to not get frustrated with being lost so much in the past two days and tried to enjoy the beautiful things around me, but as the day was getting later and later this was becoming way more difficult. I was suppose to make it to Augsburg for my warmshowers night I had arranged, but realized at about 6pm that there was just no way that was going to happen.  I stopped in Nordlingen to give my warmshowers host a call and let him know the situation.  Thankfully he was awesome and very flexible and I was able to just be a day late. 

With that problem solved I was faced with another problem.  I was already at 80km for the day and discovered that the nearest campinplatz was another 30km away and it was about 7pm now.  Stressed for time and losing energy quickly I began to wrap my head around the fact that it was going to be a 110km day. I'd already stopped being able to feel my thighs and my knees were starting to ache, but what could I do.  Those last 30km were extremely challenging mentally.  I did all I could just to distract myself so I wouldn't think about the part where I was still cycling and the sun was going down.  I started to sing "Don't Worry be Happy" (funnily enough) and when I repeated that song way too many times, I began to just make up songs to belt out. Pushing hard, I did eventually make it (not something I wish to repeat any time soon though).  Again I was rewarded with more goodies.

I arrived at the next campingplatz at about 8:30pm.  Here beer came from a vending machine like cola's.  For $1.40 Euros you get a 1litre bottle of beer and the camp host provides the glass to enjoy it in.  I was also rewarded with some social time with a guy from France who is cycling to Romania. It had been three days since I'd had any real conversation with anyone and was great to find another person to chat with! I wanted to prolong our chat so I bought the next round (such a big expense at $1.40 Euros each).  After the second round it was about 11pm and I hadn't even set up my tent or showered.  So we said our good nights and off I wobbled. 

The next days ride from Donauworth to Augsburg was relatively relaxing.  I visited my first Biergarten.  I hadn't visited one yet as I let myself be intimidated by not being able to understand anyone.  How silly of me I think after I'd gotten over it all.  It's nice to sit with people who even though it was in a small village and was happy to discover that people still make an effort to chat with me.  This beirgarten is outside (as all are) with a small open shelter to one side and several long picnic tables scattered in front with the Dirty Dancing soundtrack playing in the background.  (ha ha ha).  An old man who smokes so much his upper lip is yellow and wears a wife-beater tank-top with light grey sweatpants that hang below his belly told me about his trip across Canada in 2010.  About ten other people lounged about with their beers.  Everyone knows each other, as is the case in small towns. It's perfect.

The cycling route after the Biergarten was great.  I found a path that followed a river, a fresh clean water river even (the first clear water I have come across in Germany).  The path was on a long flat gravel wood road (similar to a Forestry Service Road in Canada) in the trees.  Which meant I was able to spend the afternoon cycling in the shade, in a forest beside a clean river.  Which after the past three days of cycling through farmland with no shade was a welcome change. My face was getting very red and I was struggling to keep heatstroke at bay.  The shade for an afternoon was just what I needed. 

Whenever I am nearing a large city I develop some anxiety. I'm very proud of myself for navigating through the city of Augsburg to find my new warmshowers hosts home as Augsburg is not a small city at all.  I have a couple offline electronic maps on my ipad that I used to get myself through the city to where I needed to go.   It was such good experience for me as I avoid many cities because I lack the confidence to find my way around  and through them, especially in a foreign country where I don't speak the language.  But everyday I'm doing things I never thought I would or could do, busting out of the limitations I put around myself and am discovering that I already have the skills I need to do so.

So welcome one of my favourite evenings in Germany up until that point!  Jurgen, my warmshowers host in Augsburg, was so kind and giving!  When I arrived I was told that we'd be going to his parents house for a traditional Bavarian dinner in a small village about 8km from Augsburg. Seriously so cool!

After quickly unloading my bike and having a fast shower we hopped on bikes for the twenty minute ride his parents.  Jurgen arranged this dinner there especially for me.  His dad made a traditional Bavarian pork roast which was absolutely delicious.  The village has about 5000 people that have mostly all lived there their whole lives.  Jurgen grew up in the house we had dinner at, that his dad built after the war right beside the house his dad grew up in and several generations prior had lived in.  Neither of his parents have drivers licence.  I was told that only three people his dad went to school with moved away from the village and did so within only a 20km distance from there.  His dad has lived in three houses his whole life; firstly in the house he grew up in, then moved to Augsburg for a couple years when he was twenty (and when he met Jurgen's mother) and then into the home he built for his family and still live in now. His dad joked that the next place he will move is the cemetery two blocks away.  His mom comes from a village about 10km away.  Did I mention that neither of his parents spook any English and poor Jurgen translated everything.

After dinner we had german beer and his dad brought out some german spirits that you shoot from small pottery shot glasses that look similar to what French onion soup in served in with a small straight handle.  The spirits was so good actually and I normally don't like hard alcohol.  It had a hint of liquorice taste to it and his dad remarked is medicine for the soul. 

After a couple beers and several shots later Jurgen and I proceeded to cycle back to his flat in the city (fun times).  It was great to be able to ride my bike without any gear on it.  When we returned to his flat I was also able to have a video chat with my mom and catch up on my adventures (she's loving technology).

I decided to stay an extra day in Augsburg and delayed going to Italy for a couple days in hopes of seeing a long time friend who lives in Munich as she was in Spain for the weekend.  I'd still only get one evening with her, but think it's better than nothing.  I booked a train from Munich to Verona through the Alps and was looking forward to a relaxing ride through the mountains two days hence.

Jurgen gave me the full tour of Augsburg.  He owns the only rickshaw (bicycle taxi) in Augsburg.  I learnt that Augsburg is over 2000 years old and the third oldest city in Europe (the other two are also in Germany actually).  He showed me all the historical buildings and churches there while I sat in the back of his rickshaw and enjoyed the ride.  We had lunch, traditional Bavarian style of course and I was dropped off at the Fuggerei (a version of social housing here) to explore.  The buildings in the Fuggerei are old apartment style and run by the Fuggerei family (a wealthy family that helped rebuild Augsburg after most of it was destroyed during the war).  Jurgen says in order to qualify to live there you have to be an Augsburg citizen, be poor and be Catholic.  People that live there pay 88 euro cents a year! The complex (I use this word for lack off a better one) is completely enclosed by a stone wall and the gates are locked at 10pm every night. People that live there can re-enter after between 10pm and midnight for 50 euro cents and 1 euro after midnight.  But when you pay only 88 euro cents per year for rent it really isn't that big of a cost eh.

There is also a bunker from the Second World War at the Fuggerei that I was able to go down into.  It was mostly very museum like down there with artifacts from the war (Augsburg was bombed in the war and the only building to survive was the cathedral, which I'll tell you about in a moment).  It was very hot and muggy that day, which left my skin feeling sticky and yucky.  All day I wished for a cold mountain river to frolic in.  But the only water here are the water canals throughout the city (kinda similar to what you find in Italy) and not accessible to cool off in.  The bunker, though slightly boring after the initial excitement of entering into it, was quite cool and a nice break from the heat.

After the Fuggerei (pronounced fu-cer-rei) I walked up to the cathedral to see inside....OH MY GOD! It was built in 1544 and stunning.  I explored everywhere I could.  Everything is ancient in there.  I pushed through two huge wooded doors with lion head knockers in the middle.  Inside the air was filled with the smell of incense from mass a couple hour earlier as it was Sunday.  The ceiling was the traditional Roman Catholic  inverted peaks throughout and Jurgen said two of the stain glass windows are the oldest in Europe.  Statues and pews and confession booths and holy water fountains and stone pillars and crypts and and and...wow!  I even found the stairs to the basement and discovered another room where they light candles for loved ones. Disciples are buried there too.  They have monuments in the cathedral for them and their bodies are in the cemetery a couple blocks away.  

Augsburg is another unexpected city in Germany that I am now in love with. 

The next day was my first rainy day of this tour and I wussed out and took the train for the last 60km to Munich.  In my defence it's raining very hard and there is a thunderstorm warning in effect.  I'm a wimp at times, I will fully admit this.  Plus why suffer when there is a train available...

The train station in Augsburg is not very bicycle friendly, and especially not fully loaded bicycle friendly.  After getting a ticket for myself and my bike I was told I needed to go to platform 9.  Now platform 9 is the last one, or course, and the only way to get to it is down a flight of stairs to the underground walkway and then again  up a flight of stairs (no elevator!).  I guess this a hazard of being in a city over 2000 years old.  You would have giggled to see me manage me and my bike through this one....unload my bike, carry my gear down the stairs, then my bike, load my bike again, push it down the underground walkway at the far end for the stairs up to platform 9, unload, carry my gear up the stairs, go back down to get my bike, carry my bike up the stairs and reload everything again....all to reach platform 9.  Plus I only had twenty minutes to do all this to catch my train.  I felt like I was starring in a Charlie Chapman movie on fast forward.  I guess this is payback for wimping out on a rainy day ride. 

I arrived in a suburb (it's technically a small town) about 10km from downtown Munich called Passing.  I found a cafe at the train station and enjoyed a patio seat under a massive umbrella with a beer and a coffee (what the hell why not have both) to continue my escape of being in the rain. The only thing I did not enjoy thus far about Germany is the huge quantity of smokers.  Almost everyone smokes and are actually able to smoke anywhere (with the exception of indoors).  But the alternative is cycling in the rain, so I suffered the patio afternoon .

A new discovery for me.  I went to go find the toilette and was shocked to find them charging a fee to go pee...80 euro cents!  There was a full bar turn through and a place to put your coins in to gain access.  Like seriously! There's no way I'd ever pay to pee in a toilette when I can squat behind a bush for free! Blame it on the farm-girl in me.  So I returned to my table, finished my drinks and cycled to find the nearest park for a bush-pee.  I even found some more great graffiti.  I saw some pretty amazing graffiti in Germany actually.  After my bush-pee and a few pictures of graffiti I found another cafe to hang out in as the rain returned with a vengeance, bringing the predicted thunderstorm with it.  Yup I was a wimp stayed inside and did not brave the storm on my bike like a true touring bicyclist.  

I'd arranged for another warmshowers host for my stay in Munich (Hi Andrea & Robert!), a lovely couple that were very gracious and kind and made me feel absolutely comfortable.  Now all I had to do was wait for a break in the rain to cycle to their home not far away.  I successfully cycled a whole of 9km that day with only a brief stint in the rain...um talent! 

I had finally heard from my friend and arranged to meet her at 6pm at a place call Marienplatz, the courtyard in front of Munich town hall, which is called Neus Rathous.  Munich town hall is a very extravagant building done in a Gothic style architecture, it looks similar to a cathedral but with way more statues littered on it (so many in fact the whole building is quite busy it's hard to know what to look at).  All of the statues and exterior is made of grey stone, but in the middle there is a Glockenspiel of wooden puppets that circle about doing various things when the hour strikes three times a day which are painted very colourfully.  I got the full tour of all the old buildings in the downtown core of Munich by my friend and her girlfriend.  We also visited the cathedral (in Germany they call it a Dome), which compared to the one in Augsburg was simple and a bit boring.  (I'm so happy I was able to see the one in Augsburg as I have now been told it is one of the best ones in Germany).  

After the tour the three of us headed to the biergarten to relax, have some laughs and eat some Wienershnitzel (traditionally made from veal and was very delicious).  We were join by another friend and for the rest of the evening the four of us laughed, told stories, teased each other, drank beer, ate food and simply had a wonderful time.  I think it is one of my favourite evenings in Germany and am glad that I was able to end my time in Germany with an evening surrounded by old friends and one new one.

I was very sad to be leaving Germany and had an amazing two weeks and 575km on my bicycle there.  I can't wait to return! 

Off to Italy I go now.

Germany Splendour

I'm now a week into my tour and what an amazing first 300km it's been, full of plenty ups and downs already.  My bike did arrive the next day, thankfully.  I'm still struggling to adjust to the time change here though. My body likes to be awake way too early in the morning and wants to sleep mid-afternoon here.  I know I'm not getting as much sleep as I should and need, but am hoping all will pass soon (fingers crossed).

From Frankfurt I look the train to Mainz, a beautiful resort town on the Rhine river. Steps that disappear into the river and sandy plots with volleyball nets and lounge chairs and outdoor restaurants (a little like what I would imagine Greece to be like in the Roman times actually). While I was cycling along the river prominade I heard a group of men singing drinking songs, it had a lot of peoples attention so I had to check it out. Never would I have ever imagined what I saw...a Beer Wagon! I wish I could have gotten a picture of it but they were gone down the street too fast. Seriously though. So imagine a vendor cart on wheels with a canopy over head and about eight men (four on each side) sitting at a rectangle table (on wheels) with beer taps in front of them and glasses in hand singing drinking songs and pedalling the whole time. Not sure how the mechanics work as they are pedalling towards the centre of the table rather than the front, but it did and does.  Okay way too awesome! I want one for christmas now.

Germany has the best bike routes, they are every where! Rarely am I cycling on roads, pretty much only when I go through towns.  South of Mainz is the winegrowing region of Phalz. I came across my first vineyards there, the bike route goes right through the middle of them, it was an amazing experience. There was a shelter built from old clay bricks for cyclists to rest under in the middle of the vineyards even.

I am sooo in love with Germany! Every little town I pass through is absolutely perfect with is narrow streets and small markets and colourful two and three story buildings made of old brick. Every town also has an old church or two. From a distance I always see steeples sticking out of each town (most towns are about fifteen to twenty kilometres apart so you easily see them from a distance). The country side is a mix of rolling farm fields littered with wind turbines and then steep wine vineyards near the slopes of the river in places.

The Rhine has a culture of its own, when I look at it I see it's history and depth by the boats on it, a mix of some new speed boats, lots of old river boats and a constant stream of transport boats.  It's a fast flowing river and flows in the opposite direction than I think it should (I think it should flow south, but it doesn't...a lesson in not getting everything I want every time I look at it).

At Mannheim (about 60km south of Mainz) I decided to route away from the Rhine and follow the Neckar Valley for a bit of change.  Wow was I ever surprised! Ancient medieval villages with massive castles and old churches and traditional stone houses below situated in a valley between medium sized mountains that are lush and green with the Neckar river making it's way through the valley bottom.  I'm pretty sure I did not close my mouth once since beginning in this valley due to the awe it elicits.  

Hiedelberg is the first town in this valley.  I found a statue over a stone bridge of all women. At the top was a solo woman in roman armour holding a shield and below her several other women were sitting at her feet. It was magnificent to see women depicted with such strength. A huge castle sat up the mountain side above to the left and a large cathedral surrounded by stone houses to the right with the promenade below on both sides of the river.  People lounged on the grass and fished in the river, no one had a care in the world it seemed.  It was quite busy there though, tourists and it being Sunday. While staring at the castle, I almost veered off the side walk on to the road (that would not have gone well for me or my bike!). As beautiful as Hiedelberg is I was happy to be moving on to less busy places further down the valley.   

I stopped in Neckergemund for a banana and some nutella snack. I'd found a clean creek that flowed into the Neckar river near the promenade there and took the opportunity to splash some grime off my body. I also discovered that the river bottom for the Neckar is red clay sand and river itself is very warm. Some river ducks waddled around me eyeballing my banana and nutella, but as nice as their company was, there was no way I'd share such a treat with a bunch of ducks!  

In Eberbach I found a campground in the middle of the village and immediately veered in as it was around 8pm and I was reaching about 95km for the day.  People camp so differently here.  They have large almost army like tents and bring everything but the kitchen sink with them and no one wastes time on a campfire as most campsites are in the middle of the village.  Instead each tent has a small table they each brought with candles and couples and small families lounge about with wine and dinner. 

When I was seeking out a place to put up my tent, I came across a woman at one of the only picnic tables here and asked her about paying for the night.  It turns out she is cycling to Vienna solo as well! She is from Holland, 56 years old.  She had just finish having dinner and offered for me to join her. Do you know how wonderful it is to arrive at a days end and not have to make dinner?!  She had made delicious pasta with fresh veggies! Gave me a glass of wine and we had instant cappuccino's and cookies (that I supplied) for dessert. I cannot say how wonderful it is to come across another woman cycling alone as there are not many in this world.  

I also discovered that I'd be able to have a shower and considering I had not had one since l left Frankfurt two days earlier was very excited! I even found a place to charge my ipad for a bit in the bathroom, something I'd been trying to do all day. After my shower I was lounging in the bathingroom letting my ipad charge for as long as I could when another woman came in and we started talking.  She too is cycling, alone (!!!), to Prague.  Do you know the odds of me finding two other women who are touring alone in one place are?!! Rare. When I crawled into my tent that night the world felt a little smaller and not so alone because of two strangers.  

After breakfast the next morning my new friend from Holland was ready before me, mainly because I had to clean breakfast dishes as we used my things for the morning. We said our goodbyes with hopes of maybe running into each other again on the road some where.  I was ready to roll about thirty minutes later.

It's so odd here because villages are so close together, valleys are short and beautiful vistas end too quickly. The last bit of the Neckar Valley ended too soon (even though the river goes on till the Alps). On route to Heilbronn, the next large city on my route, I came across a mall in a village (I use the word mall for lack of a better word, I didn't go inside, but from the exterior it looked more like a big Garden centre, but I suspect there were other stores inside. I needed to eat something and was hoping to find a wifi connection there (something I'm constantly seeking out, along with a place to charge devices)).

There were some tables and chairs out front, which I took advantage of to make myself a sandwich.  While eating my sandwich, I quickly became the talk of the mall.  Two older German ladies sitting beside me inquired about what I was doing and where I was going.  Okay so I speak very very little german and these ladies spoke about the equivalent amount of English. I am discovering though that conversation is still possible despite language barriers. I had maps out deciding which way I wanted to go next while devouring my sandwich. It didn't take long for the ladies to be curious and start to ask questions. I got the impression that they came to this garden mall often to socialize with the employees and other people as they had many visitors for the hour I was sitting there. After communicating that I was cycling to Istanbul and then on to SE Asia and all alone for the next ten months, the ladies decided I should become the celebrity of the garden mall and told every one who'd listen (in german) what I was doing. The shining spotlight moment of my life eh! But all good things must come to an end, especially when I don't get an internet connection or plugin and so I moseyed on my way. 

Heilbronn was the next major city where I planned to route away from the Neckar River and seek out more castles.  What a navigation disaster Heilbronn is! I was turned around so quickly I had no idea. And actually the only reason I found out I was headed back in the same direction I came but on the other side of the river is because of two large smoke stacks I'd passed on the way in.  When I discovered roughly where I was I re-routed to get myself eventually back to where I wanted to be.  It was here on this re-route that I had an unexpected visitor.  A girl in her mid twenties I'm guessing saw me ahead of her and pedalled to catch up.  Turns out I'm not the only one who thinks Heilbronn is poorly marked for their bike routes because she was lost too.  Unfortunately she was headed to Frankfurt along the same route I had just spent the past two days cycling. Her visit didn't last long.  I was running out of daylight and needed to push through if I was to find a place to put up my tent for the night somewhere.

After spending that night in a sudden storm in my tent I was happy to see the next morning sunshine! After a morning dry out session it was time to get cycling again as I was excited to find more castles. This castle route proved to be more challenging with many more hills.  I came across this wonderful bakery in one of the villages called Cappel to distract me. Let me just say when it comes to pastries and breads Germans know their stuff! Absolutely delicious!

I have also now come to realize that all the castles are built high up on mountain sides, which means this route I'm not would take me through some big ascends and descends.  Not such a great prospect after the lack of sleep the night before due to the storm. The first big hill up was to Waldenburg (a 10km switchback up to the top with not so nice grades). In addition my derailleur is acting up and I couldn't get my gears to drop into an easier gear to make it up the hill...meaning I'd have to do these hills in a harder gear (just what I needed but had no choice).  I did it though, made it to the top and was treated to another Medieval village with spectacular views of the valley below. I found a cafe for a cup a green tea and some homemade apple juice to rest and recover and look at the map to examine more closely what was ahead of me.....take a wild guess....more steep hills! I wouldn't be so frustrated by these steep hills if my derailleur was functioning properly and had full range of my gears, but I just let these feelings be and accepted the situation.

The other part of steep grades up is you also get big hills down, which is always fun.  I headed into dense forest and wilderness, which is a rare thing here in Germany.  The forest was so quiet though, it was odd.  No birds, no sounds whatsoever, not even trees rustling, but beautiful nonetheless.  I had also decided that I'd stop at Schwabisch Hall making my cycling kilometres for the day at only about 60km, but after all the hills really didn't have much choice due to the beating my body was taking.  I also spied that there was a Hostel there and decided a real bed with a roof overhead was just what I needed for the night coming.  

After two more massive climbs up through the forest and a long ride down I came into the next valley.  When I finally saw Schwabish Hall, I was again surprised by it's immense beauty. This time I was treated to a Medieval city rather than a small village situated in the bottom of the valley rather than high on the mountain (thank god!). 

After finding my way through the city, which I might add is full of hills, I found the Hostel only to discover it was full for the night.  Tired and exhausted, I checked myself into the hotel next door.  I'm going to take an early rest day today as my body hurts a lot from the insane hills of yesterday, besides I want to explore the city and was too tired when I arrived to do anything other than a short walk (which I felt in my legs immensely due to the hills in this city).  I really didn't want to spend this much money, but will enjoy it nonetheless.  I know I deserve treats like this and will not bother feeling guilty!

This morning when I woke and was fully prepared to find a cheaper place to stay, but after enjoying brunch in the cafe below decided that I was going to stay another day in my hotel. This place is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so why shouldn't I treat myself to the splendours of it.  Plus my body really needs a break and the thought of moving to the hostel was just too much effort.  I also discovered that there is no place to do laundry here, which I really needed as all my clothes are dirty now and smell.  So after a hand washing session in the sink and clothes rinse in the shower, I now have clean clothes drying in my hotel room.  

I love having days off! There are several churches in addition to the main cathedral and when the hour and the half hour come to pass, all chime together.  Pretty awesome to hear.  I've spent the day walking around the city exploring everything I could.  And found the bakery, which is now a daily treat!  I can also order everything I want all in German, so proud of myself! It's amazing how quickly you pick up on language when no one speaks the same language as you.  

There is a huge cathedral in the middle of downtown and is situated to be at the highest point of the city so it looks down on everything.  I lounged on the steps of the cathedral in the afternoon sun drinking some wine I purchased at a wine shop I found (because here in Germany it is not a crime to drink in public!) and munched on my daily bakery treat.  There is an outdoor theatre that is staged on the cathedral steps, I watched them set up over 100 chairs in the courtyard below.  

I'm actually rarely about after dark, mainly because I'm sleeping and have usually been up since 5am, but tonight I found a place to catch glimpses of the theatre production.  The city is equally as beautiful at night as in the day!

I'm sorry about the lack of pictures for everyone too.  I'm having trouble getting pictures from my camera to my ipad, but am working on it and hope to find a solution soon.

Arrival Revival

I'm now in Frankfurt, have slept for about 14 much needed hours and am now ready to tackle a few challenges....one especially big one, no bike! It's kinda difficult to start a tour and not have a bicycle.  Apparently I got on the plane and my bag got on the plane but my bike did not. Although I wasn't alone, another family had two bicycles that were suppose to be on that flight, but weren't either. Currently I could use a few dozen finger crossings that all this means is my bike is a day or two behind me and I pick it up soon.
My Frankfurt host Guille gave me wonderful directions on how to get from the airport to downtown via train and after a couple of hours sorting out missing bike situation and getting some money I boarded a train. I'm sure I was a sight because I had to carry all my gear rather than have it attached to my bike. Picture a 20 pound duffle bag the height of me slung over the backside of me.  For me I was just happy to have some useable money and be on the correct train.  Although I haven't yet mentioned the state of my exhaustion.  As much as I tried the only thing I managed on the plane was serval short naps, so by this point I had been awake for about 24 hours.
The train station comes out at an outdoor market, fresh fruit was every where. I wobbled past a homeless man passed out on some steps and was instantaneously jealous. I had already been contiplating where I could fall asleep.

Okay so wash my mouth out with soap, but I have never been so happy to see a Starbucks! Hello mocha frapp, hello wifi and hello a place to relax a moment and orientate myself.  I still needed to find and walk about 4 blocks to Guille's home.  I checked out a map and was mostly confident in my exhausted state of confusion and then set out in the wrong direction, of course.  At about the about three blocks mark my body had decided that it had had enough. I just couldn't lift this damn duffle bag back on to my back anymore and believe me I tried.  After a few moments of "okay time to rethink this situation" I decided to dismantle the duffle bag into my panniers and see if my body could handle carrying four panniers, two dry sacks and a small backpack instead....and it did.
By this point I was beginning to suspect I was going in the wrong direction but thought I'd walk another couple blocks to make sure. I had almost made it back to square one when I was rescued by man who thought I was carrying too much and wanted to help me. Meet Paul. I declined his offer to help me carry my load simply because I just couldn't squat again to get anything off of me and still stand up again. Instead I asked Paul to help my find where I needed to go. Instead of pointing where I needed to go he walked me all the way to Guille's apartment! It fills my heart again to be reminded that there are still people who only want to give to you and don't expect or want anything in return.
So here I sit at wooden kitchen table in Frankfurt...no bike but I'm not exhausted anymore and today Guille is going to show me the city. I'll still take it!