An early rise for an early flight.
Germany - such a great country, easily one of my favourites. Everything is so simple, organized, and efficient there - even compared to other European countries that I've been to. The people are quite friendly to tourists, and the cycling is the best I've seen for novice cyclists with an incredibly dense, extensive network of bicycle paths and bike-friendly minor roads. Taking the bike on the train could not have been easier.
The costs were comparable or cheaper than Italy, although much more expensive than Portugal. A wide variety of kinds of things to see and do - from medieval villages to cutting-edge technology to war remnants to large forested areas... something for everybody. Very safe, very friendly... I'm sure I'll be back!
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Saturday, May 16 :: Munich, Germany
Saturday, May 16 :: Munich, Germany :: 4km
Early back to the concentration camp, and early on the subway into downtown Munich. We scored a great hotel for 62 euros, got some bike boxes, and were set for a full-on Munich day. We rushed off and walked the sights downtown... churches, Rathaus, English Garden, Hofbrauhaus. All fun, and very crowded on a bright sunny Saturday. Tired but happy, we saw a movie then went back to the hotel to pack.
Central Town Hall (Rathaus) in Munich
The figurines that move, like a cuckoo clock, in the Rathaus
Early back to the concentration camp, and early on the subway into downtown Munich. We scored a great hotel for 62 euros, got some bike boxes, and were set for a full-on Munich day. We rushed off and walked the sights downtown... churches, Rathaus, English Garden, Hofbrauhaus. All fun, and very crowded on a bright sunny Saturday. Tired but happy, we saw a movie then went back to the hotel to pack.
Central Town Hall (Rathaus) in Munich
The figurines that move, like a cuckoo clock, in the RathausFriday, May 15 :: Dachau, Germany
Friday, May 15 :: Dachau, Germany :: 75km
Out early for a long day. Such a privilege to ride in a country that appreciates and caters to cyclists. Today's route was just from point A to point B on the map - no tourist bike routes - but even yet, we were on bicycle paths for much of the day. A solid, well-done ride by Liz, and another personal best for her!
Dachau. The name is a bit ominous to those who know a bit of history, and rightfully so. The Nazi's built their first concentration camp here, way back in 1933, and today the camp grounds stand as a memorial. We made it there with a few hours to spare, quickly grabbed the first hotel we came across, and dashed over to the memorial/camp. Its not the usual kind of place you "dash" to, but we were trying to see it before it closed for the evening.
The concentration camp itself was partially intact with some original buildings (and watchtowers, barbed wire, etc), some recreated buildings, and a museum to explain everything. It was all quite factual and no punches were pulled - including many pictures, anecdotes, etc. I had sort of known what to expect, being a history buff, but Liz was a bit... disturbed by it. We didn't quite make it through by the 6pm closing, and resolved to return in the morning.
The central laneway at Dachau, originally flanked by barracks (only foundations now). The trees were planted by inmates during the Nazi era.
Out early for a long day. Such a privilege to ride in a country that appreciates and caters to cyclists. Today's route was just from point A to point B on the map - no tourist bike routes - but even yet, we were on bicycle paths for much of the day. A solid, well-done ride by Liz, and another personal best for her!
Dachau. The name is a bit ominous to those who know a bit of history, and rightfully so. The Nazi's built their first concentration camp here, way back in 1933, and today the camp grounds stand as a memorial. We made it there with a few hours to spare, quickly grabbed the first hotel we came across, and dashed over to the memorial/camp. Its not the usual kind of place you "dash" to, but we were trying to see it before it closed for the evening.
The concentration camp itself was partially intact with some original buildings (and watchtowers, barbed wire, etc), some recreated buildings, and a museum to explain everything. It was all quite factual and no punches were pulled - including many pictures, anecdotes, etc. I had sort of known what to expect, being a history buff, but Liz was a bit... disturbed by it. We didn't quite make it through by the 6pm closing, and resolved to return in the morning.
The central laneway at Dachau, originally flanked by barracks (only foundations now). The trees were planted by inmates during the Nazi era.Thursday, May 14, 2009
Thursday, May 14 :: Ingolstadt, Germany
Thursday, May 14 :: Ingolstadt, Germany
Rain! Well it had to happen sometime this trip. We abandoned our cycling plans for the day and took the train instead. Before noon we were in Ingolstadt. This is the town that Mary Shelley based her 1818 novel "Frankenstein" on, due to the presence of a medical school here which, at the time, specialized in experimentation on dead bodies. Do I hear a bike trip to Transylvania (Romania), anyone? We saw a few sights, including a less-than-exciting medical museum, and called it a day.
Tomorrow - Munich!
No evidence of him here, anymore
Rain! Well it had to happen sometime this trip. We abandoned our cycling plans for the day and took the train instead. Before noon we were in Ingolstadt. This is the town that Mary Shelley based her 1818 novel "Frankenstein" on, due to the presence of a medical school here which, at the time, specialized in experimentation on dead bodies. Do I hear a bike trip to Transylvania (Romania), anyone? We saw a few sights, including a less-than-exciting medical museum, and called it a day.
Tomorrow - Munich!
No evidence of him here, anymore
Out the train window. Wet!
Wednesday, May 13 :: Hipoltstein, Germany :: 38km
Wednesday, May 13 :: Hipoltstein, Germany :: 38km
An early, long train ride from Berlin brought us back to Bavaria and Nuremburg by 1:30pm. We went over to the infamous Nazi parade grounds... one of the only Nazi structures left relatively intact in the country. First was a massive building built to out-do Rome's Colosseum... you can see the resemblance in the pictures below. Then to the "Zeppelin" stadium... grounds big enough to hold 200,000 spectators, where giant Nazi rallies were held and where the bulk of "The Triumph if the Will" (1934) was filmed. I didn't realize that they had left these grounds intact and was pretty... stunned and uneasy to see the same buildings that I had seen in the film (see picture below), and read about in Hilter's biography. We ascended the steps and stood on the very pulpit - the very spot - where Hitler preached his madness and converted the sane into insane. Quite unbelievable and powerful in a terribly weird way. The top of this structure once bore a huge stone swastika that the US Army blew up in a very famous piece of film footage. Police, incidentally, were everywhere, as was barbed wire fencing with narrow gaps to permit limited entry. We were watched carefully as we entered the grounds... it seems as if visitors are allowed, but not appreciated, and the "wrong" type of visitors (i.e. Nazi sympathizers) would have been quickly ejected.
From then we began a bike ride to and down the Main-Danube canal to the little town of Hipolstein, past a few locks and again, many other cyclists. Yet again, beautiful countryside, great people, and yummy food!
Nazi "Colosseum"
Nazi "Colosseum"
Zepellin field speaking pulpit
Main-Donau (Danube) canal, from midway up a lock - you can see the bike path on the right side
Outside our hotel in Hipoltstein
An early, long train ride from Berlin brought us back to Bavaria and Nuremburg by 1:30pm. We went over to the infamous Nazi parade grounds... one of the only Nazi structures left relatively intact in the country. First was a massive building built to out-do Rome's Colosseum... you can see the resemblance in the pictures below. Then to the "Zeppelin" stadium... grounds big enough to hold 200,000 spectators, where giant Nazi rallies were held and where the bulk of "The Triumph if the Will" (1934) was filmed. I didn't realize that they had left these grounds intact and was pretty... stunned and uneasy to see the same buildings that I had seen in the film (see picture below), and read about in Hilter's biography. We ascended the steps and stood on the very pulpit - the very spot - where Hitler preached his madness and converted the sane into insane. Quite unbelievable and powerful in a terribly weird way. The top of this structure once bore a huge stone swastika that the US Army blew up in a very famous piece of film footage. Police, incidentally, were everywhere, as was barbed wire fencing with narrow gaps to permit limited entry. We were watched carefully as we entered the grounds... it seems as if visitors are allowed, but not appreciated, and the "wrong" type of visitors (i.e. Nazi sympathizers) would have been quickly ejected.
From then we began a bike ride to and down the Main-Danube canal to the little town of Hipolstein, past a few locks and again, many other cyclists. Yet again, beautiful countryside, great people, and yummy food!
Nazi "Colosseum"
Nazi "Colosseum"
Zepellin field speaking pulpit
Main-Donau (Danube) canal, from midway up a lock - you can see the bike path on the right side
Outside our hotel in Hipoltstein Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Tuesday, May 12 :: Berlin, Germany
Tuesday, May 12 :: Berlin, Germany
An easy, fun day at the Berlin Zoo.
Now for 3 more days of cycling... finishing in Munich for our flight home!
An easy, fun day at the Berlin Zoo.
Now for 3 more days of cycling... finishing in Munich for our flight home!
Monday, May 11 :: Berlin, Germany
Monday, May 11 :: Berlin, Germany
A big day of sightseeing in a fantastic city. I won`t go on and on but we took in the Reichstag, some underground WW2 bunkers on a tour (very cool!), the German History Museum, and lots and lots of walking and looking at buildings. We must´ve crossed the Spree (Berlin´s main river) about 18 times. All this walking meant blisters for me. Damn.
Berlin is such an easy city to get around, with such great food and interesting old and new things to see, that we both love it - just like the rest of Germany. Accomodation here is slightly pricey - 70 euros for a double room in a hostel - but we ARE staying downtown, which is so convenient. After taking in such a wide swath of Berlin, we can take it a bit easy tomorrow with the sightseeing.
Liz in front of the Reichstag
Fountain downtown
Alexanderplatz - one of the main transportation hubs
A big day of sightseeing in a fantastic city. I won`t go on and on but we took in the Reichstag, some underground WW2 bunkers on a tour (very cool!), the German History Museum, and lots and lots of walking and looking at buildings. We must´ve crossed the Spree (Berlin´s main river) about 18 times. All this walking meant blisters for me. Damn.
Berlin is such an easy city to get around, with such great food and interesting old and new things to see, that we both love it - just like the rest of Germany. Accomodation here is slightly pricey - 70 euros for a double room in a hostel - but we ARE staying downtown, which is so convenient. After taking in such a wide swath of Berlin, we can take it a bit easy tomorrow with the sightseeing.
Liz in front of the Reichstag
Fountain downtown
Alexanderplatz - one of the main transportation hubsSunday, May 10 :: Berlin, Germany
Sunday, May 10 :: Berlin, Germany
Another sequence of trains had us passing through old East Germany and in to Berlin`s giant central train station around 3pm. After checking a few hostels we found one that had a double room for us... we settled in quickly, then set off for a bit of sightseeing. Already tired, we didn´t get too far, but managed to take in the Brandenburg Gate, the Holocaust Memorial, Checkpoint Charlie, and the Berlin Wall. A good start to a great city.
Checkpoint Charlie, recreated to when my Dad passed through in the 60´s (sort of)
The 155km-long Berlin wall marker
Among the stelae of the Holocaust Memorial
Brandenburg Gate
Another sequence of trains had us passing through old East Germany and in to Berlin`s giant central train station around 3pm. After checking a few hostels we found one that had a double room for us... we settled in quickly, then set off for a bit of sightseeing. Already tired, we didn´t get too far, but managed to take in the Brandenburg Gate, the Holocaust Memorial, Checkpoint Charlie, and the Berlin Wall. A good start to a great city.
Checkpoint Charlie, recreated to when my Dad passed through in the 60´s (sort of)
The 155km-long Berlin wall marker
Among the stelae of the Holocaust Memorial
Brandenburg GateSaturday, May 9, 2009
Thursday, May 9 :: Goslar, Germany
Thursday, May 9 :: Goslar, Germany
First thing in the morning we went over to the Rammelsberg Mine... the main reason Goslar exists. For over 1000 years this mine produced gold, solver, copper, and other associated metals. A great tour took us underground for over an hour, seeing a mine completely chipped out by hand. What an experience!!
Back into town, we did the usual sightseeing, including the central square which is faced by the ancient Town Hall (Rathaus) where Liz's parents were married, and the facing hotel where they stayed. A great town, and nice to stay more than 1 night in a place after our opening hectic pace here in Germany.
Tomorrow... Berlin!!
Liz underground
It got very dark very fast
With the flash on
A newer section of the mine with rails for ore carts
The newly-orange Kaiserworth Hotel
The manadatory presence of horse-and-buggy
The Rathaus
First thing in the morning we went over to the Rammelsberg Mine... the main reason Goslar exists. For over 1000 years this mine produced gold, solver, copper, and other associated metals. A great tour took us underground for over an hour, seeing a mine completely chipped out by hand. What an experience!!
Back into town, we did the usual sightseeing, including the central square which is faced by the ancient Town Hall (Rathaus) where Liz's parents were married, and the facing hotel where they stayed. A great town, and nice to stay more than 1 night in a place after our opening hectic pace here in Germany.
Tomorrow... Berlin!!
Liz underground
It got very dark very fast
With the flash on
A newer section of the mine with rails for ore carts
The newly-orange Kaiserworth Hotel
The manadatory presence of horse-and-buggy
The Rathaus
Some cool guy
Friday, May 8 :: Goslar, Germany
Friday, May 8 :: Goslar, Germany
For a completely different change of pace, but no less German than the Romantische Strasse, we decided to tour Volkswagen's factory/themepark. It was fairly interesting, as car themeparks go, with some quite unique displays, simulators, and the factory tour itself. Apparently Volkswagen is having a hard time KEEPING UP WITH DEMAND and has workers working overtime... the normally 5-day-per-week factory is working 7 days/week for the next 3 months. I guess they make products that people actually want to buy.
From Wolfsburg we took the short (but 3-train!) hop to Goslar. Goslar is where's Liz's father was born, and lived until he was 13, and also happens to be where her parents were married. So, an important stop for sure - as well, Goslar is a big tourist town nestled at the foot of the Harz Mountains with lots to do... an added bonus. Tomorrow we will check out the town.
Inside one of two cylindrical car towers, serving buying customers on the spot with among 700 variety of cars and colours.
Rotating flowerpot bridge
An uber-silver Bentley
Liz and an old Porsche (original parent company of VW)
For a completely different change of pace, but no less German than the Romantische Strasse, we decided to tour Volkswagen's factory/themepark. It was fairly interesting, as car themeparks go, with some quite unique displays, simulators, and the factory tour itself. Apparently Volkswagen is having a hard time KEEPING UP WITH DEMAND and has workers working overtime... the normally 5-day-per-week factory is working 7 days/week for the next 3 months. I guess they make products that people actually want to buy.
From Wolfsburg we took the short (but 3-train!) hop to Goslar. Goslar is where's Liz's father was born, and lived until he was 13, and also happens to be where her parents were married. So, an important stop for sure - as well, Goslar is a big tourist town nestled at the foot of the Harz Mountains with lots to do... an added bonus. Tomorrow we will check out the town.
Inside one of two cylindrical car towers, serving buying customers on the spot with among 700 variety of cars and colours.
Rotating flowerpot bridge
An uber-silver Bentley
Liz and an old Porsche (original parent company of VW)Thursday, May 7 :: Wolfsburg, Germany
Thursday, May 7 :: Wolfsburg, Germany :: 39 km / 398 km total
The end of the Romantische Strasse!
We hammered today's ride, big hills notwithstanding. Leaving the Tauber, the route climbed up and over a local watershed divide, before dropping us into the Main Valley and Wurzburg, the endtown of the Romantische Strasse. We did it! A quick peek into the church and palace, and we decided to put in a long afternoon and evening of train rides. We can't take the superfast ICE train with our bikes, so begun string of regional trainrides and transfers - 6 trains in all - to get to Wolfsburg. By the end of it all my right shoulder was aching from heaving my pannier-loaded bike up and down stairways, and onto and off of trains. But well worth it... we are a day or two ahead of schedule.
We've decided not to ride in the Rhine (as previously planned) because it looked to be quite similar to what we've experienced already. Instead, we're doing a day in Wolfsburg to take in the headquarters and themepark of... Volkswagen! A late arrival in town had us scrambling for accomodation, and we paid far too much for where we stayed. Oh well.
The Main River through Wurzburg
Waiting for a train
Waiting for a train
The end of the Romantische Strasse!
We hammered today's ride, big hills notwithstanding. Leaving the Tauber, the route climbed up and over a local watershed divide, before dropping us into the Main Valley and Wurzburg, the endtown of the Romantische Strasse. We did it! A quick peek into the church and palace, and we decided to put in a long afternoon and evening of train rides. We can't take the superfast ICE train with our bikes, so begun string of regional trainrides and transfers - 6 trains in all - to get to Wolfsburg. By the end of it all my right shoulder was aching from heaving my pannier-loaded bike up and down stairways, and onto and off of trains. But well worth it... we are a day or two ahead of schedule.
We've decided not to ride in the Rhine (as previously planned) because it looked to be quite similar to what we've experienced already. Instead, we're doing a day in Wolfsburg to take in the headquarters and themepark of... Volkswagen! A late arrival in town had us scrambling for accomodation, and we paid far too much for where we stayed. Oh well.
The Main River through Wurzburg
Waiting for a train
Waiting for a trainWednesday, May 6 :: Tauberbischofsheim, Germany
Wednesday, May 6 :: Tauberbischofsheim, Germany :: 71 km / 359 km total
Another great ride... Germany is so awesome for cycling! An early descent to the Tauber River, and we followed it pretty much all day, mostly on bike paths, occasionally on little-used, narrow roads. Many other touring cyclists today coming the other direction, mostly in 2's, all smiles and greetings all around. A quick lunch stop at a bakery, and a quick finishing ride in Bad Mergentheim, at the 51km mark. But Liz said "51km is not enough!", so off we set down the Tauber for another pleasant 20km (actually, we were banking distance against some climbs expected tomorrow). Happy with our 71km (flat) ride, we settled in for the night.
Rothenburg-on-the-Tauber's city walls, from the elevated walk on the inside
One of Rothenburg-on-the-Tauber's city gates
Riding in the Tauber valley
Lunch time
An old royal garden complex
Another great ride... Germany is so awesome for cycling! An early descent to the Tauber River, and we followed it pretty much all day, mostly on bike paths, occasionally on little-used, narrow roads. Many other touring cyclists today coming the other direction, mostly in 2's, all smiles and greetings all around. A quick lunch stop at a bakery, and a quick finishing ride in Bad Mergentheim, at the 51km mark. But Liz said "51km is not enough!", so off we set down the Tauber for another pleasant 20km (actually, we were banking distance against some climbs expected tomorrow). Happy with our 71km (flat) ride, we settled in for the night.
Rothenburg-on-the-Tauber's city walls, from the elevated walk on the inside
One of Rothenburg-on-the-Tauber's city gates
Riding in the Tauber valley
Lunch time
An old royal garden complex
Central Tauberbischofsheim
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Tuesday, May 5 :: Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany
Tuesday, May 5 :: Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany :: 48 km / 288 km total
A hilly day (as Germany goes) that took us up out of the Danube basin (flowing towards Vienna and Budapest) and into the Main/Rhine basin (flowing to the North Sea). Things went smoothly enough... everything is smooth here in Germany. After a lunch bakery stop we rode into the uber-tourist town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber. This is medieval and tourist kitsch to the max, and for the first time since Neusshwanstein Castle in Fussen we saw tour buses and tour groups. Thats ok, plenty of room for all! At the tourist info there was an electronic board of all hotels in town, with a green light and red light indicating full or not. Only one of 50+ hotels was full (at 2pm). The shops along the main roads are packed with little figurines, cuckoo clocks, steins, swords, flags, pastries... everything remotely German that you could ever want to buy (and more).
After laundry we did some quick sightseeing, but after the previous 4+ medieval towns its all starting to look the same. Its all good, though, and I'm certainly not complaining. Its really a 10/10 country, in pretty much all respects.
2 more days to the end of the Romantische Strasse!! Then...
Rothenburg's main street
Rothenburg's central plaza
A hilly day (as Germany goes) that took us up out of the Danube basin (flowing towards Vienna and Budapest) and into the Main/Rhine basin (flowing to the North Sea). Things went smoothly enough... everything is smooth here in Germany. After a lunch bakery stop we rode into the uber-tourist town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber. This is medieval and tourist kitsch to the max, and for the first time since Neusshwanstein Castle in Fussen we saw tour buses and tour groups. Thats ok, plenty of room for all! At the tourist info there was an electronic board of all hotels in town, with a green light and red light indicating full or not. Only one of 50+ hotels was full (at 2pm). The shops along the main roads are packed with little figurines, cuckoo clocks, steins, swords, flags, pastries... everything remotely German that you could ever want to buy (and more).
After laundry we did some quick sightseeing, but after the previous 4+ medieval towns its all starting to look the same. Its all good, though, and I'm certainly not complaining. Its really a 10/10 country, in pretty much all respects.
2 more days to the end of the Romantische Strasse!! Then...
Rothenburg's main street
Rothenburg's central plaza
Monday, May 4 :: Dinkelsbuhl, Germany
Monday, May 4 :: Dinkelsbuhl, Germany :: 38 km / 240 km total
A late start and a hard day with rolling hills on an often wet gravelly road. But the short distance made things quite managable, and we rolled happily into Dinkelsbuhl - another medieval town. The food continues to be fantastic and varied - today in Dinkelsbuhl we had chili, doner, pizza, and of course locally-brewed beer.
Liz product-testing the Snug as a Bug helmet cover
Many roads have bike paths beside them - even though the road itself is almost traffic-free
A church we passed, with labyrinth in front
Onto a forested section of the Romantische Strasse
Dinkelsbuhl and its moat
Moat-turned path at Dinkelsbuhl
A late start and a hard day with rolling hills on an often wet gravelly road. But the short distance made things quite managable, and we rolled happily into Dinkelsbuhl - another medieval town. The food continues to be fantastic and varied - today in Dinkelsbuhl we had chili, doner, pizza, and of course locally-brewed beer.
Liz product-testing the Snug as a Bug helmet cover
Many roads have bike paths beside them - even though the road itself is almost traffic-free
A church we passed, with labyrinth in front
Onto a forested section of the Romantische Strasse
Dinkelsbuhl and its moat
Moat-turned path at Dinkelsbuhl
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