Welcome to Germany! A wet, cold welcome it was for us as we landed at 10 a.m. in Munich. Yuck! Fortunately today would have us outside for a minimum amount of time. At the airport we hopped on a train that whisked us to Munich´s central train station. From there, we picked up Liz's rental bike and grabbed a train to Fussen. By 3 pm we were there, and settling into our hotel.
Fussen is at one end of Germany's Romantische Strasse, a medieval trading route-turned tourist route that follows, somewhat, the Roman Via Claudia Augusta from Northern Italy into the heart of Germany. Along the route are closely-spaced towns of interest, and about 2 million tourists ply the route yearly, making it Germany's most popular route. On top of that, there's also a bike route the entire way. It is this 400km route that forms the basis for the core of our trip.
We immediately both liked Germany. Reasonable prices, diverse types of food available, well-organized, and friendly. After assembling my bike we fell asleep, eagerly anticipating the real start of our vacation tomorrow!
Thursday, April 30 :: Peiting, Germany :: 42 km / 43 km total
First thing in the morning we headed over to Germany's most famous landmark, Castle Neuschwanstein. This is the most famous castle in the world, and you've seen pictures of it, even if you didn't know it. I didn't even bother to take any pictures of it up close, since there are about 1 million different shots, angles, and seasons displayed in the postcard shops outside the castle. Seated in the very foot of the Alps, it was a steep, rainy climb up to it, among all the other tourists. The castle tour itself was interesting enough, and I won't bore you with details about Mad King Ludwig II or the swans or the murder. Worth a visit.
From there, quickly back to Fussen, onto the bikes, and onto the Romantische Strasse!! The bike route quickly established it's character - "Awesome"! Flattish, well-cared for, scenic, light-to-no-traffic, and varied. I was laughing at how pleasant it was - gently rolling hills through pastureland; forested tracks, sometimes unpaved; through quaint little towns with beautiful churches; occasional bikepath alongside roads; and only rarely through town traffic - almost no traffic at all, anywhere, on the bike route. Perfect for novice cyclists, and fun for me with my uber-detailed map and descriptions, picking out detail after detail (as Liz rolls her eyes - but it gives her a chance for a break!). Really, to experience more mindblowing and dramatic cycling you have to suffer in places like Pakistan's Karakoram Highway, or Mexico's bandit roads, or the high Pyrenee's Col du Tourmalet... but that's for next year, and trips past. Today, this one, would be pure fun and enjoyment, in what is already one of my favourite countries ever.
Pushing onwards the route brought us to Peiting... 42km of riding in the foothills of the Alps with no single climb over 50-70m in elevation. Much easier than Tuscany! Peiting was a small, relatively untouristy town on the Romantische Strasse, although there were still a few places that weren't to be open for about a month, when the tourist hordes start to descend. Count me out of that! We almost, but not quite, have the Romantische Strasse to ourselves.
At the wet, chilly train station in Munich. Super-easy to load the bikes on the train (you can see the bike symbol on the closest train carriage).
Breakfast, German-style! ---->YUM<---- 
Walking up to Castle Neuschwanstein (small white building in the distance). We could've taken the horse carraige.
From Neuschwanstein's balcony
Smaller castle from Neuschwanstein
Now on the Romantische Strasse! You can barely see Castle Neuschwanstein in the distance (top-right of picture).
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