The first four weeks were dedicated to my mother and her garden which is the largest garden parcel remaining in the old part of the city, Langenselbold. It is partially overgrown with grapes, blackberry hedges, and the invasive Japanese Knöterich (fallopia japonica) and full of dead fruit trees. A gustatory benefit of being here in summer is the sequence of remaining fruits: currants, cherries, blackberries, plums, quince, apples.During these first weeks I was also working on improving my German language skills – learning all of the new words which have mostly English roots or are just adopted English words, especially from pop culture, marketing, and computer technology. Words such as kollidiert (collided) and komplettiert (completed). Mother and I speak a mix of German and English and sometime have fun literally translating the German compound words into English, i.e. for breakfast: Frühstück is “early piece”. Getting practice hearing the many distinct dialects found in Germany can also be a challenge.
The Euro money exists of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, cent coins, all being regulary used, as well as 1 and 2 Euro coins. If one doesn’t make an effort to spend the change one receives, one’s wallet will bulge with change very quickly.
By far the majority of German drivers respect the speed and traffic laws, especially in-town and give deference to pedestrians and bicyclists, of which there are many. Many sections of the Autobahn are now under speed control but in those areas where there aren’t any controls, one must continually watch for super fast, gas wasting, drivers passing in the left lane. On must always drive in the right lane and may never pass on the right. Fortunately, trucks are limited to 100 km/h (62 mph) and, believe it or not, the trucks obey the law because of serious enforcement and large penalties. Thus if you want to drive a relaxed speed and not worry about the crazy speeders in the passing lane, just join the truck convoy in the right lane, save gas, and smell the Diesel exhaust. The German roads are also full of signs and one could keep busy just looking at them rather than driving. There are two standard non-Autobahn speeds, 50 kmh in city and 100 km outside of cities unless posted otherwise. One of my favorites is the “end of prior restrictions” or freedom sign.
So, after a few introductory weeks of re-immersion into German culture, I was ready for some total immersion and sightseeing. I saw an ad by Radweg-Services.de offering rides all over Germany as well as France, Holland, Belgium, Hungary, Austria, and Italy.
A week bicycle tour of the close-by Main river valley seemed like a good start.
This trip started in Bamberg and ended in Aschaffenberg and was managed by Radelo.de. It was 6 days in the saddle covering, at a relaxed pace, the 430 km of mostly paved bicycle paths running along the Main river and through the many adjacent historic villages and cities. I rented a bike which had six hub gears (Shimano) with coaster as well as rim breaks. Saddle bags (now called panniers?) and a map bag with detailed maps were provided as was a complete repair kit, trip odometer-speed inidcator-clock combo and running lights should you need to bike during the dark hours of summer, 11 PM – 4 AM.
Overnight accommodations were in three star boutique hotels, many old historic buildings as the one shown in Volkach. All rooms had showers and generally a great view. Internet access was very spotty, however. I took the half pension option which provided in-house choices of local foods, generally very good but usually too much food for me to eat.German hotels are a little different than the ordinary chain motels in the US. Beds, for example, had no bed covers to remove and had no top sheet and blanket for cover. The German cover is a completely enclosed quilt. I always wondered when they last cleaned the covers and blankets, one is exposed to in the US.
German toilets are different also. They are typically low flow, dual flush or start-stop flush, i.e. you control how much flushing you need. Showers are tiny, all having the removable shower head on a flex tube. One peculiarity I haven’t figured out yet is why the light switches to bathrooms or WCs in Germany are always outside of the room. One could sit in private on the loo or be in the shower when someone mischievous comes along and turns off your light. It can’t be to protect yourself from the 220V electricity because they have hair dryers and outlets in the bathroom. It must just be a regulation on the books and we know by now that regulations must be followed. Ja!
The cities and villages along the way all have a long history shaped by religious and civil conflicts over the millenia. Bamberg, the first city on the trip, managed to survive WWII unscathed because the local commander decided to actively show the Allies that they are surrendering. It is a town historically divided between the religious part where the Bishop lived, were there were no taxes, and the civil part were taxes were levied, The Rathaus, or city hall, was located on an island served by a bridge across the Main, binding the two parts of town together. This town has 4200 houses under historic protection and most of them are still occupied. A part of town called the Garden District had houses with large gardens for growing foods for the local market which to this day is open Mon-Sat.
At the other end of the trip is Aschaffenburg which was a historic fortification and town. Here, the WWII commander in charge, decided to make a stand against the allies and thus the city was completely firebombed. There is little left of the historic feel but the Schloss Johannisburg was completely rebuilt to the original appearance and now houses a regional museum of largely local art and artifacts.In between these two cities lie many villages which are known for their beers and wines. This is Franconia and though it’s a part of Bavaria, don’t call the residents Bavarians. They feel themselves as distinct. The trip goes from the Beer Franconia, where many grain fields are located, to the Wine Franconia in the narrow Main valley with its steep slopes and many vineyards. Most of the vineyards are small and privately owned and each will have its own wine cellars and tasting rooms. Some villages are a collection of local wineries.
One particularly nice historic town was Volkach where I stayed in a hotel going back hundreds of years. It was right on the town square with the local church, Rathaus, fountain, and many outdoor eating and drinking venues with happy children playing into dusk. In all villages I stayed in there were always the church bells informing me of the time, except during sleeping hours, 12 PM – 6 AM, in some places.
The city of Würzburg is also an historic city which received much WWII destruction and was rebuilt. It has a skyline dominated by the largest fortification in Germany, Marienberg, connected to the old town by a bridge being used since 1133. It also has the most cathedrals per square km.
Two other places of note are the ancient churches at Urphar and Bürgstadt. Both have biblical pictorials on the walls which was a common way of teaching the bible stories to the analphabets (illiterates). The church at Urphar has been in continuous service since the 10th century.
The type of trip I was on was self-guided between lodgings. This gave me an opportunity to explore at my own pace and will but didn’t enable socializing with others. Typically, family groups or male or female or mixed groups of elderly people sign on to this type of Gucci biking trip. It wasn’t cheap, averaging around 100 Euros per day (not counting train transportation there and back) which is about twice my average cost experience on my US trip.
Germany has very many well-marked bike paths going nearly everywhere. Also along the paths, near the villages, there are small ads for overnight lodging and eating establishments for bikers. There were 100s of bikers on the paths every day from young to old. Most were traveling with equipment, few were just day bikers. In short it’s a biker’s paradise on non-rainy days. I’d like to do a similar trip again sometime with other interested bikers. Anyone interested? Danube to Hungary?
