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Loggage
(This is pretty much the raw log. We plan to intersperse some pics and do a little more with the biking stats someday. Don't hold your breath.)
June 21, 1998 --Heidelberg
{D} Watched "Grease". 5:40am and the sun's coming up. We're probably
over the UK right now. They're about to serve breakfast.
{A} We're almost to Frankfurt, and the plane ride wasn't too long...5
naps made it go that much quicker! Flying internationally is
great-free drinks! At one point, we had 2 waters, 1 coke, 2 bloody
marys, a wine glass, and several Absolute bottles on our tray....the
Cannons would be proud!
{A} 5:45am. We made it through customs with no problem! I think
Danno was disappointed...the agents spoke English so he didn't even
have to say "zwei waken." Bikes, BOB and bags made it to baggage
claim before we did! It's a sunny day, probably 70 degrees or so.
The exchange rate is 1.74. We exchanged $250US. We're taking the
9am bus to Heidelburg...$36 marks per person.
{D} Excellent taxi from where the bus dropped us off to the old
part of Heidelberg (tall houses, narrow streets). We're staying at
Hotel Sum Pfalzgrafen ($170DM). They won't let us put bikes in our
rrom, so we locked them up, still in the boxes, outside in the
courtyard.
{A} First German bier-weiss bier. Hotter than hell. We can't read
the menu, and we've forgotten our phrase book. Good thing we know
how to say bier!
{D} Had a great first German meal at Vetter, near the old (Neckar)
bridge. Tasty brews; wheat is darker than the pilsner. Nice walk
across the bridge, with pics of a real castle on the hill above
Heidelberg.
June 22, 1998--Mosbach
Day 1 Stats
Start 12:30pm
End 8:00pm
Ave Speed (AVS) 16.8km
Max Speed (MXS) 63.0km
Actual Time in Motion (ATM) 4:44:10
Distance (DST) 79.53
{A} We got a late start riding since we had to build the bikes and
buy maps. Left Heidelberg about 12:20pm. The ride along the Nekar
river was awesome-very green with castles nestled along the
mountainside. We caught the ODM trail, and climbed up a hillside
next to this spectacular castle. The road led us through a dense
forest and on top of the mountain range. We
thought we were lost for a long time, but heard a chainsaw in the
distance, so we figured civilization wasn't too far off. The closer
we got to the noise, however, the denser the forest got, and the
creepier it all seemed. We came upon and rode past the lumberjack,
without him even taking notice, and eventually arrived at the top
of the mountain. Here there were nice houses, and beautiful soccer
fields. Then we took a wrong turn, bonzai-ed down the
hillside, and lost all the altitude we gained. It was then 4:30,
and we needed to make a decision on where to stay, since Buchen
was out of the question. AT the suggestion of our waitress, who
spoke very little English (none), we rode to Mosbach. Mosbach is
a sleepy little town that hopefully will have good food (I'm
starving).
{D} 4:30am. Can't sleep again. I'll intersperse some stuff to what
Annie wrote. We learned a valuable lesson today. We should try to
stick to the recommendations of the "Biking in Europe" book, or be
prepared to pay strict attention to the map, especially the contour
lines. It was somewhat frustrating to not meet our schedule on the
very first day. In any event, Mosbach ended up being a nice place
to stay. The Hotel Goldener Hirsch was very nice (130SM, includes
breakfast). We had a room on the third floor. It was recently
remodeled ala the style we're seeing as typical: secure locks, nice
bathrooms, awesome beds with plush dovees and pillows. We're now
2-for-2 on being close enough to the town clock tower that we're
getting used to being "chimed" every 15 minutes.
Back to the ride. Riding on the ODM (Odenwald-Maddonen....castle
road) is awesome. It is usually a separate bike trail, often well
paved. At one point we were quite bummed when, after riding for a
few km along the Neckar River, we see the path lead up to the water
and disappear. Okay, so we're thinking we messed up and this
"beautiful trail" actually screwed us over, forcing a significant
backtrack. It only took a few seconds to realize that on the other
side of the river sat a ferry waiting for us to wave it over. Cool!
It cost 2dm to cross the river.
Dinner was a bust for Annie. They brought us the wrong drinks, so
Annie took the light colored bier. I had a tasty dark one. Either
our waiter was a flake, or Annie pointed to the wrong pizza, 'cause
hers was covered with oysters and calamari. I had spaghetti with
bolognese sauce.
June 23, 1998--Markelsheim
Day 2 Stats
Start 10:55am
End 4:15pm
AVS 18.9km
MXS 66.0km
ATM 3:47:56
DST 71.91km
{A} Ahhh, back on track. Today was very stressful...we found our
way back to our intended route. Our initial goal was to reach Bad
Mergetheim, which we did by 2:30pm. At the suggestion of Benjamin
at Motts Bike Shop, we rode on the Markelshiem. This is supposed
to be the town where all the bikers hang. Our gasthaus is "Gastehaus
Birgit", set in a rural area right at the end of the trail.
So, we're sitting hear in downtown Markelsheim and Danno is eating
the most outstanding pepper steak-even I am drooling over it! So,
today we rode a 13% grade uphill, and still maintained a higher
average speed. Rolling hills the entire way. Hey Mom...you told me
Germany looks like Wisconsin...bull! This is much prettier! Danno
claims that German girls love him. We saw an engraving on a house
that said "Anno 1988". We were going to take a picture, but there
was someone inside...probably Anno! The main road in Markelsheim
seems to be the throughway for tractors! I think I offended the
waitress-even though she looks like me!
{D} Annie quote: After telling Annie she looks pretty without
makeup, she says "The more makeup you wear, the more makeup you
have to wear."
{A} The greatest thing we saw today-2 hawks by the side of the
road, soaring above the cornfields. First they were perched, and
as we got closer, they took off.
{D} Annie closed a fly on the logbook and only stunned it. There
may be some guts around here if you look closely.
{A} Annie-don't forget to write to Kevin to tell him you saw a
portrait of St. Kilian as you were walking to the toilette.
June 24, 1998
Day 3 stats--DInkelsbuhl
Start 10:20
End 6:00
AVS 17.9
MXS 48.0
ATM 5:28:45
DST 98.09
{D} Had a nice breakfast from Birgitt; left Markelsheim around
10:20am. Rode exclusively on the Ob de Talber (ODT) bike path
paralleling along the Tuber rover. Many nice small towns, steeples,
farmers...it seemed a long way to Rothenberg for lunch (45km). This
place rules. There was a small 1km climb from the river to this
OLD fort-like town. It's surrounded by a huge wall. We rode through
an opening where a plaque indicated a date of the 1400's. Lots of
tourists. Had a nice sirloin steak, fired, and bacon-wrapped green
beans. Sparkling water, and my first European Coca-cola!
{A} Danno has been wanting to use the word "careening" for the past
couple of days. He finally found the opportunity. "When the sun
goes out, the earth is going to go careening into space."
{D} Annie rung the church bell...but we digress. It's 10:37 pm.
Okay. Here's the deal with the Romantic Strasse. It's probably the
COOLEST bike path in the whole world. Or at least, that we've seen
so far. So, we're riding on it all day today, on what's supposed
to be a 71km day. Well, the dufus' who wrote the "Riding in Europe"
book obviously didn't have their bike computer adjusted correctly,
or they took the easy way out and didn't actually ride the route,
but drove it in the car. Anyway, the riding they claimed to be 81km
(81km - 10km to Markelsheim = 71km) turned out to be 98.01km. Ah,
we rode until 6:20 and none too happy about it. So, we learned our
lesson. Add 20% to whatever the book says when we're doing our
planning. Had great Gorgonzola and bier at one place. Great dinner
at another. We got a room at probably the nicest place in town-the
Deutches Haus ($190dm) right acroos from a totally bitchin' church
(~1634ad).
{A} Even though the ride was long, the journey was great. We saw
beautiful countryside...and rode for hours on trails that cars will
never see. Rothensberg was awesome, and Dinkelsbuhl (where we're
staying tonight) is a great second. Perhaps even a first? Near the
end of today's ride, I told Danno I wanted to be drinking a bier
at 6pm-we busted the last 6km into town in no time flat! After
checking in, we were drinking at 6:20. The town watcher sings every
hour throughout the night. And there are 4 competing church bells
ringing on the hour. Danno thinks he's going to sleep through the
night!
June 25, 1998
Day 4 stats--Nordlingen
Start 9:50am
End 11:40am
AVS 18.2km
MXS 37.5
ATM 1:50:52
DST 33.76
{A} OK, change of strategy. No more riding all day, bonzai-ing
through all the towns just to make it to our destination. We're
tired! Rode in to Nordlingen by noon today, and spent the day
exploring the town. We climbed the church tower...I have never been
more wigged out in my life. Steep, rickety stairs, stale air, no
windows, husband grabbing at my ankles. I was shaking by the time
we got to the top. But, it was worth it! You can see for miles up
there! Today tested our patience with each other, as we needed to
do chores...buy gifts, send postcards, and send a big package of
dirty laundry back to the US (what were we thinking when we packed
so much?). Danno quote; as we were having an afternoon bier while
writing postcards (OK, 2 biers), I apologize for getting short with
him. He says "It's OK, you're just not drunk." Another Danno quote;
as we were finished riding through a tiny, tiny town yesterday,
and we passed the "you are exiting tinytown" sign, he looks over
at me, wide eyed, and claims "Yeah, I didn't blink the entire
time!". Note: the leatherman tool works great for plucking grey
whiskers from the gotee. Danno thinks "Vielen Dank" makes up for
not saying "bitte".
{D} Dinner at Pizzeria Eudiete. We went a litte crazy. I don't know
if it was the 98km day yesterday, or what, but we could not get
full. Started out with a pizza salami (pepperoni to us; pepperoni
here means green peppers), lasagna, and 2 glasses of Chianti. Okay,
not full yet. Another pizza, more wine, then spaghetti-shapped
ice-cream with strawberry sauce. Mmmm...tasty. Still not full, but
yuh gotta stop somewhere.
June 26, 1998--Donaworth
Day 5 stats
Start 11:05am
End 1:00pm
AVS 19.0
MXS 38.0
ATM 1:47:16
DST 34.06
{A} Ok, here's the deal. We spent 2 days riding easy and spending
time in the towns, and it's getting' old. All the towns are beginning
to look the same. So, we were sittin on the bank of the river,
where the Danube and Wornitz meet, contemplating our plan. We still
think Augsberg is stay-over-worthy, so we've at least got another
easy day tomorrow. Today's ride was very easy. The trail followed
the rode the entire way. It was pretty hazy out, so our view of
the castles we saw was degraded. Donaworth is a pretty lazy town
and lacks the charm that Nordlingen and Dinkelsbuhl have.
{D} It's poscard writin', dinkel bier drinken time, and yes, the
flies are pissin us off again. Annie claims "all they need is a
fly strip".
{A} We had Greek food for dinner-we were the only ones who would
venture out into the rain! Rain is cool...we were one of the few
tables that lasted out in the biergarten at our gasthaus. Germans
are wimps!
{D} We have an issue. We're torn. We stress on big ride days, but
get bored in the little towns on short (20-40km) days. So we are
sitting here in the Caf Haus. It's a younger people place-neon, a
few people (8:45pm, probably too early for real partiers), and
we're thinking "let's start riding further again". Then Annie says
"Yeah, but we're going to run out of trail!" Dilemma. We decide
it's no biggie 'cause we can get to Interlaken and do things from
there; bike loops, day train rides, motorcycle to Geneva or France.
Damn! We sure would love to interact with some locals! This language
thing sucks. (sorry for the scribblage, it's dark in here).
{A} 10:22pm. We just called DJ, and he conferenced in Amy of Amy
and Sharc, in Atlanta. DJ was bummed because we called at the close
of the stock market-doh. We are now drinking a bier at our
gasthaus...previously our host shined us...would not let us drink
bier in the biergarten because he wanted to serve dinner-dead
fishheads. So, we had a bier, and then when it started to get busy,
it began to rain. We were one of the only tables to stay in the
biergarten...then he loved our business! And again, now, when we
sat down, it started to rain. We're cursed! Our waiter gave us a
comp shot. Danno just started to talk to the only.......
June 27, 1998--Augsburg
Day 6 stats.
None
{D} Actually, it's 12:46 on 6/28. Why did Annie stop writing above,
and what's with the map on the next page? The answer to that is a
mouthful. This pen sucks, it smears, I'm changing.... Okay, pen
from Blackcards to the rescue.
Side note...irony is a strange beast. On the day Annie was writing
about above, we were actually a bit bummed that we and our friend
the "language barrier" were so alone here in Germany. We commented
on yes, the countryside is beautiful, and we're having a blast
riding, and eating and drinking. But isn't it just as important,
in the whole Germany experience thing, to interact somewhat with
the locals? We kind of half-way; not even verbally, but subconsciously,
made a pact to be more outgoing. To mingle, if you will, with what
appear to be locals (not othe tourists). We didn't do any of this
in the Caf House with the young people, so maybe it was my subierwashed
consciousness, but things were about to get interesting...
So, we're at the Biergarten of our Gasthaus in Dounausworth when
I notice a group of three other people (within minutes we find out
their names are Herbert, Gabi, and Jan) who appear to be locals.
Actually, I never made a conscious assessment of their heritage,
I was getting drunk, and "getting drunks" just do things. I notice
a Kawasaki shirt on one of them, and immediately decide to yell,
in English, of course, "So you guys ride bikes?" "Yes, yes..."
they speak reasonable English and eventually invite us over to
their table. After shooting a decent amount of shit, and swapping
rounds of biers, shots, whatnot, Jan, who turns out to be the owner
of a local motorcycle shop (Kawasaki, Triumph), invites us to join
them on a ride tomorrow afternoon. Waiting to uphold our pact, we
accept the locals' invite. Very cool of them to offer, right? Yep,
it was.
We hate our hotel, by the way. The waiter kicks us out for making
too much noise at 12:30am. And then we're rudely awakened the next
day by the hotel wench pounding on our door at 9:30am. She wantes
to close the place, so we have to eat our complimentary breakfast
now. Annie slept, I ate. We were out on the town by 10:30am. We
weren't supposed to be at the cycle shop 'til 1:00pm, so we milled
about the town, having all kinds of second thoughts about the day
of motorbiking. Well they still want us along? Will the "free"
offer still stand? Last night they actually promised to drive us
in their van to Augsburg so we could stay on track with our bicycling
schedule. Should we just pedal to Augsberg, and blow off the
potentially awkward day with the locals? We decided to ride over
to the shop aroudn 12:30pm. Excellent shop, by the way (see business
card). As soon as we pulled up, it starts to rain. We're waiting
for them to finish with their Saturday morning customers, they're
definitely still up for riding. Annie and I are half looking for
excuses; it's raining, we'll just ride on to Augsberg. No prob.
Nope. The rain let up and Jan gives me the choice of a dirt bike
Ninja, Vulcan cruiser, or Thimph Thunderbird Sport. I went with
the Triumph 900. It was yellow, and it was cool.
So, we ride through Bavaria, I'm putting the first 250km on this
Triumph. We're seeing spectacular German scenery, castles, small
towns...priceless. Free. It never rained during the whole ride
(less the first 5 minutes). Jan and Gabbi finally bring us down to
Augsberg, eat a wonderful Mexican meal with us, and that was it.
I'm pretty sleepy now, it's 1:20am, but I gotta say today was a
mental roller coaster. The moterbiking was spectacular, but the
waiting around, suddenly having no freedom, after having total
freedom for four days, was kind of stressful. I know it was hard
on Annie. Thank God for Annie. She's totally bitchin'. We both want
to get back to riding hard. It's tough, but very rewarding. We miss
the challenge when it's gone. Good night now.
June 28, 1998--Landsberg
Day 7 stats
Start 1pm
End 4:45pm
AVS 16.9
MXS 33.0
ATM 2:51:01
DST 48.38
{A} We woke up in Augsberg, and tooled around town a bit. Looks
like we missed a pretty good festival, but there'll be others. It
was looking like rain, so we wanted to get on the road. We had
hopes of doing some laundry in the "big city", and even found a
washerei, but they were closed because it was Sunday. Sundays bite
here-nothing is open. The ride to Landsberg was uneventful...we've
hit the flat part of the country. It threatened to rain all day,
but never did...we've been so lucky! The bike path was poorly marked
in several areas...It's getting frustrating taking the wrong turns
all the time. We got lost in the forest at one point, and came out
at this really cute sheep farm. We had to ride the road into the
next town to catch the trail again. The trail deviated from the
road slightly, and what was supposed to be a 36km day ended up a
48km day. No biggy tho, we were both ready for it. Landsburg is a
neat town, with a bunch of small streets. We ate at a German food
place (what a concept), and had this huge cheese plate. Danno had
Paprika Schnitzel...It was really good. We watched the Nigeria/Denmark
Worlds Cup game at this tiny little S&M bar. I thinkg the bathroom
stalls had 2-way mirrors. We're staying at the Goggl hotel, which
is some language for Rooster. $145dm. It's the morning of the 29th,
and we're waiting for our laundry to be delivered. Fresh, clean
biking shorts...can't wait.
{D} Goggl had the best breakfast. Scrambled eggs, sausage.
June 29, 1998--Fussen
Day 8 Stats
Start 10:55am
End 5:45pm
AVS 17.5
MXS 107.5 ???
ATM 5:14:43
DST 92.04
{A} Today we are going to try and make it all the way to Fussen...should
be a 75km day. I'm looking forward to the scenery-we expect to see
the last castle of the ride (the Disneyland castle) and the Austrian
alps.
{D} We just ate dinner, I had some cheese dumplings (Kasespatzle).
Tasty and filling. Today ended up being another big day ~90km.
Probably the nicest riding yet. Lots of farms, hills started growing.
We saw our first real mountains. Don't know if they're official
Alps, but they're BIG! Checked out a cool castle coming into Fussen.
It might be the suitor castle to D-Land castle (Newschwanstein).
I guess some old King Ludwig built 'em both. We saw a dog on a farm
that had a huge gash in its side. We wondered what happened.
June 30, 1998--Bregenz
Day 9 stats
Start
Stop
AVS 13.3
MXS 39.0
ATM 2:07:28
DST 28.24
The Romantique Strasse is done! We finished the first leg of our
ride yesterday. No more green signs. Last night we went to the
rockin' bar for a beer and saw the locals drinking weiss bier with
Coke, warm, of course. Quote of the day yesterday: we noticed that
our bartender speaks English, so Danno says "You speak very well
English". Today we got a lot done in the morning...went to the bank
to get cash on the CC, bought train tickets to Lindau, (44dm each,
3hr ride), and bought a R. Strasse book for our memories. We decided
that we have to do the castle thing, even though its way against
our morals to do a tourist thing. It was bitchin'. OK, a LOT of
tourists, but the castle was just awesome. It just blows the mind
to think that hundreds of years ago Kin Ludwig II wanted this
castle, and several ppol souls had to schlepp these huge-ass stones
up that hill! We took the bike path up, which was very stee and
rockly...not the optimal terrain for our tires. I bit it at the
beginning pretty hard...my knee hurts. But, got back on the horse,
and pumped it on up. Now we're eating lunch at the foot of the
castle mountain-what a tourist trap. The brats here come with buns,
the French fries with ketchup, and the Pepsi with ice!!! Damn
tourists. (Actually, it's pretty good).
{D} 6pm. Well, we're on the second leg of our first train trip.
Annie had our first flat tire on the way to the train station. We
met a nice couple from near Dallas while waiting for our train in
Fussen. They clued un in. We had one switch over in Biessenhofen
(? Couldn't find it on the map). On this leg, there are a bunch of
kids and strollers in the bicycle car, so we just shoved our bikes
in and made them move. We should arrive in Lindau at 7:15pm. We're
gonna ride from Lindau to Bregenz, on the Bodensee, and spend our
first night in Austria. Annie slept on the first train. If she does
it again I'm gonna tie her shoelaces together. Man, we're haulin'
ass right now. On the first train the guy working our are was
friendly, spoke a little English, and checked our tickets. On this
second train, they guy yells at people, yelled at us for having
our feet on the seats, and never bothered to check our tickets.
We've decided we don't like the 2nd guy.
{D} 10:15pm. We had a nice ride around the lake from Lindau to
Bregenz, trying to beat the rain. Just barely got to the Germania
Hotel in time. People seem to speak English more here (perhaps it's
the small sampling so far in Austria). We have no idea about the
currency in Austria, and only now figured out the exchange rate
~10:1. This hotel rules. It's across from Radshop bike shop and
caters to bike people. They give 10% off to Radclub members, or in
our case, someone who just rides up. We're torn ______ to hang at
this cool Internet-ready, bikin hotel, and maybe watch Joe Cocker
tomorrow at an open-air theater, or move on.
July 1, 1998--Konstanz
Day 10 stats
Start 11:10am
Stop 4:30pm
AVS 18.2
MXS 34.5
ATM 4:05:28
DST 74.67
{D} Gonna move on to Romanshorn and find a nice place to throw some
hard disc. Yesterday, on the way up the steep, unpaved trail to
the castle, Annie _____ over. Well, it seems that whenever she
falls over, her bike seat or something, always leaves a big 'ol
bruise on her butt. So between yesterday's fall, and the one last
week, she has matching cheek bruises (#)#). Bummer.
{D} 6:30pm. Well Lake Constance is pretty cool. The bike path along
the lake is awesome; very well marked and maintained. Lots of other
bikers sharing the path. I guess the Rhine river feeds and bleeds
out of the Bodensee. We blew on past Romandshorn 'cause it was
looking a bit battered. Maybe it was the haziness of the day, but
we were both apathetic on the ride. We went all the way to Konstanz
(back in Germany), and it was much better. Lots of shopping places,
tall old buildings (Annie just took a picture of me writing this.
I didn't see a flash, and I had to check that the camera was set
right. She called me a "Micro-managing wiggin' butt."). On the way
here a disc-golf basket caught Annie's eye (good eye Annstress).
There was a very cool youth Hostel with its own disc golf course,
hobbit-size chess pieces on a concrete board. We're mentioning how
we're not really into the hostel scene. Maybe we're too old, or
whatever. But this place sure looked cool. Perhaps Annie's disc
teammate (Beth) will enjoy if she gets to this town (across the
Swiss boarder in Knuzlingein actually) on her trip in a week or
so.
We had a good Mexican food and margaritas at a Latino place in
Konstaz. Janette (cool African hair) gave us good service, and said
we should definitely hit Stein Am Rhein on the way to Zurich.
11:51pm. Messages from home answering machine...can't get these
stinking phones to work!
July 2, 1998-Stein am Rein
Day 11 stats
Start 11:00am
Stop 1:15pm
AVS 17.3
MXS 40.5
ATM 2:01:19
DST 35.05
{A} The margaritas from last night kicked our butts! We don't know
what was in them, but we speculate grain alcohol. After eating
Mexican food, where, by the way, I think I ate the best tacos I've
ever had, we went to the Internet caf to send email. The cost was
5dm per 20 minutes. We woke up this morning and it was misty out.
Our plan was to try and make it to Zurich, but when we got to Stein
am Rein, we decided to hang here. The rain sucks. Still got some
good miles in, though. The ride was uneventful, we passed a sunflower
field. Had the sun been out, it'd have been cook. Took a picture
for mom. Exchange rate in Switzerland: 1.48 SF. At lunch in Stein
am Rein, Danno's coke cost as much as my bier. You can't afford
not to drink here!
They are putting on a play in the middle of town-it starts on July
11th, but they are building the set and rehearsing as I write.
We're sitting in a bar watching the production, no pun.
Today we decided that since we had the entire afternoon free, we'd
better get some laundry done. The girl at the hotel was able to
show us to the local "laundrymat". Actually, it was one washer,
one dryer in this old stable building. We weren't sure how much it
cost, but the girl suggested pumping $ (1/2 franks) in until the
cycle was done. We had a hell of a time figuring out how to work
the washer...exactly how do you say "rinse cycle"? We himmed and
hawed over the washing cycle...and eventually ad hoced the process.
All in all, the washing cycle took way longer than the drying!
The waiter here at this pub (which, btw, has the coolest lion-roaring
chairs) clued us in on this play. They do it every couple of
years...and it runs for about 3 weeks. It's a huge deal here. He
gave us a book on the 1986 production, totally cool. OK, I better
talk to Danno, he's looking bored.
{D} 10:40pm. So, in that bar Annie mentioned above, this strange
barfly started talking to us with a strange French accent (Annie
said he reminded her of inspector Clouseau). He was bizarre. We
couldn't figure out if he was a bum or rich, gay, or just eccentric,
or what. His name is Willie and he seemed like a regular. After
buying us a beer, he invited us over to his house on the Rhine to
meet his Brazilian, English-studying engineer wife. This spooked
Annie and she got up and left, pretending to watch the theatrical
rehearsal going on outside. We finally just blew him off. Nothing
more happened with him!
We had dinner at our hotel. The people were so helpful. The younger
manager was actually the son of the owner, and he helped us order,
gave us a complimentary garlic toast appetizer, and was very
pleasant.
This is a cool town, but again we realize how quickly we get bored
on a rainy day where there is nothing to do but walk around shops
where we can't buy anything. Actually, I did pick up a couple of
Swiss Army Knifes today.
July 3, 1998-Zurich
Day 12 Stats
Start 10:30
Stop 4:30
AVS 16.8
MXS 47.0
ATM 3:59:32
DST 67.0
{D} 5:42pm. Just checked-in to the Hotel Florida in Zurich. Getting
here was a bitch! Note having a decent regional map or a clue, we
set out from Stein am Rein around 10:30am and basically held to
the road, using signs and technologies meant for cars. I make this
a point because we've become spoiled with the separate bike paths
in Germany. The only prob with this car method is road construction.
We were forced into some pretty hairy situations. We finally
confronted a construction worker who nicely pointed to a dirt road,
so off we were on paths again. We worked our way thru Winterthum,
past the Zurich airport, and through the big Z. Riding in big cities
sucks! Especially when you don't know where you are going. I'm
going to take a shower now.
{D} We were actually going to blow through Zurich and stay down
the lake a ways The city riding left a bad taste in our mouths for
Zurich. However, we saw the makings of a HUGE festival brawling,
so we searched for a hotel for about an hour. Nothing near the
fest, but a bike shop worker gave us good directions to the Hotel
Florida (SF190). Pretty expensive, but the fest looked promising.
Yup, it was way cook. Zurich is celebrating 150 years of something
and we just got lucky with the timing. Major bands, booths, beer,
carnival rides, fireworks, airplane shows, people, people, people.
We were there from 6:00p-11:15pm. Very cool, well worth it.
{A} Yeah, the festival was awesome---all I was looking for the
4th of July (3rd) and more! We got there early, and mowed down a
brat and beer (we were starved). We were able to see a lot before
the crowds (what an old-person thing to say) and clouds rolled in.
It started pouring out about 7:30pm. No biggy. From my Summerfest
experience, I know that the best strategy is to find an empty beer
tent, and suck down a few while the storm blows over. So we did.
After the rain we played around in the Midway a bit and walked
around the old town area which was cool because it seemed to be a
20s to 30s crowd. An awesome fireworks show started at 10:30. Food
inventory for the evening: 1 brat w/ brot, 1 piece of pizza, 1
piece of garlic toast, 1 bowl of spatzle, 1 plate of potstickers,
1 big huge pretzel, and many beers (Hurlinbern bier, hmmmm). Good
thing we're riding!
We started out kicking butt on our AVS-at one time we got up to
21. Then the construction started, and we hit the big, busy, slow
town of Zurich.
July 4, 1998--Einsedeln
Day 13 stats
Start 10:50
Stop 2:45
AVS 17.0
MXS 47.5
ATM 3:22:29
DST 57.29
Switzerland! What were we thinking? There's some hills in this
country! We started from Zurich with a pretty good clip. AVS was
25.0 at 2/3 of the trip. Then we crossed over the lake. Oh boy...huge
climb up to Einsiedeln. Beautiful view of Lake Zurich, though,
worth it. We just checked into our hotel, Hotel Linde. For $145
SF. My legs and arms are shaking. The book says we gained 500 meters
in 4 km. We're go to set our altimeter tonight for the rest of the
ride.
{D} Annie got a little nap (altitude kickin' in). Now we're at a
small bar's version of "Independence Day" celebration. There are
about 25 of us (6 band, 10 kids). We're listening to the unexpected
blues of "Zach Prather and Luther Allison Band" from Chicago.
Another gem of the trip.
{A} What a great 4th of July! Here we are, in the middle of nowhere
(OK, in the middle of the Alps!) listening to some kick-ass
blues, drinking Dingles Bier (not Dungles Bier)-the "Eindiedler
Bier" homemade bier. OK, it's the 4th of July and everyone's in
long pants and sleeves, but we're outside, drinking bier, eating
brats. Danno just had the best spicy sausage and wedge fries.
They're celebrating American Independence Day here...all 40 of them
in this town! Elton John, our host (actually Jamie) says German
sausages just aren't what they used to be! Served with the sausage
was a tube-o'-mustard.
July 5, 1998-Luzern
Day 14 Stats
Start: 11:30
Stop: 3:00
AVS 18.6
MXS 51.0
ATM 3:13:39
DST 60.21
{A} It was really cold and cloudy when we woke up and got going
today...which seemed to put a damper on my mood. I've got to
admit...14 straight days of riding your butt off, riding in to
town, trying to find a good hotel, unloading the bikes, partying
at night, getting up, getting the bikes prepped, getting yourself
prepped, and do it all over again...it's getting a little old!
Plus, the Swiss weather has not been our friend! I think these
mountains would be so beautiful if we could see them! I'm sure I'll
be in a better mood tomorrow...but I'm ready for a break! Tomorrow
I think we're going to train to Bern (I think Danno's pretty burnt
too, or he's just being ultra supportive!) and then head on to Thum
the next day. We're trying to get the logistics figured out for
the end of the week. Taking a train is going to be a nightmare.
Hopefully the bus will prove to be a better solution for us. Danno
looks like a young boy since he shaved off his gotee! He shaved it
last night while I was taking a nap. Even though he's only had it
a couple of months, he looks very naked without it! I keep thinking
of the All in the Family episode when meathead first shaved his
moustache and Gloria kept laughing at him.
So, here we are, in Luzern, Switzerland, at our hotel bar. We went
cheap and cheerful tonight...$95SF for a dorm room. The hotel is
right on the river. The water here is so clear---it looks like its
glowing. We've walked all over this town and are ready to move on.
How do people travel for months at a time? What I wouldn't give
for a night in front of the TV with no drinking! I should careful
what I wish for...after the expense of this trip, I think our
weekends in the near future will have plenty of staying in time!
{D} Yup, Annie hit it on the head. Too much of a good think is
still too much. The train ride tomorrow should help. It was kinda
fun losing the gotee. I really do look way different. I felt like
I (present, oozed, reaked) a different personality wearing the hair
around my mouth. It was just getting to be a pain...especially with
the biking.
We hit an unexpected climb this morning. Probably close to what we
didn't yesterday. It took up the first 20km and 1.5 hours. From
there on, it was smooth downhill sailing for the next 30km or so.
Yep, a long hill into Luzern. Actually, probably 15km of river
riding at the end.
Halfway down the big hill, we actually found ourselves blowing down
a hill that was part of a major mountain bike race. We stopped at
the race start/finish line to see lots of gear tents and riders.
I saw my Stumpjumper Pro there for $3500SF. That's a LOT more than
I paid in San Diego. Sure made me with I had some fat, knobbies on
the bikes.
I keep forgetting to write this story. Two days ago, on the way
from Stein am Rein to Zurich, we were riding through this small
town, attempting to locate our trail signs when I experienced a
bizarre thing. I ride past this house that I later see has a few
upper windows open. I hear a foreign boy's voice yell something
like "die American swine" (I can only guess as to what he said).
Then, split seconds later I feel a sharp pain in my right shoulder.
I think I remember a sharp pop sound; the little bastard must of
(pen ran out) shot me with a pellet or BB gun. I turn around and
ride past the house yelling some furious angers, simply in an
attempt to frighten the little twerp. That's all that happened.
Good thing I had two layers on due to the misty weather. Man, it
stung. A few inches higher, and he coulda blinded me. I know as
kids we used to play with guns like that, but I sure never aimed
at anyone. I should have pounded on the door and bitched at whoever
answered.
Back to Sundy, July 5. We sit here in a way over-priced English
pub writing this-what to do to break the monotony. It'd be cool to
take a train to France, or Italy, but bikes and time won't allow.
Later.
July 6, 1998
Day 15-No riding today.
{D} We sit in a laundarmat "Jet Wash" in Bern. Getting here was an
uneventful train ride, unless you count the hours we waited in the
Bern train station trying to psych-out our plans for getting home.
This laundromat is a trip. The whole building is under construction
so we had to fumble thru the rubble getting in. First it didn't
look like there was a dryer, then the change machine didn't work.
But thanks to the little "Netural foods and bier" store down the
block, all is well. The owner arrives with his big sheep dog. He
(the owner), in the mass-destruction site, pulled all of his
instruction signs down, washed them with some kinda Windex, and
put them back up. Yeah, dude, that's gonna make a difference! How
about working on the change machine? A sign to the dryers around
the corner? Some stairs from the seven foot drop at the entrance?
July 7, 1998
Day 16 Stats
Start 12:10
End 2:OO
AVS 16.2
MXS 46.0
ATM 2:08:55
DST 34.92
{A} The ride to Thum was short and sweet. We got in to town at
about 2pm. The crowds are wildy shopping in the morning in Bern.
We did some errands (Internet caf, post office), and then headed
out of town. Last night we had great Chinese food, and then walked
around Bern until dark (a rarity for us..staying out til dark!).
Although a pretty large city, you feel safe walking around. We
found this great outdoor restaurant away from the tourists where
we had a couple nightcaps. Thum is a pretty happening town. We were
looking for a hotel, and decided to get a great bite while we waited
for this particular one to open (reception opens at 4pm). Good
thing we did, because it started to downpour...thunder and lightening.
When we sat down, the waitress explained that common practice in
this town is for restaurants to serve food only between 11-2 and
5-10 or so. After explaining this, and insisting she had nothing
to offer us, she made these awesome Salami sandwiches. This hotel
were at is awesome-our balcony overlooks the 14th century fortress
and, if the mountains were visible beyond the clouds, we'd see them
too! OK, my turn for a shower.
{D} 10:10pm. We are just after half time of the World Cup game
between the Netherlands and Brasil. The bar in our hotel is PACKED
full of Brasilians. It's a wild-n-wacky time. More later...(the
score is Brasil 1, Holland 0).
Okay, a few hours later, 1:20am. There are still partying Brazilians
outside on the patio. It is LOUD! Holland scored in the second
half, and it was pretty much tied throughout. We named some of the
players: Todd (a Holland player who looks like Todd on Suddenly
Susan). Tony (A guy in the Brazilian crowd who reminded us of Tony
Stachkowski). His girlfriend was a spankin Brasilian (we assume),
who we, of course, had to name Dani. We met Pasqual, a native born
Swiss/German speaker who goes to the far east (Thailand, Laos)
buying stones and selling them here to stone cutters. Pasquel has
a Lithuanian wife, and one boy. The owner (we assume) of the bar
and hotel save us a prime table. Annie had to keep asking people
in front to kneel down in front of the big projection screen. One
of the waitress had a cool Netherlands t-shirt on. I later paid
her $20SF for it. I figure Sander would like it. We drank many
Dunkel biers throughout the night. Probably the most biers so far.
One girl, a classically beautiful Brasilian girl, who kept blocking
Annie's view, started asking us how we could locate someone she
knows in "Gayland, TX." I supposed she meant Garland. Quite an
interesting night. We are so fortunate for the change encounters.
Danno out.
July 8, 1998
Day 17 stats
Start 10:50
Stop 3:00
AVS 17.5
MXS 40.5
ATM 2:18:33
DST 40.63
{A} It rained on and off on our ride today. The closer we got to
Interlaken, the colder it got. At one point we were directed across
this metal bridge that spanned over this huge gorge. It was
cool-looking back, you never would have guessed the gorge existed.
That's the great thing about bikin-you get to see little secrets
like that. Interlocken is a huge tourist town-beautiful. The
mountains are pretty much right in your face. We went to a couple
bike shops to see what the market was like. Doesn't look like we'll
be able to sell the bikes like we were told. Oh well, I love my
bike. But now the challenge is to get them home in one piece.
Tomorrow we're going to do the Grindelwald loop. Danno's making me
carry all the tools and stuff for the ride. It's really cold here.
We're wishing we didn't send back our full-fingered gloves! One of
the mountains is completely covered with snow-in mid July, wild!
July 9, 1998
Day 18 Stats
Start 11:05
Stop 3:30
AVS 15.9
MXS 53.5
ATM 3:16:55
DST 52.29
The last day of riding. Wah. We cranked on up to Grindelwald-beautiful
views of the 3 big mountains: Eiger, Monch, Jungfraugh. It was a
great climb-- unknown altitudes, but we started with the altimeter
at 2000, and we climbed to 3500...so what, a 1500 ft climb? Not
bad. We tried to go also to Wingen, but the mud got too deep for
slick tires. It was cold coming on down! Boy! Great riding day all
around. So, all in all, we made it through 3 weeks of riding...16
days out of 19. Only 3 flats (all within the last week), 3 falls
(all Annies), and ???? wrong turns! Danno says good thing our log
is waterproof because I'm dropping margaritas on it as I write!
Back to the riding. Hopefully I'll never have to hear Danno mention
the Eiger again! I think he was disappointed that the hotel where
the Clint Eastwood fild was filmed wasn't advertised as such at
the top of the hill.
A couple works about yesterday. Obviously, Danno was pretty hung
after the Brasil/Netherland game we wathced in Thum. Yesterday, he
had a pretty rough start to his day. First, while attaching the
BOB to his bike, the bike fell, and his derailer got tweaked pretty
badly. While he was working on fixing it, he ripped his shorts. He
was pretty bummed. I was on the floor laughing. I know, I'm so
supportive.
Last night we watched a little of the France/Croatia game at our
hotel...totally different scene from the previous night-everyone
was so quiet! We left after about 15 minutes...still don't know
who won!
Interlocken is a rockin town-a lot of Americans and other tourists.
Bummer. We don't even try to speak German anymore. Riding is great,
tho because all of a sudden, you're alone with just the mountains.
It's awesome. Note: I am SO SICK of corn flakes! The Mexican food
was awesome. Danno wants me to talk about the 2 guys we just met
at Buddy's-but I'll leave that til later. While walking back to
the hotel, we decided to go in for one last drink at the Texas
barbeque across the street from our hotel. They give us an English
menu, and on the menu is Horse. Yes, horse. We asked the bartender
if they really serve this (being the nave Americans that we are),
and she's like, yeah... We order 2 Guiness biers, and after putting
the glasses on the glass bedae (what IS that, anyway), and after
filling our glass with Guiness (by the way, every bier has its own
special glass), the waitress spills Danno's bier and she apologizes
profusely. Danno laughs slyly and says "Don't cry over spilled
Mother's Milk". He's so funny! Our last night in Europe...making
it last...
We ran across a little jazz fest on
the way back to the room. Had one last bier in yet another "town
square" type area, across from the Rathaus (built 1701). First
riding day is tomorrow.
Our room is actually an apartment....room to spread out!