Day 28 - Bavaria Bound

---

The skies looked threatening before we left Frankfurt, and with good reason. The forecast was for rain starting from around 8am and thunderstorms possible from midday through to 5pm. No time to take chances, we dressed for the weather and just as well.
We left about 8:15am and had travelled less than 3kms before we were sheltering under some trees along the Main River while the rain pelted down around us. Oh dear! While the rain persisted, at least it wasn't cold.
Our ride today was to Aschaffenburg (Bavaria), and a relatively short 51kms. The ride was actually very scenic and enjoyable, apart from the rain. We were riding along the river as much as behind green vegetation which hid the river from us. We also cross onto the west side of the river today.
We made very good time considering the conditions and stopped in the town of Hainburg for our morning break where the rain miraculously cleared and the sun started to shine through. We found a bakery that served coffee and was tempted by the luxurious tasty treats spread out before us. Jeff went for the custard slice and me the plum and crumble slice. It was such a big slice I decided I'd have half now and half at the end of the day's ride. Who was I kidding!!!
After we left the bakery the rain never returned. We're only 40kms south of Frankfurt as the crow flies but that obviously made a big difference in the weather.
The main attraction of Aschaffenburg is Johnnisburg Palace which was erected between 1605 and 1614. It's a beautiful and imposing building which dominates the skyline as you ride in along the Main River. We had made such good time that we had arrived in Aschaffenburg well ahead of our check-in time of 3pm and had only done a slightly embarrassing 54kms for the day. We decided to ride along the river front to see the sights, kill some time, add some kilometers and stop for lunch. We still ended up getting to the hotel at 1:30pm and were politely told we could check our bags but couldn't check-in until 2:30pm. At least this gave us a chance to take the bikes out back and give them a good hose down and clean after the days riding accumulating grit and mud.
We are staying at our first Ibis Hotel and it's quite nice (room is a bit small) and the staff are very friendly and helpful. All you can ask for really.
Our destination tomorrow is Lohr a Main.
Distance travelled today: 64kms
Distance travelled so far: 1,592kms

---