Advertisement
Published: March 26th 2013
Turnhout to Valkenswaard
Heineken beer advertised widelyLeaving Valkenswaard in Holland behind, I slowly made my way to the German border in the vicinity of Roermund. A border, where guards inspect your passports has of course long gone, however I always find it interesting how things slowly change from one country to the next.
The weather in the meantime has been unusually cold for this time of year and I have still had to battle with temperatures around freezing point for much of the way. This, of course, was not going to dissuade me from indulging in my first German ice cream for a very long time, which I had the pleasure of tasting in the small town of Bruggen close to the border.
From Bruggen I made my way to Osterath, where I lived with my Aunty and Uncle and cousins from the age of 7 until 12. As always, I received a tremendous hearty welcome from all of my relatives who fed me delicious German food, beer and lots of cake.
I also popped by my friend Jurg's barber shop and tried to fool him (hadn't seen him for 7 years) by wearing my cold weather hat, red jacket and sun glasses. Firstly,
Valkenswaard
Bicycles everywhere not many Germans wear red jackets, I was sat in a warm shop with a winter coat on, and the sun wasn't shining so it didn't take him long to work out that I wasn't there to rob his shop.
For me it is always wonderful to catch up with my relatives and friends in Germany and no matter how long I am away from there it still kind of feels like home.
Following a busy weekend, I set off again, this time along the Rhine heading south firstly stopping off in Cologne. A beautiful city with enormous historical importance, the dome and the railway bridge remain firmly lodged in my mind. The bridge which spans the Rhine has thousands of security padlocks attached to it. When couples become engaged or get married they have their names etched on the locks and then secure them to the bridge before throwing the key over the side into the Rhine. There must be a a lot of keys rusting away in the Rhine.
From Cologne I continued southwards, where the scenery is picturesque with one castle literally after another. There are even more castles there than there are in
Wales.
I have predominantly stayed in Youth Hostels along the way due to the weather, of which there are absolutely hundreds in Germany all providing cheap accommodation with excellent food, some of which are also located in castles.
Meandering southwards along the Rhine I bore left on reaching Mainz and then followed the River Main in the direction of Frankfurt. A short overnight stop in the financial capital of Germany, I finally made it to Stockstadt where I received a rapturous welcome from my cousin Monika's 28 year old son Marcel, an ex naval rating, whom I'd never met before and who thrust a beer into my hand before I even had a chance to put my bike down. I'm loving it!
Having had a chance to sink one bottle of beer, I was shown where I could put my bags for the weekend. Marcel had organised a further crate of beer and soft drinks for me in my bedroom. It appears that all Sailors think a like. Great reception!
In the meantime my cousins Monika and Sabine in Stockstadt also made a great fuss of me, feeding me with lots of lovely German food, German
Valkenswaard to Brueggen
.... and train enthusiasts beer and Schnapps.
On Sunday, we visited the famous 'Schlappeseppel' brewery in Aschaffenburg, where we had what's known in the Navy as a lunch time session.
I was introduced to dark beer, white beer, and all sorts of other beers..........they all tasted great! Of course drinking beer always leads to some banter and antics and a set of false teeth were brought out to improve all our good looks.
The one set of false teeth were handed from person to person with just someone's beer to sanitise them each time they went from mouth to mouth. A fun afternoon was had by all.
Leaving Stockstadt behind, I crossed the River Main and visited my Aunty Ilse and Uncle Manfred in Mainaschaff, who again looked after me splendidly throughout my stay and where we had lots of opportunity to exchange stories about our travels through India.
I am currently sat in a Youth Hostel in the town of Erbach, 40 miles to the south of Aschaffenburg preparing myself mentally for the ride to Wurzburg tomorrow. Thus far, the rides have all been easy along the Rhine and the Main, but tomorrow I start my first little
Arriving in Germany
Crossing the border near Roermund hill climb. The journey continues through Germany for a few more days yet, before I cross the border into Austria and commence my next adventure as I slowly proceed towards Vienna.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.047s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 13; qc: 33; dbt: 0.0196s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Wolfie
non-member comment
Keep it going fella.