Germany

Well today was the day we left Germany, and we thought that we should do an additional entry about our experiences there. All in all, it was an overwhelmingly positive experience, with a mixture of interesting differences and great new experiences for us all.

Inevitably, a lot of our impressions have to do with food and drink. Kieran discovered a love of German beer, in particular the hefeweissen (James had already developed this particular taste on previous visits). We also discovered radlers, a mix of beer and lemonade (sprite, for those readers who aren't Australian), which is perfect for lunch during a long ride, and named for the cyclists who drink it so they can still be ready to do some serious kms afterwards. We discovered the Germans' love of meat mit pommes (with potatoes) - potato salad, chips, baked potatoes, a seemingly endless variety. Of course, this has led to some new strategy development when it comes to meals, with Gillian and James ordering one main meal and one salad which they then share in an effort to try and eat more vegetables. In principle it works well, plus or minus the odd ordering mishap and failure of will. The other favourite has been the bread, and pretzels. James has been loving the rye breads, and Kieran has renewed his love of pretzels - the one covered in cheese was probably the favourite.

As we've travelled through (mostly) Bavaria, the noticeable thing has been the sheer number of churches and the associated bell ringing. While hearing the bells to mark the time is straightforward enough (although we're not convinced that they need to start so early or finish so late!), we never really understood the seemingly random times when they just ring and ring. We've gotten to counting well over 100 rings at some stages before we gave up - presumably this marks the start of Mass (mostly a Catholic area) or some other significant religious time (vespers at Weltenburg Abbey, for instance). However, this remains an educated guess at best...

The other striking thing has been the patience of the motorised traffic when dealing with bicycles, who might sometimes have missed a give way or gotten a little confused as to which side of the road (or which direction) they should be travelling on. Not one honk of a horn or raised voice in displeasure to be heard. It has been a refreshing change from riding in Australia which sometimes feels like low level warfare between cyclist and motorist. There is a better way!

The highlight was of course the excellent and generous hospitality of the Bunschu family - which was far more than we expected or probably deserved. We only hope that we get the chance to repay it some day back in Australia. Following close behind was arriving at, and staying at, Kloster Weltenburg. This is located in a spectacular position on a bend on the river at the start of a huge gorge. They have a beautiful chapel, excellent accommodation and ancient and award winning beer. It is a winning combination which we would recommend to all who have the opportunity.

So farewell to Germany and hello to Austria. We look forward to a host of new experiences in the second country along our way to Belgrade.