I had been out of touch by email since I left Oberammergau, and I was told there was a cyber caf� in N�rdlingen, so right after breakfast I ventured out to find it. I didn�t find the cyber caf� but I did have the unique experience of watching a town wake up. Worker, bundled up against the 0 deg C morning scuttled through the town square to their jobs, merchants swept already pristine sidewalk3 before setting out their merchandise. It reminded me of some of the scenes from My Fair Lady.
After returning to the hotel to ask for help, I did eventually did find the cyber caf�. I resumed contact with the outside world, then climbed the church tower to survey the town, its wall, and the distant walls of the Ries, the ancient remains of a meteor impact crater, in which N�rdlingen is situated.
I returned to the hotel for lunch, then back to the Bahnhof to catch the bus to Dinkelsb�hl.
Just an observation: if doing this trip by bus, it is advisable to do it in the summer, when school is out. During the school year they use the buses to transport school children, and at mid-day the buses are crowded. None of the teenagers were willing to give me a seat, some had their bags next to them and didn�t seem willing to give up the space. After a while the bus completely cleared out and I had my choice of seats, then as we neared Dinkelsb�hl it filled up again.
After my excitement over N�rdlingen, Dinkelsb�hl was disappointing. Maybe I was out of sorts from the bus trip; maybe is was the lack of lockers at the bus station, which meant I had to carry my bag into town, where the tourist office let me store it. Somehow it just seemed to me that Dinkelsb�hl lacked charm. I spent some time walking around the north end of town, went out the northern Rothenburger Tor and relaxed in the park across the moat from the wall, then retrieve my bag before going out the gate to the east and walking along the moat to the south end. The wall is very strange � no Wehrgang. Was the wall rebuilt at sometime without it, or did they plan on defending the wall from the many towers along the wall? I think I returned to the bus station an hour earlier than planned, and caught the bus north to Feuchtwangen.
Again, my last stop of the day was a pleasant surprise. Feuchtwangen is a nice town. Nothing there of much historical significance, however. It has a pleasant town square and two churches, both Protestant, I believe, next to each other. Strange. How does one decide which one to go to?
Feuchtwangen was the first place I saw �the birds�. These are large, black birds which seem to like the same habitat as pigeons. But I think they take over. They make a strange cackling sound. I would see them circling around the church towers.
Today was pretty much a travel day. I spent some time first thing in the brisk morning enjoying a walk around Feuchtwangen, then came back and had a k�nnchen of coffee at my hotel, then finally walked down to the Mooswiese to catch the bus to Rothenburg.
Hmm. Feucht means moisture, and their �fairgrounds are called mooswiese, which means moss meadow. Seems to be something about moisture in this town.
The bus to Rothenburg had a change at the station in Domb�hl. It was essentially deserted except for a friendly feline who greeted by as I got off the bus. I suspect someone who regularly rides the bus gives her tidbits. Anyway, she had a collar so I don�t think she was a stray.
The next bus took me to Rothenburg. I�ve been there twice before, so I had no plans for a long stopover. Just had time for lunch (D�nner Kabab) at a kiosk outside the Bahnhof.
The bus arrived earlier than I expected, so I got on. She left early, drove around town picking up school children, then came back full to the station at the scheduled time. I was glad that I got on early; I had a seat.
The bus went to Creglingen, where I had to transfer to a bus for Weikersheim. The bus to Weikersheim went to the Bahnhof, where I caught the train for a short ride to Laudenbach, where I spent the night.