The BIG bike ride in Germany - Part II
Wales/England/France/Germany/Czech/Germany/Denmark/Sweden/Norway/England
12th June. Day 84. Rode: Nortorf, Büdelsdorf, Schleswig and up lots of cycle routes to Flensburg just on the Danish border. Staying at my last German Youth Hostel.
11th June. Day 83. Hamburg, Norderstedt, Kaltenkirchen, Bad Bramstedt, Brokstedt, Aukrug and Nortorf. Staying at an up-market campsite, just like camping on a lawn.
10th June. Day 82. Seeing a bit of the city. Went to a customs free zone, full of old warehouses interwoven with canals. Then randomly found a HUGE motorbike gathering in the city center. Lots of photos were taken of the bikers and their machines.
9th June. Day 81. The gravity of Hamburg proved too great. Just had to go there. Rode about 100Km - Hitzacker, Neu Darchau, Bleckede, Lauenburg, Geesthacht and Hamburg. Went to the Cotton Club, a Jazz place with two Americans I met at the Youth Hostel.
8th June. Day 80. Schönfeld, Havelberg, Wittenberge, Lenzend, Dömitz. Over a new bridge into former West Germany (the roads are so much better!) Along a cycle route to Hitzacker. Staying at the Youth Hostel there. Not exactly round the world, but it'll do.
7th June. Day 79. UK general election. For once I wish I had a small radio to listen to the results. Got some distance today: Ketzin, Brandenburg, Genthin to the Elbe valley at Ferchland. Following the Elbe up: Jerichow, camping by a lake at Schönfeld.
6th June. Day 78. Eventually got out of Berlin. Exited via Spandau (as in ballet, presumebly) then Schönwalde, Börnicke. Got lost off-road trying to get to Dreibrück . Back-racked to Börnicke then Nauen and camping at Ketzin.
5th June. Day 77. Went to Sachsenhausen concentration camp, a lot of archive material there, but not for me as informative as my trip to Dachau. Moved hostel to 'The Clubhouse' in Mitte, one of the staff working there comes from Aberystwyth! Went out to sample some of the Berlin night life...
4th June. Day 76. My first puncture. Glass. Went to Körperwelten, an expo of plasticised people and body parts. Fascinating stuff.
3rd June. Day 75. Pounding the streets, hurting my feet. Went to the Pergamon Museum a collection of art and sculpture from the old world. Lots of late nights so not feeling up to too much else.
2nd June. Day 74. Saw the Bauhaus museum for design, then to a fun random street market. Saw the East Side Gallery. A long bit of standing wall. Waited for the crowds to die down in the evening to go and see the Reichstag and Foster's "Egg". Beautiful view of the city from here. I'll finish with this line:
"Many small people who in many small places do many small things can alter the face of the world"
1st June. Day 73. Sorting out a few things with my kit. Motivated myself to go to The Topography of Terrors about the Nazi power and terror structure. Then saw Checkpoint Charlie that was caught up in the 'romance' of the Cold War. Heard myths and escape stories at 'Haus Am Checkpoint Charlie' the museum of the wall.
31th May. Day 72. Did a walking tour of the city to get my bearings. Saw an awful lot of both East and West Berlin including bits of the wall, checkpoint Charlie, Hitler's bunker. The list goes on.
30th May. Day 71. Berlin at last.Falkenberg, Herzberg, Dahme, Pectus, Schönefeld, Zossen. Then followed the B96 and my nose into Berlin. Saw the Brandenberg Gate and then the Foster-ified Reichstag. Stopped and from there found my way to a very centeral youth hostel.
29th May. Day 70. Abundance of cooling wind blowing in the wrong direction today. Cycled Meissen, Großenhain, Elsterwerda, Bad Liebenwerda and camping at Falkenberg. This is what I like, sleeping right by a goods-train line.
28th May. Day 69. Had to replace my middle chainring today as all the Kms (and Miles) I have done have taken their toll.
27th May. Day 68. Been pounding the pavements as Dresden's centre is not really made for bikes with all the cobble stones and trams. Saw lots of the sights. There is lots of re-building going on, nasty dusty city. Saw a Jazz band playing outside, brings back memories of La Rochelle...
26th May. Day 67. Went out in Dresden this eve after a day of getting lots of practical things done. Took lots of photos in the 'Zwinger' a big palace, where there was group singing going on. Then after dark, on the banks of the Elbe saw Dresden Philomonic Orchestra and Dresden University Choir doing a free gig.
25th May. Day 66. Made Dresden. It wins the "worst roads so far" award. I don't hold it aginst them though. Cycled about 100Km Geyer, Wolkenstein, Freiburg, Nanndorf, Freital and then Dresden. Did about an extra 10Km in Dresden getting lost finding the hostel.
24th May. Day 65. Some festival with horn blowing and leafy branch waving today. This transpires to be Man's Day, they have a Woman's Day too here in Germany, so that people with and without kids can be celebrated. I approve. Cycled Bad Brambach, Adorf, Schöneck, Jagersgrün, Aue, Zwönitz and Geyer where I stayed at another YH. Got the photography bug again as the scenery is so great.
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