Settle down!! - Tuesday July 27, 2010

Settle down!! - Tuesday July 27, 2010


Well we are back home on terre firma.


BTW - HAPPY ANNIVERSERY JEAN - 42 years today - how did you ever put up with me that long??


Yesterday we were up early at our motel in Hallbergmoos, Germany and headed to get breakfast then off to return the car. The guy was an hour late but we had loads of time anyway. It was a cool 60 degrees F - coat weather. At the Munich airport when we went to check-in, the gal there said our flight to Boston was delayed 3 hours. Jean silently pointed out a little note beside the check-in counter which said that Lufthanza's policy states that if your flight is delayed more than 2 hours, the customer has the right to discuss other options. The gal did not even ask us if we wanted to discuss, she went ahead and looked for other flights right away. One option was a direct flight to Toronto but if was leaving in 40 min. and she said it would be too rushed but she did find a flight with a stopover in Frankfurt that put us in Toronto 3 hours ahead so we took that option. It was a very smooth flight - 8 hours though, due to a heavy head wind. We landed in TO around 8 pm - a warm 84 degrees, got a shuttle to our motel here in Mississauga and had a good night's rest. Because of the time change, we were awake at 4 am - 10 am Germany time - so are catching up on e-mails here.



What an awesome trip we were allowed to enjoy.

We are grateful to our God for - the opportunity we have had to travel to Europe these past 8 weeks:
- the privilege we have had to view so many wonders of His creation
- the health we have enjoyed throughout the summer weeks there
- the safety we have enjoyed in over 7500 km of travel by car in 5 countries
- the enjoyment we have experienced while riding our bikes for 538 km
- the endurance we were given to climb to inexplicable vistas
- the gratitude we have felt in walking in the footsteps of our forefathers who
fled to America to practice their faith
- the friends we have made along the way
- the opportunity to share some of these experiences with Merle and Phyllis
- the friends back home who very capably cared for our home while we were traveling
- our great family and friends who kept in touch with us while we were on the road
- the 2 families with Mennonite Your Way for opening their homes to us
- a relationship which allowed my wife and I to plan many details in the year(s)
before and during the trip without too many disagreements.

Last Day In Europe - July 25, 2010

Last Day In Europe - July 25, 2010


Today we traveled 45 minutes south west of Munich to the Ammersee area. It is fed by the Ammer River, one of the larger here in Germany. As with other waterfront areas, it is quite touristy but does not have the sandy beaches for swimming. It does have lots of bike trails around the sea but of coarse we did not have those to use. It is relatively close to Munich so is used by these people as a recreation area. What we saw most was sail boats - every little harbour had lots of sailboats and there were a large number using the lake today since it was SUNNY and windy for a change. We stopped at the town of Herrsching on the eastern shore - there was a Promenade along the waterfront and lots of folks were watching the sailboats and the wind surfers and the paddle wheel boats cross-crossing the lake. We ate lunch near the dock then walked further around the shoreline. The promenade at one point opened into a garden complete with a castle. On the trip "home" we circled the lake and headed back on the autobahn. Near the motel here we stopped at a vacant grocery store lot to clean the car out and re-arrange things before the car is turned in tomorrow morning at 9 am.
No those are not walruses on the beach - last evening we walked in town a bit - did we ever mention the slugs on the sidewalks here - ask Jean what happens when you run over them with the bicycle wheel.

Out Into The Countryside - Saturday July 24, 2010

Out Into The Countryside - Saturday July 24, 2010

Rained all night and rained all day - the canals around here are so muddy and full - at places it appears they are running over onto the road. We were serenaded all night with the rain running off the roof outside - no down spout. Which reminds me - some places here have a chain hanging down from the eavestrough opening - the water follows the chain down quietly.
Soooooo, today was mostly a driving day out into the country. We did find an OBI store equivalent to our Home Depot Stores but they also have more - everything except groceries I think. An observation or two - Germany has no round door knobs to buy... all door handles have right or left pointing handles. All windows and doors here have 3 positions for the handle...straight down is lock...straight up the top of the door or window tips into the room about a foot for ventilation and is locked....straight horizontal and the door or window opens on the side hinges into the room...ingenious. I love their doors and windows.
We found a McDonalds closeby so went for breakfast there. Great drive out into the countryside east of Munich - little willages every 3 -4 km - farms are in town and farmers come and go from the centre of town with their wagon loads of hay, corn or manure.
We observed more solar paneled barn roofs and also low free standing ground frames covering whole fields with solar panels.
Anyone know what crop the last picture is?? It grows to about 4 feet high and when harvested the stubble left is 2 feet high - stocks are about 1/2" thick.

On The Road In The Rain - Friday July 23, 2010

On The Road In The Rain - Friday July 23, 2010

We left Gottingen around 8:15 a.m. after a terrific breakfast at the Clarion Motel. It rained most of the way as we drove south east about 350 km across Germany. It seemed many more people were doing the same - traffic was very heavy most of the way. We stopped 3 or 4 times for breaks and plodded on arriving at our Motel near Munich Airport. We will stay here for Saturday and Sunday before dropping off our car and catching our flight back to Toronto. There are several areas close here that we will check out in the next couple days. No pictures today - rain drops do not make for good photos.

Good-bye to Klixbull, Germany - Thursday July 21, 2010

Good-bye to Klixbull, Germany - Thursday July 21, 2010


We waved good-bye to Wera and Hans as we drove out their driveway and in front of their house then headed south. They are such a nice family so it was difficult to leave.
Last night I had picked the city of Gottingen as being about 1/2 way to Munich where we could spend the night. There were a number of major highways intersecting at that location and we have learned that it is easier to find a Motel near the autobahns. We stopped several times for rest on the autobahn - there is no time to relax on these autobahns - the traffic is very intense at times, especially around major cities.
Around noon the GPS traffic alarm went off - a loud ding-ding-ding, then instructions on the screen asking if I wanted her to find an alternate route since there was a major traffic back-up ahead. having never heard that before, I did not respond and we kept going at our normal speed - after all the traffic was moving along fine. About 1/2 an hour later - same alarm and this time I responded with "Yes". She even indicated on the screen how much time we could save with this detour. Soon she directed us off on a secondary road and we followed the autobahn for about 20 km and could see the traffic moving slowly. Her detour brought us back onto the autobahn and soon we were sitting still then would move a very little distance and stop again. It continued this way for an hour or so and then the first sign of any cause was a flashing light indicating for us to squeeze 3 lanes into 2. We thought - all this for construction. Then shortly when we were single lane we saw the cause of all this back-up. There had been an accident probably in the night and a major fire that set the woods and guardrails and who knows what else on fire. The road crew were working to repair the road and the guardrails. It must have been bad - the fire in the woods continued for a 1/2 km or more. Once we cleared that area it was smooth sailing on to Gottingen.
That is one feature of the new TomTom GPS that I think I might like. I still prefer my old Garman but somebody dripped it.
On the GPS we saw there was a Clarion Hotel just off the autobahn so checked it out and this is where we will spend the night. Supper was at a Burger King several blocks west.
Tomorrow the plan is to drive on to near Munich and get a motel there. We have Saturday and Sunday around Munich then before we catch our plane home.
Since we were traveling today we did not take pictures but have included some from the previous day near Dagebull, Germany just 20 km west of "home"
The rail line seems to extend out into the sea and we were not sure if they were taking the rock out to build up the track or shoreline further or perhaps they are mining this rock out there and shipping it inland. It did have black shiny places that looked a lot like coal.
The slanted barn roof is actually solar panels on the roof. The German government are offering major incentives for farmers and businesses so they are everywhere. It must be financially beneficial because some farmers are taking whole fields to install solar panel fields at ground level but on an angle to maximize the sun's rays I presume.

Something New On Our Last Day Here In North Germany - Wednesday July 21, 2010

Something New On Our Last Day Here In North Germany - Wednesday July 21, 2010


We were anxious to make good use of our bikes today since we are leaving them here when we leave tomorrow. Annika and Andre here bought them from us and we are happy with that decision since the cost of shipping them back home is quite significant. As far as we can determine, Air Canada has one of the highest rates for shipping bicycles back home. Our tickets over were with Austrian Air and the bicycles shipped at a much lower cost.
We had not explored the nearest coastal town of Dagebull yet so headed in that direction. It has a dock for large ferry service to nearby islands and beyond. Along with the ferry terminal there are a number of hotels and a large swimming area along the sea.
What was new however was the fact that as well as renting little bamboo cabanas, they also rent little sheds about the size of a garden sheds - just plain square corners, flat roofs with a vendor type door that opens up on the ocean side as well as a man door at the side. They are rented by families to store their ‘stuff ‘ while swimming. These are all planted about 6 feet apart - all different colours.
It was very windy and we were riding into the wind along a path that was shared by many sheep. At places there was a gate that we had to open and close behind us to keep the sheep in their proper field. At places we rode along the top of one of the many dykes, originally designed to contain the high sea water. After about 2 hours we headed back to the car and decided to follow the Windmill route closeby. Supposedly there were to be windmills along the route or in the towns that connected the route. We found neither windmills in the towns nor along the routes - the only “windmills” visible were the wind turbines - of coarse they are everywhere anyway. At one of the towns we decided to park the car and ride our bikes for one last time to the next town about 7 km away to where we thought we remembered there was a McDonalds. After asking at the edge of town, the lady said “no McDonalds- only 15 km away“. We opted for a coffee and icecream cone instead at a local café.
After arriving home here, I removed the panniers from my bike and packaged them up for shipping with us on the plane. I oiled the bikes and shined them up for Annika and Andre then put them in her Grandpa‘s shed.
We took one last drive out into the countryside after supper. It will be difficult to leave here tomorrow - we have enjoyed northern Germany and Denmark and especially our “home “ for the last 7 days at Wera and Hans Carstensen in Klizbull, Germany. If you are ever in the area and looking for a great place to stay we highly recommend them.

Down On The Farm - Tuesday July 20, 2010

Down On The Farm - Tuesday July 20, 2010


It was back to Denmark to bike today along the marked trail that criss-crosses the German/Denmark border - probably our last opportunity. It is only about 5 km north of “home” here in Klixbull.
We parked the Twingo, unloaded the bikes and headed east for about 5 km back through the farmland. Farmers with large tractors and huge wagons were on the back roads carrying loads of hay and chopped wheat back to the barns storage. Storage in Denmark is mostly above ground on large piles, packed down with tractor wheels and covered with black plactic - held down in place by old rubber tires placed edge to edge. It is only here that we see almost ripened wheat being chopped off for feed similar to as we used to chop corn with a forage harvester and blow it up into the silo except their silo is a mound about 10 feet high x 30 feet wide on the ground. The wheat at that stage must have the high protein for cattle feed needed during the winter months - not only winter months though - the cows are in the barn most all the time in the large dairy operations. It is very dry in places and many farmers are irrigating their corn and hay fields. We saw big fields of potatoes being irrigated along the way as well.
While riding along through Denmark we saw a farm sign with the farm name “Jersey Canada”. On the way back 2 fellows were out beside the barn so we wheeled in curious to know what was the Canada connection. The younger - about 25 years old - said that he worked on a farm in Alberta for 2 years and learned genetics and they are building a similar herd there in Denmark. He spoke English very well and when I told him such he just smiled and told me about his Alberta work story. I asked him if I could take a picture of the sign and he said to take all the pictures that I wanted. We lingered a while for a rest there in the shade by their driveway and took several more pictures of their operation.
Later we rode into the larger Danish town of Tonder and were soon in the middle of a market/sidewalk sale. It appears they have it every day since there were bus loads of tourists there to buy their wares - everything from vegetables to jewelry to clothes. FYI, Fran, I even had the chance to buy one of those delicious raw fish sandwiches but declined since we had our own lunches. We spent close to 2 hours there walking the cobbled - car - free streets. Near the end of our time there, the Knights went through town and followers were handing out leaflets about an upcoming event we assume. After riding about 14 km we headed back to the car and took the long way home along the border - farmer everywhere were busy taking advantage of the nice windy and sunny weather.
Danish roads signs are white with red letters an only a couple feet off the ground - they must not get a lot of snow accumulating or the drivers could not find their way. Perhaps it melts as soon as it hits the ground.