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.