It rained frequently during the night but stopped at 6.30 to allow for the dismantling of tents in the dry. Munster is at the base of a long mountain pass from where you drop down to Colmar. We headed back into Munster to have a look around. Took photos of the storks nesting on the roof of the church. There was a market in the town square where there were stalls selling cheeses and sausages, fruit and veges. We were with Murray, Marilyn and Philip.
After a coffee and delicious croissant we got back on the bikes to ride out of town to Turckheim. It was gently downhill all the way and into the valley of the Rhine. Turckheim had a canal running along the side of the D10 and we went into the town through a stone archway. The buildings were very old, from the 1600's. The little butcher and bakery shops have the most delectable goods on display. Then back on our bikes again for the ride to Colmar. This is a much larger city - again with many old buildings in the town centre. It was a quite convuleted ride through the centre of town. We stopped to look at signs for the way when an elderly man on a bike asked if he could help. We were pleased to have Philip in our group as he said in French that we were heading to Freiburg. The man looked at his watch and said he had time so we should follow him. He led us through many different streets filled with Saturday morning shoppers to the main road. We thanked him, then headed back for a look around, knowing where we had to go to leave town.
We came across a wedding party leaving the Marie after their official wedding. There were many well dressed people waiting outside to greet them and throw large rose-shaped paper confetti.
From Colmar it was a flat ride through crop land and a few vineyards - Alsace wine region of course - towards lunch at Ihringenen. We crossed the Rhine into Germany. It is a very wide river with a large hydro station on it. There were houseboats on the northern side of the bridge.
Our group of five was last in to lunch because we had stopped so often to see the sights along the way. Lunch was French sticks, local cheeses, salami and lettuce and there was fresh fruit - plums, apricots, nectarines.
From there we we rode through a couple of little German towns and stopped at a lookout tower to get some photos of the valley and Freiburg in the distance about 11 kilometers away. Most of the cycling from there to Freiburg was on lovely wide smooth cycling paths. We arrived at the hotel about three pm and collected all our gear. Because it is a rest day tomorrow we get to stay in a hotel. Luxury - it is a lovely 4 star hotel. We have proper beds and an ensuite. We hung out our tent to dry and all our other damp gear to air. Not usual behaviour in a nice hotel, but all the riders rooms looked like Chinese laundries!
After cleaning ourselves up we met up with Murray and Marilyn, Jos, Mike and Bernice and Garis and walked along the road to a German restaurant. The meal was lovely, wild garlic soup, a salad and chicken with asparagus sauce. John and Jos had pork steaks. The waitress was delightful and went out of her way to help us. We were back in the hotel about 9.30 and off to bed.
After a coffee and delicious croissant we got back on the bikes to ride out of town to Turckheim. It was gently downhill all the way and into the valley of the Rhine. Turckheim had a canal running along the side of the D10 and we went into the town through a stone archway. The buildings were very old, from the 1600's. The little butcher and bakery shops have the most delectable goods on display. Then back on our bikes again for the ride to Colmar. This is a much larger city - again with many old buildings in the town centre. It was a quite convuleted ride through the centre of town. We stopped to look at signs for the way when an elderly man on a bike asked if he could help. We were pleased to have Philip in our group as he said in French that we were heading to Freiburg. The man looked at his watch and said he had time so we should follow him. He led us through many different streets filled with Saturday morning shoppers to the main road. We thanked him, then headed back for a look around, knowing where we had to go to leave town.
We came across a wedding party leaving the Marie after their official wedding. There were many well dressed people waiting outside to greet them and throw large rose-shaped paper confetti.
From Colmar it was a flat ride through crop land and a few vineyards - Alsace wine region of course - towards lunch at Ihringenen. We crossed the Rhine into Germany. It is a very wide river with a large hydro station on it. There were houseboats on the northern side of the bridge.
Our group of five was last in to lunch because we had stopped so often to see the sights along the way. Lunch was French sticks, local cheeses, salami and lettuce and there was fresh fruit - plums, apricots, nectarines.
From there we we rode through a couple of little German towns and stopped at a lookout tower to get some photos of the valley and Freiburg in the distance about 11 kilometers away. Most of the cycling from there to Freiburg was on lovely wide smooth cycling paths. We arrived at the hotel about three pm and collected all our gear. Because it is a rest day tomorrow we get to stay in a hotel. Luxury - it is a lovely 4 star hotel. We have proper beds and an ensuite. We hung out our tent to dry and all our other damp gear to air. Not usual behaviour in a nice hotel, but all the riders rooms looked like Chinese laundries!
After cleaning ourselves up we met up with Murray and Marilyn, Jos, Mike and Bernice and Garis and walked along the road to a German restaurant. The meal was lovely, wild garlic soup, a salad and chicken with asparagus sauce. John and Jos had pork steaks. The waitress was delightful and went out of her way to help us. We were back in the hotel about 9.30 and off to bed.
2 comments:
Looks like the weather is picking up for you. More than we can say for the All Blacks Test last night.
Wet, windy cold southerly straight from Antarctica. At least the result helped warm us once we got home (along with a wee dram of Jamesons fine Irish whiskey). NZ 21 Ireland 11.
It seems it was a good thing it was gently downhill yesterday and not precipitous like the previous day. Perhaps John still thought he was in the Southern Hemisphere when he put the replacement brake pads on upside down! Some things should be left to the professionals! :)
Post a Comment