Gearing Up

Hello from Germany. We’ve been here with Matthias’ family for about a week and are staying until May while we get ready for the next portion of our travels. We spent Easter in Matthias’ family vacation home in the Harz area (a small mountain range with zillions of walking/hiking/biking paths, where we spent a few weeks last year hunting mushrooms.) They have two days of Easter here (Sunday and Monday), and since the family is not religious at all, we just used the holidays as an excuse to eat big meals. Also, on the night before Easter, all over Germany (or at least the region, as far as I know) they have Easter Fires – or bonfire parties – in each town. Again, this doesn’t seem to have anything to do with religion (welcoming spring/saying goodbye to winter as I’ve been told), and people just gather around the fire and talk, drink and eat. The fire we attended was for Eggeroder Brunen, a hamlet of about 80 people where Matthias’ family has their house. I was impressed with the size of the fire, but Matthias said it’s tiny compared to those of other “real” towns. Anyway, it was really fun. Links to photos (and video) of the fire and more are to the left under "Germany 2007" and I have added pictures from Portugal to the link below that ("Back in Tarifa")

We spent another couple of days in the Harz before coming back here to Gommern to continue planning our trip. As it stands now (of course, this is always subject to change) we are going to ride on the North Sea Cycle Route this summer. We plan to leave in mid-May and ride along the Elbe River through Hamburg to the North Sea, which we will then follow to Belgium where we will get a ferry to Scotland. Then, we want to cycle north through Scotland all the way to the Shetland Islands (by ferry,) where we would get a boat to Denmark. Then, down through Denmark and back to Germany.

With one bike tour already behind us, I’m looking forward to a “smoother ride” on this trip. First, we are going to do a bit more route planning as we need to book the ferries in advance (for example, the ferry from the Shetland Islands to Denmark only goes twice a month and (supposedly) gets pretty full.) So I’ve been working on planning our route to rendezvous with the ferries. In terms of making the ride more comfortable, we have ordered a bike trailer, in which we plan to tote various amenities such as chairs, a tent shelter, and sleeping mats. So, if it does rain a lot this time (did I say Scotland?) we should at least be able to relax and stay dry while camping. And, of course, Matthias is going to pull the trailer….

In the meantime, we are getting our bikes tuned up, ordering maps, checking on ferries, and shopping for supplies and equipment. The weather is getting pretty nice and the flowers are beginning to bloom (see photo of Matthias' mom's garden to the right) Also, we are excited to visit Katja and Thorsten in Bremen, as well as go to Hamburg with Matthias’ parents to see Mamma Mia later this month. Finally, we are working on an itinerary for Stu’s visit in the beginning of May. Should be enough to keep me busy at least for the next few weeks!