Beautiful Germany!
Ahhh, it just feels how the saying goes: "Manchmal sieht man den Wald vor lauter Bäumen nicht - Sometimes one doesn't see the forest because of all the trees."
Now I have lived here in middle Europe for the longest part of my life and I mostly went abroad to seek beautiful nature and exitement. What a fool I am - it's all been right in front of my doorstep! Ok, I agree, nothing beats the roughness of the Norwegian coastline. Nothing beats the thrill of standing next to large game in the Kenyan or Tanzanian savanna. Nothing beats the emptyness of Mongolia. But do we always need to beat a record just because we need a bit of recreation? By now, with all those cheap airline offers we fly half around the globe for a fucking weekend trip!!! We work in Bruxelles (ahem, they... at this point I do exclude myself) and fly home to Berlin, Barcelona and Belgrade to meet our partners on Saturdays. Hello?!
Some of my friends (I am sure some of yours, too) don't feel as if they are on a holiday if they don't get there in economy class. I must admit that I admire their simplicity: Visa card, E-ticket, security check, go to gate 23. Always the same stuff to pack: passport, bikini, aftersun lotion. A book in duty free along with a new pair of sunglasses. Towels are handed out at the bar next to the 4-star-all-inclusive pool. And how turquise the water is! And how cheap the cocktails! And how hot the sun! And how you can eat as many barbequed shrimps as you desire!
Well, yes, this is different. The European waterways. Muscle power. What a bore. It is certainly more interesting to excercise during Kieser Training sessions. And who wants to get to Dresden and Prague along the river Elbe? Or to Paris and LeHavre along the Seine? Budapest along the Danube? Or to Bordeaux, Valencia, Sevilla, Belgrade, Florence, Pisa or Marseille?
However, for all those jet-setters who are kind of bored with the way all 4-star-luxury hotels look the same, worse, all their guests (including you...) or who feel that lately their CO2 footprint starts looking obese; there is a new paradise to be discovered, unveiled, explored: your home country.
These friendly little books show just a little selection of fantastic trips along Europe's rivers! From the source to the delta or the opposite way, be assured that you will have an experience that will not forget for along time: small wooden bridges over little trickling streams, birds nesting and hunting along the shore, small side roads and singletracks through a moist, rich senting forest, cozy little huts on the roadside to seek shelter from the occasional rain, beautiful old town centres, churches, monasteries, waterfalls, gorges... NATURE! There are plenty of restaurants, camping sites and hostels along the way (you can even make pre-bookings on the internet). There are bicycle shops and other cyclists to ask for help with a flat or other technical issues, and there are plenty exciting and interesting things to see and learn not only for kids but also for adults. There are grottoes, castles, beaches and fantasy forests everywhere. You just have to go and get them!
Within the range of a couple of hundred kilometers of your hometown you will find a big river that goes through pretty exciting places. The Danube, the Elbe, the Neckar, the Altmuehl, the Rhone, the Seine, the Dordogne, the Po, the Rhine, the Themse, the Shannon, and so many more.
The downside is: there are no overpriced duty-free stores. So you will have to get your book and your shades in a real shop. You might have to hop on a train and enjoy the view. You also have to live without the excitement of a security check each and every time you change planes (but they don't take away the Swiss Army Knife and the lighter in your hand luggage!). And you will not receive any additional frequent flyer miles. (If you have already had this thought - please stop reading my blog.)
From Kassel (where I visited the Rohloff factory) I first follow the river Fulda southwards. Riding along the course of a river is perfect when you don't feel like a champion. A river usually isn't flowing over a lot of hills. It goes pretty smooth. And if you are lucky it goes downhill - all the way to the ocean.
It is mid November now, the weather is getting pretty cold. At night the temperature drops almost to zero. When I am lucky I stay overnight in small wooden shelters or on the terrace of a fishing club. I have only my summer sleepingbag and so I freeze a bit if I don't eat enough for dinner. That's why I usually make a big pot of stew in the evenings. Fresh vegetables, potatoes, carrottes, turnip, celery, onions, cabbage and a bit of meat - mhhhhh. Eating something hot as well as drinking sufficiently makes a big change during the night.
The mornings are beautiful! Drops of dew on the grass, mist in the forests and the fields. There are still some flocks of migrating birds flying south. And those who stay for the winter sing for breakfast. Once in a while I pass a bird-watching-tower, wooden platforms near a lake or nature reserve that permit observing animals without disturbing them much. I see herons, falcons, eagles, swans, wild geese, countless ravens and lots of small stuff that I don't know the names of.
Along small roads with very little traffic I continue my way south. I cross the river Main and cycle through the Odenwald to Mannheim where I visit an old friend from highschool. Then I follow the river Neckar to Stuttgart and see some friends from university. Many times I cross big bridges over the busy (famous or infamous?!) German Autobahn. Thousands - no - millions of people are in a rush to get to work and back home. Thousands more spend their time working on the Autobahn as truck drivers, highway patrol and repairmen. I remember how I used to feel the haste on these roads; always in a hurry to arrive, always looking at the speed-meter and the numerous warning signs at the road side. Always pissed off at the roadworks for slowing down the traffic or at someone else speeding. Always impatiently looking for the next gas station, and barely ever enjoying the ride.
In the small town of Wehr I arrive in late November, just in time to celebrate my mother's birthday. The day after my arrival it starts storming and snowing heaviliy. Not a good time to cross the Alps in Switzerland. My two months'
detour for Medecins Sans Frontieres to India now takes its toll. And so what? I decide to spend Christmas and with it the entire winter once more at my brother's in northern Norway. If snow then lots of it! Plus Husky dogs :)
No comments:
Post a Comment