Merry Meersburg...

Friday, September 16, 2016
Friedrichshafen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
We were looking forward to our final day's pedal, especially as it was relatively short (32km) and we knew we would be stopping in the wine haven of Meersburg for lunch. This leg of the cycle was particularly beautiful as we glided along easy gradients with the lake to our right and hillside vines to our left.

Meersburg is a town built up from the lakeside on two main levels, framed by vineyards . It is known for its two castles, imaginatively named 'Old Castle' and 'New Castle'. Being pedestrianised, the town centre was pleasant to wander around, albeit somewhat strenuous as the 'Unterstadt' and 'Oberstadt' are connected by steep stairways and streets. The Meersburg vineyards at the northern banks of the Bodensee are famous within Germany. Of course, we embraced this claim to fame by sampling a couple of generous measures. Needless to say, the afternoon cycle to Friedrichshafen was a bit wobbly and Sam amused the locals by cycling into a bush whilst trying to take a photograph...

We had achieved our goal of cycling around the Bodensee! Winni, relieved to receive his deposit back on the bikes, immediately treated us to a celebratory ice-cream + beer + whisky combo back at his place. Later that evening we dined at a Yugoslavian restaurant where the interior decor remained true to the pre-1991 era.

Before the big family BBQ of Saturday evening, we took a pleasant walk with Luna the dog around a nearby woodland with good views across the town and the conquered lake . We also had to partake in the necessary duty of early afternoon Schnapps tasting in order to choose our preferred tipple for later on. It was lovely to catch up with everyone together during the meat frenzy - Sam's GCSE German took a hammering but seemed to improve as the evening went on, much aided by the plentiful beer and Schnapps.

Autumn arrived in Heiseloch on Sunday as we awoke to leaden skies and the sound of rain pattering against the skylight. A perfect day for the Zeppelin Museum, which was definitely worth a visit. Construction of the first airship began in 1899 in a floating assembly-hall in the Bay of Manzell just outside Friedrichshafen. After many challenges, the first successful flight occurred in 1908 to Zurich and back. The museum's reconstruction of a luxury cruiser airship was fascinating.

Back at the Wolk's, we found Erich meticulously slicing up a variety of Wuerst for the evening 'Wuerstsalat' which ensured the meat sweats continued...




Comments

2025-02-11

Comment code: Ask author if the code is blank