At some point in the middle of the night, I wasn't quite sure whether the tapping sound on the open skylight window was an indication of rain or not. Not long after, there was no doubt; the rain was coming down fairly hard and the thought of a wet Thursday's riding didn't seem like something to look forward too. However, a few hours later when we climbed out of bed, the view outside seemed vaguely damp but there was no evidence of rain.
Twice the stork's reappeared along the trail. Not the least jaded we immediately stopped, pulled out cameras, and watched these beautiful, graceful birds. The first pair were in the middle of a meadow, doing their best impressions of cows by grazing as they strolled. The next example was a solo bird standing in its nest high up on top of a pole. They cooperate by not seeming to be the least bit frightened by humans.
We spend most of the day in and out of the national park. It seems deserted except for the cyclists passing through. We did not see hikers, picnickers, or campers. We chatted with a couple from Switerland who were also amazed by the lack of infrastructure and people. His commented that Switzerland has too many people.
Near a place called Ankershagen, we stopped to check out some brick and stone ruins at the side of the road. This was apparently one of the places on the Salt Road, a trading route between the Baltic and Mediterranean for salt, which we knew from trips to Italy and elsewhere was not only used to preserve meats and fish, but was also used as a sort of currency. In the middle of the description (in English as well as German) of the salt trade of 'white gold' on the notice board beside the ruins, was the sentence 'Much in demand by Romans and Greeks was as well long blond hair for the wigs production'.
Six kilometers from Waren, the location of our hotel for the night, we stopped for lunch in a small tourist cafe for visitors to the national park. Scrutinized the menu with the use of our phone for translations, talked to the waitress, ordered and then waited for nearly an hour. What was to be a late lunch was beginning to look like an early dinner.
Waren is located in and around the intersection of three large lakes. The tourist area and our hotel face the Muritz. Walking through the streets we saw many old timbered buildings that apparently survived the destruction of the war.
Tonight was our first really good German dinner in a small restaurant with a staff of three. Fish is the speciality in the Waren restaurants. We don't know if it is locally sourced but it was deliciously prepared. At the end of the meal I complemented the staff in my German/English.
Posted with Blogsy
What's the story on the slide?
ReplyDelete