Karlsruhe to Heidelberg: An Old and Crooked Hotel

October 22, 2015

We had the best breakfast of the trip this morning. We really enjoyed it. The hotel was quiet and comfortable. I wish we had a picture of the room. It was called the Missoni Zimmer, and if you are familiar with the designer, you can imagine the decor. It was nice for the night, but I wouldn't want to live with it. Our bikes were happy in their heated underground garage. The floor of the garage was painted bright yellow, and was almost slippery. We walked the bikes up the ramp to get out and it was a steep but short push.

Ready to roll, after a fantastic breakfast.

The riding was flat and easy for the entire day. The route out of Karlsruhe was very well signed...so much so that the CN had to concede that the GTW came in handy a few times. Just outside of Bruchsal we met some men in the German army out supervising some kind of military exercise. They were great fun to talk to. When they discovered we had come from Canada, they wondered aloud what the heck we were doing in Bruchsal, and not say, Berlin or Munich. We explained we have a flight on Monday from Frankfurt and explained where we have been. They were impressed I think, which felt good, because these guys looked fit.

These guys were fit, and fun, but look very serious in this photo. It was great to meet them. Thanks guys!

Because of the army's surprise that we were in Bruchsal, we had low expectations, so imagine our surprise when we went around a corner, and there was the Bruchsal Palace, huge, gorgeous and built in 1720. It is famous for its opulent Baroque staircase. It was tempting to ride back and explain to the guys that we just don't have this stuff in Canada.

One moment we were on the bike path, which routed us into a park, and unexpectedly, there it was. It is a three wing palace, with other Baroque buildings around it. We love it when we stumble on this sort of thing.

After Bruchsal the ride was relaxing, and mostly through forest. We stopped for lunch at a picnic table after about 35 km. At one point we popped out of the forest and over the Autobahn. Keith and I stood and watched for about 10 minutes. They were six lanes, three in each direction. It was almost mesmerizing to watch. So many people, going so fast. I am so grateful we have the luxury of taking our time at this stage in our lives. We dropped back into the forest and I was struck by how long you could hear the cars.

Wow, some of these cars were moving fast!

Off the overpass and back to peace and quiet.

Much better. It was even stressful watching them. There was so much traffic.

We stopped once more for tea, at a bench that Keith says was marked on his Galileo app. He says you can choose what you want to show up on the screen, so today it must have been benches. Then it was on into Heidelberg, and he led us, without a hitch, straight to the hotel. It is in a very old building, right in the heart of the old town. Absolutely nothing is straight or plumb. It is remarkable. Even the floors slope this way or that. We love it. As a bonus, our room is large and comfortable, and as Keith said when we were coming back from dinner, location, location, location. We are spending two nights here, so tomorrow we will explore Heidelberg. I went out for a preliminary shopping expedition while Keith did some post ride recovery, and then we headed out for dinner. We have had another great day.

Keith's bike having a rest while we break for tea.

Another nice encounter on the bike path.

Following a Mom and her three kids on the bike path on the way to the hotel.

Today's ride: 64 km (40 miles)
Total: 2,605 km (1,618 miles)

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