August 30, 2021
Winding it up
How we got home and some other afterthoughts
We spent most of our five days in Kassel visiting friends and dodging rain showers.
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On Sunday we left Kassel by train. We changed trains in Würzburg and while I continued on to Munich, Janos had two more trains to Wertheim where we left the car. Getting back to the car and returning to Kassel where our bikes were waiting took the better part of the day so Janos slept in Kassel one more night and on the following day drove back to Munich with bikes and panniers, a drive of about six and a half hours.
We thought this would be the most convenient solution, but in retrospect I think it wasn't. If we hadn't been overly worried about problems with trains, we might have done it differently and not used the car. On the other hand, my train ride was most enjoyable. There was a special offer for senior citizens and first class was cheaper than a regular ticket! The Bundesbahn would like to lure us into the luxury of traveling first class, and next time will ask full price.
So far I have written almost all of my previous journals when I got back home, based on my hand written notes while traveling. The exceptions were when we were cycling in China and Thailand at a time when cyber cafes were common. We could find them everywhere. Perhaps this is no longer the case since most people have their own pc's at home now. But it was very convenient to be able to sit at a fast computer most days and send off the journal and pictures.
I find reconstructing my experiences weeks after the fact to be tedious and time consuming. The words don't flow and I sit and ponder and procrastinate. This time around I experimented with picture editing and journaling while on the road using a Samsung tablet. I enjoyed editing the pictures on the same day but sometimes I spent more time on it than I should have and I'm not particularly fast at formulating the narrative. Nevertheless, I liked the solution and really enjoyed posting on a more or less daily basis. I am also happy that I don't have the task of writing up my journal hanging over my head now that I am home.
What else have I learned for future trips? I would cycle less on the very popular bicycle paths, as nice as they are, especially in July and August, and would prefer to plan our routes on smaller roads through the countryside when possible. Sometimes they don't connect up without taking you on busy roads or else they take you on difficult terrain - then the bicycle paths are a a godsend. I guess a combination is something to strive for.
That was it, and once again thanks for reading along!
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