We stayed last night in Bernburg in a hotel called S’lotel. We normally book ahead through an online agency , but this time we hadn’t known how far we could make it, so we took our chances and found this hotel as we rode in to town. In this area of Germany, we are becoming used to encountering very few locals who speak English, we have trouble understanding their dialect and, as well, we find that our pronunciation in German makes no sense to them. This brings me to the point, that we realize how much easier it is to book online as all we need upon check-in is to say our name.
The woman at the hotel tried valiantly to help us, but the process to check in took about 45 minutes. We give her much credit for her dogged tenacity and ultimately her sense of humour when the computer finally accepted our data. She and I both sighed in relief when it was over. The language barrier and a misunderstanding of our different way of writing an address made it challenging for her. We realize that if we were in her shoes attempting to help a German speaking person, we would also be confronted with such a challenge.
Our room was great and we were very impressed with the breakfast buffet which included freshly cooked eggs to order.
A moment of true serendipity - this woman came up to us to express her admiration for our bike and to say hi. We managed to converse in German/English. To our surprise, she said that she had once visited Canada and had come to salt Spring Island to visit a friend. We couldn’t believe it...people never know of our home island. As well, like Barry, she is a retired primary teacher. What are the odds?
Outside our hotel and ready to go. The owners have completely refurbished this old building, maintaining its historic feeling while adding modern touches. Very nice.
Vanessa was a great help. Despite our language differences and her inexperience with iPhones, she figured it out and provided great service. Very impressive that 2 women in Bernburg (hotel clerk and Telekom) have been so kind to us and given us so much of their time to help us.
Much money is being invested in this area improving the roads. I think Barry enjoyed creating the collage. I insisted that the first detour was not a problem, but it was....backtracking is not our favourite thing. I may be in danger of losing my Rear Admiral status.
This trip we seem to be adopting a pattern of eating that we know from our German friends. We like a substantial hot meal at lunch and then a cold small meal at night. On this trip, the cold weather has made us stop from making a cold meal on the route. Most towns have a bakery like this or a metzgerei where we can eat well for about 5 euros. We love this about Germany.
The threat of rain has become a reality so we have sought shelter in a Schaefer's bakery. This spot is clearly a favourite visiting spot for locals. We were a curiosity but they were very friendly and interested in these strange looking aliens who wandered in for some hot food.
If you are a medieval tower on a rainy day, you might as well put on a happy face. The political candidate standing under the umbrella was not having much success attracting supporters. This did not stop her from trying to enlist our support but we carried on.
The stork’s nest is a welcome and common sight on our travels. In a time when we hear about so many species struggling to survive, the storks seem to be doing ok. (as far as we know...)
Outside of Dessau, this village has many paintings and details which celebrate the history of Luther in this area. In fact, we are sharing the Luther Weg (Way) on this part of the R1.
Each barrier pole along the side of this curvy stretch of road has the added whimsical touch of a pair of hands in various positions. We enjoyed this one as it seems to be trying to protect itself from a collision. The dripping red paint is a nice touch.
We could hear and smell this remarkable scene before we got to it. There were thousands (no exaggeration) of sheep in this expansive area. When we saw the two large white dogs who were guiding the sheep we understood the bleating and movement of this large group in one direction.What a sight and sound!
We are back in Dessau, a place we know well. On a previous cycling trip, we visited Dessau for a number of days and really enjoyed visiting the Bauhaus facility and museum, as well as learning about Hugo Jonkers.
We had booked a guesthouse in a village out of town, but the lack of a place for the bike forced us to cancel our booking. We may try to stay at the special Youth Hostel in Dessau where we have stayed before.
Hugo Jonkers is a very important figure. an engineer whose inventions and creations are almost too numerous to mention. His influence has been profound in aviation, trains, electrical, etc. His creativity and individual approach to business, made things very difficult for him during the Hiltler era.
This is a special anniversary year for the Bauhaus movement. On our visit before, we toured this museum, visited houses and really immersed ourselves in the culture and spirit of this period. It is good to be back. We will drop in to the museum again tomorrow.
