Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/GFBnp27qsCRTke8T7
As soon as I entered Germany from Poland I began to see many other people on long-distance bicycle tours, especially retirees using electric bicycles. The bicycle infrastructure in Germany is top notch. My first stop was a national park called Saxony Switzerland (confusingly it’s in Germany and Czech Republic, not Switzerland), which is home to sandstone formations that seem very out-of-place to me because they remind me of the southwest USA. You’re allowed to camp on or near these formations as long as you don’t use a tent, so I spent the night in a cozy spot I found on top of one of these pillars. Next I stayed in Dresden for a few nights then with my friend Mayuri in Berlin for 6 days. My friend brought me to an event that happens each year in Gorlitzer park (and in many other places around the world apparently) where people gather to learn and then perform the dance from the music video of the Kate Bush song Wuthering Heights. It’s pretty much just a big party where everyone is dressed in red like Kate Bush in the music video. This was especially fun for me because I’ve been a big Kate Bush fan for a long time. Here’s a youtube video I found of the performance.
On my way to visit another friend in Karslruhe I stopped in Leipzig, which is where my bicycle was stolen. Luckily only the bicycle was stolen and with help from a local bike shop owner I was able to find a solid used one, so the whole ordeal only set me back a few days. In Karslruhe I stayed with my friend Celine, who I met 5 years ago while traveling in Mexico. She and her husband showed me a very good time and took me to their hometown of Mosbach and to the picturesque city of Heidelberg. Next I stopped in Strasbourg (France) and then Freiburg, which is a very fun and youthful city. To get to switzerland I rode thru the Black Forest, which gave me a taste of the many mountain passes I would soon be riding over in the Alps.
