September 12: Lunguich to Palzem
Click on small photos for a full size picture.
A beautiful day! Today we will hit the big
city of Trier with two goals: laundry and email. Trier is an old historic
city. It also is large enough to support a chain bookstore with an
internet cafe, a laundromat, and plenty of shops (even Arizona Dreams, that
specializes in turquoise).
At the laundromat, we meet an American who gives us a few pointers on the nuances of German society.
With clean laundry, fresh books and maps, and up to date communications, we depart Trier for a brief sojourn in the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg...
A few
kilometers out of Trier, we cross the Mosel to Luxemburg. Two differences
immediately come to mind: the roads are dirtier and the bike lanes and paths are
fewer. Due to traffic, we are forced to ride through the vineyards and
farm country up (and I do mean up) from the river. After one particularly
nasty climb, 
we're finally able to rejoin the road and take a break at the minimarket in the
next town. 
The only difference between a MiniMart in Luxemburg and one in the states is the
clerk's accent.
Tiring of the charm of Luxemburg and it's roads, we cross the
Mosel again to reenter the order of Germany. At Palzem, we take a room at
the local hotel/restaurant, buy a bottle of the local wine and retire to the
terrace to enjoy the view. 
| The bells, the bells... regardless of country, if a town
has a church - in Germany, there are usually two, one Catholic and one
Lutheran - you can be assured that beginning sharply at 7:00 am and
continuing at regular intervals throughout the day there will be bell
ringing. Not your ordinary ding dong mind you, but a cacophony of
energetic clanging that is assured of waking even the deepest
sleeper. And why is it, you wonder, that regardless of where you
stay, your window is directly across from the bell tower?
So you get the big 7 am ring a ding (in one town, Jayne counted 80 peals of the bells), then quarterly wakeups for the next couple of hours, a midday serenade to accompany your lunch conversation, and a sundown concert to lull you to sleep. |