Wroclaw to Munich to Bavarian Alps

Wifi is not as widespread in Germany as I had thought. But I will update the blog every chance I get! 

We started our bicycle journey out of Tymowa and cycled 80km to Wroclaw. Martins Aunt and Uncle were gracious hosts as always. I only wish I knew what they were saying. ;)

The next day, Saturday, June 20th, we took the train to Prague. We weren't sure if there was a train from Prague to Munich so our backup plan was to stay the night in Prague. We've both been to Prague before so our main goal was to get to Munich. We did find a train to Munich, luckily with room for our pesky bikes! So after 11 hours of travel, 4 trains, and 1 bus we finally made it to Munich. 

     Bikes on the train!! Sometimes it can be a hassle. 

We found a campsite in Munich and decided to stay for two nights so we can sight see. On Sunday, June 21, we went to the city center, visited both the toy museum and the residence museum. Both were great but the Residence Museum exceeded my expectations. It was better done inside than any other castle I've been too. Over 300 rooms! 

Martin in Munich. 

Munich

On Monday, June 22, we started biking. It was a long day but well worth the work because we had made it to the Bavarian alps! The biking trails in Germany are wonderful! The roads are so smooth, not a bump to be found. This long trip made us so excited for the upcoming week of cycling theough Germany. 

Rest stop somewhere in Bavaria. 

The goal for the day was to get to Garmisch or Grainau, where Germany's largest peak looms overhead. When we were about 70km in, but I didn't think I'd make it much farther. It was only 3pm so we took our time and cycled into the mountains and made it to a campsite. We cycled 117km, which is a record for us while carrying heavy loads, and really the first day of bicycling! We were proud of ourselves to say the least. 

On Tuesday, June 23 we left the campground bright and early with hopes of summiting Zugspitz. We biked to the nearest information center and they gave us directions to the best possibilities for hiking. We biked up to Ehrwald, Austria, and then up, up, and up to the hiking trail. By the time I got to the trail I was worn out, but Martin was determined to make it to the top. Unfortunately due to weather he had to turn around. 

See, I'm tired. 

View of the valley below- Austria! 

The peak is somewhere behind me. 

Wednesday, June 24-Martin was determined to get up this peak. So we decided to make our way to Erwald again, except this time by train to save our already sore legs, and Martin would spend the day hiking while I spent the day looking for Internet and drinking beer in Erwald. Unfortunately no internet, but had a wonderful Pilsner with the peak in my view! 5 hours later Martin was back down and we on our bikes again, this time in Austria. We were hoping to make it to Fussen but with our sore legs, we stopped and camped in Reutte, Austria. 

Veiw from Erwald 

Zugspitz is somewhere in those clouds! 

One thing about Austrian cycling as compare to Germany- Austria has a lot to learn about organized, smooth, and well signed cycling in Germany. Granted, the bike paths were signed, however roads where bikes don't belong were not signed and instead we were greeted with honks and yelling. We quickly got off the road only to find the bike paths were gravel and no fun to ride on with small tires and a heavy load. 

Thursday, June 25- we made it through Austria and back onto the smooth streets of Germany! We took our time today, knowing we'd only need to bike 40km or so. We made our way to Fussen, and checked out the old town. 

Fussen old town

On our way into Fussen

We went to Neuschwanstien castle, which inspired Disneys sleeping Beauty. I didn't go in but we walked around it and up to it and we were able to see it from all angles as we were biking in. It is truly spectacular. The castle was never truly finished before Ludwig II died. We also saw the Hohenschwangau castle, which was the original home of the king of Bavaria. 

We made our way to Buching, where we were welcomed by a local couple through the bicycle tourists website "Warm Showers". It'll be nice to sleep inside and have clean clothes! 

"Eat, Eat! You're too skinny!

 We've spent the last week and a half in Tymowa, the village where Marcin's grandma and granpa live, also where Marcin spent a lot of his childhood. Martin's family was always hospitable, inviting, and never left us hungry, ever. We are dinner at 2:00 pm and supper was at 5:00 pretty much every day. Food was what you'd expect in Poland- lots of sausage, pierogies, and potatoes. From what Marin told me, his family would say to me "eat, eat! You're too skinny!"  

The house where Martin grew up is a farm house. The backyard has a view of field, once used for cow pasture. The surrounding houses had chickens, roosters, dogs, and goats. Martins grandparents live unlike their neighbors. Water at their house was precious,so precious that the water pump broke the day before we left. To get someone to replace the pump will take weeks, and this water battle has been going on for months (this is not the first time the water pump died). The house is big and gives me slight reminders of my
Grandma Yenik's house.

During our visit I learned a lot of polish. I'm going to commit to learning when we are back and settled down in the states. It's really hard not knowing what Martin's family is saying. Martin had some chores to do like mow the law and cut up wood. In addition, we visited Martin's grandmother in the assisted living home often. It was a 27km bike ride one way, so  we were able to start training.

Today we rode back to Wroclaw, which was about 85km total. I've made a couple observations while biking in Poland:

1)  The back roads are terrible.
I'm not talking about the main roadways, but the small village roads, which I usually prefer to ride. These roads are worse then dirt roads, they are worse than New Orleans roads,and Poland doesn't have hurricanes! It is easier to ride on cobblestones than it is on these roads. okay, enogh about the terrible roads. There are a lot of roads with really great bike paths!

2) Everyone Bikes!
I've noticed this aboutt a lot of the other countries I've been to, but its not as common in the US. Everyone bicycles to get from point A to  point B, and I mean everyone. elderly men and women with cane in hand while riding their old circa 1945 bicycle. It's impressive!

We are back in Wroclaw today, staying with Marcin's aunt and uncle for one night. We got tickets to take a train to Prague and hopefully tomorrow afternoon we'll be on our way from Prague to Germany! Next plan is Nuremberg or Munich in Germany, depending on train schedules from Prague, and then offically start our bicycle trip via the "Romantic Road".   

Marcin and his grandma

Marcin and his grandpa

The home in Tymowa

View of the backyard. 

ADT security would do great in Poland! All the houses, and I mean every single house, has this sign which means " warning! Bad dog"

In order to heat water, We had to stoke this about an hour before we took a shower. 

Our bike ride to see grandma. 

In Wroclaw! 

Warsaw, Poland

June 5, 2015

After spending a delightful two weeks in Florida with family, Martin and I made our long journey to Poland. We flew on June 2 out of Miami airport via Aeroflot, Russian Airlines. We thought American airlines were bad, try flying Aeroflot for 11 hours. I'm a short person and my knee touched the seat in front of me. I got absolutely no sleep, while Martin snoozed for 4 hours next to me. To say I was jealous was an understatement.

We arrived in Warsaw, Poland at around 3:30 p.m. on June 3rd. Martin's Aunt, met us at the airport and helped us with our bicycle boxes. She led us through the bus system back to her apartment in the city. Eight floors up and overlooking a basketball court with children playing, we were finally able to relax. Like all of Martin's family, she gave us a warm welcome with food and more food. About to fall asleep at the table, I was determined to stay awake until at least 9 p.m. to get on the European schedule.

Kate and Marcin in Old Town, Warsaw

Day two in Warsaw we woke up late, very late. I guess we weren't ready for the time change yet. But Martin's Aunt waited for us and greeted us with a healthy breakfast. After that, we made our way to Old Town. In the picture above, the palace sits behind us. In World War II, as most of you know, Warsaw was destroyed by the Germans. So the city worked together, most not paid, to rebuild the city as it was before the war. They finished rebuilding in the 1950s. Old town was bustling with people because it was Corpus Christi, a traditional polish catholic holiday. Most people have the day off to celebrate and commemorate.

In the evening we went to a "local" restaurant which had live music. I had yummy golonka, which is pork shoulder in really good sauce. Marcin had soup.

Marcin and his aunt

Day two in Warsaw, Martin's uncle arrived from their vacation home in the country. In the morning Marcin and I put together our bicycles and got them ready for Saturday. We then made our late start at the Warsaw Rising Museum (Muzeum Powstania Warszavskiego) about the fight for independent Poland and the insurgence on the capital. It was interesting and laid out a lot like the WWII museum in New Orleans - so it was confusing and not laid out very well. Plus, because of the holiday, the museum was overcrowded. We didn't stay long, and we didn't read as much as we wanted because of the crowds. After the museum we went to lunch at Czerwony Wieprz, or The Inn Under the Red Pig, which is a communist themed restaurant. The history behind the restaurant is that it was a popular meeting place for communist leaders such as Lenin. I had Russian Pierogies, which were filled with potatoes and brown onion. Yum! Marcin had soup, of course. 

Tomorrow we set off for Wroclaw, Poland by train. The quick ride will be about 4 hours - so we leave at 8 a.m. and will arrive by 12:00 p.m. Marcin noted to me that the times in Poland have changed since joining the EU - trains are faster, there are more highways, and we expect that Wroclaw has changed in the last 9 years as well. The last time I was there was in 2006 and Marcin visited was in 2008. We will be in Wroclaw for 2 nights and leave for Tymowa, which is where Grandma and Grandpa live. We will leave for Tymowa on Monday and we plan to bike 70 km to start to get into shape for our trip! We decided today that we will be leaving for either Prague or Munich by June 20th. Prior to that, however, I will have little internet access, so I don't expect to update this in a while.