This is a topic that might make you frown, yet some might recognize it.
After a day of intense movement, my right knee can be very stiff or painful in the morning. Yet, after biking for some time, everything becomes smooth as the blood starts flowing again and the muscle fibers loosen up again. Do you recognize this?
But how about our progress I hear you asking.
After a quick yet healthy breakfast, we said our goodbyes to the lovely hosts Simone and Wolfgang.
The day started off great, with sun, the wind in our favor, and us feeling pretty good (apart from the knee). We cycled about thirty kilometers on some nice routes and ended up rather unintentionally in Friedrichstadt. I’d definitely recommend checking out that historic town if you’re ever around there.
There was an old water pump in the middle of the square that caught my eye.
It is the Marktpumpe, also known as the “Historische Schwengelpumpe.” The water pump with the Gothic-looking house was built in 1879 by architect Heinrich Rohardt. The house contains four German poems, one on each side, in Low German, written by Klaus Groth about water.
The one on the front might be relevant to us : (roughly translated)
An old, dirty lady and a rough companion become so cheerful and so bright again, because they use this clean source to quench their thirst.
It was so cozy on the square that we also enjoyed some pies and coffee for dessert, enjoying the sun until…
It started raining again. We put our rain gear on, waited until the peak had passed, and moved on with our journey. A quick stop at the department store ReWe, and we moved on through the rain. The rain started at 1 and ended at 3 o’clock.
The rest of the day was dry and gave us the opportunity to enjoy many different landscapes.
But our batteries are getting lower and lower and we need more and more stops to recharge.
The last kilometers were a matter of switching off our brains and just keeping the pedals turning.
We got to our Airbnb around 6, feeling like zombies. Our host Matthias greeted us and showed us around. Then we had a simple dinner, showered, and hit the hay after some light reading. We will doze off with a light humming of refrigerator in the background.
Tomorrow should be an easier day. Then we should cross the 1000 km mark and the Danish border.
° What is a ”Wouter Deboot moment” ?
We are big fans of a program on Belgian television called “Met de wind mee” or Biking With the Wind in the Back. Wouter takes his map in the morning, checks the wind direction, and bikes 100 kilometers with the wind at his back. He films everything himself using drones and cameras on his bike or hand cameras. The story is about meeting people and learning about different cultures. He always succeeds in getting invited to all sorts of places and having in-depth conversations with the people he meets.
So whenever we experience a similar thing, or not, we refer to this as a “Wouter Deboot” moment.
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