Munich I

Apologies for no posts the last few days.  Not only were we very busy, but both Ian and I had bad, bad colds and thus didn't do much of anything on some days.  I managed to do all the cycling days, but the day of rest in Budapest was a write off.  I went as far as a drug store to buy heavy duty decongestant cold pills and then back to the ship to sleep.  It looked like a cool city, especially at night with amazing lighting, so it is on the list for revisit.

But the highlight of riding were the last 2 days which took us through little villages in Hungary and Austria.  Mostly, we were riding along the river -- what a peaceful delight.  Most of the traffic is recreational in large and small boats, going up and down stream.  A few barges push their way along, staying between the green and red buoys in order to catch the channel on the very shallow river.

The little girls did all the riding, alternating between a pulled chariot trailer and the back seat of the bicycle.  Even Rowan (just 9 months) loved sitting up behind Mom and watching the countryside roll past.  There were lots of stops for snacks and stretches.  Tova's little push bike fits in the back carrier of the chariot and was pulled out on stops so she could do some riding (and de-energizing) too.  She can really scoot along with that thing, and will have both a push bike and pedal bike available to her this summer.

We said goodbye to Richard, Jennie and the girls on the train yesterday afternoon, when they got off to head to the airport while Ian and I continued on to Munich.  Our hotel is half a block from the train station and the room (a triple so we could get a private bath) is at least 3 times the size of the room on the boat.  It is a basic but comfortable room -- the first I have ever had with an outside fire escape!

So today we stayed in the centre of the city -- spending most of the day at the Deutsches Museum which is an interactive science and technology museum.  It is an incredibly extensive museum and finally we had to leave because we just couldn't take in any more.  The Glockenspiel in the main square was so authentic with the bells of the city hall tower chiming slightly out of tune.

Commercial life closes at 8.