Fahrtour

My poor bicycle traveled over 60 kilometers this weekend. On Saturday, Jutta, Stefan, Jonas, and I biked to Xanthen and back. The route we took is on the dikes protecting Wesel against the flooding of the Rhine. There are nice paths there through the fields and farms, it is the most picturesque places I have ever seen.

These are not happy cows.

The areas we rode through are incredibly green. It makes me think of pictures of Scottland with great expanses of green grass, with maybe a couple of sheep in the background.

To cross the river we took the ferry. Then we biked to the market place in Xanthen (a much hillier ride than Wesel). Unfortunately, in celebration of the earlier darkening of the sky, the ferry only crossed until 5:30 in the evening beginning in October, so our time in Xanthen was cut shorter than we would have liked. We did manage to find time to eat ice cream in the city, though, rushed as we were, to recover sugar.

Jonas on the ferry.

Jonas had spaghetti -- vanilla and strawberry flavored.

Edit: This is really ice cream that looks like spaghetti.

On Sunday I biked around Wesel for three hours. At least, most of the time I think I was in Wesel. I got lost and ended up somewhere near Brünnen, the next city over, but there are special signs for cyclers scattered over NRW saying in which direction the nearest cities are.

This weekend I also got to bike into Wesel to buy a copy of Harry Potter und der Halbblutprinz, which came out on Saturday. Some other students from AFS went to a Potter party at a bookstore on Friday night, but I couldn't go, because I was watching Men in Black II with Hannah and Jonas. I hear the costumes there were creative, though. Ever hear of anyone dressing up as a Whomping Willow?