19 July 2014
Freising to Vilsbiburg, Germany (43 miles)

“Do you want me to carry that?” This is Gina talking to this evening’s landlady, who is manhandling her bicycle down into the basement. Gina doesn’t really like anyone touching her bike, let alone carrying it down a few steep flights of stairs. I think our landlady speaks good enough English to understand what Gina’s asking but doesn’t really care. This thought is further validated when it’s time to get our panniers upstairs and said landlady is tossing them into the elevator like bocci balls on an open playing field. At least she’s being helpful.

We are in a rather strange town tonight. One that’s good-sized on the map and seemed full of potential but has so far delivered not much more than a room (one we would not have found without the help of a few friendly German citizens) in what appears to be a regular old apartment building and a group of men having a highly animated and overly long conversation outside our window. It’s too hot to walk any farther than the grocery store, so it’s really a shame that we have yet to learn any German or we could at least fill our evening with passive eavesdropping.

The route today was a good one, starting out in the shaded forest along the Isar River and ending up in the rolling farmlands in this rather strange town in the middle of the German countryside. We’re glad to be rolling on two wheels again, and this time without a convoy of logging trucks breathing down our backs.