Radfahren

I mentioned in my last post that we had rented bikes over the weekend and spent a bunch of time riding around town. Actually, I won't say that we rode around town; in fact, I tried to avoid riding in town when possible. One word: cobblestones. They are the bane of smooth bike rides (and also of stiletto heels). Instead, we explored lots of bike paths around Weimar, all the while in sturdy, flat shoes--effective for pedaling AND walking on cobblestones.

We picked up the bikes on Friday afternoon, and after dinner we headed to the Park an der Ilm. Andy generally rides faster than me, mostly because I'm too busy staring wide-eyed at everything and exclaiming at how green and beautiful it is, and maybe stopping to chase ducks.

How could I have been here for so many days and not known the park was there?! Okay, I admit, I knew it was there because I saw it on my map. But if I had really known what it was like, I would have been out there every day. There are all kinds of interesting flowers, and in particular there is one kind of tree that's everywhere right now, blooming and no doubt causing many allergies, but luckily not for me.

We found a bike path that continued out of the park, and saw signs pointing towards Jena. So we had the idea of biking to Jena in the morning, having lunch and looking around there for a while, and then back to Weimar in the afternoon. But sometimes it's really about the journey, and not about the destination, you know? Which is to say, we couldn't find our way. I won't say we got lost because as you know I never get lost. After an idyllic cruise to the southeast of Weimar with me shouting every time I heard a cuckoo call, we turned around and went north. This is when Andy made some new friends:



They like Leibniz butter cookies but not pretzels. They came running when we got off our bikes. I suspect they've done this before.



Sunday was as beautiful a day as Saturday, and we continued on the bike path to the north that we started the day before. We stopped first at the Schloß in Kromsdorf. Note the obligatory beer cart.



The walls around the Schloß were lined with busts of world leaders, some obscure, some less so. Montezuma II of Mexico made the cut (sorry, Montezuma I, maybe next time).



We rode on a while but didn't like the look of the sky, so headed back to Kromsdorf to eat lunch at the restaurant in the castle while the weather did that thing it needs to do to keep the trees green and the birds singing.

On the other side of the river in Kromsdorf, we posed for an artistic (read: crooked) self-portrait with a lovely church.

Given that we couldn't find the road leading up to it, and thus I know nothing about it, I am going to attribute the somewhat oniony-looking domes to the influence of the Russian princess Maria Pavlovna who married into the ruling family of Weimar.

On the way back home, we stopped at the Schloß in Tiefurt. Every house should have such a back yard.





I have noticed, though, that any house with a little bit of a yard has turned it into a showy, colorful garden, and on a day like this, many people were out tending to theirs. To the old man in his garden who told me I was going the wrong way as I labored uphill on the bike path in my one-speed bike, thank you. I am sure that joke never gets old for you.

The sky opened up just as we got back to Park an der Ilm. This is yet another reason to avoid riding a bike on the cobblestones--they're incredibly slick. To those who have mastered the art of riding a bike on wet cobblestones while holding an open umbrella, I salute you.

To the rest of you, with or without your gardens and umbrellas, good night.