Auf Weidersein and Bon Jour

Overlooking Britzingen, Black Forest, Germany

Moser's house, Britzingen.

Our German friends in Britzingen, in the Black Forest region, have anti nuclear protest posters all over their bikeshed door - they are within a 30km radius of one of the older Nuclear Power Stations in France, and following the Fukishima disaster, the French have promised to close it down in 2016. Some repairs have been done to the base of the plant and the feeling among locals is that France just may carry on after the promised closure date.

Germany shut down 5 or 6 of it's older Nuclear sites (it still has around 30 operating) and despite predictions of power shortages, this has not happened. The thing that struck us immediately on entering Germany was the proliferation of Solar panels on both domestic housing as well as farm and industrial buildings. Incentives for doing this have now been removed, but there is a really significant generating output from this source - and do they get as much sun as we do!!

The Germans are keen cyclists, as seen by this photo at a rural train station when we caught a train to Basel, there are cycle tracks all over and while maybe not quite as complex as the systems in Holland, would not be too far behind. It was a pleasure to cycle there, the motorists are most careful and courteous.

Gunther and Seigruen's youngest daughter, Johanna, gave us both a good haircut the night before we left, it was high time, we were looking a bit scruffy.

On leaving our new friends we went with Sigruen on a visit to her workplace, an organic market garden farm, operating to the Demeter standards of production, Very interesting and she is passionate about her work there, as are all the others who work there as well.

We had three nights in Britzingen, one day spent with a train trip to Basel in Switzerland, only 35 kilometres away. Quite a lovely small city with a historic and picturesque old quarter, and a couple of interesting Galleries.

Last view of the Rhine

A simple sculpture on the French Border

First night in France, camped on the bank of Le Canal.

Sunset from our campsite

We are really enjoying the Warmshowers contacts on this trip.

At the present moment, after three nights camping in France, we are staying with Gael and Roseann in the small village of Franchevelle, set in what might be called the "outback" of France. The region is the Haute Saone region, which is nestled in the corner of France bordering Germany and Switzerland, an area that over the centuries has been plundered and wrecked by various invading armies, hence no magnificient Chateaus and Castles. More popular for outdoor people, who find attraction in it's mountains and forests.

Gael and Roseanne, have a five month old daughter, Maiwinn, are both Science Teachers, though in different schools, one in Lure and the other Vesoul, a trip of some kilometres each day. They are both involved in a climbing and alpine club, Gael plays in a Rock Band, and Roseanne, as well as Science, also teaches Drama and is involved in local amateur productions as well as performing multiple roles in drama pieces she writes, with musical accompanyment from Gael on Guitar and another band member on bass, providing as Gael puts it "Some relief from the emotion that Roseanne draws from her audience (they perform in peoples homes, to groups of around 20 people. A very talented couple.

Their home was originally built in the 1700's, but has been renovated and updated to a very comfortable and modern house.
Apart from this, we know both of them from a cycle tour they did in NZ back in 2011, when they stayed a night with us in Picton, the first time we have met up and stayed with any of our guests from the last  6 years. so it like meeting with old friends again.

Tomorrow we are heading for another small town outside Orlean, St Pryve, where we will be meeting up again with the Sainmont family, on whose lawn we camped for a night last time we were in France.

One thing that is familiar from other trips in europe, are the slugs. These slimy little fellows just love blue tarpaulins and green tents. Each morning there is a clean out exercise, two slugs curled up in a drinking mug, four have squeezed their way under the lid on one of the pots and Uh Oh, did'nt see that one on the lid when I boiled the pot for morning tea - he will have to go in the lunch box as he is cooked to a turn.

Other than these critters, there are really no creepy crawlies to contend with, some lunch camps have attracted the occasional ant, which ventures up a baggy shorts leg and nips the unsuspecting wearer in a soft and sensitive spot, but really that's the worst of it.

One thing that is really noticeable in the Europe we have traversed - the lack of birds - morning chorus starts around 9.30/10am with a Caw-caw-Caw from 5 or 6 European Crows, then sometimes in the woods the faint chirp of one or two smaller birds, but the silence is deafening. On the rivers, hundreds of White Swans, along Canals and streams quite a few Grey Heron and more than a few Canadian Geese on occasions, wild ducks there are, not sure if there is a shooting season, but they hardly bother to get out of the bike's path, they are so quiet.

For the first 3 days after arriving in France, I could not help feeling a bit disgusted with the general untidy look of the place after Germany's ultra clean and cared for, and almost fenceless landscape (and there is no doubt that keeping animals off the paddocks and controlling run-off from rainfall shows up in the clear, clean water in streams and rivers).

 France has fenced farms, stock running in the paddocks and more untidy looking farmyards, around here anyway, but after a few days I got used to it all and now find it has a charm of it's own, the rivers and canals run muddy after rain, 70% of the elictricity is generated by Nuclear Reactors and the French Cockrel is still strutting around the chookhouse without a care in the world.