Schwerin - Zarrentin - To France the Long Way

July 1, 2009

Schwerin - Zarrentin

We wake up to a foggy morning but it's now July and soon the weather is behaving accordingly - a warm day is in store. Before we leave, we cycle around Schwerin, mainly visiting the old part of town "Schelfstadt" with its half-timbered houses and - yes - unbearable cobblestone streets. It's an interesting city and we might have stayed another day to visit the unique Garden Exhibition if it had been possible to find a room for another night. By noon we are on our way.

In the Schelfstadt, a historic part of Schwerin with many timbered houses and a pretty market square

The castle is on an island in the Schwerin Lake

Outside of Schwerin we have a long stretch of bicycle path next to the road which unfortunately stops in Wittenburg and we must continue on a road with more traffic than we are accustomed to. It's hot and before we have cycled a respectable number of kilometers I begin to feel that this pedaling is drudgery. Is it the heat, or did I drink too much wine last night, or is old age catching up on me right here in the middle of West-Pomerania? Will tomorrow be better?

For much of our ride we have our own path next to the road

We now see some thatched roofs for the first time on this trip

Again an example of a brick church with a steeple made of wood

Zarrentin, a small town located on a pretty lake, Schaalsee, is a pleasant place to stop and relax after our short day on the road. The town is characterized by tidy straight streets lined by tidy little brick houses with white curtains in the windows. We see many cars with Hamburg license plates. The lake attracts many visitors in the summer, especially on the week-ends and I assume that here, former East Germany, it is still cheaper than the west.

Schaalsee - the border between East and West Germany ran down the center of the lake

Today's ride: 45 km (28 miles)
Total: 1,069 km (664 miles)

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