The Last Post

Our cycling tour ended with a whimper rather than a bang. We cycled 25km of the last 40 in pleasant albeit windy conditions but things got worse and rain was imminent so we hopped onto a train back to Konstanz. We got soaked riding from the station to the hotel (bad) but had extra time in Konstanz to visit a sports store and stock up on great German and Italian cycling gear (good). Now, a day later, we are in an apartment in a 300 year old building in the centre of Colmar, France (Airbnb!) and it's so nice that we visited the local market to buy wine, cheese and terrines so could eat in. 

For those interested in cycling, we booked with Radweg Reisen and would recommend their tours. This trip has been nicely varied, with (almost) comfortable, good quality bikes, and the hotels, meals and general service from the company have all been excellent.

It has also been encouraging to see so many grey-haired cyclists in this part of the world!

Colmar Cathedral windows

Our apartmenr in the pink building in the middle

Colmar has been a great choce for our last 3 days. It rates as one of the prettiest towns in Europe and we certainly agree. Wandering around gazing upwards, then hanging out in this lovely apartment has been relaxing before we fly to Rome tomorrow, stay overnight again at Villa Rosita before the long haul via Dubai back home.
A few pics of Colmar tell the story:

Dinner place - Chez Hansi

Lunch place

Colmar Cathedral

Little Venice

A few reflections on this trip:

Codgers playing petanque in the south of France

• We have been interested in the number of "Codgers" (elderly blokes) hanging out in many places - playing petanque/bocce or cards or backgammon or just chatting. What a healthy thing for men of a certain age to do! I am thinking of sending Lester over for further Codger training.
• Overwhelmingly people have been welcoming, helpful and kind. This is encouraging
• We have visited some achingly beautiful places, many of the UNESCO World Heritage sites - thank goodness they are protected (which makes Syria even more of a tragedy!)
• Cycling is the way to go - even if we have to resort to electric-assisted bikes at some stage
• We like the European life style, especially the early evening walk that happpens in many places - very family orientated
• You can never get too many vegetables when travelling!
• The bucket list hasn't got any shorter, even though a lot has been crossed off

Many thanks to those of you who have been interested in this journey and kept in touch - we have appreciated your contact and comments. Facebook isn't so bad really! Au revoir for now.