Letter 15
Thursday 04.08.11
It's raining steadily. As it did all night and there's no sign of any
change. It's 7.30 o'clock and I must act...
Take a shower, eat breakfast and start packing. The rain is a little
weaker when I leave, so I leave the raincovers undone.
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| The camping site at Ilz wasn't big | They have mermaids in Donau too |
Shop food in a Penny Markt and the rain slowly stops. It's warm enough
for shorts and sandals. The german from yesterday wanted to wait for the
rain to stop, so he's left behind. I've inherited a small book about the
route Passau-Vienna from two germans, that due to lack of time will take
another route. Superb!
There are loads of cyclists on the track. I've decided to stick to the
left bank. 4-5 of them have stopped and I hurry by - also by a sign - I
think it said "Ende der Radweg".I brake and go back. Yes, really. It's
an officiel sign. You have to go by ferry to the other bank. Ferry is
maybe too big a word, but the boat can carry the 5 passengers and their
bikes. 1€50. If I had taken a closer look in my new book I would have
known. But someone told me, I could ride both banks not specifying how.
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| Crossing the Donau - for 1,50€ | The ferry berth on the right bank |
To the other bank, where will we be then? Austria! No border control for
sure!
I talk to different people on the way. Several for inscrutable reasons
from the Stuttgart area. The first is a teacher together with the wife
and some friends. Later two men, who I now know as Bruno and Helmuth. On
their way to Istanbul - with a tent too.
We part when it's possible to cross to the other bank at a power
station. It's shorter on this side, but I'll have to go on the main road
for the last 10 km. There's not much traffic, so no problem.
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| A forrested piece of Donau | Helmuth and Bruno are not quite "sharp" - haha |
I reach Linz at 16. I soon find the main street and a tourist info.
Two questions: Where can I cash money, and where can I get a
coffee-to-go? There are no signs in the bank, but the cassier
volunteerly tells me which machine to choose. They're inside the bank,
that closes at 16.30. I managed!
I sit down with the coffee and my newly bought cookies at a fountain and
enjoy life. An easy day.
Go a little to and fro. The camping site is 4 km ahead towards Vienna,
so I won't be going back here. It's a cosy town much bigger than Passau.
It's situated on both banks and I wonder how you can have ONE city in
TWO different counties? I haven't realized that both banks long ago have
turned austrian. It's was when we were sent across on the ferry probably...
I find the "Dom" where organ music can be heard from indside.
The organ player is rehearsing. There's something special about this
enormous sound from a church organ. From the tiniest small pipes to the
low roars from the bass.
Inside the church is a project called: "The tower eremit". In a "box" in
the church you can gaze through windows into the room of the eremit. It
has a plank bed, a small desk, a sink and a cooker. I grab the handle
cautiously without anyone watching. It's locked. It was just what I
could need for the night.
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| Linz is on both sides of the river | The site was densly packed - but everyone was happy |
Find my way to the camping site. The two Istanbul travellers have
arrived already. Later the german from Berlin too - we speak english
together. The other two only speak dialect.
The site is rather small and people continue arriving so we're quite
close. It's a little like a gipsy camp but noone comes in vain, we're
concerned about each other.
Now it's 21.45 and I'm sitting in the restaurant, there are no other lit
up places to sit writing. The waiter asked if I wanted the menu, I said
I actually just needed light. That was ok.
You just get 3½ min of hot water in the shower for your 50 cent. It's
just getting finished in a hurry. I'm all finished now - for today.
105.02 km
18.0 km/h
33.8 km/h
5:50:03 h