The long road to Ravensburg

Sigmaringen Castle entrance

Slightly better weather today, with periods of sun and rain alternating all day.  The first wet spell caught us unprepared so we were a bit damp by the time we found an overhang and suited up.  Of course Rob needed to ride all the green-line roads in the area.  By the time I recognized one town as being a "repeat" we were done and ready to head towards Fussen, our target for tonight.  Didn't make it.

At 1:30, after passing some interesting rock cliffs, we stopped in Sigmaringen looking for an indoor eating option and found a Chinese restaurant which satisfied our needs.  The town boasts the castle which was the seat of the Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen branch of that family.  We decided not to delay our day's progress by taking the guided tour (rde: offered only in German, so we're in the non-German tourist boonies. Love it.). The castle is also historically interesting for being the seat of the French Vichy government-in-exile at the end of the war.  The town was taken by the French army in April 1945. Our photo of the entrance does not do justice to this impressive castle.


 Headed east (finally!) we caught a brief view of the Alps when the clouds cleared.  Another late afternoon stop at a McDonalds for cappuccinos and a shared McFlurry (getting to be a "bad" habit, but it wakes us up).  Upon leaving, the weather looked like it was deteriorating once again so we opted to stay here in Ravensburg. A good choice it turns out, for the town has a charming central pedestrian area (as so many German towns do, and they work!), with a good number of interesting-looking churches, towers, markets, etc., some of which we'll try to explore before departing tomorrow.


Tonight many of the outdoor cafe TVs are showing the soccer matches, and from our open window we hear the cheers and groans from all over town. Maybe we need to inform ourselves about this German mania, which has been increasing this past week.