Prologue: I am fscking sick of writing this blog! I left out Groningen, I’m going to leave out Berlin (even though it rocked HARD!), I’m leaving out most of Dresden (hi girls!). Sick of it! If you want more details, borrow my diary, I hate writing all this crap twice!

I wouldn’t be mentioning hills if I was sitting on a train. That’s right, I am back on the bike! For some reason I had a sudden urge to resume riding whilst I was in Dresden. Initially I was aiming for Weimar because Lonely Planet mentioned it and it was “only” 200 kilometres away.

I think I picked the steepest road out of Dresden.. 10kph isn’t a speed I’m accustomed to! 77kph down the other side is more like it 😀

On the way I noticed “Colditz” on the map. I know Colditz from all those escape movies where POWs dug tunnels to freedom and one group even built a glider under the noses of their captors! So, that’s where I headed. Weimar was much too ‘intellectual’ for me anyway!

Around 4pm, after a series of large hills (8% and 10% gradient for 130kg+ is granny-ring time!) and with 25k still to go to Colditz, I started thinking about taking a soft option. At the Leisnig train station I asked about trains towards Colditz – there are none, but, “the ride is only 10k”. This is after I’d seen the sign to Colditz with “25k” written clearly on it! I also asked about accomodation in Leisnig – “there is none”, I was told.

So, off I ride, up the next “burg” – a lovely 15% beastie!!

At the top (with both knees still intact, surprisingly) I spot a supermarket.. and a sign pointing to various hotels!! Don’t know what the train station guy was smoking but it can’t have helped his mental faculties.

I chat (hand signal) to the wonderfully helpful, non english-speaking bakery girls and they confirm with a phone call a 21euro bed is available in Pension Rauch, which happens to be 50m around the corner. Old hippy would’ve pushed on to Colditz and had a very bad ending to the day. New SMRT hippy stops right here and has a lovely, relaxed evening in Leisnig.

My hosts spoke very little english and it took a few minutes to convince them that I was NOT going to unclip my panniers. Other than that, it was a wonderful place to stay and the woman was very helpful with maps and directions while in town and for my ride to Colditz.

Saw the town’s Guiness Record holding boot..

My sexy tan lines are back with a vengeance! No surprise considering the 33degC I saw on a temperature gauge today!

My back wheel sounds horrible! It will self-destruct VERY soon. Not spokes this time, I think it’s the hub, grinding the bearings into a fine poweder..

Dresden to Leisnig Stats:

75k, 4h 22m, 17.3kph