!5 July The Rhine

They say perseverance pays. Well I left the hotel of 4 days only to have 1 wee problem. I paid in cash on day two, day three and lo and behold there was no record of day three. So pay again. Silly me. So back to my mission, away I went to the nearest ADAC office about an hour away in Germany. They knew about me.......and good thing too. After waiting 40 minutes a direction came through "give him a green card and this is the only one" ! Thank you ADAC. I knew it was a good omen as they say when I rode away from the ADAC office and a Policeman on a bike waved to me ! That was a problem. A policeman (traffic cop) showing signs of being human, after the mindless moronic fine chasers I contend with in NZ. The day or two before I left I got a ticket while driving down a state highway at 85k for not having my seatbelt buckled. That is why the Police have computers in NZ so they can target people that pay their fines. For someone that does more miles on a bike than in a car, I can only reflect what a bloody nasty system ! Its not about the safety stupid its the money ! AAh now where was I ? Yes, off I went toward the Rhine. At last. It is a hard river to get alongside. Houses most of the way but here I am in a Hotel courtesy of a conversation in the street a mile or two back, and whooopeee. Forget Google (it does work) but try talking to people it is more fun ! Beer and wurst for dinner and a room overlooking the river. But it costs of course, what the hell I read the book Die Broke and while I like the idea, I will have to start living cheaper or shorter ! Anyway Mr Chamberlain and Herr Hitler met here before they commenced hostilities. And now me. Germany is one hell of a pretty country. Beautiful tree lined roads and in between huge power producing kilns, huge, smoking like a bush fire... you know those massive chimneys sitting on top of the ground, sort of depressing really ......there must be something evil in there somewhere. But Germany is rich. Guess who got Greece into debt with Mercedes Benz and BMW and all sorts of other luxuries they did not need and could not afford (guess who else is doing it ?) .....and they get supplied with credit courtesy of Germany to pay for it all. But that is smart. Wish I thought of it. I see China just purchased the biggest computer chip maker in the USA. Life is changing and will never be the same again ! This part of Germany is pretty and attractive, the river the lifestyle and the garden bar with one non german ( by colour) serving in the BBQ. No not prejudice it just struck me this is the first day I dave been in a facility (bar) with only white people. It is pretty good sitting here by the river with the small rowing boats with 4 or 5 people working hard upstream and going like hell downstream and every two or three minutes a huuuge barge. And they are big. This is why I came to see the river. This has been spilling water into the North Sea for so long it doesn't matter and it is still doing it. I may have to go up river on a barge in order to actually see the river and its environs. Difficult by road. The houses were here before the rules about where the Council will let you build. So tomorrow I will be on the road or on a barge.....lets see. But it is what I came for. The History, the seeing it and being in it.