Preparations and departure

Bike plugged in to recharge the battery

Our overnight Icelandic flight from Boston to Frankfurt via Reykjavik went smoothly, though with little sleep achieved. We arrived at Stefan's yesterday with most of the afternoon and evening available to complete preparations for this year's eight week trip.  A few complications extended that job to this morning, but we managed an 11AM departure.

Our route, planned in outline form at least, will take us south through Switzerland and Italy to the Riviera, then west to the Dordogne and perhaps the Pyrenees , then up the Atlantic coast to Normandy, west to Paris for a math conference and back to Heidelberg.

map preparation

We made an early afternoon stop to purchase a riding jacket for Rob (price equal to two nights in a good hotel) but spent most of the day on scenic Black Forest back roads, ending in the little town of Bad Liebenzell.  This year we have mostly booked ahead for the first 3 weeks of our travels, unlike previous years when our "spur of the moment" style sometimes ran into the reality of filled hotels.

today's big purchase