Wobbling Winos: Day 11. Bamberg to Schweinfurt.

HDay 11. Bamberg to Schweinfurt. 63km. 3h50.

We were greeted by a beautiful morning and set off to explore Bamberg early. Miraculously all the partying students had disappeared. Bamberg is certainly a photogenic city. It is set on a steep hill above the Regnitz River (a tributary of the Main) and the Main Donau Canal. (This canal connects to the Danube at Regensburg - amazing engineering feat and used by massive barges and cruise boats). Bamberg is overlooked by the huge Cathedral of St Peter and St George, first consecrated in 1012 and completed in1237.

The Old Town Hall is built in the middle of the river because the bishop of the time refused to allow it in the cathedral prescient. Little did he know it would become a major tourist attraction. Within the New Residence complex (built in the late 1600s by the bishop-prince) is the famous Bamberg Rose Garden which we enjoyed seeing. The 4500 rose bushes are laid out in a very neat geometric design surrounded by immaculate box hedge.

From there a walk to Market Square where we had scrambled eggs and coffee, packing the rolls and cheese into our pockets like SA budget travelers. Little Venice is one of the tourist stops - a row of houses built along the river, but far more impressive was a Mme Alfred Carriere rose bush opposite growing six stories high. The owner was pruning it through his windows.

We then packed up the bikes and wobbled our way out of Bamberg as we were faced with a number of seriously steep climbs before finding our way back to the Mainradweg. We stuck close to the river with a number of locks along the way - always a reassuring sign as that means downhill if you're going with the water. At Zell am Main, Franconia changes from beer to wine country, and the first vineyards appeared. We cycled through the attractive town of Hassfort and on to Schweinfurt - nobody knows why it's called that, or they are not telling. Anyway it has an impressive town wall protecting it from the infidels, although we are starting to see a few refugees, probably from Syria - poor folk, a desperate situation.

The helpful lady at the TI Found us accommodation at the new Youth Hostel (makes me feel good to stay in one of those). It was pretty Spartan (no soap, bunks, make your own bed, lights off at ten) but it was spacious, we could do our washing and fix my bumpy front wheel in the room.

We found a wine bar tucked in below the town wall where we could sample the characteristic white wine of the area, Sylvaner. It was delicious, a real first for us - good combination of fruit, acid and minerality (WWS 8)). Back in our digs we had a picnic supper with a bocksbeutel (the dumpy bottle distinctive of Franconia that looks like Bellingham Johannesburger, and means goat's scrotum) of Schwarzeriesling (a mutation of Pinot Noir) - very pleasant (WWS 6).