In Kripp (that's right across the river from Linz, if you were wondering)

And you're probably wondering how I got internet.  I'm staying in a hotel, that's how! A hotel in Kripp. Where TF that is and how TF I got here:

From southern Cologne one travels North to the main train station;

As every visitor to Cologne knows, the train station is right next to the Cathedral. Apparently this quite an annoyance to RAF  bomber pilots during WWII, because they were supposed to destroy the train station but leave the cathedral intact.  And they did an amazingly good job!

From here one takes a 45 minute train ride South. The ticket for the human was 10.80 Euros, while DB wanted 2.70 Euros for the bicycle.

From the train station in Remagen, Kripp is about 5 kms by bicycle.  Krippers will be insulted, but this is what Kripp looks like (at least once you get off the 2 main roads;-)

There is a car ferry in Kripp and across the river beckons Linz!

I waste no time to get onto that ferry (Euro 1.40 one way with or without bicycle). During peak (!) times there actually are 2 ferries.

Then it is time to enter Linz. Linz is one of those quaint German tourist villages that make me want to SCREAM.  Very cute. Very tidy. Very old. Very civilized. NOT. Aside from the fact that one should never forget what some or most of the 'Buerger' living in these villages did or let happen only 70 years ago, these villages are superficial shite.   The copies built in China are just as good.  On my standard 'bring-a-fridge-magnet' hunt I discover that the only fridge magnets on sale here are with images of Cologne, which is about 60 kms away.  Not a single postcard of Linz can be found. They are all of nearby Neuenahr-Ahrweiler and they all look like postcards from the 80s or 90s, so the owners probably bought them for 1 Euro per box ;-)

Two things I liked about Linz: An Italian busker-violinist who played Vivaldi (Thank God it wasn't Beethoven ;-). After I fed his cap and commented something like "Very beautiful", he accompanied my downhill bike ride with the Blue Danube Waltz (in the movie 2001 it accompanies the space shuttle flight and the floating pen). It also caused me to go downhill in wide wide swings and curves of the bicycle.  Very un-German, even though Johann Strauss was from Austria.
The other nice thing about Linz was this:  A Currywurst from a stand right by the ferry.

accompanied by a glass of Koelsch ;-)

Then it is time to get back to Kripp

Did I mention I booked a plane ticket Cologne to Brest for Tuesday ?

:-0      :-)     ;->    ;-~