Mikes Blog

A day around Isny
26th April

A day at the office. Zita drives off to Kempten for a full day of shopping (10 am - 9pm) I practise guitar until about 11.30 am and then cycle off to Isny to the internet cafe for a big session. The route is about 8 kms, a little on the road and then mainly through forests and on paths across open moor areas. 3 minues from home is a great view of the Allgau Voralpen (lower forground hills up to 1850 metres) about 30 kms away as seen in photo here on the edge of Isenharz. As I cycle into the forest just outside of town I see a fox (Fux) in a clearing, hunting something. It doesn't seem to notice me. Having been told about the potential for Tollwut (rabies) in foxes I keep my distance, take a coupe of photos, and retreat to cycle another way. As I come around a corner in the forest I find I am suddenly and surprisingly much closer to the fox. If he was Tollwut infected he would likely be aggressive but when this fox hears the bike tyres in the gravel he runs off. I continue what is a great little ride between Gebhards place and Isny. Isny is where Zita and I lived together with her mum in 1997.
This is such a beautiful part of the world. The paths and forests and moors and towns, which are hundreds of years old, are all so attractive and well looked after. A gentle paradise really.
I go to the internet cafe and get into more work on the blog. At least this is s much easier than Italy. Even if no one else reads or views it it does me a lot of good to write it up. I am reminded of our travels as I transcribe from my written dairy to the computer. The keyboards are often different and hard to see which reasults in a high typing error rate - also contributing to this is my feeling of being under pressure as the Euros tick away. I spend several hours typing things up (I am still a two finger typist - shame!) and then ride off home. The weather has changed since this morning and I am only dressed in shorts and a light shirt. It has started to rain quite heavily, there is a strong cold head wind coming out of the east which I need to cycle into for 20 minutes across the open moor. Quite staunch and fun really. Thins are more comforatble when I reach the forest and the rest of the route is mainly sheltered. At home I do some more guitar practise. A good day for guitar.

Zita returns home at about 9pm with lots of shopping - clothes - for her and me. Some stuff is good, some will need changing. I will need to go back to Kempten with Zita. She is keener for me to be well dressed than I am. I both appreciate having some encouragement to dress better - but also some resistance to spending money (and using up resources) on new clothes when the old ones still have plenty of life in them, even if they are a bit worn. I feel my view would not be main stream in Germany however.
AT 9.30 pm I talk on the phone with my old guitar playing mate, Markus Kimmich. He has just written a letter to me in New Zealand, posted after we had left. This is the first letter he has written in 2 years. I am honoured. We arrange to meet for dinner on Monday night. His Anna will cook Spargel (asparagus) for us.