From the Mountains to the Sea: Off to Leipzig (via Meissen)

We are staying at the same penzion we had stayed when we arrived into Dresden on 14 September. So we know ‘the lie of the land’ so to speak. First thing was a trip to ALDI to get milk and bananas to add to our leftover muesli for breakfast. Then it was off to the nearby Waschcenter to get a couple of loads of washing done. A lovely day; I could think of better things to do...

So here we are - at Coswig waiting for a train to Leipzig almost 4:30 p.m.

Beautiful day. Magical. Just like when we started the trip. Dresden really turned it on for us today.

After collecting our cleaner, less smelly clothes (!) we cycled along the river radweg.

First stop: the Kunsthofpassage. So pleased to squeeze this in. Busy! We had to make our way along the street between the tram lines. Lots of cafes. This is a great neighbourhood: the student district of the Neustadt area.

The Kunsthofpassage - very cute; a bit Hundertwasser-ish! In fact this is an art experiment by the tenants of the apartment buildings on which the works are installed.

A quick cup of coffee here before going to bike shop to hand in our bicycles.

We told the guys at the bike shop about a little damage to the undercarriage of one of the bikes and they were completely unfazed. They had not even taken a deposit at the start!! Completely different attitude to Herr Cranky Old Toad at the bike hire at Trier last year.

They had even stored our suitcases too!

So a major re-pack now from panniers into suitcases. As MF2 said: ‘Goodbye bikes; hello suitcases’.

Then about a kilometre walk to the station and 10 minutes later we were on a train to Meissen. Perfect.

Probably a kilometre walk from the station brought us to the famous porcelain factory. We walked in at 2:30 p.m.; they stored our bags in a luggage room and then ushered us straight into a tour. Perfect!

Wonderful tour enjoyed by the MFs which was a surprise to me. I am totally thrilled to get to this! (You may recall we bypassed Meissen on our day from Prague back into Germany, so returning here later was a non-negotiable for me).

Off again after a look at the shop (!) and a hot walk back to the station. And we had a transfer at Coswig and a wait so we devoured a block of chocolate from my emergency stash in my back-pack (we’d had no lunch). Good chance to catch up on ourselves!

The train to Leipzig was pretty full; I’m glad we found a little alcove for our suitcases plus seats for ourselves. That Sachsen ticket today has been marvellous - all day travel for the 3 of us for 38€; got it right for a change! It’s been a ‘mixed bag’ this trip re train tickets: I’ve won some and lost some - overall, with more info. I could have done better. It’s been tricky to work out.

About an hour and 10 minutes to Leipzig (regional train). Lovely scenery as we now return through Riesa where we started our ride after returning to Germany from Prague. Long shadows across the landscape as the day starts to fade.

Arrive Leipzig about 10 to 6 - efficient, huge station. Great 2-bedroom apartment only a short walk away. Here for 2 nights. Yippee!

Temperatures are positively mild!

It is such an exciting place. The city is very compact. Very buzzy (!). You get the sense that this is a GDR city that wishes to put the past behind it and wants to get on with the future.

Wonderful dinner at Barthels Hof, a good local restaurant with typical Saxony food; away from the tourist hordes in the Markt plaza. Local food. MF2 had wild boar - very happy; he said it was Obelisk’s favourite food. Our waiter has been very nice. I complimented him on his English. He said ‘My English is better than my German’; he is from Croatia. Great country he said, but the corruption is terrible: you can’t get on unless you know the right people. Better life for him and his family in Germany, he said.

Big nightlife here. Lots of people out and about as we make our way back to our apartment.