Day 2, Rhine River ride, 104 km, Not as many Castles

So my host last night said that it was a shame that I wasn't able to see the castles because of the rain. I agreed, though, the ones I did see and took photos of were impressive. He added that today on my ride from Koblenz to Koln I'd only see a few. Well, that's a few more than I'd see in Michigan. By a lot.

Meaning: We don't have any old stuff here.

Maybe not as many castles, but I also passed by some very fancy river-front houses (a kind of modern castle).

The Rhine River cycle path is made up of a combination of streets, small carless ways, gravel, tarmac, cobblestone, brick that runs through towns, villages, promenades with little cafes, fields, and woods. So far it has been varied and very interesting. I haven't wanted to plug in headphones because I was bored.

I'm also managing 2 different phones. I usr the German phone like a mother ship. I can use it to phone and text German hosts/friends, but it is so old that I can't really use maps on it. I also use it as a hotspot so that I can get data on my regular phone to download the day's ride and course correct. Between the 2 phones, it's one step forward, two steps back. A lot of trying to make things work. Thus, when I got hung up in Wessling trying to ring my way through/around a chemical plant, I hesitated to bring out both phones. Thus, I went around in circles. After the second go around trying to find the cycle track, I just started randomly following cyclists on their way home from work. The Rhine River path follows the Rhine River--until it doesn't and something like a chemical plant blocks the way. At a stop light I said in English to a rider I'm trying to go to Koln. He made a motion with his hand, like a circle. He understood, I thought, then I said I'll follow you. We went in a wide circle AWAY from the river and at first south before turning north them it all made sense.
Meanwhile I heard a weird sound coming from the bike and got off to investigate: a screw had sheared off from my rear rack. Only one side was connected. No time for problems, I zip tied it and hoped it would hold for 20 more kilometers.

In Koln, a big busy city, I hooked up the 2 phones to discover tonight's host was way on the outskirts. I phoned him just to be sure my directions were correct. I also mentioned the rack. He told me to take the train. Easier said than done. I had no idea of how much, where to go, or anything. He told me to go to the main train station. I found it. He texted me which track and stop to take. Somehow I managed to figure out where/how to buy the ticket and where the elevator to the platform was. All with an unweildy bike. It worked, Stefan met me at the stop and rode me to his house. He used to be a mechanical engineer for Ford, he has a box of screws, he finds one for the rear rack. It's fixed! We eat dinner.

So many near misses and miracles and new challenges in one day!
Tomorrow exploring Koln and then a train ride with the bike to Berlin.