Via Romea Germanica Day 12: Bröckel - Rietze

Nimm dir zeit, um zu traumen. Das ist der weg zu den Sternen. 

Take the time to dream. That is the Way to the stars.

- sign by the door of the house where I picked up the keys to my accommodation this afternoon 

I slept marvellously in my little trailer - definitely the smallest pilgrim hostel I have ever stayed in! Luckily, I didn't even have to traipse across the garden and into the maze of Torsten's house to use the toilet during the night. When I arrived, Torsten showed me where everything was and then went out to dinner with his girlfriend. And could I find the shower room after he had gone? All the doors looked the same, and the ones I tried led into his workshops and storage rooms - he restores antiques for a living. His house is so big he also uses it as an event venue, hosting meetings, parties and concerts, as well as an annual Christmas market!

I wasn't that bothered about having a shower anyway, and it was cold in the big old house - much warmer outside in the garden. So I took my dinner to a table in the garden and ate there, then retired to my cosy shepherd's cabin.

Torsten's girlfriend Barbara came over in the morning and we all had breakfast together, discussing the differences between European and North American long-distance hiking trails - her son wants to walk the Pacific Crest Trail, and she is not very happy about it! I also discovered that Torsten and Barbara were at the party Ayelen and I crashed in Celle on Saturday night 🤭

Candlelight breakfast!

Tortsen showing off his Via Romea t-shirt

After the ritual photo-taking, signing of the pilgrim guest book and stamping of the pilgrim credential, it was time to leave the haven of Antikhof Drei Eichen and hit the road. My first stop was the local grocery store, to stock up on food for the next 24 hours: my contact in Rietze, Heinrich, had warned me that there were no shops or restaurants there. 

I then proceeded out of town and into the open fields, among gigantic wind turbines. 

I passed a Christmas tree farm, and a sign reporting the distance to Rome. I'm not sure whether to trust it, because the distance it reported from Stade - 166 kilometres - was a lot less than I have walked! I reached a total of 250 kilometres today, according to my GPS tracks. 👣 

I passed some curious cows, and many, many fields of asparagus, covered with sheets of non-woven textiles to protect them against the cold. Not necessary today - the weather has suddenly warmed up! After walking without my jacket on for the first time yesterday, today I even walked in short sleeves!

Lilac is in bloom all over Germany: I first saw it in Munich on my day visiting between trains on my way to Stade. It comes in a variety of colours, not only the classic lilac but white and a variety of shades of purple. 

I stopped for a picnic on a bench in the village green in Eltze. I passed by Gasthaus Pröve, where I had originally sought accommodation. Once again I am glad nothing was available (due to renovation work), as the owner gave me the number of Heinrich in Rietze, a few kilometres further along the way, who arranged for me to stay at the Dorfgemeinschafthaus, the local community centre and village hall, in the building that used to be the schoolhouse. Heinrich was not there when I arrived, but his wife Dagmar gave me the keys; the mayor of the village himself came to meet me at the hall, bringing coffee, tea and sugar and asking if I needed anything else. I reassured him that I had already bought enough food for dinner, but he still came back later to offer me a lift to the supermarket! 😄

The Dorfgemeinschafthaus

I even have my own playground!

And a giant inflatable mattress (the super-comfy kind) in the meeting room

For pilgrims, the village provides a large inflatable mattress in the corner of the meeting room/party room. One of three meeting and party rooms - a lot, for a village of 280 people! I discovered this on my tour of the village with Heinrich, who is responsible for looking after pilgrims in the village and came by the community centre to see me and stamp my pilgrim credential. We sat talking on a bench in the playground in the sunshine, then he took me on a tour of the village and introduced me to several of his friends. He showed me a stork's nest on the top of his house. And he even invited me to drop by and have a beer at a birthday party where he will be going later! 

With Heinrich in Rietze 

Bröckel - Rietze 18 km