We discovered that the car plays MP3s from a USB stick, and we were prepared for this journey by converting a bunch of our OGG files to MP3 – mainly German songs. So we set off to a suitable musical soundtrack.

Dresden has surpassed all expectations – the historical buildings around the center are magnificent.

It is impressive that so much of it has been rebuilt since the war. We spent hours just wondering around looking at all the buildings (and statues).

Some highlights were attending part of the mass at the Catholic Cathedral. I found that even though it was all in German, I could follow exactly where he was in the service. It was very high church – with bells and part of the mass sung. We also went into the Frauenkirke, which was totally re-built after reunification. The rebuild cost E18 million, and was raised through an international fund-raising effort.

We had lunch at a market near the center. There were many stalls selling various sausages and beer on tap. We had curry wurst and beer. We also bought some gingerbread.

Elsbeth fell on uneven paving stones near the river – thankfully she was unhurt. A number of people rushed to help pick her up.

We went for a drive to see what we could see on the other side of the river, and found the Schloss-Albrechtsberg, which Prince Albert, younger brother of the Prussian king, built for his mistress in 1854. He had to leave the Prussian court because of his marriage to this mistress, who was of a lower rank. We took a walk around the gardens admiring the views down to the Elbe river and the scent of violet bushes along the walkway.

Back in our car we circled round to the other side of the river and saw that there are two more smaller castles standing beside Schloss-Albrechtsberg. Along the river we also saw some people barbecuing, children paddling, and lots of cyclists and walkers.

We took a route through Moritzburg on the way back to Meissen and found another Schloss – this one standing in the middle of its own lake.