Today we had to move out of our accommodation, so we took some time in the morning packing the bicycles and all our other stuff back into the car. Kris managed to get them in with their wheels on this time by putting part of the back seat down and lying them on their sides on top of each other.

Our first stop was a bicycle shop near Meissen, to see about the front panniers. It was a small bicycle repair shop, but he seemed to have a steady flow of people coming through. We found the Kris’s bike can’t fit a front pannier rack, as it doesn’t have the right mountings, so we bought a large basket for his handlebars instead. We also bought some spare spokes and a bicycle computer for the trip.

Next we took a bit of a drive north of Meissen, first through Neschutz, we passed a castle (Schloss Hirschstein) on the opposite side of the Elba then came across Schlosskirche Diesbar-Seublitz. We stopped to have a look and found out that a St Claire convent had been founded there in 1268, and later destroyed during the Hussite wars (15^th century). The convent church became part of a baroque castle built in the 18^th century – designed by the same architect as the Frauenkirche in Dresden.

We had a look in the church, which has a lovely organ and some very uncomfortable pews. We also had a look at some memorials/ gravestones that had been dug up from the site – some as old as the 13^th century.

We then took a little walk along the Elba – along the same path as the bicycle track. There was a little ferry going over to the other side. Also some grape vines growing on steep terraces along the banks.

We passed a couple of restaurants before we came to one where we decided to stop for lunch. We sat on a large veranda and we all ordered white asparagus (Spargel) – which is a specialty of the season. Everybody is trying to sell it, adverts everywhere.

We then went onto the town of Riesa, which also had an old convent. When we got there we found the convent was now part of an animal park and there was not much to see, just a pretty town square.

We came back to our new accommodation at Hotel Garni Fam. Moissi in Nieschutz near Meissen and the Elbe. This is a very different accommodation to the last place. It is a small hotel run by an elderly couple. It seems they are just renovating the place so it is very smartly furnished. It even has beds with heads and feet that lift up automatically. We have a big room with table, chairs and kitchenette on the top floor. Unfortunately Elsbeth’s room is in the basement (3 flights down). The only advantage for her is that she has a big screen to watch German TV. We had our evening meal and some red wine together in our room.