Land Navigation

I was promoted to Private First Class at the end of infantry training because I led my fire team through both the day and night compass courses into first place for the company. I must say that was easier than navigating on the roads in Germany. 

I use Mr. Garmin to get to addresses, or if I want to meander off the highway. To meander, I set the "avoidance" instructions to avoid highways. And boy, does it avoid them. However, on the roads it chooses there are seldom any large trucks, the speed limits are lower, and the routes are into the countryside. Of course you still pass through little villages every few kilometers, but that is fine, as you get to see the homes and the gardens along the way. 

I will note that there is no avoidance setup feature to stay away from nuclear power plants, and Mr. Garmin took me on three of four sides of one yesterday. Did you know that there is a ladder on the outside of the cooling towers to take you all the way to the top?  No wines they have big fences with barbed wire to keep people out, because who wouldn't want to climb straight up in the air a few hundred feet on a sheer concrete wall?

The last few days I've just been wandering towards Bremen, as I need to talk to the shipping agent here. So Mr. Garmin has taken me the long way. The fields have flattened out the further north I've come, but they are still as lovely. I've seen a lot of fields planted in mustard, and those fields are in various shades of yellow as the plants blossom and bloom. The yellow against the green rye and other grasses is beautiful, as is the contrast with the dark tilled soil waiting for planting or growth. A very few fields have the stubble from last year's harvested crops, and I've seen pheasant and other birds walking in those fields and eating. 

The hilltops are mostly left to woodlands, with the deciduous trees just starting to leaf out. The darker evergreens hold their own, and in the Harz Mountains I saw some pines. Down lower, fruit trees are blossoming in the warmer areas, and the bright yellow of the forsythia is everywhere. 

Homes and businesses alike have planted petunias and other annuals, and daffodils and tulips brighten gardens and roadsides. 

Along just about every road there are bike and walking paths, and they are used by young and old. Yesterday I saw a woman who looked as though she was in her 80's walking towards a town about a kilometer away, purse on her arm, but with no scarf or hat. She looked like my grandmother, minus 100 pounds or more. 

These rural roads are lined with trees on both sides as well. It is noteworthy that here in the northwestern part of the contry where I've been the last two days, the tree lined roads are the norm, but further south towards the Rhine and Mosel, it is not. I'm sure there must be a reason. 

When I don't use Mr. Garmin, I must rely on the maps and my tired old eyeballs. I've learned to pick out a route, and then I write down the route numbers and the major towns along the way. The German traffic signage is in relatively small font, with the route numbers smaller than the city names. They are hard for me to read, and the street names can only be read from a short distance away. So if I know the names of the towns I'm headed for, I can usually find my way. 

Having said that, I also keep in mind that I can always turn around and go back to where I lost my way. On some days it happens more often than others. But that is okay, I am not trying to set land speed records, I'm just trying to get to a general location. 

And I'm still enjoying seeing this countryside, but I really want to get to the Med. And I really really want to dump this rental car and get on the 650.