Mon Sep 25 – Cycle Day 4 – Heidelberg to Worms – 51.4 kms – App=290 meters (RWGPS=329 Meters) <<< Heidelberg Tour, Worms’ Huge Gate on Bridge, Thai-Vietnamese Supper >>> Every morning, we compare our hotel breakfast. This morning was the best! Since we didn’t see much of Heidelberg yesterday, this morning we detoured from our exit route and cycled along the Neckar River to old town. We admired the old arched bridge (Alte Brucke) from afar and rode up near the funicular that takes visitors to the castle that is perched over the town. We rode back to the river and onto the old arched bridge through a large gate (https://ww2.heidelberg.de/Altstadt-Information/english/Sektor11/Sektor11o_Brueckentor.htm). As we were riding on the north side, we rode by some of the large beautiful homes we had seen yesterday. We then caught the official route path and continued riding north. At km 17 we rode through Landenburger (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladenburg), a beautiful town with half-timbered houses and a nice square with a fountain. Karl Benz lived in this town. His “Benz” Patent Motorcar from 1885 is considered the first practical modern automobile and first car put into series production. In 1926, it merged with Daimler to form Daimler-Benz, which produces the Mercedes-Benz among other brands. We would have loved to stop here for lunch, but we were not hungry yet. But when we were ready for lunch, we found ourselves in a light industry area of Vogelstang. We checked out Google Maps and saw a pizzeria not to far away from our route. As we started to ride, John noticed an umbrella and a small food type kiosk and suggested that we check it out. Obviously, it had been set up to feed the workers for lunch. We had beer, bratwurst and currywurst and sat at a picnic table. What a perfect spot along our route. No detour required! Today, we enjoyed more forests, parks and farmers’ fields. In addition to the rutabaga plant that we can now easily recognize, we saw a field of asparagus. As we entered Worms, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worms,_Germany), we were greeted by a very large 8-story gate (https://www.worms-erleben.de/experience/entdecken-und-staunen/sehenswuerdigkeiten/Brueckenturm-Nibelungen.php) at the end of the Rhine River, as we yet again crossed it. We made our way to the hotel and checked in. Today we had less kilometers and arrived earlier than the other days. We walked to the very large St Peter’s Cathedral, which was built in the 1100’s. Worms was where Martin Luther was deemed a heretic and banned from the Roman Catholic Church and then started the Luteran Protestant Church. As we were walking back towards the hotel with a plan to find a restaurant to eat supper, John, who has caught a nasal cold decided he needed to go to sleep. Karen, who was a nurse had some better medication than Contact C, and gave John some pills today. Thus, the 3 of us found a Thai-Vietnamese restaurant nearby. It was soooooooooo good. We ordered a to-go mango-chicken-rice meal for John. While Karen and Cam went elsewhere for dessert, I brought John’s meal to him. He had fallen asleep and had woken up, just before I entered. He loved his meal.