WC2006: A Day Of Rest

DERAG HOTEL AND LIVING, NUREMBERG (1:00pm local time) -- Sundays are very quiet in Germany. Typically, all the shops are closed - although many are open during the tournament, especially in match cities - and my host back in Frankfurt said that loud activities like mowing the lawn are verboten.

This was just what I needed. I walked through the center of town, logged some Internet time, then ambled back along the Rhein. My friends that I met with here initially arrived by boat down the river from Cologne, and said there were absolutely no bridges for miles. There was a town on the other side of the river, but the only way to get there was by ferry. An abundance of cyclists rode by, no doubt touring the Rhein on two wheels. I was content to walk.

We took in some matches at the hotel, in the beer garden down the road, and at a little Greek restaurant where one of the daughters of the owner was gracious enough to keep my friends' one-year old son occupied while we ate.

I probably could have kept pushing myself at the pace I was on in Berlin, but I'm happy I didn't. Being in a small, non-match city ended up being a wonderfully relaxing contrast. We even visited a castle!