just stumbled upon this entry by accident, and I must say, it´s pretty cool to see my home area described on an American blog (and with a bunch of nice pictures to boot!)!

Perhaps two small corrections (you know how it is with us dour, humorless Germans – always sticklers for the fine and unimportant details… ):
- The Picture with the description “Alsbach Schloss on the hill” is not actually showing the Alsbacher Schloss – that´s the Auerbacher Schloss, another castle two or three kilometers to the South (and, by the way, even more imposing and beautiful than the Alsbacher Schloss)
- And the Picture just below shows a house in the village of Hähnlein, not in Alsbach proper (Hähnlein actually belongs to the municipality of Alsbach-Hähnlein, but – as if often the case with neighbouring towns – the Hähnleiners are somewhat touchy about being confused with Alsbachers, and vice versa…).

Anyway: Nice blog, nice entry, nice pictures!
Should you find yourself in this area again, you should perhaps consider taking a few tours into the Odenwald hills – admittetly a little more challenging for cyclists, but much more beautiful than the somewhat dull flatlands of the Ried.

Best regards from Germany

Matthias