Once upon a time, and it was quite some time ago, I was 13 years old and started to explore the world I lived in on my bicycle. Initially, they were short, two or three day trips. My first ones were either in the company of a friend or later with my younger brother. I had four brothers, and that may well have been the reason why I was quite happy, even anxious, to have my summers to myself.

At the time we lived in Bäumenheim, a small, industrial village just south of Donauwörth (see map ONE or TWO). By the year 1953, I ... (more)