Thursday 2 August

Bad Schandau to Dresden

We packed quickly and were away by half past nine and rode on to Schloss Pillnitz where we had arranged to meet Liz for lunch. August der Starke rebuilt Schloss Pillnitz as a summer palace. Dresden was his capital city. As we approached Pillnitz we spotted Liz and the car on the east bank of the river and we tried to attract her attention. We crossed the river on a ferry and eventually met up for lunch sitting in the gardens in pleasant sunny weather.

After looking round the schloss we cycled on to Dresden, arriving at about four o’clock. Simon had booked us into a student hostel with shared dormitories and communal washing facilities. We walked into Dresden and Simon gave us a tour of the Zwinger, the Catholic Cathedral, the Opera , the Frauenkirche (under reconstruction) and the new synagogue (still being built). Simon went off to meet up with friends and we made our way to the Grosser Garten for hot dogs, beer, live jazz and good company with Simon and his friends who had joined us. We had a really pleasant evening and caught the bus back.

The cross for the top of the Frauenkirche had been made in Coventry by the son of one of aircraft crew that had bombed Dresden shortly before the end of WWII.

The Frauenkirche Cross, made in Coventry