Day 5 - Wednesday 26th April 2023

We don't have any specific commitments here in Frankfurt and so there was no reason to get up early. It was good to catch up on some sleep overnight after the very long day yesterday.

Mind you, it wasn't always settled sleep. For a start, they have an usual arrangement for the quilts. Although it is a king size bed, each person has their own quilt rather than a single quilt for the entire bed. Every time you roll over, you have to sort out the quilt.

Second, we hadn't yet conquered the settings on our devices (iPhones, iPads, etc) to keep them silent overnight. So we were woken every now and then by something beeping at us. A few were ring tones from somebody calling from Australia - probably one of the many people who ring me all the time to sell me wine.

It was cool here. When I checked my phone at about 7:30, the temperature was -1C but by the time we went downstairs for breakfast at about 8:45, it was +4C. Luckily we didn't need to go outside yet because the restaurant is next to reception. Once again, it was bright and sunny with a few clouds.

They offer a buffet breakfast for 17 Euros per person. We each had an omelette, strawberries and coffee. We were the only people in the restaurant and we were outnumbered by the staff.

This morning the plan was to go to the "new old town'' and to find a Vodafone shop to buy a data SIM. We set off from the hotel at about 10am.

Initially we walked along the river bank. There is a wide tree-lined path that was being used by walkers, joggers, cyclists and people just sitting on the benches enjoying the brisk April  morning. There were also geese along the bank and in the nearby grassed area.

After passing several bridges, we came to an area where river cruise ships were moored. Then we headed inland to the first stop on the walking tour: the cathedral. Apparently most of this area was destroyed by bombing in WWII but the cathedral was largely spared.

After admiring the architecture from the outside, we went inside too. It was worth the visit to see the tall windows, statues, etc. Cathedrals usually are tall and this one is certainly no exception.

Next we walked along laneways to get to the main square. Apparently this area was only rebuilt about five years ago and closely resembles what it looked like before the war.

After walking down to a different part of the river, we walked back to the main square to the tourist information centre to find out about other attractions in the city.

A few blocks further on, after passing through some more tourist areas, we came to the main shopping street that consists of modern buildings like you would find in other major cities.

The Vodafone shop was a disappointment because they told us that they no longer sell the European data SIM despite what their web site says.

Instead we found what we wanted in a very large electronics store (Saturn Electro) in the nearby shopping complex. It was a 30GB O2 SIM instead of Vodafone. The shop assistant spoke excellent English and set up the device for us to prove that it worked. Problem solved.

After relaxing in a coffee shop, we headed back to our hotel, stopping at Aldi across the road to get something for lunch. Our room has a small kitchenette making it easy to self cater.

Another task for today was to get some washing done. Fortunately, the hotel had a laundry near reception with washing machines and dryers thereby saving the expense of the usual hotel dry cleaning service. There were two washing machines and two dryers (both Bosch). After five days of travel, we had a full load.

However, it was not just like a traditional laundry room because this one was high-tech - it relies on an app on your phone - which Suzy had downloaded. You use the app to book a machine. You then have ten minutes to get downstairs to load up the machine and get it going. You get a message when the load is finished at which time you can repeat the process to book a dryer and load it up.

Despite the high-tech, the clothes didn't seem to be completely dry and so we ending up draping them over lounge chairs. Technology doesn't always triumph.

Looking down on the river from our room, we noticed various small row boats along the river. Some had only one or two occupants and some had four. Apart from the occasional small cruise ship, there were some long cargo vessels. It was a peaceful scene.

For dinner, we went to the restaurant downstairs again. This time we opted for veal and salmon dishes rather than pizza - plus glasses of the same wine we had last night. The waiter confirmed that most of the staff (including the chef) were from his Italian family.

We were back in our room by 9pm. By this time, the sun had set and it was getting dark. It was an attractive sight with a ribbon of lights on each side of the river and on the bridges with the city skyscrapers in the middle distance.