Pieces of cake as big as paving stones

The day started well: At 10 a.m. Ricci had called everyone to line up for the notorious congratulations parade of the motorhome friends of Europe . Everyone met at Ricci's, equipped with flags and songbooks, and then the procession went across the campsite to the birthday girl, in this case to Elke, who was already waiting for what was to come with her husband Gerd-Joachim. First a song, then club chairman Karl presented a present and at the end there were two more songs. The birthday girl even shed tears - whether from emotion or horror at the singing quality of the performances will probably remain her secret...

Most of the group then got on their bikes and headed up the Lahn to Braubach. This led via Lahnstein and the point where the Lahn flows into the Rhine. The route continued along the Rhine to Braubach, a town of 3,000 souls that is best known for its location below the imposing Marksburg. However, only four men in the cycling group attempted the eight percent gradient up to the fortress built in the early 12th century. The women stayed on the banks of the Rhine and were looking forward to a shopping trip. But: "We looked and looked," says Uschi, "but there were no shops or stores. Only restaurants and cafés."

However, they also exerted a certain attraction on the ladies, who ultimately chose Café Maaß. "There were pieces of cake here that were so big that they barely fit on the plate," enthuses Walter, who joined them later and is a real expert in all kinds of sweets. While some of them were enjoying coffee and cake, the others were struggling up to the castle. Once there, Heinz managed to make it to the restaurant with his last bit of strength and was looking forward to a hearty snack with which he wanted to make up for his calorie deficit. But Ricci fought tooth and nail. When it comes to food, Ricci is usually more for than against it. But this time he argued with all his vehemence and emphaticness for the return trip to Café Maaß. The only explanation: Irmi had probably sent him a photo of the gigantic pieces of cake and good old Ricci didn't want to miss out on it...