Munster the bike capital has a special addition

Münster, Germany
A bike capital where bikes may outnumber residents!

Martje Salje, also known as the tower keeper in Munster, click the link to learn about that story, was given a special bike this year from her mother.
    

This bike was designed by local Munster artist Stephan Quitmann, who according to Martje  is famous for his unique, fantastic bicycles.

"Each and every one of them is specially designed for their buyer/owner. You can choose every little detail yourself (e.g. the color - I like turquoise/cyan best!) and Stephan lets you sit on a machine that measures your body, like length of the legs and angles of the arms and upper body and so on." 

"The handlebars have leather and the ends and the lights are like parking lights that won’t go out when you’re like waiting at the red light in the darkness."

With this great endorsement, I decided to do a quick search for Mr. Quitmann.   Had I know about him while I was in Münster I would surely have dropped in to take a look at his shop.   His web site confirms he is a 'artist' with metal, leather and most important a fit for the rider of each individual bike.  


Martje goes a step further:

She decided to ask people she meets to sign her bike and give it a one of a kind feature. 

"It was the idea of Stephan Quitmann to let famous and special people sign their name on my bike, so it really is a project work-in-progress." 

But why me?
"I was so impressed that you came all the way to Münster to visit my beautiful city and write about it and even took the time to climb 300 steps with me, so your signature is something that reminds me of an amiable, wonderful and interesting person :-)"

"Then there are some fantastic highly remarkable musicians whom i asked to please sign on my project-bike and I told them how I loved and admired their music. 
One of them is Daniel Masuch, a Jazz pianist and composer, his works are on the Internet, e.g. on spotify as well."

While I was in Münster I learned a lot about bikes:   

• there are more bikes than residents in Münster
• there is a free air 'station' in the middle of town if you need to inflate a tire
• there is a massive bike garage on the way to the train station, offering storage, rentals, washes and repairs
• there are bike RULE, right of ways, penalties for riding in violation of the rules, no drinking and biking
• Münster is the 'bike capital' of Germany....
• Bikes are also called 'Leeze"
• Münster has been awarded the Most bicycle friendly city in Germany, several times

I need to get back on a bike!

And here is my signature on this amazing bike, may it travel far and wide.

This reminds me of the mid 1950's practice of having an autograph book and having friends sign your book.    I suppose we lost the art of poems, drawings or sentiments when the year book replaced autograph books and then videos, FB and Twitter replaced all writing.  .    

At the same time did we also lose our imaginations?  Can you ask someone to put a twitter comment in a 'book'?  Would we receive a response?

Be sure to read more about Marje

Off the Beaten Track in Germany

Munster:   Famous for Beer, Bikes, Churches NOT Cheese

There is so much to see on this whirlwind tour of Western Germany's towns that may not be on the list of top tourist locations.      My visit started in Dusseldorf with a side trip to Cologne.  I wanted to test my solo skills of navigating the train system without any knowledge of German.  

Stories on the 'woman in the tower', the oldest cake store and the bike garage to follow!

Munster:   My first adventure was two filled days exploring this busy college town north of Dusseldorf.  There appears to be more bikes than cars and I found there are 'bike rules' that give bikers the right of way.    
I explored by foot and the helpful 'hop on hop off bus' that gave me a city overview on a rainy morning.  The tourist office in the center of town gives you great maps and information on what to do and what to see.   

The cloister at the Dom (cathedral) in Munster

Ms Brugete Nygkebgiff, a licensed tour guide in Munster agreed to forgo the 'bike tour' for a fast walk that showed me all of Munster and made many suggestions for food and activities that a solo traveler might enjoy.    The library in Munster is a perfect place to take a break from the weather and hours of walking.    There is a WC in the lower level, public computers on the second floor and a lovely café I tried on my second day in Munster.    A great spot for individual travelers or groups.

Juliane Unkelbach with Munster Marketing hosted my dinner at a wonderful beer hall!  This beer was GREAT and although I had to ask Juliane what each dish was called, it was all wonderful.

Who said German food was all sauerkraut and hot potato salad?  And please note the size of the water glass and beer glass

-I enjoyed  "Kalbsrückensteak westfälische Art".

 large plate of vegetables was inluded

Westfälischer Pfefferpotthast  

The owner of Pinkus Muller

The entire staff was very welcoming and a solo traveler could easily enjoy a meal here.   Later in the evening (after 8pm) the restaurant did fill up.   They must come for the food or the beer?

Our beer named "Pinkus Spezial".  This was a very smooth beer that is nothing like "beer' at home.   It was easy to ask for another!

My visit to Munster was hosted by Munster Marketing but all opinions are my own.    I will surly return to Munster, perhaps for the Christmas market!