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Were one to take the mountains away from the Upper Lusatians and the rolling ´Rrr´ of their dialect, then still their „Umgebinde“ houses would remain as their trademark: a brilliant combination of log cabin and half-timbered house, devised in the 16th century by village craftsmen. Nowhere else do so many survive as in the region where Saxony, Bohemia and Silesia meet. The start of this well signposted ´Umgebinde Cycle Route´ (130 kilometres) is Neukirch which has a railway link. Almost entirely on asphalt, sometimes uphill, then again downhill, this thematic cycle path leads to hundreds of „Umgebinde“ houses which often stand close to one another, almost like in an inhabited open-air museum. During this three day tour cyclists also pass through the former miniature republic of Schirgiswalde, the sundial village Taubenheim and through Herrnhut, home of worldwide active missionaries and bright Christmas stars, and into the attractive old town of Zittau, where the route ends. |
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