My tour through Europe started in Essen, celebrating Easter there, from where I travelled to Rotenburg/Wümme, which I used as a base for visits to Bremen and Bremerhaven. The next stop was Rostock. Then I left the proud Hanseatic cities and turned south to vibrant Berlin and München. May day on the Bodensee in Kressbron and Friedrichshafen. From there to Zürich for a few days, followed by a weekend in Paris. From Paris to Heidelberg for a day, then back to Essen along the Rhine, with a stop at Cologne to see the Cathedral.