...and finally, Alf.

It is day four at Traben Trabach, we're on nodding terms with all the neighbours and in some danger of settling-in. Neither of us are too good at that. Seeking out weird and wonderful examples of German advertising may be a sign that I need  a change. As for Gill, she has just unwrapped 'The Exterminator', the electronic fly swat she bought for herself and is now prowling our pitch on the hunt for any small flying creature to test the thing out. Insects are cleverer than you think; the moment she slipped in the Duracells and pressed the red button, every fly in the vicinity scarpered. She has that determined look. If I was a nearby mallard I would be starting to feel nervous.

Definitely time to move on, the question is where? Wetter online is warning of Gewitter, which Google translate informs us are thunderstorms. Around Koblenz looks less unsettled, but we still fancy cycling a bit more along the Moselweg. So, in the end we opted to drive a few miles upstream, see how the weather pans out, and decide tomorrow on a plan for the rest of the week.

So here we are. In a simple, almost empty stellplätz in a small wine village with a diminutive name - Alf. 

The place is on the edge of the village, set among woods and hills, and overlooked by a restored castle, called the Marienburg. It's about an 800 metre walk from here to the centre of the village which stragges along the riverbank. Like most places in the valley it is very much a working wine village, and quite pretty into the bargain.

A small passenger ferry connects Alf to the slightly larger village, Bullay, on the opposite bank. It's about the most exciting thing you can do around here, so we paid our 1.50 euros each and hopped aboard.

Safely deposited in Bullay, you have equally limited options for entertainment. You might wander around the attractive village streets, stop momentarily to consider if a kaffee und küchen may be in order, or, you might resist the temptation as we did, and stand in the village square speculating as to why the statue in the middle of it is depicted stepping out of her dress.

Alternatively, there is a rather lovely riverside stroll. The delights of the Moselle are gentle and modest, but sitting for ten minutes or so simply watching the ripples on the water is a delight, As we sat on the bench we noticed the sky upstream; the clouds were looking increasingly dark and stormy. It created a rather spectacular vivid light. 

Beautiful it may have been, but it also seemed to be a prelude to the forecast 'gewitter'. Quickly we hopped back onto the ferry and hurried back to Maisy. We avoided a soaking, the first spots of rain began to fall just as we reached the shelter of the van.