As Linda and I headed for the shops in Torgau this morning, I pondered on the whole shopping issue. Why do she and I love window shopping, even when we don’t buy anything? Why do we enjoy searching through shops, even those that seem unlikely to offer us anything we might genuinely need?
And why do Dwayne and David, while reacting to our shopping expeditions with impatience, spend such a long time in their turn searching for the perfect café or restaurant?
My theory is that we are all simply acting out the roles of our evolutionary past, when women had to gather and forage, while men were responsible for hunting. In Linda’s and my case, therefore, we have an inbuilt, pre-wired urge to search through shops, track down the best buys and dig up bargains.
Linda mentioned to the shop assistants in our favourite shop in the town square of Torgau that she is a “dwarf” and finds it difficult to get anything small enough. They all laughed when I translated what she had said. Thereafter, our sales assistant also fell into a pre-programmed search mode and rummaged through the shop for something that would fit Linda’s tiny stature, ultimately finding her a pair of jeans into which I doubt even one of my legs would fit. We left the shop weighed down with useful articles, just as our evolutionary precursors carried baskets of essential foodstuffs back to camp.
Meanwhile, the men had hunted down the best coffee in town, but they were both eager to set off for Mühlberg and frustrated by the delay.
“Mühlberg is a very small town,” said Davey. “No shops.”
“I love it already,” replied Dwayne.
And it turned out to be exactly as Davey had described it, though far livelier and animated than Pretzsch.
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| Mühlberg Castle | In the courtyard of the Mühlberg Castle |
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| Breakfast at Monika’s pension | Our room in Monika’s pension |
The old castle was an imposing building but, like numerous old houses along our route, falling into disrepair. These buildings struck us as sad and forlorn. We couldn’t help thinking that they were once filled with people like us; perhaps they reminded us of our own mortality.
Nevertheless, the grounds around the old castle were adorned by beautiful community gardens, which made the whole place seem far less melancholy.
There was certainly a general dearth of shops in Mühlberg, but we found the best of all shopping treasures in a tiny hardware shop: two soft covers for our bike saddles to protect our sore bottoms.
Yet another gratifying achievement for us gatherers.
Final Notes
Hotel: Wendlands Pension und Speisen-Restaurant – homely and charming. We were greeted by Monika, the owner, with coffee and home-made cakes. The evening meal in the dining room, with beer directly from the barrel, was relaxing and authentic.
Injury Update: My wrist improved dramatically overnight and I was able to resume my cycling with the minimum of klutziness.
Team Update: I am still in the team but generally considered to be the least reliable member and the one requiring the most discipline.