I pedal as fast as I can, but Mia is much quicker. Fast as lightning, she whizzes past an old man.
“Go, Elsy, go!” he calls after her. He stands still, cheering Mia on and laughing. But why does he call her Elsy? When Mia reaches the tree, she puts her arms in the air and beaming she shouts: “I won!” Then she rides back and stops in front of the old man. He is still laughing.
“My name is Mia. Why did you call me Elsy?” she asks him.
“Hello Mia. You remind me of Elsy Jacobs. She used to live in Garnich. Many years ago, she was world cycling champion. And she was the first woman from Luxembourg to be champion. Those were good times,” the old man enthuses.
Mia looks at me with a grin: “So you see, I’m no snail on a bike, I’m much more an Elsy!”
We say goodbye to the man and continue to Kahler at a leisurely pace. When we get to the village, we look at the colourful artwork on the walls.
“Emil, come here quickly,” my sister suddenly calls. “Look at this graffiti!” There before us is a blue wall with a fat snail.
“It’s got an engine on its back, that’s a proper turbo snail!” Mia laughs out loud.
I giggle: “Turbo snail suits you better than Elsy.”
