EUROPEAN BIKING MEMORIES

                                       Wonderful Fun Times

We stopped ten kilometers outside of Linz, Austria and our guide said, “For the rest of the ride today you must use extra caution. We are about to enter an elevated bike path. It is a concrete sidewalk about three feet above street level. Traffic will be moving fast on your right and bikers going in the opposite direction will be passing on your left. Keeping your distance is very important. I caution you to be especially alert.”

           It was a hairy ride and a stressful six miles. We arrived safely at our hotel about 5:00PM

***********

         Every turn in the Danube River held a new scene and photo op. We biked through wheat fields, over farmland, and near the end through thousands of acres of vineyards. We stopped each day mid-morning for coffee and in mid-afternoon for pastry.

************

      Approaching Grein, Austria we biked over part of the old horse path where years ago horses trod pulling barges up and down the river.

************

      In Denmark, no right turns on red. At many intersections large white triangles, called shark’s teeth, are painted across the street that must yield.

***********

      When entering a traffic circle one must yield to all traffic already in the circle, and in Denmark everyone must yield to bikers who follow a blue path painted on the outer edge of the circle. Traffic circle turn offs are particularly dangerous.

***********  

      In Denmark clean well-stocked bathrooms were always found in churches.

*********** 

     Loose gravel on the road is a real hazard  as are sticks and debris on dirt bike paths

 **********     

     Rode many ferries, all sizes. Biked along the Baltic Sea. Biked on six different Danish islands and the full length of one of them.

***********  

    In Bordeaux enjoyed a frog and cuckoo serenade the first three days.

***********   

    Lost in France for about three hours.

***********  

    A biker dressed all in black, hiked over handlebars, almost getting hit by a truck.

*********** 

    Biking through construction in France being stressful.      

***********    

    Sand and high winds at the beach and out of Soulac, France.

**********  

    How  interesting and how much fun   each trip was. Each of the guides was fabulous!

*********** 

   A great way to see a country and visit with its people!

 

STOCKHOLM'S CITY HALL

A gorgeous Building

   In Swedish, city hall is Stadshuset. In Stockholm the brick tower  of the city hall is 395-feet high and topped with three crowns. There are three explanations for the three crowns. They represent the three tribes that inhabited Sweden; they represent the three wise men; or they represent Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, the three Scandinavian countries. Take your pick.

   Each year the Nobel Prize is awarded here in December. In 1923 eight million bricks went into  making one of Europe’s finest public buildings. The brick work is 3- D in some places and is some of the finest brick masonry I’ve ever seen. Each room is finer than the previous one. The city hall is more like a palace.

         The Blue Room, 1911, used for Nobel Prize presentations, was finished in 1923 with interruptions of WW I. The cost was estimated to be 6 million crowns, but actually cost 18 million crowns. All materials used are from Sweden. The staircase has steps wide enough and not too deep so the Nobel winners can glide down the stairs. There is a 10,000 pipe organ in the room and 1360 people can be seated for dinner.

         The Parliament Room has high ceilings with wooden beams that represent the Viking past. The roof is V shaped. The doors are beautifully carved. The original Parliament had 100 members, 14 of whom were women. The women had their own red velvet room to confer, while men would go off to the ‘smoking room’. Today there are 54 women in the 101 member parliament. There are 20 provinces in Sweden. Members are elected for four years.

         The tower is popular for weddings. The open ceiling has glass between it and the wall. Next to the tower is a room built specially to house several beautiful French tapestries.

         The Prince Gallery is a long hall with large windows. On the wall opposite the windows a prince painted the reflection in pastel of what is seen out each window so all people seated in the room would be looking at the same thing. The windows were inset with top to bottom granite-type reliefs. In effect they frame the huge windows. They were beautiful and each one was different.                
      The Three Crown Room contains 19 million 1/4-inch pieces of  glass and gold mosaic chips. The designs, done by a 27 year old, depict Sweden’s history and were completed in three years. The entire walls are covered. The people all have big eyes which was the artist’s desire. Its glitter is earth shattering and there are 200 shades of color. About 30 tiles disappear each year, the majority of them on Nobel Prize night. The kitchen is above this hall. I’ve never seen a public building like Stockholm’s city hall; it is spectacular!