As
usual I took the Texas heat with me to Denmark. One fellow packed up and went
home after the first day and a half. Sitting on a curb during a rest about day
3 I began to wonder about my sanity. I was soaking wet, my head was wet making
my helmet a bit uncomfortable, sweat was running down my back, I was huffing
and puffing from the steep hills and to add to my misery we picked up a
headwind.
By
mid afternoon looking out over the ocean I approached our guide saying, “Be
honest with me, is the whole trip going to be like this? Don’t give me any
rhetoric! Just tell me the truth because I’ve about had enough.” He told me there was little left of
the day and the next day forward would be much smoother. He assured me I was a
better biker than I gave myself credit for---we were all having problems.
I did stick it out; it did get better; I
saw and learned much; and I’m glad I didn’t quit---not really part of my
personality anyway!
We ferried among many
islands and biked on the islands of Sealand, Fuen, Areo, Lang-land, Lolland,
and Falster over paved paths, streets, gravel, through forest, through many
wheat fields, along the sea, and up and down lots of hills. We biked the entire
length of one island. Once again my bike saw me safely through it all with no
mishaps.
We utilized many ferries, including a postal
ferry and one huge ferry that carried big trucks and trains, to get from one
island to another. We met some interesting people on ferry rides.
The little cobbled town
of Aeroskobing is memorable because it was like a fairy tale town. The resort season
was coming to an end so there were very few cars or people. The small houses
and shops were painted in pastel colors. Many of the doors were decorated with
brass and plaster motifs. The houses were close together, almost joining, on
the narrow streets giving the appearance of a make-believe village. It was a
delightful lunch stop.
One day we stopped at
Hesnaes to view all the thatch roof houses. Some of these homes also had
thatched sides. The very thick thatching needs to be replaced fairly often. The
picturesque homes are quite a fire hazard. The village was quaint, charming and
uniquely Danish.
The Admiral Hotel in
Copenhagen is a converted 1787 warehouse with exposed beams and thick brick walls. The original
granary had a rustic charm. The graceful brick archways were accented with 12 X
15-inch beams 200 years old. It was unique and we enjoyed a lovely stay.
Radhus (City Hall) is a
landmark between the train station, Tivoli, and the Stroget. The 345-foot high
tower has 300 steps leading to the top. The building is full of Danish
symbolism inside and out. The golden statue is of Bishop Absalon, who founded Copenhagen more than 800
years ago. The Round
Tower was built in 1642.
Polar bears climbing on the roof represent Danish protection from Greenland. An iron gate in the center of the floor is an
elevator for the transport of 1200 chairs.
The building itself was inspired by its equivalent in Siena, Italy.
Opposite the Stroget a unique clock sits in
the tower. Hourly weather girls appear on bikes in fair weather and under
umbrellas if rain is predicted.
It’s only a short walk from
Nyhavn to the infamous Little Mermaid statue. She is much smaller than most
people expect. Sitting just a few feet from shore in shallow water she has been
beheaded twice by vandals. Hans Christian Anderson’s story made her famous. She
was given to the city in 1913 by a brewery icon.
The Stroget, running through
the heart of the city, is a mile-long pedestrian thoroughfare. Road traffic was
banned in 1962. King’s Square (Kongens
Nytorv), site of the Royal Theater and Magasin Department Store, is on the
east end of the Stroget. The largest
square in the city is home to the French Embassy and the five-star Hotel
D’Angle Terre. The statue in the center of the square is of King Christian who
enlarged the city in the 1670s by adding the square. The western end of the
Stroget ends at Town Hall Square.
While biking through
the forest along the Baltic Sea we stopped at the General’s teahouse. The owner.
a munitions manufacturer, built, a manor house a couple kilometers inland, but
his teahouse was his favorite. Each afternoon he would go to the teahouse to
have tea while gazing out over the Baltic Sea. During a stay there Hans
Christian Anderson wrote the Elephant
Story which was not very successful.
Church towers are
always built on the west side of the church. The tower usually was added after
the church was built. Churches also are always built on a hill. Many churches
have frescos, hundreds of years, old painted on the ceilings.
Copenhagen
has 50 museums and 2000 restaurants, many of them spilling out onto the streets
as open air cafés.
In Copenhagen the Latin
Quarter, an area near the university is where priests and professors once
lived. It is so named for the Latin scholars not the Latin people. Many of the
1600s buildings are used as college dorms today. Most are built as a square
with a small driveway on one side leading into a center courtyard. King Christian IV built a large round
tower in the Latin Quarter. One can walk to the observatory at the top for a
magnificent view of the city. Gold letters on the side in Latin, Hebrew, and
Danish translate to: ‘lead the crown into
wisdom and justice’.
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