In search of the Vikings, Edvard Munch and the Midnight Sun.

[Wanders from Glos]

We are planning to do Morocco in October/November to make up for lack of 'summer' in Norway.

It will be southern Spain for us in September.

 

[Wanders from Glos]

We had a second day exploring Copenhagen on our bikes. The weather was variable but the coffee was superb.

Not much to actually report so here are more photos.

We saw the king in his car but he didn’t wave to us and we saw some of his soldiers outside his house. They were rubbish at marching!

We climbed a church tower with the staircase on the outside.

We wandered round the independent state of Freetown.

And we visited a biomass power station with a ski slope on the roof.

Wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen as the song says. Ideal for a city break.

 

[Grianan]

You seem to be enjoying this part of your holiday … the slow return seems to have paid off

 

[Wanders from Glos]

You seem to be enjoying this part of your holiday … the slow return seems to have paid off

Thanks. I think you are right. I don’t think we find the long drives with a definite objective very relaxing. For us it doesn’t feel like a holiday. But I know it works for others.

 

[tonybvi]

We only went as far north as Alesund before turning round to take the slow route home. We spent ages in Southetn Norway doing things like the Telemark Canal and a Moose Park. We are now having a week in Holland again seeing some fantastic places. Our style is very much slow and easy although we did rush through N Germany as IMHO it isn’t special!

 

[Wanders from Glos]

We only went as far north as Alesund before turning round to take the slow route home. We spent ages in Southetn Norway doing things like the Telemark Canal and a Moose Park. We are now having a week in Holland again seeing some fantastic places. Our style is very much slow and easy although we did rush through N Germany as IMHO it isn’t special!

Where have you been in the Netherlands?

To be fair Lubeck and Stade in Northern Germany are lovely towns.

 

[tonybvi]

Over the years we have done a lot of the Netherlands. We don’t really like big towns and much prefer water and boats so tend towards the regions of Drenthe, Friesland and North Holland. We’re currently pootling around the Oude Venen national park area heading for the delightful fishing village of Hindeloopen. Bourtange (right on the German borde) is an interesting place and we like places like Sneek, Hoorne, Enkhuizen, Dokkum etc. For a great meal De Zwarte Haan just on the coast north of Leeuwarden is well worth a visit - it has its own aire and is on Park4Night.

 

[Wanders from Glos]

Over the years we have done a lot of the Netherlands. We don’t really like big towns and much prefer water and boats so tend towards the regions of Drenthe, Friesland and North Holland. We’re currently pootling around the Oude Venen national park area heading for the delightful fishing village of Hindeloopen. Bourtange (right on the German borde) is an interesting place and we like places like Sneek, Hoorne, Enkhuizen, Dokkum etc. For a great meal De Zwarte Haan just on the coast north of Leeuwarden is well worth a visit - it has its own aire and is on Park4Night.

Thanks all great advice.

 

[Jane NotRog]

On your way back I’d recommend a pie here. I think you could stay the night nearby. This is the actual one we had!

Café het Verdronken Land
21, Koninginnestraat, Nieuw Namen
4568 PT

Café Het Verdronken Land

Huiskamercafé ‘Het Verdronken Land’ | Lekker iets eten of drinken, in de rust van de polder, met volop nostalgie en gezelligheid om je heen.

verdronkenland.nl

+31 114 63 56 33
GPS: 51.328,4.149

Notes
Fab pie for lunch here.

Shared from Mundus, an app by Jane Sales

Mundus App - App Store

Download Mundus by Jane Nolan on the App Store. See screenshots, ratings and reviews, user tips, and more apps like Mundus.

apps.apple.com

 

[G-RMPS]

Is it a tortoise, or just a crunchy pork pie?

 

[Langtoftlad]

Is it actually a pie or a pithivier

#masterchefareus

 

[Wanders from Glos]

On your way back I’d recommend a pie here. I think you could stay the night nearby. This is the actual one we had!

View attachment 1223244

Café het Verdronken Land
21, Koninginnestraat, Nieuw Namen
4568 PT

Café Het Verdronken Land

Huiskamercafé ‘Het Verdronken Land’ | Lekker iets eten of drinken, in de rust van de polder, met volop nostalgie en gezelligheid om je heen.

verdronkenland.nl

+31 114 63 56 33
GPS: 51.328,4.149

Notes
Fab pie for lunch here.

Shared from Mundus, an app by Jane Sales

Mundus App - App Store

Download Mundus by Jane Nolan on the App Store. See screenshots, ratings and reviews, user tips, and more apps like Mundus.

apps.apple.com

Looks good and could be on the way back. Thanks.

 

[Just smiffy]

Today I’ve looked at cruises to the fiords for this year, starting price of £1300 for 14 days got me looking, single supplement puts me straight up to around £2500 then dedicated/declared insurance on top and one company (Ambassador I think) won’t even let me travel alone.. I have to be with an able partner/companion ….

It’s starting to look cheaper going in the van for a month or two…..

 

[Wanders from Glos]

I have to be with an able partner/companion

That's outrageous. Number 3 daughter has a partially sighted friend and most places let her go free as her helper.

There are a lot of cycle paths and we have seen others in wheelchairs use them. But I can see it's a big step.

 

[Wanders from Glos]

We drove all of 27 miles today to a small town called Kvistgard, just south of Helsingor. We chose it because it is an easy cycle ride to the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. Somewhere we have wanted to go for a while. It was re-invented in 1958 as a modern art museum and whilst it has some great works itself it is known for running 6-10 major exhibitions a year.

Amongst its own collection is the famous Warhol depiction of Chairman Mao wearing lipstick.

Lichtenstein also produced a huge painting representing the museum.

The building itself is over 100 years ago with some beautiful extensions encapsulating Danish design and hygge.

The grounds are beautiful and filled with sculptures, notably three Henry Moores.

Plus there is a swimming spot.

We were particularly keen to visit because this current exhibition is the works of Lucian Freud.

There is a wonderful portrait of David Hockney, who sadly died last week.

We have been in Denmark for three days now and are coming to the conclusion that no where does coffee and pastry or cake like it.

 

[Just smiffy]

That's outrageous. Number 3 daughter has a partially sighted friend and most places let her go free as her helper.

There are a lot of cycle paths and we have seen others in wheelchairs use them. But I can see it's a big step.

Yes, especially as I can probably get around to places and quicker then the captain…

But on paper I will get chucked in with the stereotypical view of a wheelchair user….

 

[Wanders from Glos]

But on paper I will get chucked in with the stereotypical view of a wheelchair user….

You should worry. The I’m lumped in as the stereotypical elderly white bloke

Seriously, I’d write an email asking what their policy is towards helping an active wheelchair user.

 

[Just smiffy]

You should worry. The I’m lumped in as the stereotypical elderly white bloke

Seriously, I’d write an email asking what their policy is towards helping an active wheelchair user.

I’ve given up looking at cruises, far too many headline prices that reel you in then final price is 3 or more times the original…

It will be far cheaper for me to go in the van and it would be a far longer holiday…

 

[Wanders from Glos]

I’ve given up looking at cruises, far too many headline prices that reel you in then final price is 3 or more times the original…

It will be far cheaper for me to go in the van and it would be a far longer holiday…

I know what you mean. Anyway the worst than can happen is you say it's not for you and you head somewhere else.

 

[Wanders from Glos]

We cycled to Helsingor today along quiet country roads past pretty villages and churches.

We spent ages looking for tourist information in Helsingor, but it was worthwhile because we were given a lovely little book about the main sights and a walking map. On the quay is Heslingor's answer to the little mermaid, simply know as Han or Him.

We visited the C16th Carmelite Monastery which escaped much of the destruction of the reformation. It was built out of brick, a sign of wealth in the C16th. Subsequently it has been a school and barracks but is once again a church with fabulous cloisters.

Inside the medieval painted ceilings have been maintained and for some reason there are models of sailboats suspended from the main ceiling.

We were also fortunate to come in on the tail end of an organ recital on the C17th organ. The sound filled the church, it was a shame we only caught the last 10 minutes.

Helsingor has a medieval centre with Cobbled streets and wood frame houses. We wandered through glancing at restaurants when some Danes stopped us and directed us to "the best place for Smorgasbord". They were probably on a commission but it was excellent. Between us we had prawn and egg, spiced herring, curried herring and Danish meat balls. These latter are the size of a tennis ball and are served sliced. I usually forget to take pictures of food because I am always hungry, but I had a go.

After eating we headed to the main event, Kronborg Slot made famous as Elsinore Castle in Shakespeare's Hamlet.

It is extremely unlikely Shakespeare ever visited Denmark, never mind Helsingor. Instead historians believe he learned the stories of the castle through travelling players who we know did visit and perform there. In the C16th the castle was considered one of the finest and wealthiest in all Europe.

The castle dominates a stretch of water between Denmark and Sweden known as The Sound and from here the Danish monarchy charged a toll to all ships passing through making them very wealthy. If a ship failed to stop and pay the toll warning canon balls were fired which usually brought them in to pay. But then they had to pay for the canon balls as well.

Although fancy it was still a castle with a series of ramparts and moats. If you climb to the roof you can see Sweden and the sister town of Helsingborg, together with the ferries running between the two towns.

On the way home Claire got a puncture, which we repaired sitting on some grass in what comes close to sun for Scandinavia. We stopped at a cycle shop and got more inner tubes so all was well.

 

[tonybvi]

Well that’s our Norwegian jaunt very nearly over. Tonight at the Molen de Hoop stopover (with real working museum piece windmill and apple cake to die for) in the Netherlands before ferry to Newcastle tomorrow. Been a fantastic trip.
Would we go again? Yes but either by a Hurtigruten Cruise or if a more direct ferry was re opened (when we lived in Bergen 40 yers back there was a Newcastle - Stavanger - Bergen ferry which was ideal). We found it just a bit too much driving as we don’t like covering such huge daily distances. We have thoroughly enjoyed the last week in the Netherlands where we have just taken things really slowly. Norway is a really beautiful country but as oldies who don’t hike or cycle much there isn’t a lot to do but drive and admire the fantastic scenery and stroll round the towns. We love eating and drinking out, both pastimes which are relatively expensive in Norway, as well as restaurants closing pretty early in the evening.
Norway was well worth a revisit but France is calling next trip!!

 

[Wanders from Glos]

Well that’s our Norwegian jaunt very nearly over. Tonight at the Molen de Hoop stopover (with real working museum piece windmill and apple cake to die for) in the Netherlands before ferry to Newcastle tomorrow. Been a fantastic trip.
Would we go again? Yes but either by a Hurtigruten Cruise or if a more direct ferry was re opened (when we lived in Bergen 40 yers back there was a Newcastle - Stavanger - Bergen ferry which was ideal). We found it just a bit too much driving as we don’t like covering such huge daily distances. We have thoroughly enjoyed the last week in the Netherlands where we have just taken things really slowly. Norway is a really beautiful country but as oldies who don’t hike or cycle much there isn’t a lot to do but drive and admire the fantastic scenery and stroll round the towns. We love eating and drinking out, both pastimes which are relatively expensive in Norway, as well as restaurants closing pretty early in the evening.
Norway was well worth a revisit but France is calling next trip!!

I am going to write a Norway summary eventually, but pretty much agree with everything you've said. We'd also say the food is generally more canteen or transport cafe standard than high quality. There were exceptions, but not in many towns. I guess I'd compare it to Germany for food, which we often find a little rustic and repetitive.

I will mark the stopover at Molen de Hoop down.

 

[tonybvi]

As it’s run by volunteers the Mill is only open for viewing and apple cake on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday. Although a nice stopover 7 days a week it’s even better when you can get a tour of the working mill (plus some apple cake with cream and coffee!!)

 

[Wanders from Glos]

A short report today. Last night was quite late watching the England game and so we were a little slow to move on. The only place in Zealand where you can get LPG was on our route to Roskilde so we stopped there and paid through the nose for gas, but we were getting low.

The plan was to visit the Viking Museum, but it turned warm and sunny so we decided to move from the free carpark to a campsite where we could relax in the sun. And boy is it posh.

https://park4night.com/en/place/9734

We have a few neighbours now but we are sat looking out on Roskilde Fjord, with the occasional replica Viking ship sailing by. We will have a go at that before we leave.

The fjord is very shallow and so is ideal for safe swimming. The water feels quite warm too.

The posh bit though is the individual showers and the washing up area.

No idea what it will cost through!

Our plan is to stay here tomorrow because the forecast is good and then head towards the Netherlands so we can have a four or five days there.

 

[Wanders from Glos]

Last night the skies cleared completely and we were treated to a fabulous sunset.

Today has been hot and sunny. It’s the first day of this trip that we have been able to wear just a t-shirt and shorts all day.

The title of this blog refers to a search for Edvard Munch whose work we have seen in a various museums. It mentions the midnight sun, which technically we haven't seen as it set around 11:45pm, but we had two weeks when it never got dark. Vikings have been conspicuous by their absence, so today we put that right.

We cycled to the Viking Museum in Roskilde. In the 1950s, 5 long boats were discovered here but archeologists couldn't fathom how to recover them from the fjord. By 1962 they worked out a way to damn the area around them and recover them piece by piece. A museum was built to house them and their rebuilding took many years. Ironically during the construction work the remains of another 10 boats were found. These boats had all been scuttled to create a complex avenue for enemy boats to navigate if they wanted to attack the Viking capital of Roskilde. Incidentally, Hadrada did eventually conquer Roskilde, but not long after was himself defeated at the Battle of Stamford Bridge by Harold Godwinson.

The boats are incredible to see given that they are 1,000 years old.

The museum researches building techniques from the period by building replica boats, using only the tools and materials available at the time. In this way they learn more about the Vikings. There are quite a few of these boats around.

One of them has been sailed to Dublin. The archeologists deliberately chose bad weather to test their theories about Viking trading and incursions. Interestingly the word Viking used to simply mean 'pirate', but has become associated with a 300 year period and a people.

We also booked a ride in a Viking ship. But hadn't quite understood what it involved. We had a captain who did nothing other than shout orders. We rowed it and managed the sails.

Claire was appointed to steer as she has some idea about sailing from forty years ago. To be fair she did a great job, the rest of us didn't understand what he was saying to her about the wind and sail.

Feeling hungry we cycled into Roskilde in search of our new favourite lunch, Smorgasbord. We had to pass the very impressive brick cathedral, too big to photograph properly.

It was very hot by now, so we cycled back and had a swim in the fjord, before enjoying some time sunbathing. This is the weather we have missed.

 

[Jane NotRog]

A fantastic day! We really enjoyed the Viking museum of Sagnlandet Lejre - https://sagnlandet.dk/en/

 

[Wanders from Glos]

A fantastic day! We really enjoyed the Viking museum of Sagnlandet Lejre - https://sagnlandet.dk/en/

Looks good.

 

[Grianan]

The boat trip looks fabulous … I’m glad you’re enjoying Denmark …

 

[Wanders from Glos]

We pushed on with our plan to spend a few days in the Netherlands today and so tonight will be our last night in Denmark. We are in a relative backwater called Haderslev. To get here we crossed the Storebaeltbroen or Great Belt Bridge. In many ways the bridge is more dramatic than the Oresund Bridge because it is all above water, although perhaps the blue skies help. Halfway across is a small island where we could see a seal colony sunbathing. It cost £75, but even when combined with the Oresund Bridge it still compares favourably with a ferry.

It must a be a few days since I have posted a picture of a marina. We have learned that we like these stopovers where the facilities and view are usually good.

It is a very hot day. I'm not complaining, we have longed for warmer days, what Lenny HB calls holiday weather. Despite the heat we managed to wander into the small town and explore the medieval cobbled streets.

It all seemed very quiet until we reached the small town square, where a band was playing and the cafes were full of people drinking cocktails and iced coffees. We joined in and sat for a while enjoying the atmosphere.

Then three men appeared with long sticks with spiked balls atop and handcuffs on their belts. Later we saw them again marching a group of towns folk away. We thought about following but we were just too comfortable listening to the music and sipping our drinks.

As Grianan has said we quite like Denmark. It might be the better weather, but I think we will be back. For those thinking of coming here, I would caution that many things are more expensive than Norway.

 

[Grianan]

I have to be honest … we get spoilt in the highlands with stunning views. I’m no longer sure I’d travel all the way up to Norway with unpredictable weather. What you have shown us of Denmark with lovely villages and marinas appeals more and there is less commitment to super long distances …