Tag Archives: Denmark

The Rest of the Story, Scandinavian Road Trip

Oslo Harbor

Leaving Copenhagen we headed to Gothenburg, Sweden spending two nights and doing little but shopping and eating before we left for Oslo, Norway. An easy trip we followed major highways until reaching the capital city where a major beautification project has most of the city center under construction. BUT despite that Oslo is a lovely city. The people spoke English well, were proud of being Norwegians, and quite friendly. At this time of the year it is daylight almost all day so we never actually saw dark.

We discovered that a block from our hotel was the National Museum of Art which housed many famous paintings but its most iconic was “The Scream” by Edward Munch. The museum allowed photography and so like the leaning tower of Pisa, everyone had to stand beside of it and imitate.

I moved on the Norwegian Resistance Museum which was small but packed with many visuals and information to help understand how Norway fared during the Nazi occupation. Mike followed a short path away from the museum which led to an overlook of the bay. Our visit to this city was much too short and next time we will drive over to Bergen to enjoy a fjord cruise. The prices for this city were much more reasonable than Copenhagen.

View of Norway from ferry to Denmark

After hour and a half drive, four hour ferry across the North Sea and a hour and a half drive south we arrive at Aarhus, Denmark, one of the oldest cities in Denmark. It is a great city to visit which many attractions. My favorite was the Marselisborg Deer Park where two types of deer, Sika and Dådyr run freely and will eat carrots right out of your hand. We stopped on the way to our hotel a with three apples and a bag of carrots. In fifteen minutes all of the food was gone. The next day we returned with two bags of carrots broken into small pieces. This allowed us to walk a lot further and see more of the park.

In the afternoon we traveled to Old Town, which is a park filled with old buildings that have been relocated to the area. In many are docents dressed period costume to help you understand life during that time period as well as shops and a nice café for lunch. This place could have been a full day’s trip.

Old Town Aarhus

Again, our American tendency to stay for only a little bit meant it was time to leave with much unseen BUT there are always future trips to be had!

 

 

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Coping in Copenhagen

View from the front of our hotel in Copenhagen

We chose to enter Denmark by ferry. Unless you do this regularly the ticket is rather pricey. It costs around a $150 for two people for an hour and forty-five minute trip. It was quite pleasant with sunny but cool temperatures. We met a German couple going on holiday to Sweden who explained what we needed to do which was quite helpful and we enjoyed a lively conversation for our crossing.

After docking we headed by car to Copenhagen, a two hour trip north. Unfortunately this part of the Danish interstate systems had next to no places to stop for personal needs and we found ourselves cruising the back roads in search of a bathroom. It wasn’t too long until we reached a gas station and all needs were met.

With research done previous to the trip and our navigator system we easily found the parking lot that would be needed to stay at our chosen hotel. A machine in the building allowed English as a language showing a photo our car as we entered the building; we then submitted credit card information, were given a receipt of time entered, and then went off in search of our hotel.

A pleasant walk along the canal and around the city opera house led to what had previously been two warehouses for Hong Kong exports. Converted now to quaint lodgings, the hotel still honors its past with Asian cuisine in their restaurant.

Cozy $400 a night hotel room

In the heart of the old city, we were perfectly located. There are many restaurants and sites including the famous “Little Mermaid” statue situated in the harbor. The weather at this of the year tends to mild in the 60s but by the water it can be quite windy. I didn’t bring a hat so most of my photos include windblown hair.

Mike: That looks like FDR Me: (After checking the plaque) It is! Not sure why this statue is in Copenhagen.

When we left the capital city, it was time to do clean our dirty clothes. Copenhagen has several locations of a British owned chain called Laundromat Café. The price to do laundry was quite reasonable. While we waited we treated ourselves to breakfast. The cost for meals in Copenhagen was quite high. Breakfast was around $40 and dinner $100 at casual places.

One final lesson before leaving for Sweden was how to handle the parking on the street next to the Laundromat Café. I downloaded an app and gave it my address. The app started timing. When we left, I turned it off and was charged a fee. I chose to pay with Paypal and all was well. This took some research but since we often don’t have coins for the country in which we are staying I found this helpful.

 Laundry Cafe Brunch

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