Denmark - 4

DENMARK - 4

Saturday 18th - Saturday 26th August 2017

On the ferry

Thursday 17th - Saturday 19th August 2017 

The crossing from Seyðisfjörður to Hirtshals in Denmark takes 50 hours and for the first 24 it was very choppy so the cleaning crew were kept busy, but luckily I didn't suffer and Lucy didn't have time to feel sick. She was so busy that she didn't even sit in her usual widow seat.

 We stopped for about an hour at Tórshavn at 3am on Friday morning, but I slept theough it. When I woke up Lucy told me that she had taken a photo and been ashore to say 'Hello' to Tora at the Guest House where we had stayed. The photo shows how the nights are drawing in as it was almost 24 hours of daylight in Tórshavn when I stayed there in June.

Once when I returned to the cabin I found Lucy sitting on my bunk knitting an Icelandic sweater. I didn't even know that she had got any wool. She worked out the pattern from a postcard that I bought and I am amazed at what a good job she made of it considering that she is all  'sheep fingers'.

Finally we arrived in Hirtshals and after about an hour standing by the bikes waiting to disembark we were back on Danish soil and ready to start pedalling South. I said goodbye to the other cyclists. The Columbian student who was riding this heavily laden bike was heading for another ferry to take him to Norway and the other two were off to the station to get a train to the South of Germany. Nearly everyone I spoke to on the ferry had very long drives ahead of them to Paris, Amsterdam and London etc. as they had to get home in time for work on Monday. I was so glad I could just get off and have a leisurely cycle ride.

Nordjylland (North Jutland)

Saturday 19th - Tuesday 22nd August

As I rode off the ferry it started to thunder and rain heavily, but luckily it was just heavy showers. I managed to shelter each time it rained  so I didn't get too wet. Everyone I spoke to mentioned the dreadful summer they have had in Denmark. No hours of sunshine were recorded for the whole of July and so far August has been strong winds and storms. Luckily the children went back to school on Monday so the sun came out. I think it had more to do with Lucy arriving here and the weather has steadily improved as she headed South. But some of the off-road paths were still muddy or had streams running across them. 

 My original plan had been to keep to the coast, but I changed this and did some coastal rides and also headed inland to visit towns and learn more about Danish culture. Lucy discovered that there was a reconstruction of a Viking settlement (Vikingegården Fyrkat) at the end of the Mariagerfjord. The Vikings sailed up the fjord from the Kattegat. There is also a Viking Circular Hill Fort (Fyrkatborgen) near the village. This was completed in 980 AD by King Harald Blåtand. So I did a detour along the muddy track pictured above so that Lucy could visit them. She had a quick look, made a pot, said hello to some Viking sheep and spent the rest of her time playing in the 'Viking Playground' while I cycled up to the fort, which is very impressive, like a mini Maiden Castle. 

The Limfjord

I read a book that described Denmark as looking 'quite odd on a map' as it is mainly a collection of islands.  Jutland, or Jylland as the Danes call it, is the only part attached to mainland Europe, and even that is cut in two by the Limfjord, which the Vikings used to get from the Kattegat to the North Sea. It isn't a fjord in the geographical sense but the Danes call all inlets fjords. I rode over the Limsfyordbroen at Aalborg and digital sign told me that I was the 621st cyclist to cross that day. 

Cycling to Live, not Living to Cycle

Cycling in Denmark is a pleasure as nearly everyone cycles. The cycle paths are clearly marked and people ride bikes as a means of transport with rarely a helmet or any Lycra to be seen and car drives respect you and wait for you to pass. As they do in Germany and Holland. It took me ages to get used to cars and even buses and lorries, reversing at junctions so that I didn't have to stop. I passed a couple of cyclists lay- bys with air to pump up tyres, cycle tools, and seats and toilets. 

Apparently it hasn't always been so cycle friendly and in the 1980s Copenhagen was becoming choked with cars and the now pedestrianised Nyhavn was essentially one big car park. Jan Gehl, an urban planner, changed this and introduced open-plan streets and cycle lanes to the city. He is sometimes referred to as 'the patron-Saint of cycling'.

Legoland - Thursday 24th August 

For weeks Lucy has been dropping hints about visiting Legoland and bought some Lego on the boat to make a Lego Lucy,  but as I kept telling her, it is in the middle of the country and too far off our route. 

 

So she was really surprised when instead of cycling one day her dream came true. I hadn't told her that we were going there. She loved it, but wouldn't go on any of the rides if they didn't look as if they were made from Lego. She loved the Lego train, monorail, the Lego towns and playing in the creativity area. 

Strange Accommodation

While I was in Denmark I stayed in some strange rooms including a half-built leisure centre.  One night I think they gave me a child's room. Lucy loved it as it had bunk beds and every wall was painted with a fairy tale scene. I also stayed at an inn with a very small room and a toilet shared by about 15 people. It was less than a metre wide. The lock didn't work properly and once when I did manage to lock it I couldn't unlock it again. It took me about ten minutes to get out. 

But I am pleased I stayed there as I met Elizabeth who was cycling her daughter's bike back to Germany. We had a good chat over our evening meals and breakfast. (A message for Elizabeth: 'I hope you got home OK and were able to avoid that busy Route 11 to Tønder with all the motor homes returning to Germany. It was good to meet you.') 

And on to the German border

I spent several sunny days cycling South towards the border with Germany following cycle paths, on and off road, along disused railway tracks, quiet country lanes and occasionally on busy roads when there was no alternative route. The farmers were busy making use of the better weather and often the only vehicles I saw for many miles were agricultural ones. Many of the fields were lined with wild flowers and there were lots of butterflies. 

Wellington III BK 368

Lucy stopped to pay her respects to the memory of the crew of a British bomber that was shot down in March 1943 when Denmark was occupied by Germany.

Knallern forbudt

One day I rode for miles along a cycle route that, in my head, I was calling The Knallert Forbudt. Until Lucy suddenly raced past on a Vespa laughing at me. She said that the sign means no mopeds, but doesn't say anything about scooters. In Denmark, Germany and Holland you can ride mopeds on most of the cycle paths. 

Arriving in Germany - Saturday 26th August

And finally our time in the various Scandinavian and Nordic countries came to an end as we crossed into Germany. This was going to be the end of Lucy's Grand Tour as I had planned to go by train from the Danish border back to The Hook of Holland, but I am enjoying it so much that I decided to see how far I could cycle, and then get a train for the last leg. 

Iceland - 4

ÍSLAND - 4

Back in  in Austurland (East Iceland)

Thursday 10th - Thursday 17th August 2017

The weather was perfect when I flew back to Egilsstaðir and you could clearly see Vatnajökull, the largest ice-cap in Europe which is almost 90 miles across. During the flight Lucy read 'Lagarfljótsomur' (The Serpant of Lagarfljót) in her Icelandic folk tales book and was very excited when she realised that the lake is near Egilsstaðir, so she persuaded me to stay for the night. I found a room and she disappeared with a few cans of Viking lager to see if she could spot the monster. It made me laugh to learn that the English translation is the 'worm' of the lake. In the morning I found her surrounded by empty cans near the water's edge. She was really excited because she had seen it. Of course it could have been the beer talking ...... But I like to believe that she did see it.

 Back in Seyðisfjörður

I returned to Seyðisfjōrður for my last week in Iceland and I was pleased when several people remembered me and welcomed me back. It was also good to be reunited with my bike, which I cleaned,  checked over and went for a spin. I climbing up the mountain pass and on the way down I stopped to photograph some Icelandic horses. 

The Icelandic Horse

The Icelandic horse is small, strong and stocky but always referred to as a horse not a pony. They are relatively free from disease as it is illegal to import horses into Iceland and any that get taken abroad for shows or competitions are not allowed to return. The horses are also unusual because they have two gaits in addition to the typical walk, trot, and canter/gallop of other breeds. 

Concert in the Blue Church

Lucy remembered that there was a concert of East Iceland music in the Bláa Kirkjan with a band, (two guitars, saxophone, flute, grand piano and drums) playing their own and traditional Austerland music. They had heard that Lucy had been studying Icelandic music and invited her to join them. 

Hinsegin Dagur ( Gay Pride) 

During my last weekend in Iceland it was gay pride in Reykjavík and I knew that there would also be a parade in Seyðisfjörður on the Saturday. They started putting up the flags on Friday night and I went down to see what they were doing and someone recognised me and invited me to join the parade.

The next morning Lucy was up early and I found her sitting on the float waiting patiently for the parade to start. There were very few tourists in the town that weekend and most of the hundreds of people that turned out were Icelandic. There was a really good atmosphere and it had the feel of a village fête with local families and children joining in when we walked all around the town and the lake. If you search  hyr halarofa on Facebook you should find the photos including some with me in them.

After the parade Lucy joined two students for the pub quiz and somehow came second and won a bottle of special pride ale. This went to her head a bit and I later found her crashed out on the bed.

 

Gender Equality

In October 1975 about 95% of Icelandic women, whether in work or at home, went on strike for the day. They walked out of their work places and refused to cook, clean or do child minding duties. This was the beginning of the campaign for equality and things have improved to such an extent that Iceland has been named as the No 1 country for gender equality for the last seven years. This year they became the first country to officially require gender pay equality. Also in 2008 Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir (who I met in London last year) was elected as Iceland's first female Prime Minister, and the world's first openly lesbian head of state. 

Last Day in Iceland

Finally my month in Iceland came to an end and I spent my last day packing my bike, parcelling up all of Lucy's Icelandic memorabilia to post home and went for my last walk around the town. I also cut my hair. When I was in Reykjavík I went in to see if the barber would cut women's hair. He replied, "When I feel like it".  When I asked if he felt like it, he replied, "No, but come back about four and I might." I didn't really trust him so before I got the ferry I took the kitchen scissors to it. I thought it looked ok, but later I noticed some very thin patches. Kausher, who cuts my hair at home, will have a fit when she sees it. It is a good job that I will be wearing a bike helmet for the next week or so. But Lucy can't stop laughing. 

Goodbye Iceland

They let the bicycles on first, (there were four of us) so as soon as we got on board Lucy rushed to find the best window seat to wave goodbye as we began the 48 hour ferry crossing back to Denmark.

Iceland - 3

ÍSLAND - 3

Suðurland (South Iceland) - Sunday 6th - Thursday 10th August 2017 

 As well as exploring Reykjavík I travelled about 800 miles by bus around Suðurland (South Iceland). This is the most fertile part of the country and is the main farming area, but like the rest of Iceland there is only a narrow strip of inhabitable land between the sea and the mountains. It is also the area that has been most hit by volcanic eruptions. There are organised tours and also hop-on, hop-off buses so that you can plan your own itinerary. 

Lucy loves it when she can get a seat to berself on the bus. We passed miles and miles of moss covered lava fields and areas of black ash deposited after volcanic eruptions. One of the biggest was Lakagígar  in 1783 which lasted for 10 months. The clouds of poisonous gasses contaminated the soil in Iceland and across Europe. This lead to the death of over half of the livestock and destruction of crops. Famine followed and about 25% of the Icelandic population lost their lives. 

When I was in Reykjavík over 500 earthquakes were recorded in four days in this area indicating a massive increase in volcanic activity and they are predicting that another huge eruption is imminent.  As well as the lava flow, there will be flash floods from the melting glaciers and the ash will bury everything around and could cause chaos to air traffic in Europe. They have identified 3 possible paths that it will take, but have no way of knowing exactly where it will hit. Lucy was very puzzled by the black sand, volcanic ash, on the beaches. 

Jōkulsárlōn (Glacier Lagoon)

The scenery on the way to the lagoon was spectacular and we went past several waterfalls, volcanoes and glaciers.

Then the sun came out when we transferred to an amphibious vehicle and went across lava fields and onto the lagoon. We travelled along the edge of a glacier and then between icebergs that had broken away. It was spectacular.

 But Lucy said that my tour was for whimps so she stole my driving licence and rushed off to hire a snowmobile and drove across the glacier.

On the way back we stopped at several waterfalls and I got soaked walking behind one that had a rainbow reflecting across it. It was a bit scary as it was very steep and slippery. I kept thinking, "This is stupid! You have got to cycle home." But by then I had got to the point of no return. 

 This time Lucy was the whimp and she chickened out and sat on a fence laughing at me. 

Þingvellir

As I wrote earlier, the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet and are drifting apart across Iceland. In the Þingvellir National Park you can walk between the two. It is a weird feeling to think that you are standing between two continents.  Below is the edge of the North American plate.

The gullfoss waterfall cuts through the park and Þingvellir was the meeting place of the first Alþingi, Icelandic Parliament, in 903 AD,  the first democratic Parliament in the world. The chieftains gathered for two weeks every year at the 'Law Rock' (marked by the Icelandic flag below) to settle disputes and agree new laws.

But Lucy was more interested in the 'drowning' pool where women were drowned for infidelity.

Geysers and Hot Springs

I went to the site of the original Geysir, which gave its name to all Geysers around the world. This is dormant at the moment but a smaller geyser was active while I was there. 

Swimming plays a big part in Icelandic social life and there are swimming pools and hot tubs dotted all around the country. I have met people who swim twice a day, before and after work and then laze in the hot tub. I was told to go to some of the smaller hot tubs and not to the Blue Lagoon which mainly caters for tourists. And even Lucy, who still hates getting wet, soaked in one of the natural hot pools, but she refused to take off her red top. 

Tomorrow (Thursday 17th August) I will be getting the ferry back to Denmark so I will be off-line for two days and won't be able to text or email until Saturday at the earliest. While  I am on the ferry I hope to write the last Iceland blog and will post it when I arrive in Denmark. 

I have just worked out the distances that I have travelled in Iceland and I have done approximately 1,800 miles by plane, bus, bicycle and on foot.