Ever onwards - Varnamo to Oxelosund

We slipped up a bit this morning.   Our departure from the campsite was not as smooth as we would have liked it to be, and luckily a German couple were watching us.   I tried to move off the site, and found that nothing moved, as we had left the caravan handbrake on, which was bad enough.   But then the German neighbour poked her head out of their motorhome and alerted us to the raised roof vent.   Thank goodness, as we would have lost the roof vent somewhere along the road.   Of  course I  realised that the reason we were so cold last night was due to the open roof vent, which I raised fully instead of lowering after cooking dinner. 

We also left the campsite in the rain, and it was miserable, but after an hour the sun came out, and the clouds became white and fluffy instead of grey and forbidding.    Our spirits lifted!

The southern end of Sweden is mostly flat, with some slighly hilly ground included, just for a little bit of interest.   It is probably the most populated part of Sweden, however, there are decidedly less people here than in Denmark or the Netherlands.   Consequently the towns are smaller, and there is less development, and more woodland.   There is a lot of water around though;, rivers, lakes, ponds, canals. 

We drove on the motorway, through endless forests and woodland, until we came to Lake Vattern, with the town of Jonkoping at the bottom end.  Mind you it could be the top end, depends where you are starting from, but for us it was the bottom end.

 We drove on the motorway beside the lake, which was very picturesque, and at this point the hills were actually high.   When we came to the junction where the motorway veered off to the right, we took the minor road, 50, at Odeshog, as it had a green line running along the side of the road, on the map of course.   A scenic road.  Great.

 But first, a stop at the traffic rest stop, for lunch, which we had prepared before we left, cold meat from Germany and cheese from the Netherlands, on wholemeal bread from Sweden.   A very multi country sandwich.   Denmark missed out.

The truck parking area was enormous, with plenty of room to park our car and caravan.

 The coffee came from Hungry Jacks!   Not too bad either.   By the way we have had to pay for everything on credit card, as we have no Swedish Kronor, which was a bit of an oversight.   Luckily there appears to be a cashless society here, as in Denmark, and we have had no problems using credit cards.   This makes a change.   In Germany and the Netherlands, we always have to have a wallet full of cash, as a large number of supermarkets, shops, camping grounds, restaurants do not accept foreign credit cards.   Such a pain.  Luckily the toilets at the services here are free!

 I love the farm houses, and farm buildings, as they are built of wood, and are painted brown.   A universal colour.   The relevant paint company must be doing a roaring trade.

 As we are further north, the lilacs, bluebells, forgetmenots and cow parsley are just beginning to come into flower, about four weeks behind England.  The rape flowers have also just opened, and they have a bright yellow glow about them, which I have not seen before.   Must be the northern light.

 We drove back onto the motorway at Linkoping, then drove through Norrkoping and turned off at Nykoping, towards the coast and our next camping ground, in Oxelosund.   We have just looked up 'koping' on Wikipedia, and it means 'market town'.

I reversed the caravan onto this narrow stretch of gravel reasonably successfully, but Walter wanted it placed more to the left of the pitch.   Of course I became flustered, due to the Swedish couple watching me from the motorhome opposite, and then messed it up completely.   I had to concede defeat, and Walter happily moved it about with the remote control.  Show off!

The cabins behind us, are getting a facelift, from brown to white.   Rebellion.

 One of the beaches at Oxelosund, still being prepared for summer, with loads of sand being deposited on the right hand side, not in this photograph, ready to be spread out into a sandy beach.

 Walter posing beside a very large rock, and looking very chirpy.

 A woodland walk between the campsite and the beach.

A peaceful scene.

  This evening we walked down to the water, in order to take some photographs of the setting sun, but of course it was far too early.  It was only 8 p.m.   But the sun did not set until after 10 pm.  When I looked out of the window of the caravan the sky was bright red, but I was too lazy to go back and take more photographs.

 We took a detour on the return trip to the caravan, and went past an area of very small summer houses, with very large gardens.   The gardens were amazing, and the houses so cute.   In other words they are allotments, with summer houses included.

I have just sent Walter out to check the electricity box, due to my laptop suddenly switching off, but of course it was not plugged in.  The battery had gone flat.    Walter was not amused.    So on that note I think I need to call it a night, and head off to bed.   Tomorrow we head to Stockholm.

Next stop - Sweden

After a leisurely breakfast we packed up, which now takes no time at all.  We finally have a routine, and it is quick; empty water container, hot water cylinder, toilet cistern and toilet cassette, turn off gas, turn off every electrical switch in caravan, take out cord, put every thing away inside and outside the caravan, wind up steadies and hitch up.  Less than half an hour, and just as quick as in the motor home.  We now look experienced, or at least I hope we do.  We have less people watching us.  We feel confident.

I think we have the jockey wheel sorted!

We paid the bill, with slight trepidation.  All that swiping with a card, equals to a mounting bill at the front office.  But no, the cost for three nights came to about £90, which is £30 a night, quite reasonable for a camping ground close to a city centre.  Walter's showers and the two washing machine loads were extra.   I did not go unshowered by the way.  I used the shower in the caravan.  I like it better.

So with instructions from the girl in the office, but no time to set the sat nav system we were off in search of the E47, the motorway which goes around Copenhagen. Of course all did not go well, so after going around a few roundabouts more than once and a few discussions we pulled into a service station for more advice.  Finally we entered the correct motorway, but in the wrong direction.  By this time the sat nav was working, and we exited, and went around yet another roundabout and re-entered on the correct side, direction Malmo, on the edge of Sweden.   One really appreciates roundabouts when towing a caravan.

Finally onto the E20, past the airport and then into the very long tunnel, which is the start of the Oresund crossing.

 Once out of the tunnel, we saw the Oresund bridge ahead of us, and hoped that the wind was not going to be too strong.  I did not fancy being blown over the side.  The water looked very cold.

 The bridge was not as impressive as some bridges we have crossed, but it was still quite exciting.  I think the cost was also impressive, but thankfully unknown at present because we have a toll badge and went through the automatic toll lane.  In the fast lane too, but that was unintentional.  Luckily it was not busy.

 I drove the whole way, sedately as usual, but the road was not busy, and the road surface was very good.   The weather was shitty, to put it bluntly, rain showers, windy and cold.   What an introduction to Sweden.

We have stopped at a wooded campsite in Varnamo, about 200 kms from Malmo.  It is an ASCI site, which we are a member of, so the cost is minimal really, Skr100, about £10.  And the wifi is again free, with no limit on devices.  We are very happy.

 I reversed the caravan into the site, as I also did in Copenhagen, without burning the clutch.  But Walter was not happy with how I had lined the caravan up perfectly with the marker.  So he used the caravan mover to move the caravan about a metre over.  Boys and their toys!  Mind you I will admit there is not a muddy puddle at our door anymore.

On the subject of costs in Scandanavia, we were warned that Denmark, Sweden and Norway were very expensive countries to visit.   So we have been on our guard somewhat.  Certainly alcohol is expensive as are restaurants.  Perhaps hotel accommodation is too. But diesel is about £1 a litre, whereas in the UK it is currently about £1.20.   Quite a saving there.   So far we have bought food at the supermarket, which has not been too exhorbitant.  Delicious, yes, especially the fresh white asparagus.  Most of the campsites outside of the cities are ASCI sites so we are looking at reasonable rates here.  And we are travelling early in the tourist season.

But thank goodness we brought all our wine and non alcoholic beer with us though, rattling around in the car as we travel along.

Copenhagen again

Off to Copenhagen again this morning, after we dressed smartly, Walter even tucked his shirt in, as we wished to blend in with the Danish, who dress so stylishly. 

 Unfortunately we left our bicycles behind, so could not prove that our clothes were up to the cycle test.   We also took our packed lunch with us as there was little point in paying a fortune for an open sandwich.  Sadly no smorgasboard feasts for us.

The first stop, after the most delicious coffee at a cafe, was the Designmuseum Danmark.  

What a fascinating museum and captivating too.  We learnt so much about Danish culture and history here, especially in the Century of the Child exhibition, which only opened in January this year.  There were displays of designs which covered school buildings, junk playgrounds and furniture, to children's books and toys.  Of course the original Lego blocks were displayed.  Lego was developed in 1934, and was designed to promote motor development and stimulate children's creativity and imagination.  It proved to be a very popular toy.

Another Danish innovation were the maternity boxes, given to poor people at first but after WW2, all parents of babies received them.  They held mostly clothes, although initially it was material and patterns to make the clothes, and the box could be used as a bed for the baby.   Maternity boxes are still sent to parents of new babies.  Very innovative.

There was also an excellent fashion and textile exhibition plus a furniture exhibition.  Sadly there was just too much to include in this blog.

Some of the furniture exhibits.

Chairs made out of old papers and cardboard.

Remember the Tetra boxes!  They were designed in Denmark.

The ultimate marble run.  Thank goodness the marbles stopped running when the doors closed.  A very noisy toy.

This is the chair I would like for my birthday.  Very sculptured but perhaps not suitable for the back garden.  The foxes would love to sleep on it too.

A view of the inner grassed courtyard.  The building was once a hospital, a couple of centuries ago.  We sat outside and ate our packed lunch, and then came inside for lunch.  Very pleasant.

After the museum we walked towards the centre, passing a Catholic Church, very dark inside, and the Orthodox Church, which was closed.

The Alexander Newsky Church, planned in the Russian Byzantine style in 1883 by Tsar Alexander III.  This was an impressive church, even though it was greatly reduced in size and took 100 years to build.

A very ornate interior.

And onto the Royal Palace, four buildings built around a quadrangle, with a statue in the centre.   The Amalienborg Slot.  The building we were interested in was the palace that Christian IX (1863-1906) lived in with Queen Louise and their six children.  It is possible to visit some of the old and reconstructed royal apartments, which we did, after parting with some kroner and leaving our bags in a locker.  Security was very tight.

The current royal family do not live in any of the buildings.  Well at least I do not think so, much was lost in the translation I think.  But we managed to sort out who was who in the current royal family, who did not look too dissimilar to the English royal family.  One of Christian IX's daughters married George III.  But the Danish royal family appeared to have avoided all the marriage scandels which have plagued the English royal family.  Well on the surface anyway.  Queen Margrethe II is the current queen of Demark.

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These guards actually talk, well at least they yell out to people to tell them off for sitting on the palace steps.

The drawing room I think.  Very dark, and full of family photos, oak furniture and dark tapestries.  Very gloomy.  No doubt the current royals live in modern apartments filled with Danish designed furniture, or Ikea flat packed furniture.  My apologies, wrong country.

The rooms were cosily heated with ceramic heaters or the old type of cast iron stoves.

A reception room, light and airy and used for lectures today, as there was a podium at the front.

Our last port of call was Nyhavn, a modern harbour for expensive yachts and lined with cafes on the sunny side of the street.  The place was filled with people, sitting at cafes drinking coffee or something stronger, or sitting on the canal edge drinking beer out of cans, if one was young and without much money.  The remainder of the people, who were on a budget, bought ice creams and tried to sit on any available bench or piles of wooden planks.  That was us.   But the size of the ice creams, were unbelievable.  Huge.

And it was at Nyhavn we found the coloured buildings that feature on travel brochures and on the front of the Lonely Planet book. And we were not disappointed, the buildings, cafes and canal were pretty spectacular.

Again it was time to catch the 1A bus back to the campsite.   Sadly there was no time to visit the Tivoli, the ultimate in fairgrounds.  A pity, but there is always another time.

Copenhagen

We rose bright and early this morning, had breakfast and Walter went off to complain about the dryer, and received a 100 kroner refund (about £10).  There was a problem, as the heating light had not come on, so therefore the dryer did not heat up.   However we found that the caravan was large enough to dry clothes inside at night, unlike the motorhome.  So that was definitely good news.

We are staying in a campimg ground on the northern edge of Copenhagen.  It is called Charlottenlund Fort Campsite.  

And yes it was an old fortress, constructed in 1886-87, and functioned as a fortress for the defense of Copenhagen Harbour until 1932.   The ablutions block is in one of the buildings built into the hillside.  There are toilets, showers, laundry, kitchen with dining tables and a loungeroom with comfortable chairs plus a television screen all inside the room in the hill.

The guns, still in place but are no longer able to fire shells, thankfully.

The camping ground is in the middle of the Charlottenlund Beach on the shores of Oresund Sound.  The beach is apparently excellent for bathing.  No sharks obviously but also more importantly, no polluted waters either, we hope.  Too cold for swimming at the moment so I have not tested the waters.

I have taken the photograph of the harbour of Copenhagen, eight kms away.

The people here are extremely friendly and helpful, and within three hours two students had stopped and asked if we needed help with directions.  Altogether we have found the people to be very similar to people in northern Germany and the Netherlands, so we feel quite at home.

The other similarity to those two countries, is the biking culture, and there are nearly as many cyclists here as in the Netherlands.  As in northern Germany there is not always space on the roads for separate cycle paths, but they manage to give priority to cyclists, by reducing the width of footpaths, or making shared footpaths, and ensuring there are clear cycle markings on the road.  Cars or buses do not drive or park on the cycle ways.

Interestingly buses stop on the road, and passengers cross the cycle paths to board the buses.  Buses and cyclists get priority on the roads.  England, and London especially, have much to learn, although Boris is trying hard in London.  But attitudes have to change somewhat.

The thoughtful council in Copenhagen have inserted smooth walking paths between the cobblestones.  Great for wheelchair users and buggy pushers and for those with tired feet.  We were most impressed and grateful for the smooth paths.

Our first morning.  The Lonely Planet guide suggested taking a boat trip.  And this proved to be a great way to orientate ourselves, as we followed our map during the trip.  The sun was also shining.  This always makes such a difference to temperment and attitudes towards a city.

All the major tourist attractions were pointed out, plus the tour went through Christianshavn, which is now a very upmarket housing development on the other side of the old area of Copenhagen.  But much of it was once a navel and military area, and I think a little run down.

We came back along the older part of Copenhagen.   The dome in the photograph below is a restaurant.  No problems with the cold in there.

Where are we? Florence or Copenhagen?  This is a copy of the statue of David.  A present from the city of Florence apparently.

Aah, a photograph of the Little Mermaid.  Or at least the back of it, with children trying to clamber up.   Certainly not worth the long walk to get there, but as it was part of the boat trip, I took advantage of a photo opportunity.

Back on dry land again.  After a very expensive lunch, toasted sandwich with a bit of salad and a small scoop of mashed potato, we set off to find the Nationalmuseet to find out a little bit about the history of Denmark.

But first a photograph of Christiansborg Slot, once a palace and now the parliament buildings. 

The back of Christiansborg Slot, with an enormous gravelled space, beautifully raked but fenced off to stop big and little feet messing it up.  A parade ground?  A horse training area?  Looks impressive anyway.

Now these trees look as manicured as the Dutch ones.  Well perhaps not as precisely clipped, no pruned trees can be as perfect as those in the Netherlands.

The Nationalmuseet.   The entrance hall was very light and airy and warm.  We drank a lovely cup of coffee there and soaked up the warm light from above.  But not before we had spent a few hours browsing through the exhibits.

That is us, reflected a two mirrors.  Just a little bit of fun, in between the serious browsing.

We did not look at the Danish Prehistory area, but perhaps we should have as I read afterwards, too late, that is was very good.  We covered the Danish Middle Ages and Renaissance, Prince's Palace - Interiors and History and the Stories of Denmark.

A photograph of part of the Prince's Palace.   One of the Princes lived in this building at some point in the past.  I think I must have been a bit overloaded with information at that point.

We found the museum very interesting, and we gained from it an understanding that Denmark was very similar to Northern Germany, the Netherlands and England.  Each country tended to influence each other, in social customs, clothing, food and culture.  And it made us realise why we felt so comfortable being in Copenhagen.

However the museum did tend to gloss over many of the countries less positive periods in its history, such as the English trashing Copenhagen during the Napoleonic Wars, the burning of the city twice in the 18th Century, the decimation of the population due to the bubonic plague, the Nazi occupation, the slums that covered a large part of the city and the uprising of students in the 1960s/70s.

However there is much Denmark can be proud of;  the progressive government and attitudes of people which resulted in collective farming, an early welfare system and freedom for children.

A scene from a farmer's house.   Quite wealthy I would say.

Then it was time to catch the 1A bus back to the camping ground.

And yes the people dress very smartly here, so thank goodness I bought some new clothes.  I certainly do not wish to stand out too much.  Like the people in the Netherlands, they dress in a stylish but understated way, and what they wear is always functional.  After all, they have bicycles to ride and this is not possible in high heels and short skirts, if you are a woman, that is.