| I arrived there at
nearly 6:30 in the evening and was immediately intimidated by its sheer
size, quite larger than the previous evenings stop of Andalsnes. I was
undecided where I would spend the night, but if this stop seemed nice
enough, I would perhaps sleep in my car. I found a space to park near the
center and was caught up in the buzz of a busy Saturday night. I parked
right on the main street in town for pubs, bars, shops, and restaurants. It
took me only a few minutes to decide to spend the night here and to get a
room. I found a small hotel called hotel Opera just down the street and
after a shower in what I thought was a very old and outdated room, I headed
for the strip if you will. Up and down the stip I walked, at one point
asking a man in a pub's patio where he got the nice cigar he was smoking.
His name was Ruben, and let us just say he was/is a cigar fanatic. I would
end up running into him later in the Palace Hotel bar for a nightcap where
we shared some really good laughs. I had heard the Swedish women are
beautiful and that would be a fair thing to say, if you like blondes. Having
driven all day, I was very, very tired so as 11 neared and the party was
just beginning, I found myself being very tired and headed home, even opting
to not have my normal end of night cigar which I had came across in an
interesting way. I had walked into a bar which had blackjack to buy a cigar.
I paid a fair amount for it, and upon leaving put a couple of dollars on the
table. I won. And won, and won, and won. I walked out a very happy man.
I wasted no time getting ready to
leave in the morning as my destination was that of Copenhagen. I had dreamed
of visiting this city for so long now, and like Nice of France, it had
always seemed to elude me. Not today. The 4 hour drive south proved to be a
very relaxing one. The highway was well marked and traffic was light. As I
neared the border of Denmark, I found myself attempting to get rid of all of
my Swedish currency so as not to have to bother upon my arrival in
Copenhagen. I must of missed the northern bridge or ferry to get to Denmark,
so I ended crossing over on a very beautiful bridge which had one side
closed for a marathon in progress. It was exciting crossing the bridge to
say the least. It reminded me of the Golden Gate back home. Not quite as
beautiful and elegant, but technologically every bit as impressive. A guard
on the Swedish side told me to take the first right after the bridge and I
would find a campground. When I got over to the other side, I found it was
next to the airport. I stopped for petro and directions and got so much more
than I had bargained for. The girl in the petro station went out of her way
just falling short of bending over backwards to help me. She called a lovely
campground north of Copenhagen to reserve a space for me. Getting there
would prove to be another story. Through the streets of Copenhagen I drove,
my eyes witnessing one marvel after another. The girl had printed a map for
me so I had that to guide me through the big city maze. I was in love I
thought, with Copenhagen. What a charming, clean city. Unlike so many of the
cites I have visited, this one was quickly capturing my heart, very much
like Basel did last summer in Switzerland. The traffic this Sunday was very
busy, as it was a three day religous weekend. The Danish would be spending
the day at the beaches while most tourist gravitated toward the city center.
The day was sunny and bright, but I had been warned of a pending thunder
storm with a lot of rain. I set up my tent and headed into Copenhagen if
only to preview what I would want to spend time with the next day. I caught
a bus into the town and was unable to get my way to the new opera house
where I was told there would be nice view of the city. So, I walked the
streets for awhile ending up in a large open area near an amusement park and
a square hustling with activity. My equipment warranted many a stare from
the likes of various people. Their stare was always met straight on with
that of my own telling them not to think of trying anything. By the time I
was ready to catch the bus, the rain had begun falling. On the bus to the
campground, it began pouring. I kept thinking I'd be sleeping in the car
this night as my tent must be soaked. I was wrong. After spending some time
in the campground washing room and kitchen, I found my tent perfectly dry
inside in spite of the downpour. I went to bed early this night to the
sounds of German, Swedish, Dutch dialects all about.
 When I woke up in the morning, I decided to
drive my car into town on a what would of been a busy Monday morning
commute, but the streets were empty with the holiday. I found a place to
leave my car by both the station and a the famous little mermaid in the
harbor. My walk this day would take me through as much of Copenhagen as one
could possibly bargain for in one day. My walk took me first to the fore
mentioned mermaid and then on to the palace of the Queen. My attempt to take
a panorama of the palace required a guard to come over and instruct me to
not use the tripod. I managed to get about a 280 degree view. I left there
to then go to an amazing cathedral whose tower had an outer staircase to see
the whole of Copenhagen. Along the way I took a stroll down a famous canal
in Copenhagen, very colorful with the lights of the various restaurants and
storefronts shine in the water below. I came a across a girl who was a taxi
on a bike. From where you were standing, she'd charge by a circular gauge
placed upon a map to your destination. At the time, she had flat front tire
and it was her first day on the job. On the way to the church, I met a young
Swiss guy who was traveling Europe on a railpass and staying in the hostel
nearby. He and I walked to the cathedral and upon arriving, were mesmerized
by its beauty. I immediately began setting up shop to photograph which
warranted the oberservations from the other tourist. At one end was an alter
shining so brightly and adorned with the most beautiful carved angels and
designs. The other end has a magnificent organ which seems to be ever so
precariously balanced on the backs of two elephants. Quite I design I must
say. When I began to set up my tripod, out from behind the alter came a lady
who ever so assertively asked "excuse me, what are you doing?" With all of
my enthusiasm, I told her I was doing a 360 panorama. She seemed intrigued
and a gave me no indication that it would be a problem. It turned out she is
the caretaker of the church. I offered her the fruits of my labor on a cd
which I would give to her. She said they had a web site and would show it to
me after doing the panorama from the top of the tower. I was asked to join
her in the rear upon my descent.
The climb to the top was
quite the challenge. Winding staircase after winding staircase with my
equipment required some effort. The whole time you are squeezing by people
coming down. When I got up, the view was incredible, but so was the wind. I
thought I was going to be blown off like a kite. Just as I began to set up
my camera on the very, very top, a old man came up and requested passage. I
indicated it was the top. He simply wanted the last two steps upon which I
was setting up. I had to squeeze by him and go down only to come right back
to do it again. Anyway, I took two panoramas which came out really nice.
When I got back down, Anne Meth was waiting for me. I looked at their site
and told her right away it could be greatly improved. We chatted about some
alternatives and then I was off and on my way. I found my way back to my
car, stopping in yet another cathedral along the way to dodge the rain.
There I sat in my car editing the days pictures and just relaxing for about
an hour. Before I drove back to the campground, I headed toward the center
to check my email and get a bite to eat. I found myself in perhaps one of
the worst parts of Copenhagen which was mainly porno shops, alcoholics, and
homeless people. It was just near the busy station. I bought a nice pizza
from a local shop whose line was out the door. It was only take-away as they
say over here, so I sat on a stoop with my pizza and coke watching life pass
me by. I remember a man walked buy who seemed a bit irritated and drunk. A
large plastic bag blew across his leg and much to my delight, he yelled in
Danish what must of been "God Damn Garbage!".
I navigated the streets back to the campground
as if I owned them that evening. I had found a cuban cigar in my luggage
from two weeks ago, and though a bit dry, I'd enjoy smoking it that night on
the beach by the campground. While smoking my cigar that night, I met the
nicest of men who was cycling across Europe. He is retired and began in
England on May 6th, the same day I left over a month ago. Wow I thought as I
thought about his journey.
I slept well that night and woke up at
six to find the campground's water supply not working. I'd forgo the shower
I thought and hit the road. I had two options. Drive south and catch a ferry
over to Germany, or drive across Denmark to Germany. I chose the latter.
Traffic was quite busy as you might imagine after a three day weekend. Once
out of Copenhagen, it was open road toward Germany. I had set a goal to
reach Harlingen by 3 or 4. It took me three hours to the German border and I
was flying. I must of averaged 120 to 130 km/hr. Once in Germany, that
average increased to near 150 km/hr. I never hit the traffic I was warned
about in Hamburg, but north of their was slowed down for some highway
repair. I reach Holland by about 2 in the afternoon, right on schedule. I
thought of dropping in on Auke and Teatske Ann, but thought to do so would
be impolite un-announced. So, as I neared Gronigen, about an hour east of
Auke's farm, I stopped in for a cigar and bite to eat. Once again I was in
love. The city was beautiful and very busy with all types of activities.
Buses, cars, and bikes everywhere. I found a small internet cafe and spent a
little while in there before deciding I'd camp here for the night. No, not
in the cafe, but in the city park that was nearby. When I got there, it was
very, very impressing. Unlike in America, where many campgrounds are used by
homeless people, this one was spotless. I found a nice area of lawn near a
canal and set up my tent to the sound of a pending thunderstorm. It was
very, very muggy and quite the contrast to a few days ago in Norway. Once
set up, I was told it would cost 6 dollars a night. What a deal I thought. I
spent the evening in Gronigen but had to return to the camp before the gate
being locked at 11 o'clock. Once back there, I had one of the more relaxing
evenings I have spent so far. I sat outside the tent smoking a cigar while
listening to Vivaldi and Mozart on my walk-man. I could of slept right there
on the grass I thought, but opted for the security of the tent.
Upon awakening, I couldn't of imagined of how
bad of a day I would have this day. The drive to Amsterdam required my
arrival by 4 to return my car at Hertz. The drive in itself was nice,
stopping in Harlingen on my way for a sandwich which had horse in it. But,
when I got to Amsterdam, I had a hell of time getting to the car return on
the southern part of Amsterdam, not the nicest of neighborhoods. Their
office is located across from the prison and near a metro hub. I'll make
this short, but the damn kid inspecting my car saw a small scratch obviously
caused by a rock along the road. He claimed it was not there before and it
would cost me 350 dollars! Enough said. When I got back to Haarlem, I found
Inge waiting for me at her lovely B&B on the south side of Haarlem. I was so
anxious for a hot shower I told her, as I had had such a bad day. To make
matters worse, I had just come from the part of Holland which has most of
the farms. I have bad hay fever and all day I was sneezing and fighting a
constantly running nose. I tried to relax the rest of the night but was
unable to sleep with my allergy being so bad.
This morning I woke up to find a nice breakfast outside my door. I watched
CNN and the BBC to get caught up with what has been going on in the world.
I'll tell you, try separating yourself from the media for 2 weeks and see
how much you miss it all... When is the violence ever going to end in this
world? I decided that today I had two main things on my mind. First was to
update this journal. I have fallen behind and I know how easy that is to do.
I am at a point in my travels where I do not intend to be so diligent in my
writing. Several months ago, staring at the map on the wall in my room, I
spied Budapest and wondered just what it would be like to go so far and just
submerge oneself in another's culture. I have been to Budapest many times,
but only for short periods. From what I have seen, I like the society there.
I may be mistaken and end up wishing I was elsewhere, but I don't think so.
I have developed very wonderful relationships with a few people here and am
sure I will feel right at home. One of my friends is Angela. I met her three
years ago. She manages a wonderful Holiday Inn which is always busy. She
assisted me in getting an apartment for a month or two. This is not always
the easiest to do as most landlords do not want short term rentals. Anyway,
what means the most to me is that she lives there also. I'm not sure what
floor she is on, but I will be on the 5th. Yes, there is a lift. If she
lives there, I am sure it will be nice as she seems to have a lot of class.
Other than that I don't know what to expect. The place may or may not be
furnished. It may or may not have phone... etc., etc., But, I'm sure Angela
will help me out when possible. Yet another friend is Kriszta who has worked
so hard to welcome me to Hungary. I met her in London three years ago and
have kept in touch ever since. She is dating a guy from Belgium and will not
have the time for being a tour guide, but we'll hang out I'm sure. I am
thinking of catching a train to various parts of Hungary while I am there,
Kesckement and Szged and Lake Balaton to name a few. I also think I will go
to see the concentration camps in Krakow Poland as well.
In closing this journal, I wish to let all of you back home that I miss you
and you are on my mind often... |