Today brought breakfast and then time to say goodbye to these cousins. Such gracious hospitality. It was so nice to see them again. Willy and Karin were heading off to run a tennis tournament for the next week, and we needed to get back to Lars & Julie’s to get ready to go to Berlin.
Karin drove us, and time for more goodbyes. Then, we were home again. The weather was very hot, so Julie and Lars were off swimming. We got the chance to do some laundry and begin our packing. What to bring to Berlin? We were getting to be expert packers.
A nice dinner in the evening, then off to bed. Berlin beckons.
Friday, October 4, 2019
July 25 Day 42 Copenhagen
The day started with a little shopping outing. Willy was in need of a hat to protect his ears from the sun. It was fun getting a chance to see a Danish shopping mall. This trip hasn’t had much shopping so far.
Then we drove to the town of Dragør. This was such a sweet seaside traditional town. Willy and Karin had good friends who have one of the little houses. So, we stopped by for a quick visit. Every street and ally had all kinds of lovely things to take photos of. We wandered and enjoyed this seaside setting. Lovely. And had a chance to see or at least walk by the home where their daughter is now living. What a lovely setting.
Hollyhocks, flowers from Dick's childhood that were everywhere in this small town. We do not see these often at home but have seen them so many times on this trip.
So many of the homes had weathervanes on their roofs. We were struck by what interesting shapes of many of them. What a fun treat to see them!
We’ve been trying to find time to stop for ice cream for the past couple of days so this was it. Some really excellent ice cream and we got our cones and went inside and ate them while gazing out the water. A lovely summer afternoon.
Back to the house and a quiet evening which started with our picking ripe plums from their tree. We took on the task of washing and preparing them for Karin to cook them into a wonderful sauce.
One of the highlights was also trying to focus on the amazing night blooming lilies. We finally caught a couple of them in the process of opening. They would slowly unfold and then suddenly pop completely open. Wonderful. And then off to bed.
Then we drove to the town of Dragør. This was such a sweet seaside traditional town. Willy and Karin had good friends who have one of the little houses. So, we stopped by for a quick visit. Every street and ally had all kinds of lovely things to take photos of. We wandered and enjoyed this seaside setting. Lovely. And had a chance to see or at least walk by the home where their daughter is now living. What a lovely setting.
Hollyhocks, flowers from Dick's childhood that were everywhere in this small town. We do not see these often at home but have seen them so many times on this trip.
So many of the homes had weathervanes on their roofs. We were struck by what interesting shapes of many of them. What a fun treat to see them!
We’ve been trying to find time to stop for ice cream for the past couple of days so this was it. Some really excellent ice cream and we got our cones and went inside and ate them while gazing out the water. A lovely summer afternoon.
Back to the house and a quiet evening which started with our picking ripe plums from their tree. We took on the task of washing and preparing them for Karin to cook them into a wonderful sauce.
One of the highlights was also trying to focus on the amazing night blooming lilies. We finally caught a couple of them in the process of opening. They would slowly unfold and then suddenly pop completely open. Wonderful. And then off to bed.
July 24 Day 41 Copenhagen
Today we took a drive to the east for another family dinner. On the way we got to see the countryside, and stopped at delightful lake where had the chance to watch families play in the water.
The gathering was at the home of Willy’s sister, Bente, and her husband, Mogens. We enjoyed meeting them when we were in Denmark before. We were pleasantly pleased to know that their brother, Ejvind and his wife, Ellinor, who normally lived in Mexico were here for a visit and would be joining us. So nice to get a chance to also meet them. We were also really happy that later on Bente and Mogen’s daughter, Helena, arrived introducing us to her fiancé, Jakob. They recently became engaged, as well as Helena graduated so there were lots of things to celebrate.
What has become a tradition for these visits is to pull out the family photo albums. We were especially interested in the photos from nearly one hundred years ago of the family on the family farm in Jutland.
It was really a delightful afternoon with lots of wonderful food and great conversations getting a chance to talk about our travels, other people’s travels, life in Denmark, life in Mexico. Gathering with family, especially family that are such interesting people is such a wonderful opportunity. All too quickly, the afternoon passed and it was time to say goodbyes. To say goodbye in Denmark begins in the living room, and moves to the kitchen, and into the hallway, into the doorway, and sometimes out to the car, and it’s important to keep waving in case the people us are driving away are looking for you. Saying goodbye takes a long time. It was a lovely, lovely time.
The gathering was at the home of Willy’s sister, Bente, and her husband, Mogens. We enjoyed meeting them when we were in Denmark before. We were pleasantly pleased to know that their brother, Ejvind and his wife, Ellinor, who normally lived in Mexico were here for a visit and would be joining us. So nice to get a chance to also meet them. We were also really happy that later on Bente and Mogen’s daughter, Helena, arrived introducing us to her fiancé, Jakob. They recently became engaged, as well as Helena graduated so there were lots of things to celebrate.
What has become a tradition for these visits is to pull out the family photo albums. We were especially interested in the photos from nearly one hundred years ago of the family on the family farm in Jutland.
It was really a delightful afternoon with lots of wonderful food and great conversations getting a chance to talk about our travels, other people’s travels, life in Denmark, life in Mexico. Gathering with family, especially family that are such interesting people is such a wonderful opportunity. All too quickly, the afternoon passed and it was time to say goodbyes. To say goodbye in Denmark begins in the living room, and moves to the kitchen, and into the hallway, into the doorway, and sometimes out to the car, and it’s important to keep waving in case the people us are driving away are looking for you. Saying goodbye takes a long time. It was a lovely, lovely time.
July 23 Day 40 Copenhagen
We woke up to the sound of breakfast. Willie & Karin had been busy putting together a lovely breakfast for us to eat out in the garden. Listening to the birds answer surrounded by flowers.
Ahhhh, this is good.
Today the four of us would take the train into Copenhagen with the special focus on going to Christiansborg’s castle. There we would see an amazing display of modern tapestries done by one of the finiest artists in Denmark, Bjørn Nørgaard.
This was another one of the Danish Royal palaces, and it was lovely to see there were so many wonderful rooms. And we really enjoyed seeing the library seeing the ballroom, seeing the way that they do the Royal Place settings. They have people whose whole job it is to make sure the place settings are just right and it takes three days to set the table for these royal dinners.
The grounds of the palace were so beautiful. What a great setting for a photo of Willie and Karin. We strolled around enjoying such things as the new statue which featured at King holding two towers upside down. The artist stated he wanted to arouse curiosity. Success.
Lunch was fish and chips with a view of the water in the canals. Then we also had a chance to see the outside of the building Karin and Willie lived in when they were first married many years ago. It was fun to hear their reflections on how life in the city had changed in that time.
Copenhagen has bicycles, bike lanes, and bike bridges everywhere. 62% of people in Copenhagen used bikes to commute to work, wow. It is a very bike friendly city.
We took the Metro back to their house, and then enjoyed an amazing salmon dinner. Great, great food. Another beautiful day in the city of Copenhagen.
Ahhhh, this is good.
Today the four of us would take the train into Copenhagen with the special focus on going to Christiansborg’s castle. There we would see an amazing display of modern tapestries done by one of the finiest artists in Denmark, Bjørn Nørgaard.
This was another one of the Danish Royal palaces, and it was lovely to see there were so many wonderful rooms. And we really enjoyed seeing the library seeing the ballroom, seeing the way that they do the Royal Place settings. They have people whose whole job it is to make sure the place settings are just right and it takes three days to set the table for these royal dinners.
The grounds of the palace were so beautiful. What a great setting for a photo of Willie and Karin. We strolled around enjoying such things as the new statue which featured at King holding two towers upside down. The artist stated he wanted to arouse curiosity. Success.
Lunch was fish and chips with a view of the water in the canals. Then we also had a chance to see the outside of the building Karin and Willie lived in when they were first married many years ago. It was fun to hear their reflections on how life in the city had changed in that time.
Copenhagen has bicycles, bike lanes, and bike bridges everywhere. 62% of people in Copenhagen used bikes to commute to work, wow. It is a very bike friendly city.
We took the Metro back to their house, and then enjoyed an amazing salmon dinner. Great, great food. Another beautiful day in the city of Copenhagen.
July 22 Day 39 Copenhagen
We woke up ready to make our next shift. This time to family on Patti’s mom’s side: Willie & Karin. Willy’s grandpa and Patti’s mom’s grandpa were twin brothers. Willy stopped by to pick us up at the apartment and then we drove about 15 minutes to their home, near the Copenhagen airport. It was so nice to see him again and we began to get caught up. We had stayed at their home five years ago when we first went to Denmark together.
Dick remembered the way to their house, and we were so happy to be warmly greeted by Karin who was waiting for us. We quickly settled into "Our Room" and then settled in for a long nice visit.
We had a wonderful dinner. Delicious. It seems all of our relatives in Denmark are great cooks. Such wonderful food, lovingly prepared
They have such a nice inviting backyard and we appreciated eating most of our meals there during our stay. Some more visiting, and then we were all off to bed.
Dick remembered the way to their house, and we were so happy to be warmly greeted by Karin who was waiting for us. We quickly settled into "Our Room" and then settled in for a long nice visit.
We had a wonderful dinner. Delicious. It seems all of our relatives in Denmark are great cooks. Such wonderful food, lovingly prepared
They have such a nice inviting backyard and we appreciated eating most of our meals there during our stay. Some more visiting, and then we were all off to bed.
July 21 Day 38 Copenhagen
Today was just a “chill day” at Lars & Julie’s. We had all been running so much, it was just nice to hang out at “home”, get some groceries, and not have anywhere to go.
We are so grateful to Lars and Julie for their generosity and hospitality as we came and went over the course of the month. They made this lengthy trip possible for us. Tak!(One of the only things we can say in Danish, but we mean it!)
We are so grateful to Lars and Julie for their generosity and hospitality as we came and went over the course of the month. They made this lengthy trip possible for us. Tak!(One of the only things we can say in Danish, but we mean it!)
July 20 Day 37 Copenhagen
A lovely morning. Julie and Lars drove us about 45 minutes North of Copenhagen to spend the day with another cousin, Britt. It was a lovely drive and we were warmly greeted by Britt, her daughter, Freya, and Freya’s boyfriend, Oscar. Lars and Julie went on their way, and the five of us settled in for a very nice lunch and a chance to get to know each other.
Freya had been an exchange student in Texas and it was fun to hear about her experiences living in the U.S. for a year. We had a delightful time eating and talking and then it was time to stroll next-door to the gardens of the Fredenborg Castle.
The grounds were lovely, and we really enjoyed walking around seeing the place that the Danish queen live in the spring and the fall of every year. Dick and Patti were able to go on it a tour in English of the palace. Thanks to Britt, she got them to slip us into an already full tour. We really enjoyed seeing the palace and having a very nice tour of the art in history of this palace that had been around for hundreds of years. We really enjoyed learning even more about the Danish royal family.
After the tour, we met with Britt, Freya and Oscar and enjoyed walking through the beautiful gardens and taking photos and admiring the plants. It was a lovely afternoon. All too quickly, it was time for us to be dropped back off the train station and head back down to Copenhagen, where we would meet up with yet another cousin, Anni, and her son, Kristian.
Because Kristian lived very close to the most famous cemetery in Copenhagen, we had a before dinner stroll over there. Among the famous people buried there were Søren Kierkegaard and Hans Christian Andersen. It was lovely to stroll and enjoy this lovely park-like atmosphere.
Then, we went back to Kristian’s apartment and we all carried the dinner that Anni had so lovingly made several flights of stairs to the roof top terrace. There, we had a beautiful view looking over the city and enjoy some amazing home-cooked Danish food. We enjoyed catching up on family news and what’s things Kristian and Anni had been up to. We had had such lovely times with both of them when we were in Denmark before and appreciated Anni making the trek up from the island of Møn to come and see us. She also brought her new puppy. Adorable!
It was beginning to rain and we easily caught the bus back to Lars and Julie’s having had another lovely time with extended family.
Freya had been an exchange student in Texas and it was fun to hear about her experiences living in the U.S. for a year. We had a delightful time eating and talking and then it was time to stroll next-door to the gardens of the Fredenborg Castle.
The grounds were lovely, and we really enjoyed walking around seeing the place that the Danish queen live in the spring and the fall of every year. Dick and Patti were able to go on it a tour in English of the palace. Thanks to Britt, she got them to slip us into an already full tour. We really enjoyed seeing the palace and having a very nice tour of the art in history of this palace that had been around for hundreds of years. We really enjoyed learning even more about the Danish royal family.
After the tour, we met with Britt, Freya and Oscar and enjoyed walking through the beautiful gardens and taking photos and admiring the plants. It was a lovely afternoon. All too quickly, it was time for us to be dropped back off the train station and head back down to Copenhagen, where we would meet up with yet another cousin, Anni, and her son, Kristian.
Because Kristian lived very close to the most famous cemetery in Copenhagen, we had a before dinner stroll over there. Among the famous people buried there were Søren Kierkegaard and Hans Christian Andersen. It was lovely to stroll and enjoy this lovely park-like atmosphere.
Then, we went back to Kristian’s apartment and we all carried the dinner that Anni had so lovingly made several flights of stairs to the roof top terrace. There, we had a beautiful view looking over the city and enjoy some amazing home-cooked Danish food. We enjoyed catching up on family news and what’s things Kristian and Anni had been up to. We had had such lovely times with both of them when we were in Denmark before and appreciated Anni making the trek up from the island of Møn to come and see us. She also brought her new puppy. Adorable!
It was beginning to rain and we easily caught the bus back to Lars and Julie’s having had another lovely time with extended family.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)