cyndirella107

Since we moved into our current apartment, we've been schlepping our laundry down to a local laundromat and paying ~$9 a load.  This has been painful for us, but I think it might have even been more painful for a dear friend back home who marvels at it any time our life here in Denmark is mentioned.  So Margaret, this post is for you!  Here is an action shot of our newly improved bathroom.  I was running the first empty load and waiting anxiously to run the second with actual clothes.  

A few weekends ago, I had so much fun that it took days for the glow to wear off.  Since my camera's still on vacation (a new, functioning memory card is on its way!), I was waiting to get photos from a friend's camera.  We keep forgetting, so I just stole some from other friends that posted them on Facebook...  Thanks guys!  The weekend started out Friday evening with Matt doing his own thing with colleagues and me spending a nice evening at home with a good friend.  Later in the evening, a couple of other friends dropped in.  I love how open our home is and how friends can just drop in!  

On Saturday, Matt and I bummed around the apartment before I met up with the same two girls who dropped in the night before.  We were finally getting around to watching the first half of Pride and Prejudice (yes, of course the Colin Firth version).  We pretty much talked through the whole thing, looking up information on entailment rules and untangling Bennett lineage.  You can do that when you pretty much know the film by heart...  In the meantime, Matt had met another friend in the park to play catch, so I joined them afterward for dinner and a movie at the friend's apartment.  

Then comes Sunday.  We went to church as we always do, but a large group of us left the fellowship hour early and headed over to a small park near The Little Mermaid.  One of our Japanese friends, Hiroko, was performing a traditional folk dance as the last event of the Sakura Festival (Japanese festival celebrating the cherry blossoms).  We arrived in time to say hi to her before she took the stage.  The group of ladies did a few numbers and then moved down to the grass so that everyone could join in.  The dances were a short series of moves that resembled actions of farmers, etc.  Matt enjoyed figuring out what the different moves were:  "Dig the hole; dig the hole....Push the cart; push the cart....Curtsy and clap!"  

I matched my bike!


Hiroko (in red) with the other ladies dancing


Bring on the cute little kids


And now everybody!


As the festival area cleared, we gathered ourselves and biked a short distance to Hiroko's apartment for a sushi-making workshop.  She and another friend, Hitomi, demonstrated how to make a roll (the kind with the rice on the outside of the seaweed), and then we all went to work.  They had prepped most of the ingredients so that we really just had to assemble the rolls.  Among the ingredient choices were salmon, tuna, shrimp, eel, crab, caviar, cucumber, avocado, cream cheese, and fried egg.  I'm sure I forgot some other stuff too.  We ended up with a pretty huge spread of sushi, but with around 20 people present, it was all gone in no time.  Since everyone's sushi was mixed on the table together, I didn't really always know what was in the roll I was eating, but I liked everything I had.  

Hiroko's demonstration


Our group hard at work


The competition


Table o' sushi


You can't get together for a table full of sushi without following it with karaoke.  We poured through the song lists and came up with some really fun songs to sing.  The best ones were songs that everyone couldn't help but sing along to.  Well not really.  The best best was a song that Hitomi sang in Japanese.  She's a rock star...  

Matt & Shima's duet


Hitomi's song


I have to throw Monday into the weekend, just because I tried something significant that evening.  After Matt got home from work, I positioned him on a chair in front of the huge mirror in the princess room and gave him a haircut.  We had inherited a set of clippers from friends who moved away in December, and I had finally watched enough Youtube videos to find my courage.  I started by buzzing up the back and sides with the deepest guard.  Then I used the scissors on the top and used the shallower guards to get the taper and shaping that he prefers.  I was pretty proud of my work in the end.  I did learn a valuable lesson:  wearing socks while standing in a sea of hair clippings is not the surest of footings.  Luckily, my slip didn't end up as a stripe in the back of my husband's head!

A blurry view of his new do - compare with photos above
And we're really going to miss the girls from DIS this semester...  ;-)

Matt and I have finally gotten around to joining a local food co-op, Københavns Fødevarefællesskab (KBHFF), and we're really enjoying it.  The idea of the organization is people joining forces and buying collectively from local farmers.  We paid 100 kroner (~$20) to join.  Each week, the food is delivered to several places around Copenhagen.  Volunteers fill pre-ordered bags with whatever produce is in season and manage their distribution.  Unlike most CSAs (community supported agriculture), our group is not subscription based where you pay for the season, and your bag comes every week whether you can use it or not.  We can choose on a weekly basis if we would like to pre-pay for a bag the following week.  That feature is key for many singles, and even us, who might not be able to get through the produce in one week.  Each bag costs 100 kroner and contains a hefty amount of organic local produce.  It's exciting to unpack the bag and discover what puzzle pieces will be making up the week's menu.  

First bag - leeks, cabbage, celery, corn, green beans, potatoes, apples, 4 herbs


Second bag - red cabbage, celery root, chard, lettuce, parsley root, green beans, rye flour
(since they ran out of apples), and hops (that Matt collected from the vines at the house)


Third bag - apples, horseradish, white/yellow carrots, beets, flat leaf parsley, kale, brussels sprouts, leeks, and chard


After unpacking our bag on Wednesday, I met up with my knitting club for a evening of yarn, cake, tea, and conversation.  Some of the other girls are members as well.  I learned that our location in Nordvest is quite special.  The location is a community garden house with a small kitchen and more room than most of the other pick up points.  This allows us to present "smagprøver" (tastings).  The previous week, I had fulfilled my monthly shift requirement by signing up at "cake baker".  "Cake" is universally used to mean dessert in Danish culture, so I made apple dumplings.  I also brought along some spiced baked chick peas I had made.  Even though my work was completed before the actual collection period, I chose to stick around for most of the two hour window to meet people and get a feel for what the other jobs entailed.  There was another lady there grabbing things out of her week's bag and whipping up salad dishes and other things for the tasting table.  It's really nice to be able to have a little snack while handling the business and get some inspiration for what to do with the produce.  We ended up making both her red cabbage salad and celery root fries later in the week because we liked our tastings.  

A few Saturdays ago, Matt and I got up early and biked to his office to catch a charter bus bound for Billund, Denmark, the home of Lego.  His company had planned their annual party at the Legoland Hotel.  After around 4 hours, we pulled up to Denmark's Orlando (she types with a smirk).  We were amused by the lack of billboards and craziness.  There was some nice landscaping and a larger than life Lego figure waving by the entrance, but that was about the extent of their street presence.  We dropped off our bags in a conference room and picked up sack lunches to take into the park.  

Me at the hotel entrance


Matt with Darth Vader


The lunches were...  interesting.  I'm still not quite sure what all was on our sandwiches.  It was kind of like the caterer just put anything the had left at the end of the week on them.  But once fed, we were off to ride some rides.  We'd heard that the park wasn't really that great for adults, but we found the rides that we chose were surprisingly adult-friendly.  Among them were a couple roller coasters and a slow moving shoot the targets ride (like Buzz Lightyear at Disney).  Defying all odds, Matt and I managed to tie!  The line was too long for a rematch.  There was one ride that I would have passed by, but Matt decided it looked worth a ride.  It was called Jungle Racers.  We were able to control the jetski-like pods that spun around a disk in the water.  By turning the steering wheel, we could sling out from the disk much like you do in waterskiing.  It was really fun, although I managed to get pretty wet.  Onlookers were working pumps along the side which sprayed up geysers of water when they had enough pressure.  My timing was just unlucky, I guess.

Power Builder Ride - I did NOT ride this, but it was fun to watch


Mount Rushmore


Palace in Osaka, Japan


Palace being attacked by a giant bird!


World landmarks ride:  Statue of Liberty and generic "Arabian Palace"


Of course, a Lego viking


People dryer for after those wet rides - It's not as warm as Orlando!


Matt with a pirate (and gorgeous flowers)


Finally, we made it to the miniatures area.  Honestly, if we'd started there, we might not have seen anything else.  They had lots of Danish sites depicted as well as many other well known global locations.  We could have walked around there for hours.  Everytime we passed something we'd already seen, we would notice something new.  I really enjoyed all of the animation.  Cars and trucks drove freely around in the scenes.  There were even fully functioning ferries to take them across the water.  Some other boats acted similarly to the cars.  They had functioning locks to get them to where they needed to go.  Just amazing...  

Amalienborg Palace (Copenhagen home of the royal family)


Copenhagen Harbour, kind of...


Me with Neuschwanstein Castle


Nyhavn


Nyhavn (with a giant duck!)


Matt with the Millennium Falcon


Mountain castle


German village


Rosenborg Castle - I often sit by this real castle and do homework


Matt with wind turbines (and an oil rig) 


Holland


Car ferry video


Up close showing scale of the figures and buildings


Amsterdam


Amsterdam


Boat going through a lock


We only had a few hours at the park before we had to get checked into our room and changed for dinner.  The party started with a cocktail hour and sing-along (company related lyrics set to a popular Danish song from the 60's).  After we were seated, there was an official welcome and a presentation about a new program that the company was implementing.  The presenter turned out to be an undercover comedian.  We learned this after a good 45 minutes of presentation where he dug himself further and further into a hole while talking in circles about "coaching at all levels".  I just wanted to give him a hug as he seemed to be panicking more and more on stage.  The whole thing was truely brilliant.  Everyone was so uncomfortable, that we tried to clap him off the stage two or three times.  Once it became apparent that it was a big joke, we gave him a much deserved genuine applauding.  They also had a Frank Sinatra style crooner and a house band as entertainment during the evening.  We managed to finally make it to a Danish tradition we were beginning to think didn't really exist, natmad (night food).  It is food that comes out in the wee hours of the morning during a party.  We've tried to stay up late enough at a few parties, but when we left the last one after 3am without seeing it, we thought we never would.  Natmad was on the schedule that night as happening at 1 or 1:30, so we figured that was doable.  Luckily, we only had to walk down a hallway to get home.  It was really nice meeting a lot of Matt's colleagues and their families.  It's rare to have an event like this at a company in Denmark.  Usually spouses and kids are not welcome at parties.  The kids even had their own party that night while the adults had their fancy dinner.  We saw them all lined up dressed as princesses and such.  Several friends have expressed their surprise that I chose to attend the adult party...

My friend Kirstine and I recently went on an elephant hunt around town.  It was right before the Copenhagen Elephant Parade ended and all the decorated statues were auctioned off.  We met in the mid-morning, and had a mission of seeing as many elephants as possible by the end of our day.  Sadly, some of the ones that we would have seen along our route had been taken to the "elephant hospital" due to damage.  We skipped some that were not too central, and we didn't quite make it to Frederiksberg (although we had both seen most of the Frederiksberg ones earlier in the exhibition).  The tally that I have from my photo taking is 61 elephants.  Some were really impressive.  A couple made us roll our eyes at each other and say, "Really?"  Our map was only vaguely helpful on finding some, but that made it all the more fun.  We were asking waiters, store clerks, and bellhops, and we even got a private tour of the two inside of Politiken's office (newspaper).  I love silly activities.

After leaving the distillery in Pitlochry, we headed southeast to St. Andrews, the birthplace of golf.  Although there are several different golf courses in St. Andrews, the famous one is usually referred to as The Old Course.  Originally, we had intended to play golf sometime while in Scotland, but the weather was just too wet and cold.  The Old Course was never an option.  The waiting list is quite long, and you have to have a decent handicap to even be allowed to play there.    We were content just visiting the course.  The placing of the course in relation to the town was surprising to us.  There's just a small road separately the 18th fairway from townhouses.  It was also completely open with walking paths for the public.  Who knew it would be so accessible?  We strolled through and had to wait a couple times until the players were on the move to the next shot to cross the fairway.  I even got to see a guy take a few unfortunate shots in one of the bunkers.  It reminded me of Bobby Jones and how he once whacked at a ball until he finally got it out of one of their bunkers, a favorite scene from Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius.

The Royal and Ancient Golf Club in St. Andrews


Panorama of The Old Course


Chuck and Bill on the bridge on the 18th hole


From St. Andrews, we headed across the bridge to Edinburgh for the final leg of our stay.  We got there in time for a late tapas dinner before seeking out our hotel.  Friday morning, we took a taxi into the center of town to enjoy the festivals that consume the city during August.  There are around seven festivals that are all coordinated in unison.  The Fringe Festival seems to have grown into the biggest one, and they issue a giant catalog listing all the different events, concerts, comedy shows, plays, etc.  Most shows happen once a day for the run of August, although some are limited to a shorter stretch.  At any hour of the day, there are seemingly endless options for entertainment.  We walked from the train station up to the castle and took a tour.  Then we started our way down The Royal Mile.  A good portion of the road was closed to cars for the festivals.  It was crowded with street performers and people drumming up business for their shows.  Some were more creative than others.

Advertising Alice in Wonderland


The crowded Royal Mile


We wandered around for a while and checked out a free stand-up comedy show.  It was about what we expected from our experience last time.  It started out clever and witty, but by the end, the comedian resorted to shock comedy.  It's kind of desperately formulaic.  Later, Matt and I lead the group to see a performer that we really enjoyed during our previous visit, David Ferrard.  He's a half Scottish / half American folk singer that has pulled a lot from both traditions.  He's got a lovely voice and exudes gentleness and charm.  Everyone was very pleased with our choice.  While chatting with him after the show, Matt's mom found out that his sister lives near them, and he does visit occasionally.  Next time he makes it to Jacksonville, I know there'll be people we know in the audience.  

After a quick dinner, it was time to queue up for the famed Edinburgh Military Tattoo.  The whole trip was planned around when we could manage to get tickets for the tattoo.  It far exceeded our expectations.  Of course, there was a bunch of marching, drumming, and bagpiping, but there was also a good bit of humor and variety.  My favorite part was the first appearance of the band from the Netherlands.  They rode out into the espanade on bicycles playing their intruments.  It was interesting to see how they fitted some of the instruments, like the xylophone, to the bikes.  They also used the castle as a major element with images projected on the stone.  I'm very glad that we were able to get tickets this time around.  It was an extremely enjoyable show.

The crew at the Tattoo


Composite band made up of drum and pipe groups from all over the world


Dutch bicycle band having a bit of fun


A Navy cannon contest with castle protection backdrop


A little trip to Bavaria


Bagpipes and tailpipes, a natural combination


Ooo, a dragon...


All the groups for a finale


A little taste of the show


Matt is so handsome by the light of fireworks


The next morning, we drove back to the center and completed the Royal Mile.  We did a little shopping and were convinced by some crazy ladies giving out cake to see their play.  It was in three unrelated acts.  One act was about an apothecary, one was about Marie Antoinette's dressmaker, and one was about World War II code transcribers.  So in the end, we saw about as different a selection as we could in the time we had:  a clever turned lewd comedian, a sweet folk singer, a military tattoo, and a scripted play featuring women of a certain age.  Plus, we saw lots of street performers that ranged in talent.  It was a whirlwind followed by one last car journey to Manchester to await our flights home.  I can't wait to see what our next adventure will be.  As long as we have good company, it will always be fun.

Tuesday morning, we were on a bit of a schedule. We had a reservation on the ferry to the Isle of Skye in the early to mid afternoon.  We gave ourselves enough time to take a scenic drive through the gorgeous valley at Glencoe.  We stopped briefly at a visitor center and then followed Rick Steves's advice on a short drive east and back through the valley.  This drive is one of the most stunning examples of Highland topography.  Even though the weather was surprisingly cooperative with us along the way, we didn't happen across any bagpipers standing on the roadside playing for the tourists.  Apparently that is pretty common.  Another common thing in the Highlands is a cairn.  Cairns are piles of rocks that were constructed for various reasons.  Some are useful, but many are sculptural landmarks.

Panorama from the visitor center at Glencoe


Bill, Kathy, Me, Matt, and Chuck at the visitor center in Glencoe
 

The sheep can do it, and so can we!


Matt with a cairn (pile of rocks) that mimics the nearby hill


Chuck (retired Amtrak employee) and Matt in front of a charming train trestle


Scenic stop by a loch


It's okay.  Kathy and Matt are not cars...


We arrived at the ferry terminal in plenty of time to leave the car in line and walk through the small town in search of a late lunch.  This was often our routine.  We ate full British breakfasts before heading out because it was never certain when we would be able to eat again.  We found a cute little café serving soup.  Perfect.  The ferry to Skye was somewhat small and completely full.  It was fascinating to see how they strategically fit all of the vehicles on.  Arriving as early as we did, we might have been able to catch the ferry without a reservation, but I am still glad that we planned ahead.  The weather was still cooperating, so we decided to pass by the hotel and get in our sightseeing while we could.  We drove on north to the Trotternish Peninsula.  This is the area that made Skye a tourist destination.  Along our drive, we passed dramatic purply green hills covered with blooming heather and waterfalls that just kept topping themselves.  With all the rain that we were having, the earth had begun crying, it seemed.  Every possible spring was overflowing.  We stopped at a spot along the shore to see Kilt Rock, a cliff formation that has a striking resemblance to the traditional Highland uniform.  We then climbed our way up through a valley to see more rock formations and sheep.  Oh the sheep...  Many years ago, residents of the Highlands and islands were pushed off their land to make extra room for raising sheep.  They're everywhere.  Some have brightly colored spray paint markings on their fleece to show who owns them.  Some don't.  Sometimes they are fenced in.  Often, they are not.  Usually they are just happy to peacefully eat their heather and other vegetation.  And sometimes, they take off in a gallop with amazing agility across a 60° slope covered in scrubby growth.  That, and they are sweaters just waiting to be made!  I kind of miss the little fellas now.

Matt looking out over the heather and a small loch on Skye


Matt and me by cliffs on Skye


A peek at Kilt Rock and one of the many waterfalls 


One of my buddy sheep, eating


Looking down back at the winding road we had just climbed through a valley


Matt always pointed out the animal crossing signs by telling the driver "Sheep in the road" or "Cow in the road", but this time he really meant it--sadly not a "hairy coo".


After our big loop through the Trotternish peninsula, we finally checked into our hotel as the rains started again.  We'd been noticed "no vacancy" signs everywhere, and our arrival made one couple very sad.  I guess we were the last folks to check in, and they were hoping to get one of our rooms if we didn't show.  We had a pub dinner at the hotel's connected brewery restaurant before calling it a night.  The following morning, we got up and loaded the car again.  We had tried to reserve spaces on a tour of the Talisker Distillery, but there was nothing room left on the tours happening before we needed to be leaving the island.  We figured that we'd at least go take a look anyway.  As we turned onto the street to go to the distillery, we saw our first scarecrow, a gypsy woman.  Apparently, we were visiting during a community scarecrow festival (video here).  We were like little kids pointing out all of the different creative figures along the road.  Just to describe a few, there was a kayaker, a doctor, Elvis, The Stig (from BBC's Top Gear), Dora the Explorer, a clown, and my favorite, a Dalek (from Doctor Who).  At the distillery, we think we found every other person staying on the island.  Even without going on the tour, we were able to check out some display cases that explained the history of the enterprise.  They also had a tasting bar where we tried the whisky.  We had read it described as "volcanic".  I would agree with that assessment.  On our way out, we peaked into the building where the house the stills.  That was good enough.  

Dalek scarecrow along the road to the Talisker Distillery


Talisker's stills


After the distillery, we headed to the Skye Bridge and stopped at the Eilean Donan Castle once back on the mainland.  This castle is privately owned and is still in use as a residence.  We were able to see some of the interiors, but the setting was the most impressive aspect of the site.  It sits on an island where three lochs meet.  Several movies have chosen the castle for filming.  From there, we drove north passed Loch Ness and the Urquhart Castle.  We stopped by the visitor center for the castle, but since there was no visibility, we decided not to officially enter it.  On a nice day, you can see the entire Loch from the castle's ruins, thus the reason for its defensive siting.  That was just a quick stop on the way to Inverness to visit the battlefield of Culloden.  This is the site of the short but defining battle between the Scottish Jacobites and Bonnie Prince Charlie against the English.  It was the last pitched battle on British soil.  Since Matt visited in high school, they built a very nice visitor center beside the battlefield.  We were all impressed with the museum it housed.  Along the path of the exhibit, they explained what was going on from both perspectives with the Jacobite displays on the right hand wall, English on the left, and general information scattered along the path itself.  I particularly enjoyed the small interactive displays on either side where you can listen to short diary snippets from soldiers or civilians read aloud.  Even though it was pouring rain, I stood by my man and joined him on a stroll through the flooding battlefield.  We followed enough of the audioguide to get us to the English front line and by some of the clan monuments.  There was even another cairn, but I didn't take one photo there...

Eilean Donan Castle
 

View from Eilean Donan Castle


Urquhart Castle with Loch Ness beyond


After all that driving, we finally made it back relatively south to our hotel in Pitlochry.  We barely made it before the restaurants stopped serving.  Our walk through town that night revealed a quite charming village.  In the morning, we took a walk to explore it a bit more.  The bed and breakfast owner suggested a route that brought us by the dam and "fish ladder".  When they built the hydroelectric dam, they had to consider the salmon that swam up the river to spawn.  The solution was to make a terraced waterway with a couple switchbacks to allow them to continue on their way.  I did see a fish jump in one of the pools, but I don't know if it was a salmon, and I'm guessing it wasn't the height of the breeding season.

Pitlochry's fish ladder


After the walk, we headed out again and stopped by the Edradour Distillery on our way out of the area.  This time we did take the tour.  It is the smallest distillery in Scotland and it still run as a family operation.  They used to do every aspect of whisky making in house, but now they had outsourced a few things.  Their methods are still traditional, and they only produce as much whisky in a year as the big guys do each week.  The site was charming with a smattering of buildings for different purposes, but for the most part, the magic happens in one small building.  It might not be the absolute best whisky in Scotland, but it had to have been the best one to visit.

Matt in front of the tasting bar at Edradour


Matt with the stills -- the far one is the smallest legal still in Scotland


*For more photos, check out my Photobucket album.

Matt and I started our trip to the UK this summer by flying into Manchester.  It worked out better for us to fly in on Friday afternoon, and stay in the city to await his parents' arrival on Saturday.  When we made it to town, we dropped off our bags and went in search of dinner.  We'd always heard that Manchester was really industrial with no charm, so the city was a pleasant surprise to us.  The area where we stayed was close to the canals, and it was obvious that there'd been a lot of effort to revive the district.  The sun was out, and the locals were swarming the many cafés with patios.  The canals and dynamic topography made for a really fascinating setting with lots of varying levels and terraces.  But our dinner was destined to be in a different area.  Escaping the bland food of Scandinavia, we were in search of spicy Indian food.  We made our way beyond the university to "The Curry Mile".  It's thought to be the largest concentration of South Asian restaurants outside of the Indian Subcontinent.  We found a place that was pretty crowded and satisfied our need for flavor.


The next day, Matt's parents and their friend Chuck picked us up at our hotel, and we started the first official leg of the trip:  Manchester to Hadrian's Wall.  Hadrian's Wall was built by the Romans to keep out the Barbarians in Scotland.  The wall still exists in some areas, but much of the stone has been taken over the centuries to build local houses, churches, etc.  The sun from Friday had turned to rain, but we were in a car for the most part.  We arrived in the area in time to visit the Roman Army Museum.  It had interesting displays along with a few videos.  The first video showcased a soldier as if he was talking directly to the audience recruiting new members in the army.  The second was a dramatization of a soldier's diary depicting typical daily conditions, events, and problems.  From the museum, it was a short drive to our hotel, an old farmhouse in the middle of rolling fields.  The owner was super friendly and had made us reservations at a nearby inn with a dining room open for dinner .  I had steak and ale pie which was good, but the others who ordered the lamb shank raved about it for the rest of the trip.  During our meal, a group of guys who were biking the length of the wall came in.  A few of the guys had surprised their buddies by entering in homemade Roman army costumes.  They were having a great time.


On Sunday morning, we had our first of many full British breakfasts and headed out to complete the second part of the ticket we had purchased on Saturday.  On the way from the Bed and Breakfast, we followed the owner's advice and stopped to hike to an easily visitable portion of the wall and a milecastle.  The milecastles were used to house soldiers every Roman mile along the wall.



Matt standing on what remains of a milecastle




Then, it was onward to Vindolanda, an important Roman military post that was only rediscovered a few decades ago.  Work is still being done to uncover the site, and it is unbelievable what things they have found and in what condition.  The small museum by the site houses leather shoes, uniforms, jewelry, and many other items that hardly seem touched by time.  Britain's "Top Treasure" is the Vindolanda Writing Tablets, pieces of thin wood with barely readable markings telling about daily life during the fort's occupation.  We got to the site just as a tour was starting.  We trudged through the rain and puddles as a guide pointed out the different spaces inside and outside of the fort.



Panorama of Vindolanda




Back in the car...  We crossed the modern boundary between England and Scotland and quickly noticed the landscape changing.  We arrived in a west coast town called Oban a little before dinner time.  Our dinner restaurant, Coast, lured us in with posters outside showing mussels.  Unfortunately they were not on the dinner menu, but my halibut turned out to be quite tasty.  The next morning, I was very excited.  It was the day that I'd been waiting for.  We picked up our many tickets for the day, and boarded a ferry at the terminal in Oban.  The ferry took us over to the Isle of Mull where we took an entertaining bus ride to the other side.  The most memorable thing to Matt and me was when the driver explained that he often stopped by the mussel farmers and bought a kilo of the bivalves for one pound stirling.  Seriously...  They cost at least six times that here at the shops.



Panorama of the ferry view leaving Oban





More along the ferry route




At the end of our ride, we met a much smaller boat that would take us to the small uninhabited island of Staffa.  I have wanted to see the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland for many years, but it just hasn't ever made it on the schedule.  When we started planning this trip, I knew we had to go to the lesser known, but just as impressive Scottish counterpart.  Both sites were formed by volcanic events where the molten material cooled at just the right speed and temperature to break into polygonal columns.  The basalt columns look like huge crude pegs pounded into the earth by ancient giants.  The effect is somewhat like the pin toys where you can make an impression with your hand or face.  The boat ride to the island was almost as thrilling as our destination.  We were moving against the giant waves, sometimes rising and falling 15 or so feet (~4.5 meters).  We knew when the captain stopped accelerating that we should hold on tightly.  That was the calling card for exceptionally large waves and gut-wrenching drops.  Amazingly, no one got sick.  Once at the island, the boat paused by the mouth of Fingal's Cave and then continued a bit farther to a small dock.  We hopped out and followed the cable handrail around to the mouth of the cave on foot.  I could have stayed there all day.  But instead, we gave others their turn and climbed some stairs to the grassy top of the island.  At one point, Matt and I sat down on some of the long thin grass.  The ground was spongy, and mixed with the wispy grass, it felt like we were laying on a giant cuddly dog.  





Boat ride to Staffa



The first look at Fingal's Cave





Dramatic coastal cliff





Fisheye panorama in the mouth of Fingal's Cave





Us with Matt's parents in front of the cave (kind of windy!)





Tiny island alongside Staffa





Panorama on top of Staffa





Matt and I on top of Staffa





Coastline by the boat dock





Another view from the top





One last view from the boat 




The boat took us on to another island called Iona.  That trip was much calmer as we were riding the waves rather than fighting them.  We had an hour or two to wander around Iona.  We had a little soup and then checked out the ruined remains of a convent and an Abbey that is still in use.



Ruined convent on Iona





Cloister in the Abbey




After a short ferry ride back to Mull and the bus back to the larger ferry terminal, we found out that the wind that had made our Staffa visit so exciting was giving the big ferry problems as well.  Luckily, there was a little café by the terminal with a closed circuit tv showing the dock.  Bill had fun going out front and being a tv star for our entertainment.  Once the boat finally appeared, the café lost all their business. 



Waiting for the ferry to appear on the TV (and tasting local brews)





Chuck and Kathy on the Ferry back to Oban





Sunset from the ferry




Fortunately for us, the brewery restaurant that we wanted to try for dinner was open later than most in the town.  We were certainly ready to eat once our feet were back on the mainland.  The menu showed mussels on the starters page, so there was no point in looking any farther.  After a glorious sleep, a third full British breakfast down, and a little unsuccessful shopping for better rainy weather shoes, we were on the road again.


*For more photos, check out my Photobucket album.

A few weekends ago, we traveled to the place where our friend Nina grew up, the Danish island of Bornholm.  Nina put on her hostess hat, and our friend Tim also went along.  Bornholm is located off the southeastern coast of Sweden, so we took a train over the Øresund bridge and through the tip of Sweden to a ferry.  The island is a dense collection of what Denmark has to offer as a whole, both in geography and products.  It is a haven for artists (particularly potters and glass blowers) due to natural beauty and comparably cheaper housing costs.  I have been told that the sunlight on Bornholm is especially inspiring, but we didn't get much of an opportunity to be inspired.  When we arrived on Thursday evening, rain was falling.  We stayed at Nina's family's summer house.  I have to point out here that the house is only around 5 kilometers from their normal home.  During the cold weather, they stay in the center of a town, and the summer house is located close to the beach.  We visited a bit with her parents before calling it a night.  

On Friday, we had more rain.  We drove around the island visiting some of the towns and artists shops.  We stopped at a converted school café to have tea in the afternoon.  The place is a little reminiscent of a Cracker Barrel due to all the stuff displayed everywhere.  The rain dampened my picture taking mood, so I only have a photo of the outside entrance.  We fulfilled Matt's request to have dinner at the islands sole brewery.  They were out of tables in the main dining area, but they were nice enough to let us eat at one of the tables in the bar dining room.  If it had been nicer, we could have eaten outside on their friendly patios.  Our drive home was a little adventurous.  We missed Nina's mom's text about roads being flooded and closed due to all the rain, but we only managed to come across one problem area.  It was manageable, but it looked like it was about to be closed by the police.  

Café entrance


Most tempting glass pitchers


On Saturday, we tried to continually dodge the rain and went to a beach area.  We walked along the sandy beach and through the adjacent forest that in Florida would be condos, condos, condos.  Rather than condos, there are camp grounds and a few cozy cottages nestled in the trees.  Oh, and never completed giant anti-aircraft gun housings from World War II--not so charming, but still interesting to visit.  The island was taken by the Germans during the war, but the locals talk more about how the Russians liked it too much to leave after they forced the Germans out.  It's location on the edge of the Baltic Sea still continues to attract Germans (by the ferry load), in a much more amiable way.  Our last activity in the area was to climb the lighthouse.  Unlike the ones that dot the east coast of the US, its utilitarian design makes me confident that I will never see it depicted in cross stitch.  The view out was nice though.

We stopped for lunch in a old Dutch style windmill a bit later.  They had the sandwich counter on the ground floor surrounded by shelves selling practically any food item made on Bornholm.  The next floor up was a ring of dining tables.  The hole in the center allowed us to see down into the shop.  Another staircase revealed a door to the deck that circles the building underneath the lattice-like blades.  We then returned to the summer house to meet Nina's niece and nephew.  Her niece lead us on a walk through the woods and along the nearby beach.  The highlights of the outing involved throwing sticks in a swelled and gushing stream to see them be swept away, stomping across a small bridge to scare off the troll that obviously lives underneath, and throwing lots of small (or not so small) rocks into the surf.  That was followed by a lovely meal prepared by our hosts.  During conversation that night (mostly in Danish!), Nina's mom realized finally that Matt and I are married.  We had split the two spare rooms by gender so that no one had to take a sofa.  She was horrified that we were not getting to share a room and offered to leave that moment for the place in town.  We convinced her to stay put, and we all had a big laugh about the whole thing.

The gang on the lighthouse


Sunday was our last day on the island, and finally, we had some sun.  As we lazily got ready, Matt decided it was his chance to brave the Baltic.  We walked down to the beach, and he jumped in.  Luckily, I had my camera ready, because in a little over 30 seconds, he was standing next to me again.  Brr...

Matt's plunge


Later, Nina took us on a very nice hike along a rockier shore.  The path was flooded at times, so it lead to some creative Spiderman-like maneuvering.  By this time, I had started sneezing non-stop.  I would have loved to spend more time there if the scenery wasn't hoping up and down.  At the next town, we stopped to buy smoked mackerel and eat our lunch.  Many of the coastal villages are known for their fishing.    You can tell the røgerier (smokehouses) by the uniquely shaped chimney masses.  Many private homes even have them attached.

Rocky shore from the trail


Nordbornholms Røgeri where we bought our smoked mackerel


What DO they see in the water?!


After lunch, we headed to our last attraction on the island, the ruins of Hammerhus Castle.  We walked around the grounds and took way too many photos.  I guess it was just so "inspiring" to have sunlight!  The visit concluded with us finally eating the flødeboller that Nina had bought at a chocolate shop on Friday.  Mine was white chocolate with coconut.  Messy and yum.

Hammershus from the approach


The gang in a window frame



Inside of the prison building (It's a composite photo--the walls aren't actually curved...)


Panorama from the prison building inside the fortifications


Giant white chocolate flødebolle posing with the nice scenery


Our trip back to Copenhagen was a little exciting.  Earlier this year, a new ferry that had been ordered from an Australian company arrived.  It then promptly decided to break.  Since then, it'd been in the repair shop.  When we returned to the summer house to grab our bags, Nina's parents told us we would be on the Leonora Christina for it's first day of service after the big fix.  Due to some incompatibility issues with the existing car ramps, the schedule was a little lagging.  Luckily, we were taking the bus back from the Swedish terminal to Denmark.  They have the ability to wait on the ferry, unlike the train.  It's not everyday you get to be one of the first people to ride the world's fastest ferry.  It was a great trip, and I look forward to seeing Nina's parents again so I can give them big hugs and say, "Tak for sidst!"

Welcome card on our table on the fancy new Leonora Christina
(and the banana bread that Tim lovingly carried around all weekend!)


For more photos check out my album.  And for Tim's more informative, less babbling take, see his blog for Bornholm, Part 1 and Part 2.