SofaWolves

Day 53- Bonus giant

Journey: Copenhagen – Malmö (Sweden) – Sven Jons Udde

This morning we opted to go to free town Christina which is an anarchist commune started in 1971. Mark said it was like stepping back in time, it still had that 70s vibe, there was masses of graffiti, a few stalls and they were openly selling cannabis. Though they do request you don’t take any photos I confess I snuck one photo as we found a bonus giant!

From there we had a further potter around the city, found a lovely cafe called Boho Organic which served delicious vegan rainbow cake (I’ve downloaded the Happy Cow app so my cake sourcing is easier 😂🙈), saw a hidden underwater sculpture shimmering in the sun…and realised we had missed the genetically modified little mermaid but had to get back to the dogs so will have to save that for another time.

Mark wasn’t keen to watch Tom Jones at Tivoli gardens tonight, despite my Welsh family links and instead suggested we leave the country 😂 We drove over the amazing Oresund Bridge to Sweden and took the pups to the lovely Pildammsparken in Malmö. In Sweden dogs have to be on a lead at all times so they now each have an extendable lead which will inevitably get tangled up together but at least Jasper will be forced to walk reasonably close to us and not be so independent. It does mean Jasper will be 5meters ahead, Mabel 5 meters behind and Ernest in whatever direction the nearest pigeon is 🙈

Malmö is known as a foodie haven and I found a great museum for us to visit – The disgusting food museum! As disgust is as much linked to personal culture and morals it was really interesting seeing and reading about various delicacies, and the reasons some found them disgusting…smelling them was an optional foul extra experience. At the end there was an opportunity to taste various gross stuff…I braved two ( a fermented sour drink and smelly Durian fruit), Mark also tried salted licorice which is apparently like having your tongue sandpapered 😂.

We had a brief walk around the town, found a few nice sculptures then came back to find a parking ticket – £50 for exceeding the parking space (our van bum goes out the end). Never had this problem in other countries but obviously something to watch out for here, despite the carpark being almost empty ☹️ Drove back to the park to make dinner and plan our time in Sweden.

We have decided to drive up the west coast which few people seem to do (most drive straight from Malmö to Stockholm). I’m desperate to see wild moose, so persuaded Mark to let us drive on to Sven Jons Udde in the hope the dusk would make a sighting more likely. Sadly not this evening but I’ve found lots of nature reserves so have my fingers and toes crossed. Mabel has her checklist ready and is hoping to roll in lynx, moose, wolf, wolverine, brown bear, arctic fox, reindeer, boar and beaver poo 😜

Day 52 – Graffiti and Chill

Journey: Copenhagen

It’s a drizzly old day today and I was up for staying in bed with Mabel…Mark left us girlies sleeping in and walked the boys and then persuaded me to go potter about the trendy Vesterbro area.

I’m doing a 16:8 fasting diet and was desperately counting down the minutes until I could eat again…if you see someone on a train sniffing a rice cracker longingly whilst glancing at their watch…sympathise…and maybe don’t eat a donut in plain view of them 😂

After a quick coffee stop we saw a funny theatre advert for an upcoming show…an obvious photo opportunity 😂🙈 We escaped from the rain into a Graffiti exhibition which was really interesting – there is much more behind the tags, letter designs and culture than I realised.

Mark found an lovely cafe and we were naughty and ate out again as I spotted chips being delivered to another table and they looked incredible (our van oven is rubbish so we can’t make them at home). In the afternoon, I opted to spend time with the dogs and deep cleaned the van then had a pamper (no frying pans were permanently harmed while being used as a foot bath 😜). Mark tootled back to town and bought himself an early birthday present. Given we have been on the go so much it’s actually really nice to have a lazy day.

Day 51 – Two giants and a little mermaid

Journey: Copenhagen

I slept in ridiculously late…Mark always marvel’s at how much I can sleep and yet be yawning post lunch in evident need of more coffee 😂

We took the pups to find the remaining two Giants, the first was on a farm with a nursery school trip going on. I thought it great that they had all come on bike with each of the 6 teachers having 4 kids in the trug of their bike…can’t imagine that happening in the UK, and such a high child:teacher ratio.

Mark and I got the train into the city and the first stop was Torochalerne Food Market…I’ve gone vegan again so this was especially hard as it was filled with naughty treats, but I made do with a huge yummy salad and a lovely coffee from Coffee Connection who do their own special daily roast.

We then wandered to Rosenborg Castle saw the massive fish in the moat who presume everyone who walks across the bridge is going to feed them, strolled through the gardens to Amalienborg Palace and then on to the Little Mermaid (swarmed by tourists), and the cafe lined Nyhavn Harbour. Spotted a beautiful Japanese lady dressed as a living doll.

We came back to the van, walked the pups and opted for a relaxed evening listening to music (I finally worked out how to stream and link it from phone to the Bluetooth speaker… I’m useless with technology lol)

Day 50 – I spy a Forgotten Giant!

Journey: Humblebaek – Jaegersborg Forest – Copenhagen suberbs

The morning walk was a random tootle about the town, we found a park and small forest and after a mile, I split off with Ernest and continued to do a gentle 2 mile jog…my running legs definitely need training up again lol.

Parked in the carpark of our first destination you would think we would be first in the queue when it opened at 11 but nope…50+ people were already waiting 🙈 The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art is amazing if you like quite surreal video art, it has a nice sculpture garden with a slide, a few immersive experiences and a great art book shop…still it was so busy and a lot of the work was so odd I just didn’t get it, and so I left feeling a bit meh. With hindsight I wish we had checked when if anytime it was quieter.

From there we drove to the Jaegersborg Forest and had a lovely long walk. As we are inching closer to Copenhagen we have both been excited to try and find the Forgotten Giants. These are 6 gorgeous wooden giants made by artist Thomas Dambo and hidden in natural surroundings in the suberbs of Copenhagen. Our first attempt had us trying to pair the artists map with Google to look for clues and we got completely lost…we then realised you can put the giants name into Google and it will take you to the right park and give a clue to general area in which to look. It’s such a good idea as we have visited lovely green spaces we would never have otherwise gone to. So far we have found Teddy Friendly, Oscar under the Bridge, Thomas on the Mountain and Little Tilde. Looking forward to finding the remaining two tomorrow ❤️

Day 49 – To be or not to be…a castle

Journey: Tisvildeleje – Hillerod – Fredensborg – Helsingor – Humblebaek

And the sun has vanished instead we woke up to wind and rain…then sun…then rain…then moody skies.. then sun…then showers…and now calm…for now. Loving how quickly the weather changes here, even if it does catch us out on occasion.

We had a quick beach walk so Mabel could have a roll then decided the bank was too dangerous for adrenaline junkie/no brains Ernest who would likely dive off in pursuit of a gull or random leaf being blown in the wind so we headed to the woods instead.

Had a lovely long walk, saw some massive ant nests, did various assault course manoeuvres over fallen trees and it gave the dogs a good run around. Plus there are far less ticks up here.

We then started our castle hunt. First stop was Fredericksborg Castle in Hillerod. It was breathtaking and huge! I parked up by the duck pond so the dogs were excited we had come to see some ducks, walked them through the extensive grounds and got caught out in torrential rain so ran back to the van dripping wet and sat in my pants drying out while eating lunch – strange how I never get invited to posh places 😂

I’d been intrigued by a place called Island of Imagination which turned out to be another lovely woodland walk with runis off a little summer house. By a miracle we managed to get a dog in each of the archways… Obviously not all looking or paying attention but it’s a cute photo non the less.

From here I drove to a weird looking art garden called Den Magiske Haveforening but it was evidently in someone’s back garden and they weren’t home so we snuck a look through the gate and left to explore a massive castle we hadn’t realised was in the same town. Kancellihuset Fredensborg Slot is another huge white castle where they used to breed Roman snails as they were a local delicacy. That was my favourite random fact…there was probably more useful information but that stuck with me as I love snails 😂 (not eating them).

Or third castle was the most famous Kronborg Castle which is the setting for Shakespeare’s Hamlet. This was less about beauty and more about its impressive moat and promintary setting. The moody skies made it look quite atmospheric. The harbour area also had a few lovely sculptures my favourite of which was the Garbage fish (made out of washed up waste). We found a great street food market and enjoyed a veggie burrito; I do love the relaxed makeshift vibe of these places. I survived my first 16 hour fast and am starting day 2 of 5… praying it gets easier…I live for food 😂🙈

Tonight we are parked up ready to explore Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in the morning then heading to Copenhagen. Do let us know if you have been before and have recommendations 🙂

Day 48 – Searching for shade

Journey: Klintebjerg Klint – Rorvig – Strandhuse – Stokkebjergskov, Hundested – Tisvildeleje

With knowledge the sea was right outside my window I woke early (not early enough for sunrise which is around 5 am) and had a lovely walk with the pups…and then they spotted deer and we had a mad dash around peoples gardens trying to catch them 🙈

We then drove on to Rorvig and found a great vegan bakery… got to have cake 😂 before finding a lovely forest walk in Strandhuseb with hidden shrouded dudes, some village ruins and a poor frog to chase (no frog was harmed). It was 11am and already very hot so we knew we would be trying our best to stay in the shade…I’m definitely outnumbered as I love the sun…but for the dogs and Mark it’s not good.

We decided to drive around Isefjord stopping whenever we fancied and found another lovely forest walk which led to the beach Stokkebjergskov, this gave the dogs some quality stick chewing time and Mabel another opportunity to roll in the sand. She also managed to roll in poo on both walks so was in daddies bad bucks 🤢

We finished our loop at Hundested and took the pups to the sand sculpture festival where there were some amazing art works…and thankfully Mabel resisted the urge to roll on or near them. We are now parked in the harbour with the wind howling around us and I’m 30minutes into a 16hr fast…trying to keep flab under limited control given all the great treats I’ve been having…come on willpower!

Hubby back from walk and decided we should move so it’s on to Tisvildeleje. Or van is to big to get by the beach but have found a spot by the train station and Mabel can start her day with a beach roll before heading off for a nice forest walk…they are so spoilt for nice walks here in Denmark ❤️

Day 47 – Lazy day on the beach

Journey: Stillinge Strand – Nature Park Amosen – Vesterlyng – Ordrup naes – Esterhoj -Klintebjerg Klint

We have been so blessed with the weather, it’s gorgeous sunshine but not so hot as to upset the dogs or cold loving Mark, plus my lilly white body is finally picking up some tan ☀️

Our Danish friend had recommended several places…all beaches and so today we beach hopped from one stunning place to the next. Our morning walk was on Stillinge Strand where we had camped and Mabel was too excited to set paw on the beach and instead was rolling on the path leading to it, and again once on the beach and every beach we have visited 😂

We then drove a short distance to a lovely nature park and walked down to lake Tisso. The site had a couple of shepherd huts you could sleep in overnight – this free accommodation is dotted around Denmark often with lovely views.

2nd beach of the day was at Vesterlyng, we drove through huge wheat fields and saw cows grazing by the lakes. The beach itself had great views and was rather busy but we found a spot and settled down with the pups and read our new scientist magazines like a couple of nerds.

Conscious of the pups getting too warm we drove on to Ordrup naes which is on a peninsula. The roads were both narrow and single track which isn’t ideal in a motorhome but when I spotted a fiat Punto coming out of a parking space I was sure I could squeeze the van in. I’m sure Mark holds his breath sometimes with my driving 😂 I trooped us all the way to the peninsula tip so that the pups could run free away from people but this meant sacrificing comfy sand for lumpy rocks, I used Jasper as a pillow and was happy enough…but after half an hour we walked to the sandy bit so we could play in the sea, do handstands and lounge about more comfortably, by this point it was 6pm and we had the beach largely to ourselves.

After a yummy dinner in the carpark, the usual evening discussion…should we try to find a camp spot locally or drive on to next known destination. As I love evening driving and have yet to find my ‘off’ switch, I am still struggling to not push on to the next place. I’m just crap at doing things in moderation… I’ve gone from workaholic because I loved it, to full on nomad because I love it 😂 Mark is much more relaxed and used to just going with the flow of a day not necessarily doing much. We will find a balance eventually but tonight I think he is glad I won (not that it’s a competition – he reminded me!).

We drove on to Klintebjerg Klint, visited a burial mound and Esterhøj reunification stone on the way and parked right by the sea. We made stone stacks then sat in our van and watched the sun set. If I were trying to be romantic I couldn’t have done better, as it happens it was just a lucky bonus

Day 46 – Old Fart goes to Middlefart

Journey: Layby – Middlefart – Modun – Odense – Stillinge Strand

Shock horror Mark wanted to drive! Minus a tiny bump of the wing mirror the old fart did really well and we arrived 30minutes later in Middlefart, accompanied by a stinky fart from little fart (Ernest). We spent the morning at a lovely ceramics museum, had the obligatory coffee and cake and enjoyed the various exhibits. Mabel was confused by their sofa…it lacked the usual soft bounce. Pottery has always been a skill I’d love to learn as I love the freedom it gives to create form, glazes, art, or a humble but beautiful favourite mug. In choosing what we brought with us on the trip, we each brought a handcrafted mug made by a Norfolk potter – I get quite sentimental thinking of the time and effort gone into something that makes my bedtime hot chocolate that extra bit special.

From there we drove to Modun as my friend Anna had told me you could see Bison. We found a Bison farm and saw the herd with their little calves… It’s my first time seeing them and although obviously better to spot them in the wild, this was a lovely setting with 4 holiday cottages and hot tubs, a teepee and little shacks you could sit in to watch them (I’m choosing to ignore the on-site restaurant that cooked them).

Odense is the home of Hans Christian Andersen so we spent a few hours pottering around the old streets and found his old house, then visited a few of the lovely city parks. We got stopped and offered free coffee and a chance to try out different blue tooth headphones. If I had spare money the sound quality from the Sony WH1000XM3 was sublime – I was in my own little world bopping about; I hadn’t realised they were noise cancelling and Mark was trying to talk to me (he tested sennheisers but they weren’t as good).

It was a glorious day and a few students had obviously just graduated and were celebrating. Jasper lapped up a drunk girls cuddles 😂 We also researched why so many young people are wearing sailor type caps. When they graduate it’s a Danish tradition to wear a cap all summer before university. It’s also linked to lots of fun mainly drinking related dares, such as a wave cut in the band means they’ve been skinny dipping, whereas a square means they have finished a box of beer in a night, the cap also entitles them to a free drink at lots of bars 😂

We opted to leave Fyn island and drive over the Great Belt Bridge (Storebaelt) to Stillinge Strand. It’s the world’s 4th largest suspension bridge and was amazing! Tweaking our Saturday tradition we found take away pizza and had it on the beach with the pups. Sat reading at 9pm with two pups asleep and Ernest digging up the sand… It was idyllic.

Day 45 – Denmark doesn’t have to be expensive

Journey: Aarhus – Jelling – Legoland – lay-by near Gravens

We were warned that Denmark would be quite expensive but as with most things it depends what you choose to do. Looking back over the last few days so many of our activities have been free as there is such stunning scenery to explore. It’s likely our biggest expensive is coffee and cake. That said we do mostly cook for ourselves and can’t do as many museums as some people may choose to, but we have certainly done all we wanted to and are loving Denmark. I’m just about getting my head around their money system 700 krona of fuel in the van…AHH what?! Oh wait that’s about £100 and normal. Even coffee and cake is 100 krona…I feel my heart stop and gasp before my brain clicks in and say it’s ok it’s krona not pounds and pay the bill 😂

24hours had past and so the pups were back on the beach ready to cover the van in sand once again. I feel like the beach is my souls happy place…I’m with Mabel in this, it’s adorable how quickly she rolls around in complete happiness. We had a wonderful walk, soaking in the view before heading back into the city.

Today’s focus was food. Our first stop was Godsbanen which is a cultural centre which has creative studios, workshops and hosts events. I’d expected to see people at work in the studios but instead it was largely empty. Still it’s likely better on a set market day as there is certainly evidence that’s it’s got lots going on there. For lunch we visited both the Central Food Market and Street Food Market…the latter was in our opinion much better with more choice and a better vibe. We each had an amazing Ugandan veggie wrap that was delicious and filled us up nicely for the waddle back to the van

Aarhus O is a new house development area with some striking architecture and a trendy harbour strip where you can try water skiing on a zip line or just laze on the decking by the pool. It would be interesting to go back in a year or two to see it completed.

From ultra modern flats to Viking kings… We drove to an amazing free museum in Jelling to see the burial mounds, runes and history. Again it was a hugely interactive museum, and the surrounding white sculptures outlined where the huge stockade would have been and where a ship was buried with the king.

Next was a must do – Legoland!! Mark had been years before and was’nt bothered but I’ve never been plus I’d read on a forum that it was free, half an hour before attractions close. This meant we had a couple of hours with the park relatively quiet just looking at the Lego miniworld and characters. Without the park rides we we done in just over an hour and I’m glad we went.

We have now completed the main island and will be heading to Fyn tomorrow. We are snuggled down in a lay-by, Mark is watching the football on the laptop and I’m writing.

Day 44 – Art and Ancestry

Journey: Lisbjerg – Aarhus

For some reason Mark was up at the crack of dawn pottering about, folding clothes, hunting for stuff and inevitably waking me up. I went for a 4min shower – seriously campsite people, I have long hair and hairy legs both of which need to be addressed preferably in a hot power shower for unlimited time…is it too much to ask? Evidently yes 🙈😂

Anyway clean once more we drove on to Aarhus and took the pups for a lovely walk around the botanical garden. I’d put Mark in charge of today – he organised a great day of activities and only got us lost a couple of times. The funniest was trying to get back into the gardens where he completely missed the huge greenhouses and sign…pretty big clues…I followed him in the wrong direction for a few steps then pointed them out. He will happily confess navigation is not his strong point.

The pups then rested while we got an iced coffee from a lovely cafe called Folkhaven and went to the Aros art museum which has an amazing rainbow panoramic view on the roof. There were so many interesting art pieces, sculptures and immersion pieces. I was lying down in one and saw Mark come in and walk into the wall…in his defence it was dark 😂 As part of an exhibit they had some table tennis tables, which we had a few games on…until I hit the security guard twice with the ball and had to concede I’m rubbish at it. Was fun though 😄

It was later my turn to be incompetent when I was so busy trying to photo a sculpture I tripped over the steps of the royal casino and landed on my bum 😂🙈

We picked the pups up and walked them around the Latin quarter and down to the harbour where Ernest could play in the water fountains. He is 6 months old today, 21 kilos and his father is 30… I’ve also seen photos of his grand parents and mother’s parents. We are going to have a big boy on our hands. Mark is thrilled 😜

From there we went to a big bizarre which was like a middle eastern market and picked up lots of fresh food – it was definitely different to the usual Aldi shop and cheaper to.

Spoiling the dogs we drove on to another park Mindeparkem. The royal family were in residence at Marselisborg Slot so we weren’t able to go into the palace grounds but we could see it from a distance and the surrounding park was lovely – I say this despite racing around it as quick as I could because I was freezing having failed to put a coat on…the heat wave is seemingly over up here.

Thinking about camp spots Mark said he fancied looking at the Moesgaared Museum as it’s a very striking building architecturally. He originally wasn’t that fussed about going in but as it was open until 8pm we changed our minds and it is an outstanding museum, one of the best I’ve ever been in! It covers the history of man, is so high tech with VR, multiple immersive rooms, video and sound recordings as well as fascinating artifacts including 3 of the best preserved prehistoric people in the world (even the way they were displayed was so respectful). We only had 2 hours and I wish we had had twice that time.

We have a habit of arriving at places just as things are about to happen and tonight people were gathering for a theatre show off King Edward in the grounds. Part of me was tempted to attend thinking it would be much like an opera not understanding any of it but absorbed by the theatre of it. However that was quite an expensive punt so instead we are still in the carpark listening to it in the van…the music, the foreign language, cackles of laughter, the wind blowing – it still feels dramatic.