Pretty Posies & your moment of Zen!

“Life is already too short to waste on speed.” – Edward Abbey

“For every beauty there is an eye somewhere to see it. For every truth there is an ear somewhere to hear it. For every love there is a heart somewhere to receive it.” – Ivan Panin

Contented in the Cotswolds…

Coddiwomple: (v.) to travel in a purposeful manner towards a vague destination.

We found this ancient cemetery a few blocks from our “home” in Stroud. It’s set on the side of a hill overlooking the valley. Many walking paths throughout – a very peaceful and wonderful place for the locals to commune with nature.

And when you drive tight roads like this you need a bit of peacefulness! This traffic sign tells us that we are to yield to the cars coming up the lane, so whenever we spot a car heading up it’s our job to tuck in wherever possible to create a space. There is very little parking, with many cars parked along the side of the road, so typically there are several cars to work around. We were very impressed with how well people cooperated with one another❣️

*This is St Mary’s Church in Painswick and it is surrounded with 99 highly trimmed* *yew trees. The story is that if there were 100 trees the devil would be able to intervene by pulling out the last one – thus keeping the count at 99!* 🤷🏽‍♀️

*It’s hard to capture topography but if you look closely at this lovely image, you can see how far down the village goes.*

*Always on the look out for public foot paths – and in England we were never far from one.*

*“Of the blessings set before you, make your choice,* *and be content.” –* Samuel Johnson

*This is another beautiful example of Cotswolds stone homes.*

*Sooo, I guess we’re drawn to walking the local canals* 😊

*Greeting the boaters as they float under the bridge.*

*Stroud – a gorgeous and very hilly town – modern stores on the 1st floor and the cool old buildings on top.*

*An old town but with a modern arcade of shops, too!*

*On the outskirts of Winchcombe we hiked up Cleve Hill. But check this out – the hiking paths are intertwined with an 18 hole golf course!*

*Of course, the obligatory sheep join the fun starting every April 1st. The large building below is the club house for the golfers.*

*One of the golfers that we chatted up told us about a dog running into these plantings a few years ago and it emergerged, carrying a piece of a missing plane from WWII.*

*The Canadian families of these seven men came to Cleve Hill to finally have some closure when this plaque was erected.*

*Lovely Winchcombe in the evening light…*

*strolling around as we wait for dinner.*

*The farmer’s fields and public paths never far alway.*

*We had a wonderful visit to Sudeley Castle just outside Winchcombe. There were many beautiful gardens – this is the Queen’s Garden.*

*Sudeley Castle – with royal connections spanning a thousand years. It has played an important role in the turbulent and changing times of England*’s *past.*

*Thanks to Oliver Cromwell’s orders to destroy the castle – this is now the ruins of the* *banqueting hall.*

*The Knot’s Garden – designed after one of Queen Elizabeth I’s dresses.*

*We made a couple of visits to the train station to see steam trains come and go.*

*Because Murph loves trains and I love him*❣️

*Now this was a huge kick – we met a few family members – Doug, Shannon and Claire, all the way from Denver CO, in Guiting Power for dinner at the Hollow Bottom restaurant.*

*But here’s the Belle of the Ball – the beauty of them all – and my “little buddy” – celebrating her 13th birthday* ‼️

*While walking through the village that evening, after dinner, Doug took this great shot of their war memorial.* *The perfect picture after a wonderful family gathering* ❤️

UK is OK with us!

“Twenty years from now, you’d give anything to be: This exact age, exactly this healthy, and back in this exact moment. Now – take a second to enjoy it now.” – Rich Webster

*“A true friend is someone who thinks you are a good egg even though you are slightly cracked.” –* Bernard Meltzer

*By now, most of you know that our main reason for going to Great Bedwyn is to visit our dear friend*, *Belinda. A bonus this time was that a wedding took place at St Mary’s Church in the village. I got a glimpse of the bride and groom as they headed to their reception.*

The bells at St Mary’s rang out for about 30 minutes after the ceremony – lovely occasion!

*Many of you also know that one of our happiest places in the world is this canal.*

*We were* *on the bridge in Hungerford here – heading down to the towpath.*

*Look how happy Murph is here – such a beautiful and peaceful place to stroll along and the weather was gorgeous.*

*It was a Sunday morning and many of the locals were enjoying the canal too. Some fishing, some boating, some biking and of course, many were walking along – enjoying this warm and sunny day!*

*This boat has permanent residents and I love all of the foliage on and around the their house. If you look closely you may even spot a gorilla!*

*After a three hour walk we were getting hungry so we went to our favorite spot in Hungerford, The Tutti Pole, for “cream tea”.*

*Ok, so Murph had a coke instead of tea but he still loved the scones etc.*

*Headed out of Great Bedwyn on roads like this – still in the county of Wiltshire.*

*Arrived in the village of Burton. Our home for the next two nights had the most amazing flowers. Plus we also, for some reason, were given a huge apartment. Crazy nice!*

Our hotel was very close to the village of Castle Combe – a picturesque place we planned to spend some time in. The first house we encountered when walking from the car park into the village was this one. Look at this beautifully thatched roof home – nice, eh?

The market cross is the first thing you see as you enter Castle Combe. It’s a very striking feature. Market crosses like this were common sights in English trading towns but this one is unusual because it has a large pyramid-like roof to protect it. In medieval times, these crosses marked the location of a church-sanctioned market. Stalls would be set up here and people bought, sold and traded goods around the cross. Perhaps it helped to keep the traders honest?

*This is an iconic view of a street in Castle Combe – tough to get a picture of it sans tourists! The Cotswold stone is even prettier than can be captured on “film”!*

Castle Combe has been called “The Prettiest Village in England” and with good reason; visitors have been coming to enjoy its charms for at least a century and the small street leading from the Market Cross down to the By Brook is as picturesque today as ever.

*The By Brook – looked rather bubbly to me!*

*Sweet sign at the beginning of our hike.*

*We started up this path leading us above Castle Combe.*

*As promised, we saw many, many sheep! Such fun*❣️

*Our end point where we turned back and headed up the trail and returned to the sheep.*

*But first we had to check out a few charming homes –*

*with unique names and inviting flowers at their entrances.*

*Captivating bridges that begged us to slow down and*

*just marvel at the fact we were there.*

*Back home again to admire our “local” digs.* ❤️

Awesome Æroskobing

“The art of life is not controlling what happens to us, but using what happens to us.” – Gloria Steinem R.I.P. 🥲

*We parked Strawberry in Svendborg* *and hopped this ferry to the isle of Æro.*

*After a very comfortable, one hour+ journey we were there!*

*We stayed in the tiny town of Æroskobing where Murph found this nice apartment that was a short walk from the ferry dock.*

*It had an interesting piece hanging on the wall and many references to the popular character, TinTin around the room.*

*Murph loved this old window lock apparatus. It took a bit of thought but before long we were working them like champs!*

*We were very much looking forward to biking around the island so, once settled, we did just that. We rode the coast with beautiful views like this.*

*Denmark has a great numbering system for their bike routes so it makes navigating quite easy.*

*Æroskobing is known for their tiny, Monopoly-like beach huts along the shore.*

These beach escapes are privately owned on land rented from the town. Each is different and only one room – public WCs just down the path. It’s perfectly acceptable—and very Danish—to borrow a porch for a sunset sit!

*I absolutely loved the personal touches in the windows.*

*At one point we had to do a bit of clean up. The path was blocked with fallen branches from a recent storm.*

*We passed many U-shaped farm houses, typical of Denmark*. *The three sides block the wind and store cows, hay and people.*

While stopping to take a few photos of this farm we noticed the darkening sky. Yup, we got caught in it, but we had packed rain jackets and umbrellas on our bikes. We pulled up under some trees and popped up the umbrellas – 10 minutes later we were riding again! *We found the weather in Denmark to be very “Irish”.*

*This is the kind of architecture we saw and loved.*

*We thought this one was of particular interest* –

*Nothing like a* *Main Street that ends at the sea* ❣️

*Many of the houses had “street spies” on them — clever mirrors that let residents inside keep an eye on what’s going on outside.*

*I found this bakery that had the most wonderful chocolate chip cookies* – *loaded with nuts.* 😋

In windows throughout town, we noticed matching dog figurines. We read that these Staffordshire dogs (and knockoffs), popular in Victorian times, were placed facing inward when sailors were at home, and outward when they were away – supposedly to let village men know which ladies were lonely. What the what now? 😳

Full disclosure, the first day I tried to get on these heavy e-bikes I took a bit of a tumble on to the cobble stones. I had to do a bit of yoga breathing and a lot of self talking to get back up and going. So worth it though!

This is a 6,000 year old dolmen – an early Neolithic burial place. For 6,000 years, this has been a holy spot. The stones were considered to be fertility aids: For centuries, locals in need of virility chipped off bits and took them home. And yet, this ancient site was just off in the middle of a farmer’s field. No visitors center, no admission…

*Old Peter Jacobsen, who made his first bottle at 16 and his last at 85, created some 1,700 ships-in- bottles in his lifetime.*

*He bragged that he drank the contents of each bottle…except those containing milk.*

This museum opened in 1943, when the mayor of Æroskobing offered Peter and his wife a humble home in exchange for the right to display his works. Bottle Peter died in 1960 (and is most likely buried in a glass bottle;-), leaving a lifetime of elaborate little creations for visitors to squint and marvel at.

*This one is around 3 feet long and very detailed – fascinating indeed!*

*Our last night in Æroskobing we had dinner in the garden here.*

*I had an amazing plate of grilled cabbage, beets, squash and a potato cake. All so interesting and incredibly delicious!*

*I’m starting to really appreciate co-ed restrooms – they make so much more sense and are so practical*.

Riveting Ribe

“It often feels to me as if every fence, every little flower says, ‘take a look at me, and my story will unfold within you.’” – Hans Christian Andersen

Ribe is the oldest town in all of Denmark. It was the center of commercial activity in the early 8th century, and this may have been where the riches in Denmark originated, including with royal influence. Coins may have been struck there in 720!

Seems as though we have seen sirens in many of the places we’ve visited. Maybe she’s waiting for her loved one to return from a war or a fishing excursion? At any rates, this sculpture was atop a fort that we happened upon.

*The population of Ribe is approximately 8,400 and what really struck us was all of the green spaces that surround the outskirts*. *Made us long for more green spaces at home.*

*Murph booked this delightful apartment for two nights.*

*So, turns out the Danes love their hot dogs!*

*Not my thing, but Murph was anxious to try one.*

*Another walk, over the river and to a wonderful wooded path.*

*founded in 860 and dedicated to the Virgin Mary.*

*European cemeteries tend to be quite attractive.*

*Ribe has a fine one – loads and loads of greenery.*

*This is oldest restaurant in Ribe – we had a nice dinner here.*

*The Night Watchman does free tours every evening at eight o’clock and was very entertaining.*

*Even though we travel as lightly as possible – I may have bought an item or two here.* 🤷🏾‍♀️

*We had a hint of things to come in a week or so.*

The Black Sun season is in both spring and autumn. The starlings gather in large flocks to settle down for the night in the reed beds of the marshes. It’s not known for sure but possibly, it is because the staggeringly large flocks confuse the birds of prey, and when they are in a flock, it’s easier for the starlings to keep an eye out for potential dangers.

*And oh the roses – so many pretty roses in Ribe!*

Okay, I know this is a hollyhock but I just couldn’t leave it out!

Organic Aarhus (oar-hoos)

“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” – Andre Gide

*Aarhus, Denmark’s second-largest city calls itself the “World’s Smallest Big City” Arguably it’s more like the world’s biggest little town: easy to handle and easy to like.*

*Aarhus lines up along a tranquil canal that runs through the middle of town down to the harbor.*

*I loved this sculpture “the snake” as it slithered in the wind.*

*A model at Den Gamie By (The Old Town)*. *This open air museum chronicles both the history of Danish market towns and the history of Aarhus, with preserved buildings, interiors, and goods from the past 400 years.*

*A little like our Greenfield Village but even more so…*

*Funny to see Blockbuster as a historical site.* 😊

*Whew, I’m so glad bikes have improved and that they are so much more comfortable to ride today.*

*Amazingly saved, moved and restored to this location.*

*Of course, Murph loved seeing the steam train!*

*I was shocked that this 1927 “swing” was electric*‼️

*The adjacent botanical garden is showing strong signs of fall.*

ARoS Kunstmuseum (ARoS Art Museum) is a must see, both for the building’s architecture and for its fun, accessible presentation of cutting-edge art. Square and unassuming from the outside, the bright white interior—with its spiral staircase winding up the museum’s eight
*floors—is surprising.*

*The Dome – is an oval-shaped outdoor mound atop the subterranean gallery.*

We continued down to the lowest level to see this Skyspace work by James Terrell. When we first arrived the dome was open and this little one was dancing around in the rain that was coming thru the opening.

*As the dome closed we all sat in silence and watched the light show.*

*Many, many color variations so this is just one example.*

*Maybe more fun to catch raindrops for this small child (?) after the dome reopened.*

This special installation is called “The Populace” and it was fascinating. Many, many wax figures in an art gallery. The “people” were dressed in clothes that came from donations and local thrift shops. Could have been creepy but turned out to be quite cool!

*“Your Rainbow Panorama”, a 150-yard-long, 52-yard-diameter, circular glass walkway in every hue of the color spectrum. Its 360° views over the entire city was interesting.*

*We always have time for watching children play!*

*Church of Our Lady – a local “Notre Dame”*

This was another highlight of our visit to Aarhus—I got to drive Strawberry (yes, I like to name the cars I drive -) into an elevator and go up to the top floor to park. Then we got into an elevator that looked like a British phone booth and ended up in the hotel lobby!

These are the pics we took on our way out of town! So nice to drive little cars that fit nicely into elevators. 😊

Oh Odense!

“My life is a beautiful fairy tale.” – Hans Christian Andersen

*We loved the colourful trams in Odense (OHD – en – seh).*

*But the reason we came here is to see where Hans Christian Andersen was born and tour the museum.* *Five cylindrical wood and glass buildings, surrounded by beautiful garden paths that blend into the surrounding cityscape,* *hint at* *the organic*, *curvy route within the museum.*

The birthplace of storyteller Hans Christian Andersen (whom the Danes call simply H.C., pronounced “hoe see”). Although the author was born here in poverty and left at the tender age of 14 to pursue a career in the theatre scene of Copenhagen, H.C. is Odense’s favorite son.

Infusing a fairy-tale feel into the display of thousands of Hans Christian artifacts—from his iconic top hat to a wastebasket full of crumpled papers—these objects tell the story of Andersen’s life through wonderful voice acting. From his wanderlust (with travel souvenirs and object —including a rope he traveled with so he could escape in case fire) to his love life (with notes to both men and women), the collection offers insight into Andersen’s personality.

*One of my personal favorites of H.C.’s fairytale*s *is The Princess and the Pea. In this display of the story the pea was the main attraction!*

*His paper cut-out illustrations and drawings and quotations from his brilliant prose illuminate his creativity and genius.*

*Of course, we’ve all heard of Hans Christian Andersen but did we know what a talented artist he was? The walls were filled with his sketches & cutouts!*

*As he told children his stories, his scissors were busily clipping out these very entertaining works of art.*

*What fun it must have been to see him at work/play!*

*The house where H.C. was born in 1805.*

*And the street where his house still* *stands.*

*A wood carving of Hans Christian’s mother in one of the squares in Odense.*

“A wealth of beauty exists in the world around us, even in the small.” – Travelogue in Sweden by Hans Christian Andersen

Roaming in Roskilde

“We began as wanders and are wanders still.” – Carl Sagan

*Roskilde’s imposing 12th-century, twin-spired cathedral houses the tombs of nearly all of the Danish kings and queens.*

*It’s a stately, modern-looking old church with great marble work, paintings, wood carvings and an engaged congregation that makes the place feel very alive.*

*The downtown didn’t disappoint either!*

*“No city can be truly beautiful without ample provision for parks and open spaces.” –* John Nolan

*A visit to the Viking Museum while in Roskilde is a must.*

*Here’s Murph trying to image what it would be like to paddle across the Atlantic Ocean with 70+ of his closet rowing buddies!*

*This is an illustration of townspeople, a thousand years*
ago, weighing down and ultimately sinking five ships to block an easy channel into the harbor. Leaving open only the most challenging approach—virtually impossible for anyone but a local to navigate.

*The museum displays five different Viking ships, which were discovered in the Roskilde fjord and painstakingly excavated, preserved, and pieced back together beginning in the 1960s.*

*Looked like a giant jigsaw puzzle to me!*

*Kids were busy building their own boats in a workshop and then testing out how well they sailed. Very cute* 😊

Much to contemplate as we looked out over the harbor!

Couple more things in Copenhagen

*I found this interesting – our hotel room was equipped with hand weights! Pretty good, eh?*

*This crucifix is in the chapel at Fredericksborg* – *I’m not sure I’ve ever seen one that included Dismas and Gestas the two “thieves” that flanked Jesus on the cross.*

*Common sight here. Almost more bikers than cars – NICE!!!*

*Kayaking is free here. The only requirement is that you collect any trash from the water as you paddle along.*

*Eating a Danish is required in Denmark*❣️

Copacetic Copenhagen

“Travel not only stirs the blood—it also gives birth to the spirit.“ – Alexander David-Neel

*Murph had told me about Tivoli before but I could never quite picture this lovely place.* *The grand old amusement park opened in 1843.*

When our kids were younger we were frequent visitors of Disney World. We were always interested in Walt Disney and his history. He traveled extensively in Europe, making several visits to Tivoli. As we walked around I could totally envision Walt Disney doing the same and creating his park as he strolled.

*Flowers abound – a feast for the eyes.*

*So quaint and so much fun to watch these horses race.*

*Little trolley to thrill the children.*

*I’m sure Walt loved this place and was thinking of families when he dreamed of his parks.*

*And for the more adventurous there was this and of course an old roller coaster too!*

*An adorable mime show entertained everyone.*

*Very reminiscent of the Grand Floridian at WDW*.

*We intentionally returned in the evening to see the park beautifully lit.*

*So many more pics of Tivoli but I’m afraid I have to move on…*

*A beautiful walk along the river to our next stop – the “free town” of Christiania, which was established by hippies in 1972.*

Things were looking grim for the Christianians until 2012, when the Danish government offered to sell most of the land to the residents at market rate, and offered guaranteed loans. In exchange, Christianians had to upgrade and maintain water, sewage, and electrical services, and preserve rights of way and “rural”areas. *Thus formed Freetown Christiania.*

*This converted military barracks makes for great places for people to live now.*

*We just loved the peaceful vibes here*❣️

Watching parents here raise their children with Christiania values makes me a believer in this social experiment. Giving alternative-type people a place to be alternative is a kind of alternative beauty that deserves a place!

*“Find out who you are and do it on purpose.” –* Dolly Pardon R.I.P. 🥲

*It’s a pretty touristy thing to do but we DID have to find The Little* *Mermaid!*

The small bronze sculpture inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s (another teaser about HC) 1837 fairy tale about a mermaid who longs to become human. It was created by Edvard Eriksen and unveiled on August 23, 1913. Rumor has it that the artist used his wife as his model. Lucky for me and all the visiting tourists that Murph was not that sculptor!

*While traveling on the Metro we spotted many people snacking on these.*

Sticks of meat and right up Murphy alley — where do they sell them? Seven Eleven, of course! They are all over the city! 🤷🏾‍♀️