cfwoodbury

So, the time has come for our adventure to end and to bid farewell to our friends in Norway. Wednesday morning we drove to Oslo and boarded a car ferry to Kiel, Germany. The ferry was really a large cruise ship with all of the amenities that happened to also carry cars. We had a lovely room with an ocean view. The trip was overnight and we arrived in Kiel the next morning at 10:00 am. Departing the ship was easy and well organized and we were on our way to Schiphol airport near Amsterdam. This would normally have been about a 4.5 hour drive. But, the Germans seem to have some sort of conspiracy to keep people from driving the autobahns! There was road construction everywhere and at one point we had to take about ... read more

As many of you know, the summer solstice is a major event in Scandinavian countries. Some say that because the Nordic people were the last Europeans to adopt Christianity, the pagan rituals involving the longest day of the year have persisted. It seems to me it is because the solar cycle near the arctic circle is so dramatic and simply because the Scandinavians enjoy an opportunity to party! Above the arctic circle, the sun never sets this time of the year. We experienced this while visiting Harstad and the Lofoten Islands. But, even Oslo at about 60 degrees north experiences about 20 hours of daylight. It is actually difficult to sleep for those of us from lower latitudes. This year the solstice was on Wednesday, 21 June but the Norwegians made Friday the official holiday. That ... read more

Norway is not a large country by area (149,000 square Miles) but it is long and narrow with its northern most reaches curving over the top of Sweden and Finland and bordering Russia. Its coastline is about 1,500 miles if you don't count the fjords and islands and over 16,000 miles if you count them! Getting from south to north can be a challenge. The excellent rail system only gets you about half way and driving is almost impractical given the huge mountain ranges in the central part of the country. So, it is boats and planes! The Norwegian government subsidizes both in an effort to support people continuing to live in the outlying areas. Hege was born in Tromsø and was raised in Harstad which is above the arctic circle. We took a short flight ... read more

The easiest (though not the least expensive way) to get from Lubeck to Sweden is to take a ferry from Puttgarden, Germany to Rodby Denmark and then, the famous Oresund Sound bridge from Denmark to Malmo, Sweden. This was a painless and enjoyable process. The Scandinavians certainly know how to run ferries. If you have visited this area, then you know just how dependent people are on them. Denmark is an archipelago and the coasts of Sweden and Norway are characterized by strings of islands. More and more bridges are being built but ferries are still the backbone of coastal transportation. Our car ferry was like a small cruise ship with a good restaurant and pleasant sitting areas. The ferry to Denmark takes about 45 minutes and then it is about a two hour drive to ... read more

Up until now, we have been visiting smaller somewhat provincial cities and towns. What a change to arrive in Leipzig! It is the third largest city in Germany with a population of about 540,000 and over a million in its metropolitan area. It is also the fastest growing city in Germany. It was founded on trade and in Bach's time was an even more prosperous city relative to other German cities of the time. Bach and his family must have been overwhelmed after spending six years in tiny Kothen! We stayed in a lovely, recently remodeled VRBO in a beautiful neighborhood about two miles from the city center (Zentrum). Our daily walk into the old part of town took us through a beautiful park and over the Elster river. Once again, we were blessed with beautiful ... read more