Strik på museum / Knitting at the museum

Da jeg havde fri - og besøg fra min veninde - var jeg på Nationalmuseet. Det er altid et besøg værd! Men ikke så tit jeg kommer, må jeg erkende. 

Museumsbutikkerne er jo altid sjovt at se når man er på museum! Kan I også lide det? Da vi var inde og kigge fandt jeg - - - - - en strikkeopskrift! 

Det her mønster skal jeg have lavet til sommer. Det er så fint og det bliver jo bare bedre når det er lavet af ren Danmarkshistorie! 

Designeren er den meget dygtige Mette Nørregaard Christensen, @jellingvanter. Hun har lavet de fineste vikingeopskrifter til "Kongernes Jelling". Jeg synes det er SÅ vildt! Tænk at være så dygtig! Hvis du kommer forbi et museum så støt hende endelig ved at købe en opskrift. For min skyld må hun rigtig gerne finde på flere opskrifter!

When I was off from work - and my friend came to visit - I went to the National Museum here in Copenhagen. Always worth a visit! But I don't visit that often, to be honest. 

Museum shops are always fun to look through when at a museum! Do you love it as well? When we went and took a look, I found - - - - - - - a knitting pattern!

This pattern is something I want to make for summer. It is so pretty and it only makes it more perfect when it's pure Danish history!

The designer is the very accomplished Mette Nørregaard Christensen, @jellingvanter. She made the most amazing viking patterns for "Kongernes Jelling" (Jelling of the kings). I think it's SO amazing! Imagine being this skilled! If you happen to visit a museum, then please support her by buying a pattern. For my sake she is very welcome to make some more patterns!

Post

Min søster har fødselsdag om 10 dage, hvilket er cirka den tid det tager at få en pakke herfra til modtager i USA! Så den skal sendes i dag. 

Som I alle ved er det der med posthuse i Danmark ikke sådan supernemt, men der er et som har åbent i dag, søndag, inde i byen i Føtex. Så pakken må bare komme med mig i kirke først og derefter sendes. 

Som sædvanlig kommer der også slik med. Og påskeæg. Danske påskeæg er bare BEDST!

My sister's birthday is in 10 days, which is about the time it takes for a package to come from here to the receiver in the US! So it needs to be mailed today. 

As all you Danes know, the thing about post offices in Denmark is not that easy, but there is one that is open today, Sunday, in the center in a supermarket. So the package needs to go to church with me first and be mailed afterwards. 

As always, it also contains sweets. And Easter eggs. Danish Easter eggs are the BEST!

Sønderjylland / Southern Jutland

I weekenden tog jeg til Sønderjylland for at komme til 3 gange fødselsdag. Lørdag tog jeg toget til Kolding og nåede lige at se et glimt af Koldinghus før bussen videre sydpå skulle køre. 

This weekend I went to Southern Jutland for a 3 times birthday. On Saturday I took the train to Kolding and got to see a glimpse of "Koldinghus" before the bus was leaving to go south. 

Jeg havde booket hotel i Christiansfeld, som jo virkelig er en meget smuk by! (Flere billeder i morgen!) 
For nogle år siden var jeg på rundvisning, og denne gang var jeg inde og se kirkegården. Mest fordi min farmors søster er begravet der. Hun ligger i den ene side, hendes mand i den anden side, eftersom selv kirkegården er kønsopdelt! I det hele taget er det meget fascinerende at høre om Brødremenigheden. Det var utroligt meget anderledes!

I booked hotel in Christiansfeld, which is such a pretty city! (You'll get more photos tomorrow!)

A few years back I took a tour there, and this time I went to see the graveyard. Mostly because my paternal grandmothers sister is buried there. She is on one side, her husband on the other side, since even the graveyard has specific sides for the genders! All in all it was very fascinating hearing about the Herrnhuter Brüdergemeine. So very different!

Sønderjylland er jo noget af det mest danske og kongetro man kan finde! Så søndag morgen spiste jeg morgenmad under billedet af kong Frederik d 9. og dronning Ingrid. Det føltes vældigt royalt!

So Southern Jutland is extremely Danish and faithful to the royal family. So on Sunday morning I had breakfast beneath the picture of king Frederik the 9th and queen Ingrid. It felt so royal!

Jeg kunne ikke helt forstå at dronning Margrethe ikke fik lov at være der, men senere fandt jeg et billede af hende som dronning. Først fandt jeg dog det her! Hun står halvt gemt bag sin mor, med en fin sommerhat på. De besøgte Christiansfeld lige efter den nye grundlov som gjorde prinsesse Margrethe til kronprinsesse. 

I didn't quite grasp why queen Margrethe didn't get to be there, but later I found her photo as a queen. Before that, I found this! Here she is, half hidden behind her mum, wearing a pretty summer hat. They visited Christiansfeld shortly after the new Danish constitution that made princess Margrethe the crown princess. 

Efter en god morgenmad gik jeg en dejlig (og LANG) tur til fødselsdag. Det var temmelig koldt, men man får jo varmen når man bevæger sig. 

Fødselsdagen var virkelig hyggelig. Det var dejligt både at se familie, men også at se det nye sted de er flyttet til. 

Så var den weekend også godt brugt.....

After a lovely breakfast I took a very nice (and LONG) walk to the birthday. It was quite cold, but as always I felt warm after moving a bit. 

The birthday was so nice. It was lovely seeing family, but also the new place they moved to. 

And then the weekend was really well used.....

Rønne

På en eller anden måde føles Rønne bare meget trygt. Måske fordi det er mit mellemnavn? Jeg har jo aldrig nogensinde boet på Bornholm eller i Rønne, men byen føles bare rar. 

På Store Torv ligger der en rigtig klassiker - William Dams boghandel! Det er min internetboghandel - de sender tingene hurtigt og har et kæmpe udvalg! Den kan kun anbefales!

Lige ved siden af ligger så denne her garnbutik, Henius Knitwear. Den er VILD! Den fortsætter bagud i butikken og der er virkelig meget lækkert garn og en masse modeller med mohair og glitter. Ikke noget jeg har set andre steder, men det er virkelig meget fint! Så hvis du kommer forbi må du være sød at støtte den. Man skal altid støtte de lokale garnbutikker!

Somehow Rønne just feels very safe. Maybe because it's my middle name? I've never ever lived in Bornholm or Rønne, but the city just feels so nice. 

On Store Torv (large square) there is a real classic - the William Dam bookstore! It's my internet bookstore - they send the stuff very quickly and have a huge selection! I highly recommend it!

Right next to it is this yarn shop, Henius Knitwear. It's WILD! It's very big, continuing inwards at the back of the shop, there is so much yummy yarn and a lot of models with mohair and glitter. Not like anything else I have seen, but it's really pretty! So if you happen to pass by, please support it. Always support the local yarn shops!

Så det gjorde jeg.... Jo. Kun fordi jeg er så flink! 

Et nøgle Arwetta i den fede orange farve jeg lige havde strikket med. Nogle nøgler bomulds flamé fordi - altså - hvorfor gik flamé garn nogensinde af mode? Og så var det billigt! Desuden et par meget fancy nøgler Isager boucle. 

So that's what I did..... Of course. Just because I'm a nice person!

A skein of Arwetta in the cool orange color I just used. A few skeins of cotton flamé because - you know - why did this yarn ever become non-trendy? And it was cheap! Furthermore a couple of very fancy Isager boucle. 

Til jul fik jeg nogle meget fine nøgler boucle garn fra min søsters søde børn. 4 nøgler, 4 farver. Jeg ville lave en pude, men 1) jeg vidste ikke om der var nok og 2) jeg anede ikke hvordan de skulle bliver til en pæn pude!

Da jeg var i Rønne fandt jeg ud af at der er RIGELIGT med garn (sagde damen i butikken) og da jeg kom hjem fandt jeg ud af at jeg selvfølgelig skal strikke en stjerne fra det her tæppe. Engang. Når jeg er færdig med en hel masse andet. 

For Christmas I had some very fancy skeins of boucle from my sister's sweet kids. 4 skeins, 4 colors. I wanted to make a pillow, but 1) I didn't know if there was enough yarn and 2) I had no idea how to turn these into a beautiful pillow!

When in Rønne, I learned that there is PLENTY of yarn (said the lady in the shop) and when I got home, I found this pattern and decided that of course I will make a star from this blanket. At some point. When I'm done with a lot of other stuff. 

Svendborg

I går var min første hele feriedag som jeg brugte i Svendborg. Min veninde gennem cirka 30 år skal giftes i starten af august og syntes jeg skulle møde hendes kommende mand før brylluppet. Det lyder da som et rimeligt ønske, ikke?

Første stop var Nyborg Station, hvor jeg mødte "Røde Allan", en kat som nyder at opholde sig på stationen. Nærmest en berømthed! Katten gad ikke endnu en paparazzi, som I kan se!

Yesterday was my first whole vacation day that I spent in Svendborg. My friend, whom I've known for about 30 years, will get married in the beginning of August and thought I should meet her husband to be before the wedding. That was a reasonable wish, don't you think?

First stop was Nyborg Station, where I met "Red Allan", a cat who likes spending time at the station. Kind of famous! The cat had no time for yet another paparazzi, as you can see!

De bor nærmest i centrum af Svendborg, så vi gik en hyggelig tur i byen. Først var vi inde i Glasblæseriet Bente Sonne, hvor der er de fineste ting! Jeg fik købt en gave. Jeg havde virkelig lyst til at købe mere!

They live in the centre of Svendborg, so we took a nice walk in the city. First, we visited a glass blower, Bente Sonne, where we found the most beautiful things! I bought a gift. I really felt like buying a lot more!

De havde også fundet byens garnbutik som vi også besøgte. Jeg købte et bundt grønt strømpegarn med glimmer (det har man jo altid brug for!) og Annette Danielsens nye bog som jeg ikke havde endnu. Fin butik!

They also found the yarn shop of the city, and we visited it. I bought a skein of green sock yarn with glitter (because you can always use that!) and the new book by Annette Danielsen that I didn't have. Very nice shop!

Derefter så vi kirken hvor brylluppet skal stå, Skt. Nicolai kirke. Det er en rød murstenskirke som simpelthen er så smuk!

Afterwards, we visited the church where they are getting married. Sct. Nicolai church. A red brick church that is so beautiful!

Vi var også nede på havnen, hvor der var fødevaremarked denne weekend. Vi havde så lige fået frokost og var så mætte at vi ikke rigtig orkede at smage på så meget......

Der er rigtig fint nede ved havnen!

Vi var også inde på "Børsen" og se deres "Martha" rum. Det var sjovt! Rummet er indrettet præcis som i filmen, og jeg har fået helt lyst til at se den!

We went to the harbor where they had a food court this weekend. We just had lunch and were really full, so we didn't have room to taste a lot.....

The harbor area is really pretty!

We also went to "Børsen" to see their "Martha" room. That was fun! The room looks exactly like the movie, and I feel like watching it!

For et par uger siden talte jeg med en patient om mine øreringe. Jeg sagde at jeg ikke har nogle med biler. Det fik jeg så i Svendborg. Glæder mig til at bruge dem!

Det var en virkelig dejlig dag!

A few weeks ago I discussed my earrings with a patient. I said that I don't have any with cars. But I got some in Svendborg! Will be fun to wear them!

It was such a lovely day!

En julegave / A Christmas present

I julegave fra min bror og svigerinde fik jeg - en oplevelse! Mere specifikt en oplevelse i foråret i Jylland med dem. 

Jeg havde virkelig ingen ideer til hvad vi skulle lave, før jeg faldt over en reklame for Mønsted Kalkgruber. Det så virkelig spændende ud, og de var helt med på den ide, så derfor gik weekenden med at tage på eventyr!

Indgangen til Kalkgruberne er en stor port. Som så meget lille ud når man kom højere op i landskabet. Vi gik ind med beskeden om at porten blev lukket og lyset slukket kl. 16, så det var virkelig bare om at ikke fare vild! 

As my Christmas present from my brother and my sister-in-law I had - an adventure! More specifically something to see during spring in Jutland with them. 

I had no idea what to wish for, before I found an add for Mønsted Kalkgruber (lime pits). It looked so interesting and they liked the idea, so this weekend we just went on an expedition!

The gate to the lime pits is very big. But looked quite small once you came to higher grounds. 

We entered with the information that the gate would be shut and the lights turned off by 4 p.m., so we did not want to get lost!

Her er den igangværende strømpe inde i gangene. Den ser ikke så stor ud, vel?

Here is the current sock in the passages. It looks quite small, right?

Ved den udendørs, åbne grube lå den smukkeste, grønne sø. 

Der var rigtig fint og der kommer flere billeder i morgen. Der er 60 km gange at fare vild i, og bare historien om hvordan folk har slidt i de gruber er også helt vild! Vi så også jordfaldshuller som der var mange af, og som var kommet meget pludseligt. Og så er der flagermusene..... Vi så dem slet ikke, men bare at man gør så meget for at flagermusene skal kunne leve der var rigtig fint!

At the outdoor, open pit, there was the most amazing, green lake. 

It was so pretty and you will get more photos tomorrow. The are 60 kilometers of passages to get lost in, and the story about how people worked like crazy in the pits is also crazy! We saw sinkholes - a lot of them - that had come very suddenly. And then there are the bats..... We did not see any, but just to know that they do so much to let the bats thrive was really nice!

Jeg købte en flaske gin med hjem. Jeg har ikke smagt på den endnu, men glæder mig! 

Hvis du kommer på de kanter, så tag forbi. Det er en vældigt fin oplevelse!

I brought a bottle of gin home. I have not tasted it yet, but I'm looking forward to doing it!

If you should ever get near this place, have a look. It's a really exciting place!

Ny konge / New king

I søndags fejrede jeg den nye konge alt hvad jeg kunne i Sverige! Med Dannebrog i ørerne og min hæklede krone på blusen. Alle der gad høre det (og et par stykker mere) fik lov at høre om den store dag. Jeg nåede endda at lave børneundersøgelse på en baby med dansk mor. En heldig baby som havde et Mary-svøb!" (Eller et Shetland hap, som vi alle ved det hedder, jo.....) Så fik den svenske jordemoder historien om svøbet og hvor populært det er i Danmark. Det er jo stadig bare det fineste tæppe!

So this Sunday I did my very best to celebrate the new king while in Sweden! The Danish flag as earrings and my crochet crown on my shirt. Anyone who wanted to hear it (and a few more people) got to hear about the big day. I even got to examine a baby with a Danish mother. A lucky baby that had a so called "Mary-blanket!" (A Shetland hap that the now queen used for her babies....) Then the Swedish midwife got the story about the blanket and how popular it is in Denmark. It's so pretty!

Jeg nåede at sidde på kontoret og se direkte tv med hele folkemængden, dronningen som abdicerede og den nye konge. Det var virkelig stort selv om jeg ikke stod der!

Var nogle af jer derinde?

I had time to sit in my office, watching the direct transmission with the entire crowd, the Queen who abdicated and the new king. It was a really big moment although I wasn't there myself!

Were any of you in the crowd?

Bagefter kiggede jeg på en anden direkte transmission. Meget mindre festlig. Lavaen fra den islandske vulkan som langsomt krøb ind i Grindavik og satte ild på husene. Jeg er glad for at der ikke er vulkaner i Danmark, vil jeg bare sige!

Afterwards, I was watching another live transmission. A lot less happy and festive. The lava from the Icelandic volcano that slowly crept towards Grindavik, setting fire to the houses. I'm so happy that there are no volcanos in Denmark!

Rumfeber / Space fever

Det er lørdag og jeg har fri. Jeg ved GODT hvad jeg skal lave! Jeg skal lige bruge ihvertfald en times tid på at se Andreas Mogensen blive skudt ud i rummet!

Nyhederne har været proppet med ham, hvilket har været virkelig rart som afveksling fra krigen i Ukraine og alt det andet. 

Den mest sympatiske, dygtige astronaut. Og så er han dansk. Jeg tror han kommer med i dronningens nytårstale. Igen. 

It's Saturday, I'm off from work. I KNOW what I'll be doing! I'll be spending at least an hour to watch Andreas Mogensen and his take-off to space!

News here in Denmark have been stuffed with him, which has been very nice as a distraction from the war in Ukraine and everything else. 

The most pleasant, skilled astronaut. And he is Danish. I do believe he will be mentioned in the queens New Years speech. Again. 

Horsens

Egentligt skulle jeg have været til Stockholm denne weekend - op og bo på hotel og shoppe og slappe sådan helt af. Men sådan blev det ikke. Der var andre ting som behøvede tid! Med udsigt til snart at skulle til USA (jeg krydser alt hvad jeg kan for at det ikke bliver aflyst!) kunne jeg godt klare mig lidt længere uden sådan en weekend, og i stedet tog jeg til Horsens. 

Det er ikke et sted jeg kommer så tit, men der er ret fint! F.eks. denne lille, gamle gade. 

Actually, I was planning on going to Stockholm this weekend - staying at a hotel, shopping and relaxing. But it didn't turn out that way. Other stuff needed time! Now that I'll be going to the US very soon (I do cross fingers and toes and everything for it not to be cancelled!) I could do for a bit longer without such a weekend, and instead I went to Horsens. 

I don't go there very often, but it's actually pretty! For instance this tiny, old street. 

Der er vand og en havn, og jeg kom ret nemt op på en masse skridt da jeg gik rundt. 

They have the water and a harbor, and I easily counted a lot of steps, walking around. 

Men nu kom jeg jo ikke til Horsens for at gå..... Næh - jeg skulle se de her to. Den helt nye storebror og hans helt nye lillebror. Det var så hyggeligt at se dem. Lige om lidt flytter de til Sønderjylland, og så bliver det slet ikke let at besøge dem, så jeg skyndte mig lige at ændre planer. 

Jeg ser jo mange babyer på arbejdet, men det er altså anderledes hyggeligt at få dem rigtigt op på armen. Og storebror er så lige blevet mindet om hvem jeg er. Så må vi se, hvornår vi lige ses igen.

But I didn't travel to Horsens just to walk.... No - I was going to see these two. The brand new big brother and his brand new little brother. It was so nice to see them! In a short while they will be moving to Southern Jutland, and then it will not be easy to visit them, so I changed my Stockholm plans. 

I do see a lot of babies at work, but it is so much more fun to get to really hold them. And the big brother was reminded who I am. And then we'll see when we'll see each other again. 

Bagefter blev jeg hentet i en Tesla! Jeg har nok syntes der var meget stå-hej med den bil, men det var fedt! Jeg besøgte dem jeg var til bryllup hos i sommers - jeg havde stået fadder til gommen, og det var jo ham der lige skulle vise bil frem (som han havde lånt af sine bedsteforældre, altså....)

Det var så hyggeligt at besøge dem og få snakket lidt med det unge par. Hvem ved - måske kommer jeg til Horsens igen engang? (Det er ihvertfald ret nemt med toget)

Afterwards, I was picked up in a Tesla! I have been thinking about how a car could cause all this hype, but it was cool! I visited the couple that got married this summer - I was the god-mother of the groom - and it was he who was showing off the car (that he borrowed from his Grand-parents, you know...)

It was so nice visiting them and get to talk a bit with the young couple. Who knows - maybe I'll be going to Horsens again some time? (It's really easy by train)

Skovtårnet

I går blev jeg inviteret med på min brors fødselsdagsgave - af vores anden bror skulle han have en tur i Skovtårnet og derefter ud at spise, så pludselig var vi 3 søskende og min svigerinde på tur sammen. Uden flere fra familien. Jeg ved faktisk ikke hvornår det nogensinde sidst er sket. (Muligvis dengang mine brødre skulle passe mig og jeg slog den ene i hovedet med en legetøjslastbil og bed den anden. De har stadig ikke helt tilgivet mig. Jeg er sikker på de fortjente det.....)

Indgangen over broen var ret imponerende. 

Yesterday, I got invited for my brothers birthday present - our other brother gave him a trip to Skovtårnet and then out for food, so suddenly we 3 siblings and my sister-in-law were out together. Without anyone else from the family. I don't know when that ever happened last time. (Might be the time when my brothers were babysitting me and I hit one of them on the head with a toy truck and bit the other one. They have still not totally forgiven me. I'm sure they deserved it.....)

The entrance over the bridge was quite impressive. 

Da vi kom hen til tårnet, så det jo ikke SÅ vildt ud nedefra. Altså. Det ser jo virkelig solidt og smukt ud! Masser af mennesker som går op og ned hver dag. Og bare en smule højere end Rundetårn. 

When we got to the tower, it didn't look THAT crazy from below. Well. It looked solid and beautiful! So many people going up and down every day. And just a bit taller than Rundetårn. 

Da vi så gik opad, blev tårnet bare virkelig, virkelig stort! Man skulle helst ikke gå og kigge ned, ihvertfald. 

Der er et træ i midten af tårnet, og pludselig var toppen temmelig langt nede. 

Det er mærkeligt, ikke? Hvis man går inde i en bygning så man ikke kan se omgivelserne, gør det ingenting at være højt oppe. Men når man nu kunne se ud føltes det bare helt anderledes. 

Once we started going up, the tower turned out to be really, really big! You really should not look down when going up. 

There is a tree in the middle of the tower, and suddenly the tree top was far down. 

Isn't it strange? If you walk inside a building, not being able to see the surroundings, it doesn't matter how far up you are. But when you are able to look out, it feels totally different. 

Oppe fra toppen kunne man se virkelig langt. Desværre ikke så langt som til New York City, selv om jeg kiggede i den retning. Det var rigtig fint, og vi nåede at gå to runder så vi kunne se det hele. Stod deroppe og tænkte at det havde været rart med en kikkert. Det må blive næste gang jeg kommer derop. 

(Da vi kom ned fik vi iøvrigt de BEDSTE is jeg nogensinde har smagt! Fra Enø is. Hvis du støder på dem et sted, så køb endelig en......)

From the top you could see really far. Unfortunately not as far as New York City, although I looked in that direction. It was really beautiful, and we took two rounds so that we could see everything. I stood there wondering that it would have been nice bringing binoculars. I must remember that next time I'm going up there. 

(Once we got back down, we had the BEST ice cream I ever tasted! From Enø is. If you ever happen to meet them somewhere, please do buy one......)

Fredensborg

Sidste år fyldte min veninde 50, og hun ønskede sig oplevelser i gave. Sammen med en anden veninde gav jeg hende en tur, og for et par måneder siden fik vi så forslag om hvilken tur hun kunne ønske sig, så søndag tog vi til Fredensborg for at få en rundtur på slottet og i haven samt en dejlig frokost på kroen. 

Det er godt nok sjældent jeg kommer til Fredensborg. Som i stort set aldrig. Altså - slottet ser jo så velkendt ud, men jeg tror bare det er anden eller tredje gang jeg har set det rigtigt. Det var meget nemmere at komme derop med tog og bus end jeg troede. Heldigvis! 

Last year, my friend turned 50, and she asked for adventures as gifts. With another friend, I gave her a trip, and a few months back, we had suggestions on what kind of trip she would like, so on Sunday, we went to Fredensborg to have a guided tour of the castle and the gardens, and a lovely lunch at the inn that's closest to the castle and almost royal. 

Desværre måtte man ikke tage billeder indenfor. Det var så smukt at se de forskellige rum, og sjovt at høre historier om de konger som har boet der. Det var vildt at se de store malerier rigtigt som jeg ellers bare har set billeder af, og så var det virkelig sjovt at se den "enhjørning" som stod i slottets entre og som Prins Henrik engang havde fået som gave. (Jeg gad altså også godt bo sådan et sted.... MED folk til at gøre rent!)

Udenfor måtte vi dog godt tage billeder, og her er så et af slottet fra siden, nede fra den mere private del af haven, hvor man kun må komme ind nu om sommeren. 

Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take photos inside. It was beautiful seeing the different rooms, and fun to hear the stories of the kings who lived there. It was amazing seeing the big paintings for real that I've only seen photos off, and it was so much fun seeing the "unicorn" standing in the hallway of the castle, that Prince Henrik had had as a gift from his friends. (I would love to live in a place like that... WITH people to do the cleaning!)

Outside, though, we could take photos, and here is a picture from the side of the castle, taken in the more private part of the garden, where you're only allowed inside in the summer. 

Haven var virkelig sjov at se - den er så kæmpestor og der er så mange fine små haver i den store. F.eks. kål-beddet. Altså - bare tanken om at lave mønster med de forskellige slags!

Jeg gik og forestillede mig alle de fine ting i forhold til min lillebitte have. Bare det her kål-bed ville vist tage al pladsen! Det er sjovt at forestille mig hvordan min have kan blive. Eller ikke. Der er mange ting som kan være her, men kun en ad gangen!

The garden was really fun to see - it is so huge and there are so many beautiful small gardens in the big one. For instance this cabbage garden. Can you imagine making patterns like that with the different types?

I walked around, imagining all the beautiful things compared to my tiny garden. These cabbages would fill my entire garden! It's fun imagining what my garden could be like. Or not. I have room for so many different things, but only one at a time!

Da jeg kom til Fredensborg, skulle jeg virkelig tisse, og gik derfor og kiggede efter et toilet. Sådan fandt jeg ud af, at Garnvärk faktisk har åbent om søndagen! Hvis ikke DET var et heldigt sammentræf?

Det er altså en virkelig fin butik. Sådan en med et kæmpe bord hvor man kan sidde og strikke, og hvor de kan holde kurser. 

Kig ind, hvis du kommer forbi! For min pengepungs skyld tror jeg det er meget heldigt at jeg ikke bor i nærheden.....

When I arrived in Fredensborg, I really needed to pee, so I was trying to find a restroom. Which is how I discovered that Garnvärk actually is open on Sundays! Talk about a lucky coincidence!

It is such a nice shop. The kind of yarn shop with a giant table where you can sit knitting, and where they can have classes. 

So stop by if you happen to be in Fredensborg! For the well-being of my wallet, I do think it's lucky that I don't live nearby......

Skt. Hans

I går var det Skt. Hans, og for en gangs skyld skulle jeg ikke tidligt op på arbejde næste morgen OG jeg havde gæster med bil!

Så vi tog op til Nordsjælland og kiggede rundt. Det var SÅ hyggeligt!

Den unge amerikaner kunne godt lide Frederiksborg Slot, og vi andre var temmelig tilfredse med at han tog billeder.

Yesterday was Saint John (Johannes shortened to Hans in Danish), the midsummer celebration, and for once, I didn't have to get up early for work next day AND I had visitors with a car!

So we went to Northern Zealand and looked around. It was SO nice!

The young American liked Frederiksborg Castle, and all we old people loved watching him taking photos. 

Vi kørte videre op til Heatherhill, den smukke lille naturpark helt oppe ved kysten, hvor jeg sidst var for temmelig mange år siden. Tror måske det var 15-20 år siden sidst. 

Den var lige så lille og lige så smuk som jeg huskede. Der er bare fint deroppe ved kysten.

We went on to Heatherhill, the beautiful small area very close to the coast, that I last visited a lot of years ago. I believe it was like 15-20 years ago. 

It was as tiny and beautiful as I remember. It's so pretty by the coast. 

Vi tog videre langs kysten for at prøve at finde et Skt. Hans bål. Ved Hornbæk stoppede vi og var virkelig heldige - der var fint, stort bål med midsommer-sangen og den flotteste solnedgang. 

Det var den smukkeste Skt. Hans aften i flere år og i det bedste selskab. Nu bliver dagene så kortere igen. Det er lidt trist, men sådan er årets cyklus jo... 

We went on along the coast, trying to find a bonfire. At Hornbæk, we stopped and were lucky - there was a nice, big bonfire with the midsummer song and the most amazing sunset. 

It was the most beautiful Skt. Hans I had for years, and spent in the best company. So from now on, the days will become shorter again. It's a bit sad, but that is how the cycle of the year goes......

Tillykke! / Happy birthday!

Dronning Margrethe, altså. Jeg elsker kongehuset og det er sket en del gange i mit liv at jeg har været inde og vinke på slottet på hendes fødselsdag. 

Sidste år blev det jo anderledes, med fællessang via det kongelige tv på Fredensborg, uden store fester og fine gæster. Jeg skulle på arbejde, men jeg ville bare se fødselsdagssangen. Hvilket blev svært. Jeg kom ihvertfald ikke ned på mit kontor i fred og ro, men sad i afdelingen og så min elskede dronning sidde i sin sofa og se hele Danmark synge for sig. 

Det var så fint! Så jeg sad der og smågræd, mens mine meget lidt royalistiske svenske kolleger på afdelingen undrede sig temmelig meget. Nu er det ret sjovt!

Det er synd for svenskerne at de ikke har verdens bedste dronning. Tillykke med de 81!

Queen Margrethe. I just love the royal family and it has been quite a few times in my life that I have been at the castle (outside) to wave at her at her birthdya. 

Last year, it was different, with Denmark singing together in the royal tv on Fredensborg castle, without big celebrations and posh, royal, famous guests. I was at work, but I just wanted to see her birthday song. Which turned out to be difficult. At least I never made it to my office in peace and quiet, but had to sit in the department, watching my beloved queen sit in her couch and watch Denmark sing. 

It was so beautiful! So I was sitting there, crying a bit, while my not at all royal-loving Swedish colleagues were wondering what was going on. By now it's pretty funny!

I feel sorry for the Swedes that they don't have the best queen in the world. Happy 81st birthday!

Hjem / Home

I går gik turen hjem fra Sønderjylland. Det gik egentlig meget godt, indtil Kolding, hvor det næste tog var forsinket og gjorde det umuligt at komme til København til den planlagte tid.
Så i ventetiden på det næste tog, gik turen over gaden til Slotssøen og den fine udsigt. Det var lige til at klare......
Resten af togturen hjem gik rimeligt nemt. Jeg var meget taknemmelig for at få en siddeplads, og fik strikket temmelig meget på det næste par strømper.

Yesterday, I took the journey home from Southern Jutland. It went really well, until Kolding. The next train was delayed and getting to Copenhagen at the planned time was impossible.
So the waiting time for the next train was spent across the street, by the castle lake and the beautiful view. I could just about manage......
The rest of the ride home was quite easy. I was very grateful getting a place to sit, and I really knit a lot on the next pair of socks.

Så kom jeg hjem til dette monster af en tomatplante! Tænk, den lillebitte plante jeg købte er bare vokset ud over alt! Der bliver godt nok mange tomater at spise.
Det er så vildt - hver gang jeg kommer hjem, kniber jeg mig nærmest i armen over at jeg BOR her!
Har jeg sagt, at jeg elsker mit hus?

Then I came home to this tomato monster! It's hard to believe that the tiny little plant I bought just grew this big! There will be plenty of tomatoes to eat.
It is really crazy - every time I get back home, I almost pinch myself just because I LIVE here!
Did I mention how I love my house?

Årø

Onsdag var klart den fineste dag med sol og varme, så vi besluttede at den årlige tur rundt på Årø blev der.
Så efter formiddagsmødet (det er kirke-camping med bibelundervisning) og frokost, skyndte vi os ned til færgen, så vi kunne nå at gå rundt om det meste af øen.
Det var fint og varmt. Som sædvanligt var vi forbi "Julekirken" (hvor årets oplevelse var en gravsten med navnet Knudline!), spiste is på campingpladsen, kiggede ind ad vinduerne til den (altid) lukkede garnbutik, nød udsigten til Fyn fra øst-siden og gik ned til byen igen. 

Wednesday was by far the best day with sun and heat, so we decided to make the yearly trip round Årø that day.
So after the morning meeting (I'm on church camp with bible-teaching) and lunch, we hurried down to the ferry, giving us time to make it round most of the island.
It was pretty and warm. As usual, we went past "Julekirken" (the Christmas church) (and this years big thing was finding a gravestone with the name Knudline!), had ice cream in the camping ground, looked through the windows of the (always) closed yarn shop, enjoyed the view of Funen to the east, and walked back down to the village.

Efter gåturen var det virkelig dejligt at ende på Årø Vingård, og smage på deres lækre vin (og spise en is mere), købe en flaske vin med hjem og bare nyde solen og udsigten.
Jeg tror faktisk, det bliver samme tur næste år. Det er SÅ hyggeligt!
Hvis du kommer i nærheden, må du unde dig en tur derover til den fine, lille ø, og læse hele historien om den lillebitte Julekirke.

After our walk, it was so nice ending up at Årø vineyard, tasting their delicious wine (and eating another ice cream), buy a bottle of wine to take home, and just enjoying the sun and view.
I do think I'll take the same trip next year. It is SO nice!
If you happen to pass by, don't miss a trip to this pretty, little island, and remember to read the entire story about the tiny Julekirke.

Koldinghus

I lørdags, da jeg skulle hjem fra Kolding, havde jeg købt billet til et tog senere end de andres. Så jeg havde pludselig en time i Kolding. Det var jo hyggeligt!
Jeg endte med at gå en smut igennem Koldinghus. Har aldrig været der, og det er virkelig længe siden jeg har været på museum.

This Saturday, when I was going home from Kolding, I bought a train ticket for a later train than everyone else's train. So suddenly, I had an extra, nice hour in Kolding.
I ended up visiting "Koldinghus". I've never been there, and it is really a long time since I went to a museum last time. 

Slottet er fint, og fra gårdspladsen virker det virkelig overskueligt. Man skal jo stort set bare gå op og ned ad trappen i tårnet og så kigge på de forskellige etager.
(Det holdt så lige til jeg skulle skynde mig for at nå toget og IKKE kunne finde en udgang!)

The castle is really nice, and it seems not too big when standing in the courtyard. All I had to do was go up and down the stairs in the tower and look at the different floors.
(Which worked well until I had to hurry to catch the train and COULDN'T find an exit!)

Det første sted jeg ville se, var fangekælderen. Hvor tit kommer man ned i sådan en? Det så jo ret skummelt ud, men nede i kælderen var der så ikke så slemt.
Faktisk var det åbenbart dér, de havde svenskerne siddende, så jeg kunne vel føle mig halvt hjemme. Eller noget.

The first thing I wanted to see, were the dungeons. How often do you get to see such? It looked really spooky, but once I was down there, it wasn't too bad.
Actually, this was the very place they kept the Swedish prisoners, so I suppose I might just as well feel a bit at home......

I riddersalen hang der et billede af Christian d. 4. MIN Christian d. 4.! Som de åbenbart også syntes var deres, eftersom han havde været der meget som barn.
Det var helt FORKERT! Når man har gået i skole i Hillerød og hørt alle historierne om ham, så får man et specielt forhold til lige præcis den her konge, og så har han åbenbart også været i Jylland? Jeg er skuffet......

In the knight's hall, there was a picture of Christian the 4th. MY Christian the 4th! That they apparently thought were their king, since he spend some time there as a kid.
It felt so WRONG! Going to school in Hillerød, listening to all the stories about him, you get a really special relationship to this very king, and suddenly it seems like he went to Jutland as well? I'm so disappointed........

Oppe på tårnet var der en fin udsigt over byen, som denne statue stod og nød.

On top of the tower, there was a nice view of town, and this statue really seemed to enjoy it.

Der var også mere civiliserede rum end fangekælderen. F.eks. dette fine rum med et lille bibliotek. Det kunne være fedt! Jeg behøver måske lidt højere til loftet, men både bornholmerur og bøger har jeg allerede!
Jeg nåede ikke at se det hele på knapt 1 time, men det ville nu ikke genere mig at komme tilbage. (Og jeg nåede iøvrigt toget.....)

There were some more civilized rooms than the dungeons. For instance this pretty room with a nice little library. Could be cool! Maybe I need a taller room, but the clock and the books are already here with me and ready to start!
I didn't have time to see everything in slightly less than 1 hour, but it wouldn't bother me to come back. (And I did catch my train, by the way......)