Denmark

After one day in Flensburg I am definitely in for a new country. I enter Denmark on 2 June. And immediately things go different than I planned. I wanted to go to the island Ærø, crossing it, hopping over to Langeland and reach Lolland from there. Good plan I thought. The map told me the boat would go from Mommark. But I can find no information about it in the harbour. "No, they bought a larger boat in November and this one does not fit into our harbour any more. You have to go to Fynshav, 10 km north from here" the nice lady of the kiosk tells me. Okay, let's go to Fynshav. In the small harbour I choose the lane witch is marked with "Ærø" and tell the cashier that I would like a single ticket to "Ærø". "Hm, this boat goes to Bøjden, there is no boat going to Ærø today." Bøjden is the harbour for Fyn, the large island I did not plan to visit. I have five minutes to decide, then the last boat for this day will depart. Nothing wrong with Fyn, I decide and buy a ticket.

From now I camp wherever possible. And all my experiences in Denmark are great. The people at the receptions are always friendly, although I am always late and arriving after closing hours they make me feel welcome. The campgrounds are in good conditions and always offer a kitchen and a place to sit inside. Prices for one night vary from 70 to 100 crones. One campground (in Feddet, south of Faxe) I left because they asked 191,- for one night.

The sun is shining, the days are warm with a cool breeze. I am happy to choose my own way because cycling in the southern part of Denmark means you have small roads in good conditions on your own. Sometimes I go half an hour with hardly one car around. Signposts are very good and most of the time easy to spot. The hills are seldom steep or long, but views are great. Okay, I have to admit that there are only little spectacular sights, but the cosy farms and the rural villages are absolutely mind nurturing.

My way is Fyn, Langeland, Lolland, Falster, Møn and Sælland, then up to Copenhagen. On my way I meet three people from France on a 14 month bike trip through Europe (see their blog). In Karise I stay for two nights with couchsurfer Hans, who originates from the Netherlands and lives since more than 15 years in Denmark. Together with his other guest Artur from Poland I bake crumble cake with rhubarb and pear. Nice and tasty experience. The next day I arrive in Copenhagen where I couchsurf again. Here I will run around to collect impressions of this eco- and bicycle-friendly capital. Now...