There is a saying in Denmark: "There is no bad weather, only the wrong clothes" So far in Denmark, we have experienced dramatic weather - heavy winds, rain and then sunshine - often within half an hour. To say that it is changeable is an understatement. As the saying above suggests - be prepared with appropriate clothing and you'll be fine. Armed with good maps and information from the knowledgable Tourist Office woman, we set out confident that we knew where we were going. The gravel track (#8) that we tried to cycle on yesterday is not part of the official route - rather it is part of the Genderarmerie hiking route that passes through the original border. She agreed that this part of the route was not good for loaded bikes and told us how to bypass it. Good cycle lanes beside the road led us to the official route and we're off! We knew that heavier winds were coming today and they were right! At times the gusts required Barry to work hard to control the bike. Then the rains came and the deluge made it impossible to ride. We sought shelter in a museum that we would have liked to have toured, but it was too late in the day. We were grateful that we could be dry for a bit before we headed on to our destination, Sonderborg. Today we saw beautiful rolling landscapes and picturesque villages inland and along the sea. Granted the weather has taken a turn for the worse - no longer are we getting changeable weather, we now seem to be in a rainy, windy pattern. Nonetheless, we have rain gear and we will carry on,
A typical Danish house in the country - reed roof and a long Danish pennant flag on the flag pole.
The churches here are typically white and quite different in architecture than what we saw in Germany.90% of Denmark is Protestant. This church in Rinkenaes is not so old, (built 1920's) and it is significant as it was built after Denmark's reunification. Three towers with three bells are its trademark.
This church in Broager, dating from the 1200's, is distinguished by its twin spires and interesting pattern of tiles on the roof. The grounds here cover several acres with an interesting graveyard for fallen soldiers - Danish and German from the war. This church has the largest belfry in Denmark and orginally had 5 bells - 2 had to handed over for WW1 war use.
We met this couple while having our lunch in the churchyard - they live near Fynshav, where we will be taking the ferry. We were planning to go to Fyn (Brojde) but they told us about the beauty of Aero (Island) and we may try to go there instead.
Our cabin at the Sonderburg Campground - a comfortable and dry place for us to spend the night. Truly not the best value - extra kroner for cleaning (which he waived - the benefit of looking older and trustworthy!), extra kr. for hot water, no bedding, no toilet - yet we were grateful for a roof that didn't leak and warmth.
