Well, we're home again, and back in business. We got home at about 2.30 p.m. today. I'll give you the bare bones of the last three weeks (I may give them in more detail later). On Saturday the 10th of June we motored over to Harwich, and drove onto the ferry to Esbjerg, in Denmark. When we got there we drove across Denmark, and eventually took another ferry from Elsinore to Helsingborg. We then drove up Sweden to Ostersund (taking three days about it) and arrived just nicely in time for our grandaughters' end of term service and speech day on Friday afternoon. We then spent a day or two looking round Esbjerg and eventually motoring out to Ruth and Lasse's farm house for a day or two. I think I must explain the next bit of our summer trip :- I am coming up to a significant big ZERO birthday. As I've always found the Norwegian 'Stave Churches' fascinating, and had never seen one, it turned out that Ruth (sharing the expenses with her siblings) had arranged to take Ann and meself on a tour of the Stave Churches. They had also presented me with the definitive text book on the subject, which gave me a day or so to read up on the subject, and after a good deal of discussion with Ruth decided on the four best ones to look at in depth, and to see another three of them in passing. Some days later when were discussing this choice with the guide to Reinli Church (a young lady who is very deeply read on the subject) told us that we could not have made a better choice than we did. Last Tuesday we had lunch with Ruth, Lasse, Tuva and Freja in a town call Gjovik (pronounce Yorvik, and exactly the same name as York had in Viking days). After lunch we said goodbye to them, and drove down Norway, and into Western Sweden. Then down past Gothenberg, and eventually back on to the Helsingborg to Elsinore Ferry, across Zealand Funen and Jutland to Esbjerg, onto the ferry yesterday evening, arriving in Harwich about noon, and home, stopping off for lunch at Mistley.
We had driven 2,481 miles, and our new Honda Jazz had averaged 55.1 miles per gallon over the whole journey.
P.s. The two photos were taken at Harwich on the way out. The first shows a very fine old Lagonda car (and if you examine our nearside wing mirror to the right of the picture you will see my reflection staring jealously at the Lagonda!!) The second picture shows a Volvo sports car that its owner (to the left of the picture) told me had purchased new in 1966 and driven ever since.
8 comments:
Wow - quite a trip! Look forward to some pics of Stave Churches.
I always knew you were a Jazz fan :-)
Hello Rog. Yes, it was a lovely trip. And yes, I do like trad jazz, and it predecessor - Rag time (Scott Joplin, etc.)
What marvellous cars, I must show the Sage. And I look forward to your holiday photos too.
I had to Google stave churches before replying - what amazing structures! I also look froward to seeing more pictures from your trip. Many congrats on your "Big Zero". If we can sort something out, I'll buy you breakfast to celebrate.
Thank you Z. Yes, I think Russell would have enjoyed seeing the Lagonda especially - late twenties I should think.
Hello Steve, yes they are amazing structures. As soon as I have cleared a bit of a backlog here I'll get down to publishing some photos of them. I think they've probably survived because they're too far North to be affected by wood boring insects. Although there is one original wooden church in this country which probably qualifies as a stave church (St. Andrew's in Greensted Juxta Ongar in Essex). I mentioned this to each of the guides/curators in the stave churches, and none of them knew of the one English stave church survivor (although it's mentioned and illustrated in the text book on the subject- The Norwegian Stave Churches by Leif Anker/Jiri Havran, with which my offspring presented me a copy -English translation, I'm glad to say.)
Lagondas always make my mouth water.
What a great trip and what a super family. Very brave of you to do all that driving.
I hope you had a great 40th birthday.
Thank you Pat (and how very diplomatic of you- don't know how you guessed which one it was). Actually it's not yet my birthday. It had to be brought forward so as to fit it in with Ruth's school year. Ann and Ruth had planned it as a surprise for me; but I knew perfectly well that something was 'up' - just hadn't worked out all the details till we got as far as Sweden.
What an epic journey. Sounds brilliant and I look forward to the photos.
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