Wednesday 5th August 2015
Mark had slept well last night. I hadn't been so lucky, and had to resort to earplugs just after midnight to block out the sound of his snoring. We both woke up just after 07:30. There were two young couples also staying at the B&B. One of the couples was just packing up and leaving, as Mark and I thought about helping ourselves to some breakfast.
There was a communal kitchen and dining area, with the rooms leading off it converted into bedrooms. As it was dark when we arrived last night, this was the first time we had been able to appreciate our surroundings. The B&B was a converted thatched farm building, and part of what must of been a quite a prosperous farm. The owner lived in the cottage across the courtyard. There were some art studios in one of the other larger buildings opposite. It was lovely. There was no noise apart from bird song, and the sound of an occasional passing tractor.
The B&B was a gallery and antiques showroom too. Everything was for sale. The furniture, paintings, ornaments all had a small price label on them with information about the maker or artist.
There was a communal kitchen and dining area, with the rooms leading off it converted into bedrooms. As it was dark when we arrived last night, this was the first time we had been able to appreciate our surroundings. The B&B was a converted thatched farm building, and part of what must of been a quite a prosperous farm. The owner lived in the cottage across the courtyard. There were some art studios in one of the other larger buildings opposite. It was lovely. There was no noise apart from bird song, and the sound of an occasional passing tractor.
The B&B was a gallery and antiques showroom too. Everything was for sale. The furniture, paintings, ornaments all had a small price label on them with information about the maker or artist.
Mark made some fresh coffee, and I helped myself to some cereal and a yogurt. We sat chatting about our plans for today. Shortly after we sat down to our breakfast, the young couple in the room next to ours emerged and headed for the bathrooms. They were in their early twenties. She was a very attractive, leggy redhead. And, he was a very handsome, blonde haired military type. I felt very old all of a sudden!
About half an hour later, just as we were tidying up after ourselves the young lady appeared in just a very small towel. Embarrassed, she almost sprinted for the security of her bedroom. She obviously didn't expect Mark and I to be still sitting there. It put on smile on my face, anyway.
By the time Mark and I had loaded the dishwasher, and tidied up the kitchen. The young couple were leaving. Mark and I got showered and packed up. We were ready to go around 09:30.
We had no real plans for today again. We wanted to get to somewhere around the Hamburg area of Germany, and then look for a campsite. There appeared to be a few to choose from in that area. I suggested that we stopped off in Billund for a look around. So Mark set his satnav to winding route, and we set off into the Danish countryside. It was a beautiful day already, and a complete contrast to the rainstorms of yesterday. It seemed that the weather forecasters had got it right for a change.
The Danish countryside very much reminded me of Lincolnshire, where I spent a large chunk of my life growing up. My parents still live there today. The sights, sounds and smells were all the same. Only the fact that we were riding on the other side of the road made it different. There were large fields of onions and leeks that made my nostrils twitch as we rode past. The only other traffic we saw was the occasional tractor. The land was flat with a gentle breeze which made it a good spot for wind turbines.
There were some nice little villages on the way to Billund. The buildings still had a continental vibe about them, only they were now built of brick instead of timber. We stopped for fuel in a little village called Ans, as we were both running a bit low after yesterdays blast in the rain.
There were some interesting buildings on the outskirts of Kjellerup. They were round with lots of windows at random levels cut in the side. They appeared to have an observation deck near the top. They looked industrial. But, if they were houses they must be very funky places to live.
The villages became a little more frequent as we got closer to Silkeborg. Each one only seemed to be a few kilometres apart. Nice little stone churches, tree lined roads, and large lakes became the normality for the next fifty kilometres.
Then in the middle of nowhere a huge Christmas tree farm appeared along both sides of the road. There were thousands of trees about eight feet high, for as far as you could see. It was a bit bizarre. But, I suppose they have to grow them somewhere.
As we got back on to a stretch of more major road, huge sculptures had been built on some of the roundabouts. They were quite impressive. I don't know what they were meant to symbolise, but they looked good in my eyes.
We arrived in Billund, and Mark headed straight for Legoland. Once, I explained that we wanted the town and not the theme park, we fought our way out of the quickly filling carpark, and parked up in the quite town centre.
The town was very pleasant. Quiet, clean with pretty little buildings. There was a large Lego hotel and shopping complex being built in the middle of the town. This is obviously a more to attract more tourists into the town itself. But, to me it looked like it might spoil the serenity of what was already there.
Mark and I walked down the main shopping street and found a nice looking coffee shop. Mark had some Danish Krone to use up, so he offered to pay. We sat outside, and a very friendly lady served us our coffee and a couple of disgustingly nice brandy snap pastries filled with cream. Mark had made a good choice!
Full of caffeine and sugary cake goodness we waddled back towards our bikes. On the way we passed the original Lego headquarters built after the second world war. Lego was invented by Kirk Christiansen in Billund in the 1930's, and the original factory was destroyed by fire in 1942. This building was built shortly after WW2, and acted as the Lego HQ. The outside of the building had panels moulded in concrete to look like Lego bricks. It was very cool.
There was a display of all the most popular Lego models on display in the windows dating back to the 1940's. Mark and I both recognised the Lego we played with as children. Some of the models must be pretty valuable now.
Back at our bikes, we found them surrounded by a group of middle aged men. They were curious about our bikes and our travels. One of the guys owned an Aprilia Moto 6.5. He had never seen an Aprilia Caponord in the flesh before. He seemed impressed that Mark's bike had traveled so far without any major issues.
We left Billund and headed for Germany. On the outskirts of the town is the new Lego HQ. There is a large Lego industrial estate filled with various factories making different Lego components. Huge Lego bricks appeared every so often at the side of the road. They were just randomly arranged like a giant child had dropped them. It just reminded you where you were. I would of loved to take one home to put in my front room!
We headed for the E45 which would take us south. A series of funky looking aqua ducts crossed over the road on the way. It seems the Danes like to add a splash of design to an otherwise boring concrete structure.
We also encountered some strange roundabouts. They were a roundabout with another roundabout around the outside. The outer ring acted as a filter lane for the next exit, and meant that you didn't have to stop and give way. I found the first one a little confusing. But, by the time the next few came along I was getting the hang of things.
Just after Kolding ( where Finn lives ), we joined the E45. This is the main motorway that runs from the top of Denmark to Germany. It was dull, straight and boring. But, it enabled us to cover big distances in a reasonable amount of time.
It was a bit smelly though. Every few kilometres, we would pass a transporter truck full of pigs on their way for bacon conversion. The stinky pig wagon aroma would hit you about three or four kilometres before you passed the truck. The temperature was rising the closer we got to the German border. This was not helping either. Perhaps someone should invent deodourised trucks for piggy transportation!
Just before the German border was truck town. Every conceivable make of truck had a dealership or repair shop at the side of the E45. It went on for around ten kilometres. This was certainly the place to get your truck washed, serviced, or exchanged for a new one.
Over the border into Germany and the E45 became the A7 Autobahn. The next few hours became a game of avoiding the BMW's and Audi's driving at 130kph or more in the outside lane. We settled at a pace of 110-120kph, and chose our overtaking of slower traffic very carefully. Riding at a speed lower than this was dangerous.
About a hundred kilometres from Hamburg, the traffic began to build up. Warning messages on the overhead matrix signs warned of an accident ahead. I had the life scared out of me by a police car that appeared on my tail from out of nowhere with a cute blond policewoman at the wheel. I pulled over, and she was gone as quickly as she appeared with sirens and emergency light blazing.
Mark signaled for us to pull off the autobahn at the next services. I was happy to do this as I was running low on full due to our increased pace on the autobahn. We decided to sit it out for a bit. The traffic was virtually stationary as it passed the services.
We had a bite to eat and a drink. The sun was blazing down, and it was still warm in the shade. I was cooking in my bike kit. After about an hour the traffic had begun to stop and start. We spotted a few cars taking a back road out of the services. Mark looked on his satnav and a small road appeared to run parallel with the autobahn for the next ten kilometres or so.
We got back on our bikes and took the back road. There were warning signs telling us the exit was for authorized vehicles only. But, it was written in German, so we chose not to understand them and carried on anyway!
The small back road took us alongside the autobahn before crossing over to the other side. Several other cars and vans had followed us along this route. The traffic below was stationary again. At least we were moving, and in roughly the right direction. A few kilometres further on we were directed back onto the A7. But, we were now only two or three hundred metres from the accident.
The remains of a burnt out caravan was being cleared up by the emergency services. The cute policewoman was there leaning on a broom, watching her colleagues sweep up the mess. A few metres further up the road, a family was trying to load all of their salvaged belongings into their estate car. I hoped they were on their way home rather that just starting their holiday.
We cleared the seen of the hold up, and were set free towards Hamburg. But, not for long. A series of road works and contraflow systems slowed our progress. The traffic was heavy again. Most of the drivers were ignoring the 80kph speed limit and average speed cameras. As the cameras were forward facing, Mark and I just maintained our pace with the other traffic.
There was a lot of dust in the air caused by the construction traffic. Several water tankers were damping down the earth. One of them was running close to the road, and I was given a refreshing shower. It was much needed in the increasing heat of the day.
As we arrived in Hamburg, it became clear that we were lucky to be heading south. The north bound traffic was backed up for miles. It didn't appear to be moving for the whole of the way around the outskirts of the city.
We crossed under the river Elbe via a tunnel, and exited the other side in the dockland area of the city. The north bound traffic was even worse here. I later found out that a large cargo ship leaving the port had collided with one of the supporting columns of the suspension bridge that crossed the river to the east of Hamburg. This had closed the bridge, and now all the traffic had been directed this way.
The Paradise "Grüner Jäger" campsite sounded a bit like the set of a Carry-On movie. But, it was nice enough. There was a swinging pool and a restaurant on site. It was a quiet site, and we were given a pitch in the corner of the site just across from the entrance. It felt strange to be using the tents again. They had been stored on the back of our bikes since the Lofoten Islands.
We had a meal in the restaurant that evening. Mark had fillet steak and chips. I had a Wiener Schnitzel with mixed vegetables. This was all washed down with some large steins of beer. The food was good. The only problem was the abundance of flies. They were everywhere. One we had finished our food, Mark and I retired to the fly free sanctuary of the bar for another beer. We then sat around by our tents for the rest of the evening chatting until the sun went down.
Tomorrow we head for Holland, and spend the night at a biker campsite.
Here is part 20 of my vlog:
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