Bikes, trains, and boats oh my!

Our stay in Amsterdam was extended by one extra day, because of the busy train schedule. We intended to leave Amsterdam on Tuesday, but there was no room left in the bicycle car to Copenhagen. Fortunately Thijs, our magic Dutchman, didn't mind us staying an extra day. Amsterdam is by my estimation the most bicycle friendly city I have ever experienced. By this I mean that in Amsterdam, the bicycle is equivalent to the car. Everyone who lives in Amsterdam uses them to get to work, to go out in the evening, to pick up their groceries... everything people use cars for in the US. In addition, the majority of the streets in the downtown area are only single lane and brick or stone paved. On these, bikes and cars have equal right of way, and because the speeds are so slow, there is little danger of getting run over. On larger streets, almost without exception, there are separate bicycle lanes, and often these are divided from the car traffic by a curb or barrier of some sort. There are bicycle signals at all intersections, and there are bicycle street signs as well. I was really impressed by these- because it is one of the things missing from Seattle's bicycle network. Only regular, local cyclists know the most bike-friendly routes from point A to point B in Seattle. We made it all the way to the Amsterdam Central Train Station from the coast (a ride of about 20 miles) just by following the signs!

There was a bit of a surpising downside to all of this bicycling heaven, and that was that we kept getting in th way of local bikers! We would pause at an intersection to try and get our bearings, and the cyclist behind us would shout at us for stopping suddenly in the middle of the bike lane. Our host laughed at us and said you can always tell who is local on a bike, because they are going somewhere as fast as they can (safely, of course), and the tourists are riding slowly, staring left and right! Our last afternoon in Amsterdam, he took us on a little bike tour to his favorite neighborhoods, so I can assume we were not too embarassing. He also took us to another squatter bar, where his friend (also named Thijs) was playing music. It was quite nice, sort of Norah Jones/Jamie Cullem style jazz with humourous Dutch lyrics. Afterward we went to another Jazz club that also had live music, this time with 5 person a latin/samba combo packed into a very tiny back corner stage.



Our train from Amsterdam to Copenhagen was uneventful. We took one of the famous night trains- it left the station shortly after 7:00 PM, and arrived in Copenhagen at about 10:00 the next morning. Our first task in Copenhagen was to book our ferry to Oslo. We tried to get a train, but, according to the station clerk "is not possible!" Fortunately, we had researched the ferry that also travels from Copenhagen to Oslo, so we tried to book for that day (this was Thursday, July 10) but again there was nothing available for that day. So we booked ourselves a spot on the Friday ferry, and set about seeing Copenhagen. We first rode to the ferry terminal, to try and get on the waiting list, but even that was full, despite the fact that the ferry is not a simple car ferry, like those that leave from the docks in Seattle. No, this ferry is nothing short of a cruise ship with cars in the hold. The rest of Copenhagen was reminscent of Amsterdam, but a little more spread out.


We rode around Copenhagen a bit more, and then found ourselves a campsite at a bonafide European campground. We definitely stuck out like a sore thumb! There were no trees in our assigned camping site, so we rigged what I call our "low-rider" shelter. We simply lay one of the housses on the ground for a ground cloth, and turning our bikes upside down to use as braces, stretch the rainfly from one of the hammocks across as a "tent," The end result is quite low to the ground, but large enough to cover both of us in our sleeping bags, and because our bike bags are waterproof, that's all we need to stay dry. Our set up, however, did not exactly blend in with the locals. In the words one stranger muttered in amazement (and a French accent) as he walked by our set-up, "minimalist extreme!" Surrounding us in the campsite were tents the size of garden sheds, RV's, and barbeques the size of small dining tables. In the morning, I even saw a couple staying in the next tent over using their electric kettle!

I have been told that Europeans think of camping as a very different experience than Americans. First of all, camping is not something done in the wilderness, because there is not wilderness in Europe. The whole countryside is too densly populated. Instead, camping is done with style and luxury in these sort of camping parks, often times near a beach or lake. The Europeas value their luxuries while on holiday, even when engaging in something so rustic as "camping," and so they bring their cheese graters, pepper grinders and wine coolers with them in large of accomodations as possible. Families will return to the same campgrounds every summer and stay for a number of weeks, and the campground becomes one big party. One-night campers such as ourselves are a bit anomalous, and the fact that we barely had a tent increased our alienness. The crowning jewel in our bizarre stay was that it POURED rain, almost all night. Fortunately, we didn't get wet, but our shelter looked a bit worse for wear when we packed up in the morning (while all our neighbors ate breakfasts of bacon & eggs & coffee from their cafe tables!).

When we finally escaped the nightmare campground, we dropped our bags in the luggage lockers at the ferry terminal, and went to the Danish Resistance Museum. It was a very interesting (and free!) museum of the Danish Resistance to Nazi occupation during the second World War, and we spent most of our day there. (We also ate Danish corndogs... yum?)

And now, we write to you from the 10th deck of the M.s. Pearl of Scandinavia, our cruise shi- er- ferry. I say cruise ship, because it's the most elaborate ferry I've ever been on. It has two decks of pure entertainment (in their words, "an ocean of entertainment"), including 9 restaurants, 3 music clubs, duty free "sea shops," 3 family friendly venues, a cinema, and a conference center! All for additional cost, of course. We're of to explore the coffee bar! Ciao for now!