Cycling trip

So I’ve just got back from an incredible 4 days cycling around Zealand. I went with my Italian friend, Sivlia, and we cycled around 200km in 4 days. Not a bad effort. First stop was catching a train to Roskilde (Yes we cheated a little bit). Roskilde is a really charming city and when we arrived there was a some medieval festival on. Also I found out that the main church in Roskilde is where all the kings and queens of Denmark are buried.

One of the tombs inside Roskilde Cathedral

Then it was off to ride around the coast to Holbæk. I was in charge of the map and as you probably all know I’m shocking with directions and maps. I get lost in Sydney quite regularly. But in my defence the bike route wasn’t that clearly marked and it was pretty tricky to figure out from the map where the route actually was. As many of the routes take small country roads so that you avoid the highways. So naturally we got a little lost and stumbled onto a mental asylum which we promptly rode through. But we got back on course and managed to find our way to Holbæk.

Just grabbing a spot of lunch

We were couch surfing for the entire trip which great to meet some Danes from the different cities we were visiting. On arriving at our first host’s place, in true Danish fashion, we pretty much started drinking and finish in the early hours of the morning. The Danes really know how to drink. The next morning (More like midday though) we headed out Ringsted. The weather thankfully held up and was just overcast. But it was bloody cold about 8 degrees for most of the trip.

A beautiful morning in Ringsted

The next day we went from Ringsted to Sorø and stopped for a bite to eat. Then it was onto Slagelse where we stayed the night. The final leg was to Næstved riding alongside the Tystrup Sø lake which was really beautiful. Once we arrived in Næstved we caught the train it back to Copenhagen.

Riding in Sorø

Tystrup Sø lake

All in all a great mini break from the hectic life of Copenhagen. I think the most enjoyable thing about the trip was cycling on all this small country roads with the rolling hills and farms on either side. Then heading through the forests with all the autumn colours and sun streaming through. Very majestic.

I’m definitely going to do some more cycling trips now, any suggestion? I was thinking Berlin to Copenhagen or top of Italy to the bottom. Nothing too big.

The bikes

Also thanks so much to Christopher, Martin and Igor for hosting us. It was really great to get to know you guys.

Take care
Jono

2nd Semester = cycling

So I’ve started back at uni now and entering the final stages of my exchange here in Denmark. At uni, if anyone is interested, I’m doing armed conflict law, protection of refugees and international environmental law. I’m really enjoying the subjects this semester and its made better by the fact I’m volunteering in some of the areas I’m studying. As I got some work helping the Danish Red Cross in International Humanitarian law group (Also called armed conflict law) and also helping the Danish Refugee Council. The work for the Danish Refugee Council has been limited but it has been extremely interesting to be involved in. You can read more about the situation here – http://www.drc.dk/news/news/artikel/denmark-sends-hundreds-of-asylum-seekers-to-uncertain-fate-in-greece/

I’ve had a few visitors this semester which has been awesome. It has been so great to have some friends visit and experience Copenhagen with. I think the best thing is that it has got me out and doing touristy things and taking photos. As it is really hard to be motivated to go out and do touristy things when you live in the city. So thanks heaps guys for coming, not only to catch up but get me out and about in Copenhagen. So firstly I had Sev visit in the first week of uni. Then Sean 2 weeks ago and then Kay just last week. Below is a few of my favourite shots while being a tourist in Copenhagen.

My old bike (My first love) outside Rådhuspladsen

My new bike (Thanks Steve) outside Kongens Nytorv

Nyhavn (Classic Copenhagen tourist shot)


The little mermaid (The real little mermaid is in China at the moment and so they have a live feed from China. Really bizarre)

So I think I have a problem I’ve become completely obsessed with cycling. A few weeks ago I made a trip up to Helsingør and Louisiana which was a pretty tame 60km ride. It was so beautiful cycling up the coast of Denmark and then going through the kings forest. I took national route 9, one of the many cycling routes throughout Denmark and it's a fantastic way to see Denmark. Once I reached Helsingør I made my way back to Humlebæk which is where Louisiana is located. Louisiana is an amazing modern art museum with beautiful gardens overlooking the Danish coast. One of the pieces I found particular interesting was a break up letter that this artist had received and had given to 107 women (e.g. a doctor, lawyer, child, etc) to analysis and give their various perspectives. The collection was presented in this huge auditorium like room which all the different interpretations littering the walls. It was a really unique concept. I would hate to think what the guy would have thought if he saw the exhibition.

Louisiana


My bike in the autumn leaves

Another really cool thing I did last week was go for a cycling dinner. It was organised by KFS, the university Christian student organisation, in which we cycled to different people places around the city for different parts of the meal. So I cycled to one persons place for the entree then cycled to someone else place for dinner and then somewhere else for desert. I thought this was an awesome idea. We have to do this in Sydney. (Maybe not the cycling bit though as we all might die trying to cycle to our different places)

There was also a cultural night in Copenhagen last week. The concept is that they open the doors of all the museums and have various events on for just one night. So you can go around the city seeing various art, music, history and cultural exhibitions. I loved this concept and found out they also do this in Amsterdam. Sydney take note.

So that’s the first few weeks of first semester.

Take care
Jono

Amsterdam

I loved Amsterdam. The red light district and the coffee shops what more could you want :) Actually when I arrived I went straight from the airport to church so I started off on the right foot. It wasn’t that intentional though but the timing just worked out perfectly. On a side note C3 Amsterdam is a great church well worth checking out if you’re in the area. The first thing that struck me was that the Dutch are alot more serious about cycling than the Danish. The Danish cycle but it’s more of a fashion accessory in most cases. While the Dutch they cycle and they don’t care one bit how crap there bike is as long as it get you there. Definitely the biking capital of the world. Sorry Copenhagen.

This is proof

Again for the 3rd time I caught up with Miriam, one of my friends from Copenhagen. Felt like we were stalking each other around Europe a bit. So one of the nights I met up with her and Kay and had dinner and checked out Harlem, which is about 20 mins outside of Amsterdam. What I like the most about the city was the canals and the look and feel was just incredible. It did help that the weather was really good. So I completely feel in love with Amsterdam definitely another city I could live in. (Feels like I’m scouting places where I can live but don’t worry Sydney is top of the list for the moment)

Amsterdam through a bike's eyes

So that was a quick snapshot of my trip over the summer. I also went to see my family in England which was really nice to see some of my family. As it’s been nearly 8 months since I saw anyone from my family. Not long now though. So now it is back to Copenhagen 2nd Semester can’t wait.

Cheers
Jono

Barcelona

Barcelona is such a diverse and is an amazing city. It has everything; beach, art, architecture, food and great night life. We actually went when there was this festival on that ran for 2 weeks all through the night. The one and probably the most important thing I learnt while in Barcelona is that the Catalonia region is NOT SPAIN.

The city of Barcelona

Get it right!

Ibiza

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All I can say

Madrid

In Madrid we had our own personal Spanish guide in Dan. It was awesome to catch up with someone from back home and to check out Madrid with. In the summer time Madrid is pretty quite as everyone heads to the coast. It seems like once summer hits everyone in Europe drops everything and heads to the beach. But still Madrid was really nice and we sampled many cafes in true Reynolds style.

The food on offer at a random festival we stumbled on

Too cool for school at a jazz club in Madrid. (Please note Dan is wearing my sunnies)

Rome

Well Rome has to be my favourite city in Europe. I love history and Rome is jammed pack with it. So much so that the Romans don’t know what to do with it all. So there are ancient ruins of temples and building just lying there with very little protection or information about them. Welcome to Rome. As always the best part of Italy is the food. Pasta, lasagne, osso buco, tiramisu, cappuccinos, etc. The only downside to Rome is the amount of tourists there. It is completely packed and every major tourist attraction has queues a mile long (Literally). But still Rome is the best city in Europe to visit, in my humble opinion.

The classic tourist shot. Got to love Rome!