Standing out from the crowd

In a city where there are almost three bicycles for each inhabitant people go to extremes to ensure they stand out from the crowd. This lady's bicycle is painted yellow and decorated with flowers and certainly makes a change from the ordinariness of some.

Today's word is "cykel" which means bicycle. -RS

The air transport hub of Scandinavia

Copenhagen International airport is the 14th busiest airport in Europe and carries about 21 million passengers annually. It has 63 carriers flying to more than 110 destinations.

The Danish word for an airport is a direct translation from the English and is lufthavn. - RS

Where the elders met

This circle of stones can be found near the station in a suburb of Copenhagen named Valby. The plaque near it refers to it being a Folketinget. I was surprised as this is also what parliament is referred to and looked up the word and its meaning: Folk refers to people and ting (et) means assembly and is an old Norse word. Clearly, in the olden days, this used to be an important place now commemorated with these stones. - RS

Danish love of good design and green technology

On a recent visit to Viborg (an ancient city with a strong link to Danish kings) two things struck me about my time here: I have noticed that Danes love good design and seem obsessed with being green.

I came across the new municipal (in Danish it is called a kommune) offices. This beautifully designed building forms the centrepoint of the community. The roofs of the parking area has been planted so as to ensure a smaller carbon footprint. - RS

The first Danish word I learnt

I cannot believe that it is almost four years since I first came to Denmark! It has been a exciting journey and in the process I have met many wonderful people like Christopher who has become great friends and who has shared their country's history and culture with me.

During the next few weeks I will retrace some of my experiences and in the process try and introduce you to some Danish words.

When I first came to Denmark I noticed these streamers or pennants on flag poles wherever I traveled. And so I learned my first Danish word: "Vimpel". - R.S.

Last stop: Sinnheim Technikmuseum

A great way to end the road trip was our (last) stop at Sinnheim Technikmuseum, a fabulous technical museum with a multitude of cars, planes, tanks and lots of other stuff on display. Among the top items are these two, the Concorde and the Russian version called the Concordski. It's the sister museum of the one in Speyer, which we saw on the way south, so this one was the right place to finish off a great trip.

From tomorrow and the next few days Ricco Scheepers will be guest writing on the blog.

Besancon

On a road trip like this you sometimes decide just to find a hotel in a convenient town on the way to another place. And when you get there you realize that you should have allowed for more time as it's actually an interesting place. Besancon in France was one of those times and places. We arrived late in the afternoon so the Citadel was closing, it was raining and we were only thinking about our next stop in Germany. They did have a nice restaurant though so it wasn't a waste of time.

A beautiful view

Driving through the Alps calls for stops to enjoy views like this of the lake Lac de Serre-Poncon.

Driving through the Alps

The drive through the Alps was an interesting one with narrow roads, tunnels and cliffs on both sides. The goal was to reach the ski resort Saint Jean Montclar where a very nice and very cheap hotel awaited.

On the way to the Alps

When driving around in unknown territory so to speak, you often come around something that you hadn't expected. This is such a case. On the way to the Alps we suddenly passed these stone formations at Les Mées and had to stop to get a few shots of them.

Avignon

On our way from Sanary-sur-Mer we stopped for a few hours in Avignon. As luck would it, it was during the theatre festival so performances and ticket-touts roamed the streets. At the square in front of the papal palace this group made a performance of dance. A few hours was way too short a time to spend here, so that is a town that begs for a revisit.

Le Castellet

Just outside of Sanary-sur-Mer is the little Medieval town of Le Castellet. Perched on top of a hill and a maze of narrow and twisting streets this is a perfect place to stroll around, enjoy the calm atmosphere and take a lot of photos.

What a view

The view from the guest house just outside Sanary-sur-Mer where we stayed, had a spectacular view over the sea. We stayed at a friends house, or rather at the mother of a friend, and had a splendid time there.

Sanary-sur-Mer

After the glamour of Cannes it was time to go to a more quiet place and Sanary-sur-Mer certainly fit that description with its small and picturesque harbour and town center. There were tourists but it was the relaxed and down to earth ones.

For the rich and famous

Walking along the Boulevard de la Croisette in Cannes is a glimpse into the (holiday) lives of the rich and famous as the big hotels here are not for the ones without a lot of means. Luxury cars park outside the right shops and the stylish air their latest acquisitions. This is truly a town of glitter. But staying at hotels on the fringe of town is not expensive so there's a lot of ordinary people here as well.