Dublin, Sep 2021

As one of our humans still had a lot belongs left in an attic in Denmark, where he once lived, we were invited to join the travel and bring back the belongings.

We would be driving to Gilleleje, a small town north of Copenhagen and returning to Dublin 2 weeks later. It would be a 4,200 kilometer drive through 6 countries.

Click each photo to enlarge

From Bruges we went to Antwerp. Here, we stayed at the Hilton at the old market square, the Groenplaats.

Antwerp, Belgium, Sep 2021

Antwerp is famous for its diamond industry and there are many dealers and retailers.

We went to see the central train station with its famous architecture. The building opened in 1905.

Antwerp, Belgium, Sep 2021

We also wanted to walk on the street Cogels-Osylei. This street is famous for its architecture and is described in the writer Robert Goddard's book "Long Time Coming".

After Antwerp, we drove a short distance through Holland and went through the industrial heartland of Germany: The Ruhr District. We stopped for the night at the Best Western Der Föhrenhof Hotel near Hanover. It had been a long day of driving 600 km.

Celle, Germany, Sep 2021

Northeast of Hanover is the small town of Celle. Here, we went to see the fine Celle Castle. Among several royals to have stayed here are Britains king George I and the Queen in Exile of Denmark, Caroline Mathilde.
"Perhaps in a past life I was the king bear of Lüneburger Heath," Roger pondered...

Next day would be another day of driving long distances, so before we left, Roger made sure to have a thorough shower. We could hear him singing in the bathroom.
"Ship o-hoey, and a bottle of rhum on the seven seas. Hom-hom, di-de-ly pom-pom."

Puttgarten, Fehmarn, Sep 2021

We reached the ferry port in Puttgarten on the island of Fehmarn. Here, we waited at the back of the queue before boarding the Scandline ferry that would sail us from Germany to Denmark.

It only took 45 minutes with the ferry before we landed on the island of Lolland. We had been to Lolland many times in the past to watch sea eagles flying high in the air.

Fuglsang, Lolland, Sep 2021

Our humans had booked a room at the small castle of Fuglsang on Lolland.

After a walk in the park, we enjoyed coffee in the nicely decorated rooms downstairs.

Gilleleje, Denmark, Sep 2021

Finally, we arrived the small fishing town of Gilleleje north of Copenhagen. It was a joy to visit the sister of one our humans and there were lots to talk about. Next morning one of our humans started bringing down plenty of boxes from the attic. They were filled with old belongings. McBear's old belongings were also stored in boxes in the attic. We had to find our way up the ladder. It looked like a daunting task...

Phew, it was hard work to find McBear's old stuff and putting it in boxes.
"Careful now!" McBear said as Roger placed another item in the box. "It's my very first laptop - it's the one that made all the typos..."

Ratingen, Germany, Sep 2021

Having stuffed the car with loads of boxes, a 19th century treasure chest and an western guitar, we left Gilleleje and headed south. In Ratingen near Düsseldorf, we stayed for the night, exhausted after 750 km on the roads including hours of queueing on the motorway - Hamburg really is a bottleneck. Tomorrow would be another long day of driving.

We arrived the ferry port in Cherbourg and waited to boarder the Stenaline ferry that would bring us back to Ireland. It had been a very educational trip.