Fancy a bit of France?

“Should you sit upon a cloud you would not see the boundary line between one country and another, nor the boundary stone between a farm and a farm. It is a pity you cannot sit upon a cloud.” – Kahlil Gilbran

*We flew from London into Toulouse and picked up Bart, our little black Peugeot. Murph navigated for me the next couple hours*. *French roads are in stellar shape and drivers very sane, making driving a real joy! First home – Bergerac*

*Charming B&B that was as inviting both day…*

*I loved their beautiful kitchen – where we ate our breakfast.*

*Just walking through the old town was like strolling around an art gallery*.

*Bergerac is a bit short on green spaces but I did manage to find some pretty gardens.*

*This is a fine example of a modern alter in one very old church we toured.*

*Next to the church is one of the Bergerac’s statues of Cyrano de Bergerac. Although much is made of the “Cyrano connection*” *the reality is that there is almost no connection at all between the town and the famous character.*

*Despite the historical inaccuracy this statue is also perhaps the most photographed monument of Bergerac. There is often a queue of people wanting their photo taken with Cyrano!*

*Being situated on the Dordogne River made this town an attractive stop,*
*since there is a bike path that runs along the water.*

*We headed up and past the bridge – due East.*

*Lovely views of the Dordogne while pedaling along a tree lined, paved path.*

*Gorgeous morning – although warming up to the 90s later today.*

*What’s not to love?* ❤️ *Riding along and “bon jouring” people as we passed by!*

*We rode out about 14 miles to Lelinde to see the dam there. Impressive engineering in order to allow river cargo boats to bypass a treacherous stretch of the Dordogne.*

*Pretty cool canal & locks, too.* Opened in 1843, the canal belongs to an era where transport of goods relied on waterways and shipping. After that we rode back home and locked the bikes up. The bike hire company will pick up at their convenience – great service.

Hot and hungry now we walked uphill into the city to a patisserie that we had spotted yesterday. I was very curious to find out what that vial sticking in the little cake contained. Murph loves napoleon pastries so that’s his in the background. In anticipation, I squeezed the little vial, fully expecting it to be honey – nope, it was not honey! Quite a strong liqueur flowed through my little treat – hmmm – not a fan, but now I know. Mystery solved!

*All in all, Bergerac was a great start to our time in the Dordogne region of France.*

Pretty Posies & your moment of Zen!

“Life is already too short to waste on speed.” – Edward Abbey

“For every beauty there is an eye somewhere to see it. For every truth there is an ear somewhere to hear it. For every love there is a heart somewhere to receive it.” – Ivan Panin

Contented in the Cotswolds…

Coddiwomple: (v.) to travel in a purposeful manner towards a vague destination.

We found this ancient cemetery a few blocks from our “home” in Stroud. It’s set on the side of a hill overlooking the valley. Many walking paths throughout – a very peaceful and wonderful place for the locals to commune with nature.

And when you drive tight roads like this you need a bit of peacefulness! This traffic sign tells us that we are to yield to the cars coming up the lane, so whenever we spot a car heading up it’s our job to tuck in wherever possible to create a space. There is very little parking, with many cars parked along the side of the road, so typically there are several cars to work around. We were very impressed with how well people cooperated with one another❣️

*This is St Mary’s Church in Painswick and it is surrounded with 99 highly trimmed* *yew trees. The story is that if there were 100 trees the devil would be able to intervene by pulling out the last one – thus keeping the count at 99!* 🤷🏽‍♀️

*It’s hard to capture topography but if you look closely at this lovely image, you can see how far down the village goes.*

*Always on the look out for public foot paths – and in England we were never far from one.*

*“Of the blessings set before you, make your choice,* *and be content.” –* Samuel Johnson

*This is another beautiful example of Cotswolds stone homes.*

*Sooo, I guess we’re drawn to walking the local canals* 😊

*Greeting the boaters as they float under the bridge.*

*Stroud – a gorgeous and very hilly town – modern stores on the 1st floor and the cool old buildings on top.*

*An old town but with a modern arcade of shops, too!*

*On the outskirts of Winchcombe we hiked up Cleve Hill. But check this out – the hiking paths are intertwined with an 18 hole golf course!*

*Of course, the obligatory sheep join the fun starting every April 1st. The large building below is the club house for the golfers.*

*One of the golfers that we chatted up told us about a dog running into these plantings a few years ago and it emergerged, carrying a piece of a missing plane from WWII.*

*The Canadian families of these seven men came to Cleve Hill to finally have some closure when this plaque was erected.*

*Lovely Winchcombe in the evening light…*

*strolling around as we wait for dinner.*

*The farmer’s fields and public paths never far alway.*

*We had a wonderful visit to Sudeley Castle just outside Winchcombe. There were many beautiful gardens – this is the Queen’s Garden.*

*Sudeley Castle – with royal connections spanning a thousand years. It has played an important role in the turbulent and changing times of England*’s *past.*

*Thanks to Oliver Cromwell’s orders to destroy the castle – this is now the ruins of the* *banqueting hall.*

*The Knot’s Garden – designed after one of Queen Elizabeth I’s dresses.*

*We made a couple of visits to the train station to see steam trains come and go.*

*Because Murph loves trains and I love him*❣️

*Now this was a huge kick – we met a few family members – Doug, Shannon and Claire, all the way from Denver CO, in Guiting Power for dinner at the Hollow Bottom restaurant.*

*But here’s the Belle of the Ball – the beauty of them all – and my “little buddy” – celebrating her 13th birthday* ‼️

*While walking through the village that evening, after dinner, Doug took this great shot of their war memorial.* *The perfect picture after a wonderful family gathering* ❤️

UK is OK with us!

“Twenty years from now, you’d give anything to be: This exact age, exactly this healthy, and back in this exact moment. Now – take a second to enjoy it now.” – Rich Webster

*“A true friend is someone who thinks you are a good egg even though you are slightly cracked.” –* Bernard Meltzer

*By now, most of you know that our main reason for going to Great Bedwyn is to visit our dear friend*, *Belinda. A bonus this time was that a wedding took place at St Mary’s Church in the village. I got a glimpse of the bride and groom as they headed to their reception.*

The bells at St Mary’s rang out for about 30 minutes after the ceremony – lovely occasion!

*Many of you also know that one of our happiest places in the world is this canal.*

*We were* *on the bridge in Hungerford here – heading down to the towpath.*

*Look how happy Murph is here – such a beautiful and peaceful place to stroll along and the weather was gorgeous.*

*It was a Sunday morning and many of the locals were enjoying the canal too. Some fishing, some boating, some biking and of course, many were walking along – enjoying this warm and sunny day!*

*This boat has permanent residents and I love all of the foliage on and around the their house. If you look closely you may even spot a gorilla!*

*After a three hour walk we were getting hungry so we went to our favorite spot in Hungerford, The Tutti Pole, for “cream tea”.*

*Ok, so Murph had a coke instead of tea but he still loved the scones etc.*

*Headed out of Great Bedwyn on roads like this – still in the county of Wiltshire.*

*Arrived in the village of Burton. Our home for the next two nights had the most amazing flowers. Plus we also, for some reason, were given a huge apartment. Crazy nice!*

Our hotel was very close to the village of Castle Combe – a picturesque place we planned to spend some time in. The first house we encountered when walking from the car park into the village was this one. Look at this beautifully thatched roof home – nice, eh?

The market cross is the first thing you see as you enter Castle Combe. It’s a very striking feature. Market crosses like this were common sights in English trading towns but this one is unusual because it has a large pyramid-like roof to protect it. In medieval times, these crosses marked the location of a church-sanctioned market. Stalls would be set up here and people bought, sold and traded goods around the cross. Perhaps it helped to keep the traders honest?

*This is an iconic view of a street in Castle Combe – tough to get a picture of it sans tourists! The Cotswold stone is even prettier than can be captured on “film”!*

Castle Combe has been called “The Prettiest Village in England” and with good reason; visitors have been coming to enjoy its charms for at least a century and the small street leading from the Market Cross down to the By Brook is as picturesque today as ever.

*The By Brook – looked rather bubbly to me!*

*Sweet sign at the beginning of our hike.*

*We started up this path leading us above Castle Combe.*

*As promised, we saw many, many sheep! Such fun*❣️

*Our end point where we turned back and headed up the trail and returned to the sheep.*

*But first we had to check out a few charming homes –*

*with unique names and inviting flowers at their entrances.*

*Captivating bridges that begged us to slow down and*

*just marvel at the fact we were there.*

*Back home again to admire our “local” digs.* ❤️

Awesome Æroskobing

“The art of life is not controlling what happens to us, but using what happens to us.” – Gloria Steinem R.I.P. 🥲

*We parked Strawberry in Svendborg* *and hopped this ferry to the isle of Æro.*

*After a very comfortable, one hour+ journey we were there!*

*We stayed in the tiny town of Æroskobing where Murph found this nice apartment that was a short walk from the ferry dock.*

*It had an interesting piece hanging on the wall and many references to the popular character, TinTin around the room.*

*Murph loved this old window lock apparatus. It took a bit of thought but before long we were working them like champs!*

*We were very much looking forward to biking around the island so, once settled, we did just that. We rode the coast with beautiful views like this.*

*Denmark has a great numbering system for their bike routes so it makes navigating quite easy.*

*Æroskobing is known for their tiny, Monopoly-like beach huts along the shore.*

These beach escapes are privately owned on land rented from the town. Each is different and only one room – public WCs just down the path. It’s perfectly acceptable—and very Danish—to borrow a porch for a sunset sit!

*I absolutely loved the personal touches in the windows.*

*At one point we had to do a bit of clean up. The path was blocked with fallen branches from a recent storm.*

*We passed many U-shaped farm houses, typical of Denmark*. *The three sides block the wind and store cows, hay and people.*

While stopping to take a few photos of this farm we noticed the darkening sky. Yup, we got caught in it, but we had packed rain jackets and umbrellas on our bikes. We pulled up under some trees and popped up the umbrellas – 10 minutes later we were riding again! *We found the weather in Denmark to be very “Irish”.*

*This is the kind of architecture we saw and loved.*

*We thought this one was of particular interest* –

*Nothing like a* *Main Street that ends at the sea* ❣️

*Many of the houses had “street spies” on them — clever mirrors that let residents inside keep an eye on what’s going on outside.*

*I found this bakery that had the most wonderful chocolate chip cookies* – *loaded with nuts.* 😋

In windows throughout town, we noticed matching dog figurines. We read that these Staffordshire dogs (and knockoffs), popular in Victorian times, were placed facing inward when sailors were at home, and outward when they were away – supposedly to let village men know which ladies were lonely. What the what now? 😳

Full disclosure, the first day I tried to get on these heavy e-bikes I took a bit of a tumble on to the cobble stones. I had to do a bit of yoga breathing and a lot of self talking to get back up and going. So worth it though!

This is a 6,000 year old dolmen – an early Neolithic burial place. For 6,000 years, this has been a holy spot. The stones were considered to be fertility aids: For centuries, locals in need of virility chipped off bits and took them home. And yet, this ancient site was just off in the middle of a farmer’s field. No visitors center, no admission…

*Old Peter Jacobsen, who made his first bottle at 16 and his last at 85, created some 1,700 ships-in- bottles in his lifetime.*

*He bragged that he drank the contents of each bottle…except those containing milk.*

This museum opened in 1943, when the mayor of Æroskobing offered Peter and his wife a humble home in exchange for the right to display his works. Bottle Peter died in 1960 (and is most likely buried in a glass bottle;-), leaving a lifetime of elaborate little creations for visitors to squint and marvel at.

*This one is around 3 feet long and very detailed – fascinating indeed!*

*Our last night in Æroskobing we had dinner in the garden here.*

*I had an amazing plate of grilled cabbage, beets, squash and a potato cake. All so interesting and incredibly delicious!*

*I’m starting to really appreciate co-ed restrooms – they make so much more sense and are so practical*.

Riveting Ribe

“It often feels to me as if every fence, every little flower says, ‘take a look at me, and my story will unfold within you.’” – Hans Christian Andersen

Ribe is the oldest town in all of Denmark. It was the center of commercial activity in the early 8th century, and this may have been where the riches in Denmark originated, including with royal influence. Coins may have been struck there in 720!

Seems as though we have seen sirens in many of the places we’ve visited. Maybe she’s waiting for her loved one to return from a war or a fishing excursion? At any rates, this sculpture was atop a fort that we happened upon.

*The population of Ribe is approximately 8,400 and what really struck us was all of the green spaces that surround the outskirts*. *Made us long for more green spaces at home.*

*Murph booked this delightful apartment for two nights.*

*So, turns out the Danes love their hot dogs!*

*Not my thing, but Murph was anxious to try one.*

*Another walk, over the river and to a wonderful wooded path.*

*founded in 860 and dedicated to the Virgin Mary.*

*European cemeteries tend to be quite attractive.*

*Ribe has a fine one – loads and loads of greenery.*

*This is oldest restaurant in Ribe – we had a nice dinner here.*

*The Night Watchman does free tours every evening at eight o’clock and was very entertaining.*

*Even though we travel as lightly as possible – I may have bought an item or two here.* 🤷🏾‍♀️

*We had a hint of things to come in a week or so.*

The Black Sun season is in both spring and autumn. The starlings gather in large flocks to settle down for the night in the reed beds of the marshes. It’s not known for sure but possibly, it is because the staggeringly large flocks confuse the birds of prey, and when they are in a flock, it’s easier for the starlings to keep an eye out for potential dangers.

*And oh the roses – so many pretty roses in Ribe!*

Okay, I know this is a hollyhock but I just couldn’t leave it out!

Organic Aarhus (oar-hoos)

“Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore.” – Andre Gide

*Aarhus, Denmark’s second-largest city calls itself the “World’s Smallest Big City” Arguably it’s more like the world’s biggest little town: easy to handle and easy to like.*

*Aarhus lines up along a tranquil canal that runs through the middle of town down to the harbor.*

*I loved this sculpture “the snake” as it slithered in the wind.*

*A model at Den Gamie By (The Old Town)*. *This open air museum chronicles both the history of Danish market towns and the history of Aarhus, with preserved buildings, interiors, and goods from the past 400 years.*

*A little like our Greenfield Village but even more so…*

*Funny to see Blockbuster as a historical site.* 😊

*Whew, I’m so glad bikes have improved and that they are so much more comfortable to ride today.*

*Amazingly saved, moved and restored to this location.*

*Of course, Murph loved seeing the steam train!*

*I was shocked that this 1927 “swing” was electric*‼️

*The adjacent botanical garden is showing strong signs of fall.*

ARoS Kunstmuseum (ARoS Art Museum) is a must see, both for the building’s architecture and for its fun, accessible presentation of cutting-edge art. Square and unassuming from the outside, the bright white interior—with its spiral staircase winding up the museum’s eight
*floors—is surprising.*

*The Dome – is an oval-shaped outdoor mound atop the subterranean gallery.*

We continued down to the lowest level to see this Skyspace work by James Terrell. When we first arrived the dome was open and this little one was dancing around in the rain that was coming thru the opening.

*As the dome closed we all sat in silence and watched the light show.*

*Many, many color variations so this is just one example.*

*Maybe more fun to catch raindrops for this small child (?) after the dome reopened.*

This special installation is called “The Populace” and it was fascinating. Many, many wax figures in an art gallery. The “people” were dressed in clothes that came from donations and local thrift shops. Could have been creepy but turned out to be quite cool!

*“Your Rainbow Panorama”, a 150-yard-long, 52-yard-diameter, circular glass walkway in every hue of the color spectrum. Its 360° views over the entire city was interesting.*

*We always have time for watching children play!*

*Church of Our Lady – a local “Notre Dame”*

This was another highlight of our visit to Aarhus—I got to drive Strawberry (yes, I like to name the cars I drive -) into an elevator and go up to the top floor to park. Then we got into an elevator that looked like a British phone booth and ended up in the hotel lobby!