Motourama Part 9: Illegal Border Crossing
Hello family, friends and followers! In this Travel Story we are traversing the border to the neighbour in the north and Esben’s home country, Denmark, illegally!
After a night of salsa dancing, determined to not let the loss of the family ring get us down too much, we got our bags packed and fitted back on the bikes – a task which now takes half as long as the first time we did it. Progress! Although a little more sleep would have been nice, we were eager to get going. We knew we had quite a long day in the saddle ahead of us, but felt very optimistic. The sun was out, the temperature was above 10°C, and we had some nice, curvy roads just waiting to be touched by the tires of our travel hungry beasts.
Having stocked up on some delicious Käsebrötchen (cheese buns) and chocolate cookies, we were ready to go from Lübeck, near the east coast, to Husum on the west coast, and then up north towards the Danish border.
Sunshine and delicious snacks. Yes!
The day was going just great, the sun was still shining, the temperature had risen a bit, and the roads and scenery was as lovely as imagined. There was just one teeny, tiny problem, which we knew was looming in the distance; the border crossing into Denmark. You see, in order to be allowed entrance into Denmark, you have to show a valid passport. Something we both own but we didn’t have on hand, because they are still stuck in the embassy mill awaiting visas.
Luckily, our route led us past one of the smallest border crossings, which is basically just a country road with a few houses on each side. As we arrived at the border, there was not a single border patrol in sight. We breathed a sigh of relief, and kept the ol’ wheels rollin’. Truly a great day!
Lucky us! No need to show passports here.
On the way up from the border, we went west to the coast, which is called Vadehavet (directly translated to The Trot Sea), a tideland running from Germany to Denmark. It is a very interesting landscape, as the sea bed is exposed for a couple of hours a day, making it possible to walk long distances on fishes’ lawns.
Denise trotting to the trot sea.
The route also led us past Ribe, a city with traces back to the viking age, where a whole, authentic viking village, Ribe Vikingecenter, has been recreated as a living museum. As it was the end of the day, we were keen to get going, but had a short stop to take a quick look.
The people, populating the village over the summer, make the visit a unique experience. They are all volunteer workers and students. All the houses are meticulously made by experienced craftsmen from all over Europe, also volunteering, following the traditional methods and using the authentic tools. Definitely worth a visit if you ever come to Denmark.
Craftsmen at work creating a new house.
Our route ended at the south end of Ringkøbing Fjord in the small harbour town of Bork Havn, where we pitched our tent for the first time. How that went, will be tomorrow’s tale.
Until then, stay sneaky and traditional!