| 3 Ribe 825 A.D. |
| Train Ride to Copenhagen 4 |
| Index |
Train Ride Back to Hamburg : Wednesday, September 9, 2015
[Monika] We got up early and rode our bikes over to the train station with tickets that at least would take us into Germany. On the train a woman kindly showed us where the restraining straps were, that could be used to hold our bicycles in place. They really think of everything! Thus, we could comfortably sit down and not worry about our bikes toppling over.
In Niebuell we had 5 minutes, so Bob stayed with the bikes while I ran to the ticket machine and bought our tickets to Hamburg with a crisp 50 Euro bill (which unlike the Danish ticket machine, the German ticket machine accepted!) and then ran back. We only had a minute left to go to get on the train when I got back, so we quickly threw the bikes on the train and were just happy to sit down and relax on the way back. Crossing the Kiel Canal connecting the North Sea and Baltic Sea, we arrived in Hamburg around Noon and immediately took the S-Bahn out to Heinke and Gustl's place where Mittagessen (lunch) was waiting for us. Then we moved our clothes from the bikes to the suitcases and had a wonderful afternoon and evening with Heinke and Gustl.
This time we took the train back to Hauptbahnhof since I had booked a hotel close to that. Our train to Copenhagen was suppose to leave at 7:30 from Hauptbahnhof and I wanted us to be close to be sure to make our early morning train. But then we found out that the Danes had just cancelled the trains going directly from Hamburg to Copenhagen because of problems with illegal immigrants from Syria! So we stopped at the information desk and where told that yes, the train we wanted to take was cancelled but with our tickets we could take a different train where we would have to switch in Flensburg. The bad news was that different train left at 6:20 a.m.! Ah well, getting up really early won't hurt us.
But now we had to find the hotel. By this time it was dark and the hotel was not quite as obvious as I had hoped. But with the help of a kindly German who used his iPhone's GPS to help find the way, we did manage to find it. Later we found there was a much quicker way from the hotel to Hauptbahnhof using a sidewalk through a construction zone.
Hamburg and Bahrenfeld : Thursday September 10, 2015
[Monika] We met with Detlef at his office in Altona to set me up to be able to look at my accounts from my iPad. My German bank has a remarkably intricate way to handle funds electronically, but it takes a lot of patience to install and get working on an iPad. Afterwards we stopped again at the train station to ask about the trains to Copenhagen, and were told the same thing. Really, nobody was quite certain what the Danish border guards were doing or when they would let normal train traffic resume between Germany and Denmark.
[Bob} With our necessary business done, we decided to take the rest day to wander around Bahrenfeld, where Monika was raised, and see if it was as she remembered it. So from the Altona train station we hopped onto a train to go just one stop down the line to Bahrenfeld. We both remembered a nice Imbiss about 1/2 a block up from the train station where we had had "schnitzel, Wiener Art" (i.e.: "breaded pork chop, Vienna style") on our last visit. On that visit, the waitress/co-owner had carefully explained the difference with "Wienerschnitzel", which apparently was a breaded form of veal, a much more expensive item! Fortunately that couple was still running the Imbiss (her husband is the cook), and they still had that item on the menu, so we both had a very tasty and filling lunch.
Re-fueled, we walk the short distance to the Friedrich-Ebert Hof apartment complex, which is still very much in use, and stopped by Number 18, which is Monika's old apartment. Monika was particularly happy to see that the roses planted by her mother over 30 years ago were still growing and blooming! Hopefully, someone is still tending them and enjoying them as much as her mother once did. When you think about it, planting something that will live longer than you is probably a more effective way to "touch the future" than most of the things we do in day-to-day life, right? In any case, Mammie's roses stilled smelled very sweet, just like her. (I cannot verbally express how much I, and Monika much more than I, miss her.)
[Monika] We returned to our hotel fairly early as we had to change into "cruise ship" clothes for the evening. Dressed for a party, we took the U-3 subway from Hauptbahnhof, which curls down to the harbor dock area. There we got off and walked a couple blocks to a wonderful Portuguese Restaurant, where we celebrated Detlef's birthday. It was just great to see not only my nephew Detlef and his wife Susanne, but also Susanne's Mom and boyfriend, and Heinke and Gustl one last time. After a long, happy meal with 4 hearty courses and a lot of jokes and laughter, we sadly said "Good Bye" to my sister and family, and took the train back to our hotel for the night.
| 3 Ribe 825 A.D. |
| Train Ride to Copenhagen 4 |
| Index |
| Map of Spring Transatlantic Cruise | Map of Spring Bike Trip |
| Map of Fall Bike Trip in Germany and Denmark | Map of Fall Transatlantic Cruise |