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**saralou** · #**1381** 8 Sep 2015

Henrietta suggested we do a very Danish thing and rent bikes to tour the city.

copenhagen 16 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 44 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 45 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 46 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 25 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 26 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1382** 8 Sep 2015

She managed to get in all the sights including the Round tower,

copenhagen 19 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 21 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

The Rosenborg Palace (a summer house built in 1606 and surrounded by the King’s garden) and the changing of the guards there,

copenhagen 27 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 29 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 32 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 35 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 36 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 39 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 41 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

The domed cathedral,

copenhagen 47 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

The Amalienborg Palace (home of the royal family),

copenhagen 48 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

The little mermaid (a bronze sculpture on the sea shore popular since 1913),

copenhagen 54 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 55 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 57 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 58 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

Nyhavn or new harbor, which is full of restaurants.

copenhagen 60 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 61 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 71 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

Christiansborg Palace, which is the home of the Danish Parliament as well as the Royal stables.

copenhagen 62 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 64 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 63 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 65 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1383** 8 Sep 2015

Then it was a visit to Christiania, which is a self-proclaimed autonomous neighbourhood inside the Christanshavn area of Copenhagen. It has been a source of controversy since its creation in a squatted on military area in 1971. Its cannabis trade on Pusher Street has been tolerated by authorities, but is gang run and really has nothing to do with the people who live in Freetown. This is a very creepy area with guys in ski masks hiding behind army camouflage nets selling weed. No photos allowed of course.

copenhagen 70 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1384** 8 Sep 2015

From here we continued the tour and ended up on Paper Island at Copenhagen Street Food to check out the street food trucks. We met up with two other adventure riders Lars and Annette.

copenhagen 72 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 73 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

copenhagen 75 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1385** 11 Sep 2015

Setting out south from Copenhagen we had a great day at 24 degrees and slightly cloudy. There was almost no wind. We made the ferry at Gedser in good time after 155 km.

Screen Shot 2015-09-01 at 10.59.36 PM by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

Here you can just ride up and get a ticket. There were about 15 other bikes here as well. The lashing points are pretty good. They space the bikes out at designated spots along both outer walls, where there are permanently attached ratchet tie downs that secure the bike to the wall and the deck.

berlin 1 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1386** 11 Sep 2015

The crossing was very calm on the 2-hour trip.

Screen Shot 2015-09-01 at 11.00.03 PM by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

From here we headed east to the island of Rugen Germany. This was just a scenic stop that was not too far from the ferry in case we had issues and arrived later in the day. We set up camp and then took a tour thru the national park. The storm in the night was incredible. It was pouring, like build an ark pouring and the thunder and lightening were deafening.

Screen Shot 2015-09-01 at 11.03.15 PM by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1387** 11 Sep 2015

Luckily for us it stopped in the early morning so we could pack up in the dry. We then backtracked to the 20 and rode south and west on the dreaded highway all day in 34-degree heat to get to Berlin.

Screen Shot 2015-09-01 at 11.04.27 PM by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

Our green card insurance runs out this week and we need to renew at ADAC. They are the only agents who will do this now. We arrived to the huge ADAC office near the Mitte zone about 2. The agent informed us that there are no ADAC offices in Berlin that sell green card insurance since the end of 2014. The nearest offices are more than 100 km (in almost all directions) away.

AGH! Well what can you do? So melting in the heat we made our way to the hotel we had booked near the Tiergarden. Driving up the main road we rode up to the Victory Column. This commemorates the Prussian victory in the Danish-Prussian war of 1866. As we rode up the street a truck pulled up next to us and the passenger yelled out to us with thumbs up “Welcome to Berlin!”

berlin 3 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1388** 11 Sep 2015

After some cold showers and aircon we ventured outside. Near our hotel is the Kaiser Wilhelm memorial church, which was heavily damaged in bombing raids in 1943.

berlin 4 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

We walked about 5 km thru the gardens, past the Victory Column, (which since 1864 has commemorated the Prussian victory in the Prussian-Danish War), and to the Bundestag or parliament with its glass -domed roof.

berlin 5 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 6 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 8 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 12 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1389** 11 Sep 2015

Next we headed to the nearby Brandenburg gate. This is one of the original 14 gates to the city. This 18th-century arch is one of the best-known landmarks of Germany. Out front of the gate you can see 2 lines of bricks that mark the location of the Berlin wall that divided the city for almost 30 years.

berlin 14 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 15 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 16 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 61 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1390** 12 Sep 2015

Today we signed up for a walking tour of the city. This included a trip to Museum Island a UNESCO site. The evidence of the mortar wounds is clearly seen.

berlin 20 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 21 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 22 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 24 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1391** 12 Sep 2015

The Museum of Fine Art

berlin 23 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

The massive Altes museum and the domed Berlin Cathedral flank the large square.

berlin 25 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 26 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 28 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 30 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 31 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 87 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1392** 12 Sep 2015

From here you can see the tallest “building” in Germany. This is the TV tower built by the Socialist German Democratic Republic to be “seen” by those in the West.

berlin 33 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

Next it was the memorial to the fallen soldiers of all wars.

berlin 44 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 41 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 42 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 48 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1393** 12 Sep 2015

The memorial to the infamous Nazi book burning in 1933 is in front of the University Library. The picture does not show it well, but the Plexiglas covers the opening to a white room lined with empty white bookshelves with space for 25,000 books.

berlin 45 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 46 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 47 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1394** 13 Sep 2015

This is an example of a “ghost” station on the subway. When the wall was up these stations were not open for access as the trains running here were West Berlin cars that passed under this area in East Berlin. They did offer opportunities for escape to the west however.

berlin 51 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

From here you pass the British, French, and USA embassies, which flank the Brandenburg gate. The Napoleon took the original statue from atop the gate in 1806 and the new one turns her head to eye the French embassy!

berlin 57 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 53 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 56 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 55 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 58 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 59 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

**saralou** · #**1395** 13 Sep 2015

We just passed by the Memorial for the Jews murdered in the holocaust. It was getting late in the day so we will have to come back here to visit

berlin 63 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickrit the information center.

berlin 62 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 64 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

We visited the site of Hitler’s bunker, which is now a parking lot in an effort to “normalize” the site. There is a small plaque erected in the corner for information.

berlin 66 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 67 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr

berlin 68 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr