A week later, I went with six other people to the Carlsberg brewery and museum. I would have to say the most impressive part of the self-guided tour was the display of approximately thirteen thousand different beer bottles that Carlsberg has produced over the years. The total collection is over seventeen thousand unique bottles, but not all of them were on display. The museum/brewery is no longer one of their main breweries, but it does actively produce Jacobsen beer, which is one of their premium brands. The price of admission included two free beers at their bar at the end of the tour, and I must say they were absolutely delicious.
In between those two trips, I went with Benny and Vivi out to the town of Roskilde. Of note in Roskilde is the Viking ship museum. Viking ships were discovered a few decades ago sunk in Roskilde Fjord. Through a long process of restoration, the ships were partially rebuilt. Based on that knowledge, several models of Viking ships were reconstructed. The replica of the ocean-going warship actually sailed from Roskilde to Dublin last year, and will be returning this summer. You can see the pictures of the rebuilt and replica ships starting here.
Before I talk too much about the study tour, here's a shot of me in front of Rosenborg Castle, as discussed earlier in the blog. As much as I was mentioning how bad the weather has been, the past couple of weeks have on the whole been pretty nice. And the weather for the tour was absolutely fantastic, which was great. It could have been a lot worse if the weather was poor. But, it wasn't. Let me fast forward a second, though, and mention that on the ferry back to Denmark at the end of the tour, you could look up at the sky and see that in Germany the sky was clear and bright; when you looked over to Danish skies it was dark and heavily overcast. Anyway, to return to the picture at hand, I am standing in Rosenborg Have, or Rosenborg Park. There are a number of public parks in Copenhagen, and this is one of them. It's quite pretty, even with the whole lack of leaves thing. I am sure it is quite gorgeous once the season's change a bit. There are wide paths, a couple of fountains, and some old bunkers and fortifications. It's really a nice place, and it's only about a ten minute walk from the DIS buildings.So now, on to the study tour. You can see a photographic slide show of the tour, but I suggest you read about it first, then watch the show. Of course, you can do what you like. I'll never know. First stop along the way: The Storebæltsbroen, or the Great Belt Bridge. This bridge's pylons reach 833 feet in the air, making it actually the tallest structure in Denmark. The bridge connects the islands of Fyn and Sjælland (where Copenhagen is). The large suspension bridge and railway tunnel actually only connect Sjælland to the tiny island of Sprogø. This island was originally used as a women's prison and lighthouse post. During the construction of the tunnel, the material dug out was used to artificially triple the island's size. Connecting Sprogø to Fyn is a much lower bridge that carries both rail and road. The island has its own radar tower, and there is a small naval base on the Sjælland coast in case of emergency. The Great Belt Bridge is one of the only two toll routes in Denmark. The other is the bridge to Sweden. Absolutely the best part of the visit to the bridge was the fact that we were able to go inside it. The bridge is, as can be seen in the photos, smooth on the outside. All of the structural elements are inside. It is built from concrete and untreated steel; there is a huge dehumidification system inside the structure. Being inside a bridge and hearing the cars drive a few feet above your head is totally surreal. We learned that this was an exclusive tour: the island itself is only open for tourism by one busload of passengers a week, and they certainly don't get to go inside the bridge. Such are the perks of having a former Transportation Minister as an instructor.
After we left the bridge, we went to the offices of the only German-language newspaper in Denmark. We learned a lot about the culture of the German minority in Denmark. It is, however, much smaller than the Danish minority in Germany, but more about that later. Then, after that, we went to stay in a nice small town for the night. The hostel was very nice, and the next morning we left for the next stop along the tour.
It was battlefield of Dybbøl, where the Danes lost a war against Austria and Prussia back in 1864. It holds the distinction of being the first battle at which the Red Cross was present. We went on a guided tour, and a few people got to dress up in Danish and Prussian uniforms, which was kind of interesting. Then we went outside where a fortress has been reconstructed. It was pretty interesting, but it lacked authenticity, I felt. Still, there were some incredible views.
From there, we went to Kiel, which is the capital of Schleswig-Holstein. We visited the Landerstag, or the state parliament. It was just recently rebuilt, and the room was very nice, with a fantastic view of the water. We had two brief lecture/question periods with two different people. The first was with one of the representatives of the SWW, which is essentially the party for Danish minority representation in the Parliament. One thing I found very interesting was that the SWW gathers some (not many, but some) votes from non-Danes who prefer the Scandinavian schooling model to the German school model. Scandinavian schools are more similar to schools in the United States, where up to around ninth or tenth grade students are kept together. In German schools, children are identified and separated at young ages. The second person we met with was a member of the Schleswig-Holstein European Affairs Committee. Interestingly enough, Schleswig-Holstein, together with Hamburg, has an EU office in Brussels. Thus, Schleswig-Holstein's interests are directly represented, together with - or sometimes in opposition to - German interests. Of course, Schleswig-Holstein does not have any direct representation, but they have their own group of lobbyists. It is important to note that lobbying does not have the same negative connotations in Europe as it does in the United States.
After spending the night in Kiel, we spent Saturday in Lübeck. We went on a combination bus/walking tour, and our tour guide was something else. He was an old German man with an intense mustache, a deep voice, and an interesting sense of humor. The first sight was St. Mary's Church. Connected to the church is the Town Hall of Lübeck, and the town square, where our tour guide showed us where we were on a metal map of the town. Then we went to Niederegger, a famous marzipan shop. Downstairs is a store full of marzipan and chocolates, and upstairs is a museum where they have all sorts of marzipan art, including a a ship and several life-sized statues. After that we went back inside the church, which was amazing. In one place there was a fallen, broken bell. It had been left in place since the bombings in World War II, as a reminder. Then we went and saw a statue of the devil, and then we went to eat in a restaurant that used to be a sailor's hall. Apparently the sailor's guild had a form of social security established in the 1200s! A woman whose husband died at sea was entitled to payments for the rest of her life. Quite progressive. On our way out of the city, I was able to get a few good photos of the city's skyline.
It was a great trip, and exhausting, too. I had a lot of fun. I think the best part was the exclusive bridge tour, simply because I know that's one of the things I - without a doubt - would have been unable to do without being on this program. More to come as it happens!
