Day 9: A Gray Day in Kiel Germany

October 18, 2018 by

Parts are from my dictated journal dated October 2, 2018, 16:45

A brand new country — Germany. (Birthplace of many of my ancestors, though we are visiting the far north regions of Germany and many of my “great-greats” were from the Bavarian region.)

Kiel felt grey all day.  I know it didn’t help that we had overcast skies and lots of rain, and that Kiel is more industrial and less historic. Since much of the city was demolished in World War II, it makes sense that the city has a different feel than places like Oslo or Aalborg. Even the older looking buildings have all been built after WWII. Perhaps if we were to return when it is summer and blue skies are prevalent, I might have a different take.

Today’s weather was inclement and I’m continuing to favor a bum leg, so we chose to stay in town rather than take the 5+ hour tour to Lübeck. We scheduled a replacement tour to the Kiel Maritime Museum which was only a quick walk from where the ship was docked.

Kiel Maritime Museum Source: Rüdiger Stehn / flickr

The maritime museum (Schiffahrtsmuseum) is in a former fish market hall at the Kiel harbor and its building was my favorite part of the museum. I have no photos of my own of the outside, because it’s hard to take photographs when in pelting cold rain, but here is a photo taken when the sun was shining. Source: Rüdiger Stehn / flickr

I’m quite taken by the idea of rehabbing old buildings and repurposing them, and Kiel’s Museum has been done with fine execution. The museum was large and open and filled with a wonderful soft light, all features that made the museum an inviting space.

The current exhibit was an installation titled 1918 and focused on a time of great change for the German military.

The beginning of the unwinding of the German monarchism started in Kiel in 1918 when the military commanders ordered their fleet to sail for one more battle after a series of staggering defeats and the sailors staged a revolt and refused.

Although I see the usefulness of documenting history, I don’t especially enjoy touring war history museums. And this exhibit was all about World War II. That bias admitted, those in the audience who were interested in history, including Bob, found the exhibits well done and informative.

The posters of propaganda, and the stories behind them, were interesting, and I was fascinated with the well crafted calligraphy in the hundred year old posters. All documentation of a time when great sacrifices were demanded of the German citizens, all with the promise of imminent victory, and the people sacrificed everything; they also lost everything.

After our Maritime Museum visit, we walked towards the city center. Still raining, still cold. We headed for Stadtgalerie Kiel (Kiel Municipal Gallery of Contemporary Arts and what we hoped to be a promising contemporary arts museum, but once inside we discovered the current exhibit was about — war. Ugh! No desire to spend much time here, but we did do a quick walk through.

We discovered a tucked-in-the-back art library which looked oh-so-enticing.

This museum houses a permanent exhibition of the works of the Expressionist artist Heinrich Ehmsen who was a Kiel native.

I finally ended up taking photographs of the art gallery itself-–a long hallway with a single patron, five paintings and a bench, symmetrical windows and radiators. All Miksang-like photos.

Then we left and I bought a leather jacket and Bob bought a beer. These activites redeemed the day.

Biergarten Holstenplatz © 2018 Bo Mackison

Here’s the site of the Biergarten Holstenplatz which offered a variety of local beer.

St. Nikolai Wing Altar ©2018 Bo Mackison

It’s hard to pass by a church without going in. St. Nikolai was no exception. The old church was destroyed during the war, but the church’s art was hidden and was later returned to the church after it was rebuilt.

This highly ornate wing altar was carved in 1460.

We frequently saw word “fahren” on street signs, a word that always caught our eye as it is a part of our surname.

Fahren: to drive, move, pass, run.

We returned to the ship midafternoon in preparation for an early departure me. There were a few openings in the gray clouds and the blue sky was most welcome sight.

Next we are heading through the Kiel Canal on our way to Hamburg. The 62-mile-long Kiel Canal links the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. More than 30,000 ships pass through the canal every year, which ranks it among the world’s busiest artificial waterways.

Here’s a rainbow farewell.

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Day 8: Surprises Await in Fredericia, Denmark

October 16, 2018 by

Welcome Rainbow over Fredericia © 2018 Bo Mackison

Parts are from my dictated journal dated October 1, 2018 — a brand new month!

Leaving the dock area and ready to explore the small town of Fredericia, there were all sorts of interesting sights to see. First, a row of Danish flags accompanied by a rainbow to welcome us.

Next, working tugs, made luminescent in the golden light. And an artist’s display with an infinity painting and miniature set up on the side –and no artist anywhere in sight.

Fredericia Harbor © 2018 Bo Mackison

Picture perfect harbor. We started walking, Bob and I following the guide at a quick pace. Cobblestones. Who ever thought those bumps of rock were a good enough idea that they should last for centuries, they might have had a stronger constitution than the one I possess.

We charged past a few churches, but there wasn’t much time to take photographs. I did get this photo of Joseph and Child, but we didn’t have time to go inside. Not my favorite way to see a place, but sometimes it’s better to compromise and get an overall feel for a place.

Fredericia Old City Hall © 2018 Bo Mackison

We did pause in front of this building. What a beauty from a different time.

From VisitLillebaelt website: The former Town Hall, named after architect Ferdinand Meldahl, was inaugurated on July 6th, 1860. Meldahl is also the architect who designed the Marble Church in Copenhagen and “Tinghusene” the council buildings in Aalborg.

Fredericia’s coat of arms with the motto “Pro pace armatus” (“Armed for peace’) is a very precise expression of Fredericia’s historic importance as a defensive installation.

St. Michael the Archangel Church © 2018 Bo Mackison

We did have quite a bit of time to explore St. Michael’s Church — both the interior and the churchyard. And it was well worth exploring. Recently renovated, its simple design and ornamentation were quite remarkable.

From VisitLillebaelt website: St. Michael the Archangel Church was originally a German church because of lots of immigrants from the foreign countries in the south. From the year 1687 the garrison of the town belonged to the church and the church is still a garrison church as well as being an ordinary parish church.

The church does not have a tall bell tower because nothing inside the fortress town was permitted to be seen over the ramparts for the sake of safety.

Interior details of St. Michael’s include the typical-for-Scandinavian-churches’ ship hanging from the rafters, a simple yet elegant chandelier, and a brass collection basket.

The surrounding graveyard is composed of well-tended family plots, more like a garden than a cemetery. Roses in bloom, lavender scenting the air, not a weed in sight.

Just a photograph of the brick gate of the Jewish cemetery.

From VisitLillebaelt website: The Jewish Cemetery is an important historical testimony to the considerable diversity of Fredericia’s population throughout centuries. With 550 graves it is the largest Jewish burial ground in Denmark outside of Copenhagen.

From VisitLillebaelt website:  Fredericia is home to one of the largest and most well-preserved ramparts in Northern Europe. It is still complete with bastions, ravelins, moats and even cannons.

Today the fortification forms a peaceful and beautiful frame around the oldest part of Fredericia. The ramparts were built to strengthen Denmark’s defences in a time of war in Europe. The ramparts were built in 1650 by farmers, soldiers and convicts.

Fredericia once had six historic gates protecting the city; only three remain.

From VisitLillebaelt website: The oldest of the gates is the Prince’s Gate which in its current shape dates back to 1753. The gate replaced an earlier ramshackled wooden gate. The architect behind the Prince’s Gate was Officer and military architect Samuel Christoph Gedde.

The Foot Soldier statue is of a Danish soldier located near the Prince’s Gate, one of the historic entrances to the city. The people of Fredericia are proud of this statue because it honors the foot soldiers of the military, not the generals.

We left mid-tour and went on the search for a coffeehouse. We found Cafe Vivaldi. Because it was cold and we were a bit fatigued from our walk through the city streets and fortification site, we ordered cake and coffee for our lunch. The carrot cake and cappuccino revived us nicely.

A city park/square complete with surprise fountain area.

Cars in Fredericia of the small variety. The rusty one bears the name “Swedish Chrome.”

Gotta take a documentary photo of the boot garden!

Also need documentary proof of the cone with its ice cream composed of dripping plants.

And at the end of the day, we pulled out of the harbor and headed into the sunset.

This evening we are on our way to Kiel, Germany and then we will traverse the Kiel Canal on our way to Hamburg.

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Day 6 Oh, Oslo!

October 15, 2018 by

From my dictated journal on September 29, 2018 8:40 PM:

I love Oslo.

Sailing the Oslofjord and pulling into the dock before sunrise and everything was cool blue and quiet.

Once off the ship, and on our way to a morning of art museums and Edvard Munch, we passed the Akershus Fortress. The colorful installation in front of the Akershus is a part of Oslo’s effort to rid the city center of as many cars as possible. The empty parking lots have inspired a whole new breed of art — post-traffic art installations. This parking lot now has a colorful design and a parking meter that’s equipped with a WiFi speaker where you play your own music and dance along. Shall We Dance? is by artist Marisa Ferreira.

Empty Chairs © 2018 Bo Mackison

There’s also art near the Fortress with a more serious intention — it’s an art memorial for Jewish Holocaust victims.

Artist Antony Gormley described his sculpture in this way: “The Holocaust cannot be represented. I want to make a place to remember, to make a bridge between the living and the dead in order that these events and their implication should not be lost. The site is very evocative with the most minimal intervention. The presence of the excluding walls of the fort and the sea are already very powerful imaginative catalysts. The trees act as a witness to time and its passing.”

Santa by L.A. Artist Paul McCartney © 2018 Bo Mackison

We saw lots of street art while touring Oslo on our way to art in art museums. Art in Oslo is both inside and outside. Paul McCartney recently unveiled his sculpture Santa, a six-meter tall, Santa-red cast iron rendition of the holiday icon holding something that looks like a Christmas tree. Hm. It IS an interesting feature in the middle of a round about.

We then visited the National Gallery and saw several of Munch’s paintings, including his famed The Scream, Madonna, The Sick Child, Dance of Life and Puberty, plus lots of works by Munch’s 20th century contemporaries such as Harald Sohlberg, Henrik Sørensen, Ludvig Karsten and the sculptor Gustav Vigeland, and I especially enjoyed my introduction to the Scandinavian landscape painters and Norwegian Romanticists.

Monet’s Rain at Etratat, 1886t

More rooms displayed art by Monet, Manet, Van Gogh, Gaugin, Toulouse-LaTrec. And of course 90 minutes in any museum is never enough, and thus much of the museum’s collection required walk-bys, so I definitely need to plan another sojourn to Oslo.

Following our stroll through the National Gallery, we drove to the Munch Museum.  Edvard Munch bequeathed all of his works and arts and papers to the city of Oslo. They are mostly housed in a museum built in 1964; a new museum is being built and will be completed next year.

I love the Munch Museum; I think I would love any museum dedicated to a single artist. Of course, other artist’s work is shown in the museum. We were there while this was open: Moonrise, An Exhibit of Marlene Dumas and Edward Munch.  (Follow the link for all sorts of information.)

After our museum tour was over, we headed back to the ship. On the way we drove past the Opera House. Lots of people were walking up the structure. Architect firm is Snøhetta. Beautiful from afar!

From Wikipedia: “The roof of the building angles to ground level, creating a large plaza that invites pedestrians to walk up and enjoy the panoramic views of Oslo. While much of the building is covered in white granite and La Facciata, a white Italian carrara marble, the stage tower is clad in white aluminium, in a design by Løvaas & Wagle that evokes old weaving patterns.”

I have to come back to Oslo. I’ve never wanted to see opera before my life, but this building makes me want to come back and see opera!

Smørrebrød on the Viking Sky © 2018 Bo Mackison

Smørrebrød! Yes. Back to the ship for lunch and our first taste of Smørrebrød, an open face sandwich with a bit of salad and a topping of meat or fish. (And then, after that meal, all seems well with the world!)

We canceled our planned excursion to Vigeland Park because of inclement weather (RAIN!) and an aching hip. Next time! But we were not about to sit on the ship with an entire city beckoning us to explore. So we walked across the street from the cruise ship terminal and took a steep set of stairs set into a grassy knoll to the back entrance of Akershus. A trek through a tunnel and an iron gate, and we were in the Akershus Fortress facing the harbor. What a view!

We played with the cannons, pretending to fire on the pretty Viking Sky. And then we strolled through the grounds, dodging the rainstorms, and eventually discovered Norway’s Resistance Museum. A must visit site.

Norway Resistance Museum, photo from Visit Oslo.

The Norway Resistance Museum at Akershus Fortress documents Norway’s domestic WWII history from 1940-1945. The exhibition has re-created five years of Nazi occupation through pictures, documents, posters, objects, models, and original copies of newspapers and recordings. The Museum is located in a building that dates from the 17th century, and adjoins the memorial for Norwegian patriots executed during the war.

It’s a sobering museum, and yet it still speaks loudly, honoring the efforts of those that refused to give in, refused to remain quiet, even while risking their lives.

We set sail down the Oslofjord about 6 PM, and got ourselves dried off just in time to claim a front row seat in the Explorer’s Lounge and take in the stunning sunset.

We sail tonight heading for Aalborg, a change in plans. Due to high winds we’ll no longer be visiting Skagen, but will instead visit the historic city of Aalborg which lies in more protected waters.

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Day 2: Copenhagen, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art Part II

October 10, 2018 by

Copenhagen Tuesday, September 25, 2018, 6:50 PM

First of all, I need to say I really love the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. I could have spent days there instead of only hours. After we explored the sculpture garden and snacked at the restaurant, we toured the indoor exhibitions. By now it’s 1 PM p.m. Copenhagen time, and we’ve been in Denmark for exactly 24 hours. I’ve never experienced this sort of jet lag–seven time zones away from home–and I feel a little disoriented. Plus my feet hurt. Damn, that’s my fault but I refuse to let it stop me.

The first wing we explored was all Giacometti. In the Giacometti Gallery, of course. I’ve loved Giacometti since seeing his work at the Chicago Art Institute when I was a University student, so I was thrilled to see a room filled with his art. And the gallery itself was inspiring–-not dark and artificially lit, but filled with natural lighting from an entire glass wall, the green of the garden from the outside filtering the light.

Giacometti Gallery at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen © 2018 Bo Mackison

Giacometti Gallery at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen © 2018 Bo Mackison

Giacometti Gallery at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen © 2018 Bo Mackison

Giacometti Gallery at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen © 2018 Bo Mackison

Me in Conversation with César Frankrig’s The Big Thumb © 2018 Bo Mackison

There was a thumb. I had a heart to heart conversation with it. My brain was more than a little foggy, so it seemed appropriate to talk to a thumb. It is César Frankrig’s The Big Thumb, 1968, France, Bronze. I had to look it up because I did a lot of forgetting to photograph signage. Usually, I’m good that sort of thing…

Then we went into the special exhibition, The Moon. Over 200 pieces of art–-various media, various styles, various time periods. Stunning.

There’s a full moon tonight. That seems fitting. On our journey through Scandinavia, Germany, and finally Amsterdam, we’ll be traveling in lunar time from full moon to (almost) new moon, through the phase of waning.

It’s the Harvest Moon tonight, not the Corn Moon because tonight’s moon is the nearest full moon to the Autumn Equinox.

From the Louisiana website:

“Along with the MOON exhibition a new work has landed in the Sculpture Park. Polish-German artist Alicja Kwade’s Pars Pro Toto consists of eight spheres carved in rocks obtained from different parts of the world. In her interview with Louisiana Channel, the artist states that the work almost appears as if a God had thrown the planets like when playing marbles.”

After the moon exhibit, we went outside for one last look around. I set down on the bench next to this sphere exhibit and watched the spheres do nothing. I was pretty happy doing nothing too, just sitting surrounded by nature and architecture and art, but there was no other option but to walk to the train station and get on a train heading back to Copenhagen Central.

Here’s where the story got interesting: We’re near exhaustion when we negotiated the mile to the train stop. We needed to buy tickets at the kiosk, but there was a small child pressing all sorts of buttons in his attempt to purchase his family’s tickets. His smiling parents watched, but he was not getting the job done with any punctuality. And then the train was coming. It pulled into the stop and we still had not gotten to the ticket kiosk and Bob said, “I’m not waiting.” And so we got on the train without a ticket, intending to buy the tickets once we got to Central Station. This seemed like an okay plan since no one had been checking our tickets on our earlier rides — when we HAD tickets in hand — but of course this time the conductor stopped and asked us for our tickets.

No tickets.

“You can’t buy tickets on the train,” he said, not too kindly. We pleaded American ignorance. He asked for our passports, which we thankfully had on our persons, and then he told us he’d be back, giving us a disgusted final look. The other passengers avoided looking directly at us and I was so tired I rested my head on the tiny table in front of us and fell asleep. The conductor never did come back and we did buy tickets as soon as we got into the station.

Oh, Lord. The second day in Europe and we’ve already run afoul of the law. I guess all’s well that ends well.

We checked out some great restaurants in the area once we returned to our hotel. But in the end we decided on a pizza in the hotel room. That way we could eat while horizontal. And so we did. There was a Domino’s pizza place nearby, uh no; we opted for a local joint near the University of Copenhagen, close enough to get it carry out. Pizza was fine and sleep is much needed.

And just like that, our first full day in Copenhagen is over.

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Day 2: Copenhagen: Louisiana Museum of Modern Art Part I

October 10, 2018 by

Louisiana Presents The Moon From Inner Worlds to Outer Space ©2018 Bo Mackison

Copenhagen September 25, 2018 6:50 p.m.

After a successful venture to the south of Copenhagen to visit the ARKEN museum in the morning, we decided to forgo a lunch stop and head north of the city to visit the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. This involved a train change at Copenhagen Central, but with one successful trip by train in our pocket, we were more confident in our travel abilities. Plus we were still a bit jet lagged, and not always making the best decisions. Lunch first might’ve been a good idea, but we were anxious to see as much as possible.

And so on we went, to a place called Louisiana in Humlebæk on the coast of the Baltic Sea.

Louisiana Museum Entrance with Henry Moore Sculpture, Reclining Figure, 1969-1970, Bronze © 2018 Bo Mackison

The Louisiana Museum of Modern Art is situated on the coast 25 miles north of Copenhagen, with a view of Sweden visible across the Sound. It’s a lovely space with indoor exhibits, a vast sculpture garden, and a restaurant overlooking both Calder and the coast. It is the sort of space that I would visit regularly if I were a local. Filled with vibrancy and art and architecture and nature–what could be a better combination.

Louisiana Museum – Restaurant with Calder and the Coast © 2018 Bo Mackison

A view of the Calder-Terrace. Calder’s Almost Snow Plow 1964/76 is front and center. Little Janey-Waney is off to the side. The weather was mild and the outside seating was jammed with families and students and tourists. We indulged in a blueberry tart for me and the beer for Bob. Good choices all-around.

The Calder Mobile Little Janey-Waney, 1964-76 Overlooking the Sound at Louisiana Museum, Copenhagen © 2018 Bo Mackison

Calder’s Little Janey-Waney was swinging the breeze and, at times, little children were running underneath, their squeals mingling with the whirr of the sculpture’s dance.

Calder’s Reclining Figures No. 5 Henry Moore 1963-64 at Louisiana Museum, Copenhagen © 2018 Bo Mackison

Then we went on a sculpture tour through the extensive gardens. What a delight! Just a few photos from many opportunities.

Max Bill Sculpture at Louisiana Museum’s sculpture Garden, © 2018 Bo Mackison

Sculpture In the Woods, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Copenhagen © 2018 Bo Mackison

Bob as an Integral Part of the Glass Cube Sculpture, Louisiana Museum © 2018 Bo Mackison

The blueberry tart and accompanying beer revived us enough so we could walk through the inside exhibition halls. I needed to be careful of my step count, as only 24 hours into our travels I’d managed to develop a blister. I blame it on the cobblestones, first, but also on my inability to be as physically prepared for these two weeks on my feet as I had hoped. Nonetheless, art called and I continued on, as that blueberry tart had remarkable reviving properties.

Blueberry Tart for Bo and Beer for Bob ©2018 Bo Mackison

Photos from Indoor Exhibition Halls coming in next post.

 

 

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