Where did all the Danishes go?

Day 37 - June 30^th

We awoke early in Lubeck as parking restrictions were scheduled to kick in at 10am. Before breakfast we took a ride outside of Lubeck and around the dock side and park areas that surround the town. We then made our way back into the centre for a few more photos before the place filled with tourists.

Morning ride through Lubeck before the crowds.

One of many, many spired churches in Lubeck.

One thing we’ve noticed since travelling through Europe is the lack of people at 6:30-7:59am in the morning. Even cafes/bakeries are not open for people to get breakfast from and it’s quite rare to see anyone out exercising. This all seems to change from 8:00am and people come out of nowhere!

Following breakfast and packing up the van, we head further north to start our trip through Denmark.

Before hitting the border, we stopped at a little place called Kiel near the German/Denmark border.  Kiel is another town built off the shipping industry and really nothing that would blow you away. Before leaving we stocked up on some fresh fruit & veg plus bread at the local market and then headed on our way.

Two great arses!

Another pose outside a German Town Hall (Rathaus)

For lunch, we stopped in a cute harbor side town called Kappeln and had a nice walk through particularly noting the elaborate Police station with beautifully manicured gardens and a creeping vine, plus the fact that you could buy a windmill to live in if you so desired!

The worlds flashiest cop shop!

Beautiful back streets of Kappeln.

  

You could buy this windmill for about 330k Euro if you wanted to.

Earlier that day we had stashed a few bottles of wine and liquor in various places around the van, after being told that alcohol was expensive in Scandinavia and there was a restriction on the amount of booze each person could bring.

This turned out to be a load of bullshit as we made it over the border with not even a sign of a customs person. Too bad we didn’t hide more!

We entered Denmark around about 5pm on Saturday and the first town we drove through was a town called Tidley. Now I’ve been through some small country towns back in Australia on a Saturday at 5pm and usually there would be a little bit of excitement in the air for the night ahead or the football/cricket games that had just finished.

Tidley on the other hand was like driving through the set of 28 Days. There was not a soul to be seen or even a car on the street. This was until we passed 3 quite attractive girls dressed up to the nines coming out of a pizza store! Must be a Danish thing.

Turns out Hamburg isn't the home of Hamburgers. What a let down!

Day 36 - June 29^th 

The next day we headed towards the second biggest city in Germany – Hamburg.

It was probably the hottest day we had since leaving Poland and we arrived into the outskirts of town around lunchtime. We parked up in ALDI for lunch but decided not to stay there as the parking lot was littered with signs threatening to tow your vehicle if you were there longer than 45mins.

We decided to find a free spot and began driving towards the city centre, quickly finding a space right next to the bike path. We unloaded the bikes and began the ride into Hamburg. It turned out that we were still about 6-7kms out of the main square, so we were both pretty hot and sweaty by the time we got in.

Hamburg is built on shipping and there is still a lot of heavy industrial operations today. We visited the town hall and main square, which were littered with people enjoying the hot weather.

  

After that we rode out to see the ‘Chile Building’, which was supposed to look like a large ship/ocean liner. It can’t have been that good as we rode past it twice before finally realizing.

Massive Thumbs Down to the Chile Building.

We then took a ride through the canals, which have huge red brick buildings lining them that were used to stockpile goods before they went out to the shipyards. They still use some today and you could see many import/export businesses operating on the canals.

The old red brick warehouses on the canals of Hamburg.
Some are still in operation today.

Hamburg feels like is is built out of rivets and steel.

Our final stop was out to the Reeperbahn (Red Light District) of Hamburg, which is the biggest red light area in Europe. This is due to the number of sailors that used to frequent the area after weeks/months out of sea. It was a huge strip of seediness and kind of reminded me of the Gold Coast.

In fact, there is a street off the Reeperbahn for those that want to go a little bit further than the ‘Rippers’, however, it is off limits to any boy under the age of 18 and all females!

Despite being Germany’s second largest city, neither of us were blown away by it and we headed back on our ride to the van to set course for Lubeck.

After departing Hamburg, we got into a huge thunderstorm, which was one of the first we had seen in a while, as they never seemed to happen in the UK. The rain was so intense that the traffic slowed from 120km/h to about 40km/h, as we slowly made our way through the sheets of water hitting the windscreen and swimming pools forming on the road. It was quite refreshing to be driving in this weather though as the day had been so hot and humid.

We finally made it into Lubeck around 6:30pm although it looked like the rain had hit them pretty hard, with streets being turned into waterfalls. We had no idea where to wild camp that night, but were thrilled to see a Parking sign with a campervan on it so we quickly followed it.

Much to our disappointment, the designated campervan parking was full so we made our way over to an empty parking lot reserved for cars and ignored the signs. Ignorance was bliss, as we got a fantastic spot right along the riverside and away from anyone else.

Cracking Lubeck Wild Camp spot on the river.

After dinner we took a stroll around the quiet streets of Lubeck to take some photos of their spired churches, which strangely appear to be bending and the waterside area.

It's not your eyes, the two spires are
actually leaning towards each other.

Claire got a little worried about this photo.
Something about walking into the light?

Going Where you shouldn't in Bremen.

Day 35 - June 28^th

As we were 40km out of Bremen we decided to take the motorbike into town and it was a pleasant ride along the banks of the Weser and through the local countryside.

We rode in during some busy traffic and as we got closer into the city center I think I missed the sign saying traffic was limited to buses and trams only. 

It’s quite a harrowing experience riding into town and slowly realizing that there are no other cars/motorbikes in town and you have a shitload of people looking at you. The upside of this hiccup was that we got a very close park to the centre of town!

We jumped off the bike and wandered into the Altstadt and town square. We had heard and read a little bit about Bremen and the town hall (Ratshaus) and Cathedral were great. We then strolled through the quaint streets around town and to the market that was still in operation to pick up bread and meat for lunch.

Inside the Town Sqaure with the Rathaus
(Town Hall) in the background.

Bremen Cathedral.

Statue of Roland, Brem-Dogga.

I think we need to be careful on buying from markets, as although it would seem cheaper coming from local producers it is a far sight dearer than Lidl/Aldi. The 100g meat for example cost us about $7 AUD, which was a rip-off!

The Bremen Town Musicians.

Where do you think people have been
 touching this young lass?

Apart from the town square, the rest of Bremen was fairly uninspiring and didn’t really crack up to be what we had imagined. In fact, so much so that we ended up in a department store (so Claire could try on a Dirndl for our visit to Oktoberfest) and spent 2hrs trying to catch up on the blog at a nearby Starbucks.

Dirndl Number 1.

Dirndl Number 2 and a little cheeky spin.

The ride back to the campsite was great as we were treated to a nice sunny warm evening through the countryside, although buying a open face helmet was a rookie error as I get a lot of the local fauna attaching themselves to my face at high-speed, which is slightly uncomfortable.

Brene - Don't Bother.

Day 34 - June 27th

After a bit of procrastinating the following morning we eventually said our goodbyes and headed north towards Bremen. The plan was to check into a cheap campsite for a couple of nights so we could organise ourselves for the next leg of the journey ie cleaning, washing, route plan etc

We ended up camping about 40km outside of Bremen in a town called Brene. It was a very quiet town, with no pubs and very little people on the street, which suited us well after the hustle and bustle of Dusseldorf and the Hurricane Festival.

The campsite was situated on the Weser River and had a naturally sandy beach on one side. This was counter acted by a massive industrial plant on the other side, so it wasn’t the greatest place to relax.

We setup camp and did a thorough clean on the van as it had accumulated a fair bit of blood, sweat and dirt over the past week. I had also run out of underwear that day, so washing was quite essential to avoid going Commando.

The cleaning and washing pretty much took up the rest of the day and we finished the night with risotto and Spain vs Portugal. 

P.S. - Brene was so boring that it appears we didn't take a single photo of the place. I'd avoid going to Brene in future if you were planning to.

Wandering D-Dorf

Day 33 - June 26^th

Anna and Sebastian had to go to work so we were left in the lovely hands of their German friend Nadine who had a free day and agreed to show us the sights of Dusseldorf.  Nadine joined Luke, Belinda and I for a traditional German breakfast that consisted of yummy seeded bread, cucumber, variety of cheese, olive/capsicum paste and an assortment of deli meats. 

We then set off for a day of fun in the cutting edge city of Dusseldorf.  It was so relaxing to have a local to show you the sights; you don’t need a map, a sense of direction or a guidebook! 

First stop was the lovely little village of Kaiserwerth where we wandered through the cobble stone streets, past cute shops and then viewed the 250-euro set menu (without wine) at an exclusive restaurant.  We then strolled onto the ruins of a castle of Barbarossa Frederick I.   

The girls strolling through the tiny streets of Kaiserwerth down to the Rhine.

Taking in the view over the Rhine.

Barbarossa Castle in Kaiserwerth.

We caught the tram back into town to Altstadt (German for Old Town) and had a very nice lunch and beers at a Dusseldorf Brewery.  

Afternoon beers and lunch at one of the Dusseldorf breweries in the Old Town.

Luke grabbing some desert after lunch - 15kg of Gouda.

Dusseldorf and Germany in general, was in the grip of Euro 2012 fever as demonstrated by the flag in the background spanning two buildings.

We ventured onto the shopping district and made a stop at the Killepitsch shop.  Killepitsch is a Dusseldorfer specialty that was founded in the war when two friends were huddled in an air raid shelter whilst bombs rained down outside.  Hans said if they got through the war without getting “KILLED” he would brew something for his friend, a lipsmacker drink (PITSCH).  We purchased a bought a small bottle, and a magnet from the tourist office as a memento of our time spent in Dusseldorf.

The Killepitsch Bar in Dusseldorf.

We then moved onto see the famous architecturally designed buildings ‘Neuer Zollhof’ that are situated along side the river Rhine. Belinda seemed very impressed and said that you couldn’t draw the design on paper as it was so curvy.  We grabbed an ice cream before heading back home to make Belinda holiday ‘official’ as a holiday can never begin with out having the ice cream!   

Neuer Zollhof buidlings and Radio Tower Dusseldorf.

Neuer Zollhof.

There are a bunch of statues of people scattered around Dusseldorf standing on top of concrete pilons.  This lady was right near the Radio Tower.

That evening, with Anna and Sebastian, the six of us went out for a lovely German meal in town.  We noted that crumbed meat was not such a treat as we thought last night while cooking the Parmas as most of the menu came crumbed!  

Nadine, Claire, Belinda and Anna out at The (Dirty) Schwan.

Luke and Sebastian out for a Schnitz.We were blessed with a perfect summers night and enjoyed a stroll past Annas Grandmas house en route to get another beer after dinner.  We had a few more beers at a Brewery beer garden then when it finally was starting to get dark at 2300hrs we only then really thought about going home.  

A beautiful sunset on the Rhine.

Special thanks to Anna and Sebastian for having us stay with you and

Nadine for taking the time to show us the sites of Dusseldorf, you were a fantastic guide!  All the best Belinda and Nick for your European adventures! 

Mud, A Meeting in Munster and Dusseldorf

Day 32 - June 25th 

Rain + Dirt = Mud and there was a concerning amount of mud on the main exits from the festival campground.  We made an early start after a somewhat unsettled night knowing that we had to somehow make our way out through the 10cm mud pit.  

While others slept we quickly packed up camp and started to make our way out.  Luke had one attempt at getting out the closest exit but lost momentum, making the wheels spin and he retreated early before digging a bigger hole.

On the opposite side of the enclosure we spotted a new opening and only a small amount of mud to contend with.  Luke easily got through it and we sighed with relief.  

Another bonus to the already successful morning was the 10-euro refund when you handed in a bag of rubbish.  We collected our cash and set off on our way to Munster to meet up with Belinda and Anna.  

For those of you who don’t know, Bee is my best friend from Australia who I met on Resort America program almost 10 years ago and Anna is Belinda’s friend from a student exchange program to Germany 12 years ago.

It was an easy drive to Munster and we found a parking spot without difficulty then rode the bikes into town.  It was a lovely reunion to see Belinda and Anna as the last time we had seen them was at Belinda and Nicks Wedding in September 2011.  

The girls meeting in the town square of Munster, Germany.

We strolled along the cobbled stone streets visiting the town cathedral while chatting away, stopped for lunch in the town square and then made our way back to the van when it started to rain.

We navigated our way to Dusseldorf, getting confused with the autobahns but finally made it to Anna and Sebastian’s house.  (Sebastian is Anna’s boyfriend)

Luke and I in Munster Town Square.

When Sebastian arrived home from work he took us to the supermarket where we stocked up on drinks and bought the ingredients to Chicken Parma’s.  The deal was to have an Aussie favorite for dinner and a traditional German breakfast the next morning. 

The Parma’s went down a treat as the five of us enjoyed catching up.  Later that night we Skyped Belinda’s husband Nick at the rude hour of 6am Australian time.  He was such a trooper barely awake taking Luke’s drunken banter. 

The girls hit the hay early and Luke (as he does) stayed up with Sebastian and finished the cherry liqueur, pack of smokes and a dozen beers while talking about cars, football and god knows what else! 

Caught in a Hurricane

Day 28- 31 (June 21^st - 24^th)

                                                                                                                                         

We arrived at the festival farm of Hurricane just outside the small town of Scheessel mid afternoon. The queues were not as bad as anticipated and we followed the signs to the campervan section of the festival quite easily.

We entered the bumpy field and we had free reign on where we camped, as there a massive lack of direction (by German standards).  We found a park by the fence line and set up camp (which takes all of 10 minutes, awning out, stuff on back seat to front seat) and then we reconnoitered on foot. 

We had been to Glastonbury festival in 2010 and this had thankfully prepared us for Hurricane.  People were already drinking and the festival had not officially started. In fact by the look of it they were well into their drinking sessions, with cans and those mini kegs littered everywhere.

Taking a walk around the festival site before the carnage begins in less than 24hrs.

Campers were set up with couches, makeshift motorhomes with full balconies erected upon them, massive sound systems that were moved around by trollies and inflatable pools - pretty much anything and everything you could think of was allowed to happen and did! 

Young entrepreneurial kids who operated these little pedal karts and trailers ferrying the punters gear from the car park to their campsite. Not sure what stopped people from not paying them though? 

Outside the entrance Thursday night before it got torn to bits. 

Anything goes at German music festivals. Including ex military trucks with full decking on top!

Enjoying a big lunch before we head into the festival and switch to the liquid and cheese pretzel diet.

The tent ground was filling with thousands of tents and younger people, which reminded us that we were very luck to be in a comfortable camper. The actual festival site was fenced off until the official opening on Friday so we headed back to camp.

Back at Maxi we had a few laughs and much needed drinks while watching our fellow neighbor’s, a group of young Germans.  There were about 7 of them and they were at the fence line sitting in a row with numbers written on cardboard. 

Our neighbours giving the passersby ratings on their aesthetics.

As the crowd of people went to and from their cars the boys would yell out to get their attention and ‘rate’ the girls walking past with numbered cardboard.  We went to bed quite late although it felt very early as the party was in full flight with a mish mash of music being played and fireworks being let off all around us. Thank god for earplugs!

Feeling a lot fresher than our fellow campers, Luke and I took a bike ride into the local town to sort out some drinks and ice.  Ice has always been very important to Luke; it can be the difference between a good day and a bad day. God forbid he has a warm beer!

Back at camp while cooking lunch we had an unwanted guest. While getting lunch prepared, a guy stumbled up to our camper and without saying anything, sat down on one of our camping chairs.

Actually, when I say sat down he actually fell backwards and laid passed out on the ground for 10 minutes or so.  He was breathing and groaning so I wasn’t too worried. 

A neighbor from another camper who spoke no English came over.  She knew us and knew that we had a stray guest so took it upon herself to help out.  She went back to her camper and returned with a permanent marker and a cheeky grin. 

As she was just about to draw all over his face, he stirred and woke up! Some words were muttered in German and the guy picked himself up and started to scale the 2 meter cyclone fencing. With a little wobble and almost falling back on his head, he managed to jump over and toddled off to annoy someone else.

Lunchtime vistor on Friday afternoon before the festival had started. As my dad says, a man must know his limitations. This guy obviously does not.

With cold drinks now on hand we made our way up to the festival entrance with chairs, cooler bag, drinks, umbrella etc set for the day. 

We noticed as we walked up to the entrance that everyone else seemed rather lacking in equipment. They just had a small bag and a tetra pack (i.e. juice carton) slung around their shoulders. 

Thinking we may have stuffed up, we asked at the gate by showing them the amount of beer and wine we wanted to take in. The security guy immediately shook his head and said ‘Oh No!’. We hung our heads and returned back to base where we then hid syphoned bottled wine in our jackets and had another go at entering. 

Success, we were in!  We toured the four stages and viewed Bombay Bicycle Club, Ed Sheeran, Labrassbanda, The XX and the to wrap up the night The Cure.

Watching the end of Mars Volta and waiting for Ed Sheeran.

Still Waiting......

The XX. Very....very....dull. Just like their album I guess.

Saturday we had another full and eventful day in the festival, this time we were armed with tetra packs. Luke had juice and rum, and I opted for 1.5L of wine!  A bargain at 1.69 euros and it tasted great!

Testing out the Tetra Packs.

We saw the amazing Florence and the Machine, although separately, as Luke couldn’t find me in the crowd after going to the toilets. 

Florence and the Machine. Pretty......pretty.......pretty.....good.

As the crowd cleared after the show, Luke was nowhere to be seen.  Feeling a little distressed I ran around the grounds looking for him then remembered our meeting spot outside the unforgettable ‘Jesus Loves You Tent’. 

And it worked, Jesus did love me!  It was like we hadn’t seen each other for years, one of those airport emotional meetings where the girl runs up and jumps on the guy and the tears flow. Yep. Embarrassing, but that was how it happened. 

We celebrated our reunion with Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds (very good by the way), followed by the highlight of the day in a then very dusty and hot arena - Mumford and Sons.  

Just about to watch Noel Gallaghers High Flying birds. Noel is still a dickhead, but still making awesome music and was a highlight of the festival. 

The third and final day of the festival was mostly spent in the van; sleeping, blogging and watching War Horse as the weather had decided to follow in the name of the festival and turned into a hurricane.

By mid afternoon the rain had sum what subsided and we were able to enjoy a few tunes while staying dry. We had to tip toe around the mud baths that had been created in the high traffic areas and it was at that point I really regretted throwing my gumboots out only weeks earlier on a bright sunny day in Newbury.  

The Shins put on a rather lack luster show (until the last song) then we checked out the band Bat For Lashes, while waiting for The Kooks to come on.  

Very wet watching the Kooks.

After a small stint of blue sky and sunshine (30mins), the weather turned again and we took refuge under a beer tent and enjoyed the sounds of the Kooks. 

Finally, before we headed back to the comfort of our van we watched The Temper Trap from under our umbrella on a small hill outside the fence line.  It proved to have a much better view of the stage and it kept us out of the mud pit. Also, given our vantage point we were quite close to the band and we got two waves from the bass player!