Sunday 22 July 2012

Aalborg, Denmark

I left Copenhagen on Friday. It was a boring day of travel. Pack, train, bus, walk, unpack, walk, eat, walk, sleep. I have been staying at a camping ground in my little one man tent. It gets pretty cool at night but I managed fine.



Saturday I walked into town around 10am (it's about a 15minute walk). Got some tea and a croissant from a bakery.
I set off to see Lindholm Hoje - the largest Viking burial grounds. This was the main reason I came to this town in Denmark. It had a fabulous museum.  The site was excavated between 1952 - 1958. From that archaeologists were able to depict how the people lived in the Viking era (800-1100 A.D.) and the Iron age (0 -800 A.D.). Not only how they lived but how they died and the rituals around burial.  The museum was attributed to this.



The burial site has 700 graves. Each grave surrounded by stone. Women's grave's were oval and circular and the men's graves were triangular and ship-shaped. The men with graves that were ship-shaped were often buried with a sword indicating the man had a special status in society.

 
Hopefully you can read that. If you have any questions.. I am full of knowledgee!
It was worth the trip to Aalborg :)


I caught the bus back into the town centre. It was the hottest day of my trip so far so I soaked up some sun on a cafe patio while I ate some lunch.
I was going to go to the Aalborg castle but it was closed and under construction. So after I wasted time trying to get into that, I caught a bus to the Aalborg zoo. 

I was a little peeved about how much they charged as entrance fee but after exploring it, I decided it was well worth it!  The Aalborg zoo participates in international breeding programs and is focused on the conservation of endangered animals and their nature. 


I could have watched the giraffes and zebras for hours!! So entertaining. They have a huge living space. 


I watched the polar bears for a long time too; they were having a blast playing in the water. No good pictures through the glass though.

First time seeing kangaroos!


These are my best pictures. Other fascinating animals I saw: polar bears, lamas, tigers, lions, elephants, all sorts of monkeys, hippos, goats, flamingos, camels, and even capybaras.


The zoo was gorgeous. Very lush and green. The animals looked very well cared for.




I made my way back to the campground where I found 2 motor homes situated near my tent. They belonged to 5 very kind Norwegians who invited me over to join them for a drink. They were curious about my situation and my very small tent. I enjoyed their company and they gave me beer and food!  They had just finished a very exciting trip in France where they supported the Tour de France bicycle race. I am very thankful to have met them and I look forward to seeing them again when I head to Bergen, Norway in August!







3 comments:

  1. yeaaa for capybaras!!!!!
    also yea for new friends and free beerskies! :)
    -leah

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  2. Good times. It was great talking to you yesterday. Too bad the connection wasn't better. We love you and will talk again soon. Dad and Gloria

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  3. I was also very excited about te Capybaras! Cute little buggers! The free beer, food and friends is also great!

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