Odense

I love Hans Christian Anderson. As children we listened to Story Teller tapes on long car journeys.  The Tinder Boxand The Snow Queenare tales that I can still quote (available on YouTube for those who want to fall down that nostalgic rabbit hole) and lines from the stories were going round my head all day. 

I saw the museum (a bit dry but turns out they are building a bigger museum that focuses more on his sense of play, imagination and wonder), his (probable) birthplace and then the house he grew up in.   I remember my excitement at seeing a cut out he had gifted to a host when I was cycling (possibly - I remember the place but not its location [for the sake of accuracy - and to satisfy my own curiosity-  I have looked it up. It was Corvey] It had a massive library wing but was eerily silent ) the Elbe. Imagine my delight at three museums. There were cut outs and letters and photographs. And books. I was very restrained, bypassed the books and only bought a far more portable cut out dress up doll.

After my fairy tale fix I went around the giant building site into the town centre. The huge cranes and modern buildings made the old town look like a film set construction. In town I had a shopping list: a cable, a spare plug and some particular knitting needles. 

Try as I might I couldn’t find an electronics shop but, I did find trusty Paper Tiger. I got my cable - in green - a massage ball to address a neck niggle and a tiny cafetière. 

That done I found a wonderful wool shop which stocked all sorts of desirable yarn but again I was restrained and just bought the needles I needed. 

Finally on my to do list was the town museum. Again, I was delighted. I saw the Koelbjerg Man and an ancient stick carved to look like an adder. They had a children’s section where kids could properly play and explore - There’s a real culture of imagination and free play here that deserves noting - I also explored and played. 

Finally on my way back to the site I picked up coffee, roasted almonds and a half bottle of wine. That with fresh herbs from the camp kitchen and my tea was sorted. 

Tomorrow I’m braving FlixBus (customer service terrible but I’m told they work well on the ground in Denmark) and heading off to Copenhagen for tour part two.