Despite being so horribly ill the evening before, by some absolute miracle I woke up feeling - well, at least a bit alive. I still had a crashing electric headache but thankfully, I had stopped vomiting. Alan looking at me carefully, asked if I thought I could make the two flights from Tromsø to Copenhagen via Oslo. Yes, I thought I could. 

Nurse Alan's ferocious administration of Panadol and Stemetil must have had some incredible impact as, as late as midnight, I was still so sick that we were both certain we would have to cancel our next day's flights. After all, vomiting and diarrhea are certainly not compatible with flying, especially in the mega-cramped economy section of a Scandinavian Airways flight. And thankfully, even Alan was feeling marginally better. Having not eaten for three days though, he looked awfully fragile and a deadly shade of grey. But at least between the two of us, we managed to swallow a teaspoon or so of scrambled egg for breakfast - but only just....

Whilst it was a huge relief not to have contemplated re-scheduling our flights, it was just as well at that early stage of our journey, we had no idea that it would have been almost impossible to do so. As we were to find, with the crazy amount of tourist travel, every flight and every hotel in the region was absolutely fully booked. And that was for all countries and destinations.   

Our Basil Fawlty look-alike hotel manager was very sympathetic to our sick state. Interested about the more remote places to which we had travelled, he sat chatting animatedly with us until our taxi arrived to take us to Tromsø airport. He laughed with Alan "Next time, we will have that special gin, my friend!" A lovely man, I am sure he meant it. 

While we could not fault the hotel location nor the very helpful staff, our Clarion Collection Hotel With, had been disappointing. As mentioned, our room was small and dark, and located in the most depressing rear end of the hotel building. In saying that however, it would not have mattered to Alan as he spent his entire stay in Tromsø in bed. But it didn't help either. The main disappointment however, was the food. We knew when we booked that the hotel served an evening meal as part of the accommodation package. And after reading good reviews, we decided that it suited us not to be looking for restaurants during Arctic winter evenings. Sadly however, the food for the evening buffet was totally unacceptable.

Tromsø was overcast and cold. But not blizzarding. Ominous black clouds loomed, but the snow just floated softly, gently forming huge blankets across the city as we made our way by taxi to the airport. There was no doubting Tromsø was a very pretty city, and especially so coated with fresh soft snow.

The airport was just 15 minutes or so from our hotel and in no time, we had arrived and somehow managed to book our luggage through from Tromsø via Oslo to Copenhagen. Another miracle. Especially for us, the older electronically inept. It's amazing how some things that you dread so much, can often work out to be so much simpler than you thought.....

Once again, the seating on Scandinavian Airlines was frightful. Even for my short-limbed self, it was uncomfortably tight. And agonisingly uncomfortable for my poor long-legged friend. 

Put quite simply, Alan just does not fit on an aircraft. The Angel of Death of Flight Companions, his height also brings associated difficulties such as being too tall for the security cameras to capture. Or just too plain easy to spot in a crowd.... Going through Customs and Security, you can always count on Alan being singled out for MRI scans or particularly thorough searches of all his carry-on baggage.  I cannot tell you how many times I have had to wait while he is either being searched, scanned or re-directed back through security cameras. Fortunately, being almost two meters in height, he is not hard to find in a queue. Especially one that he has held up for some time. Always in trouble... And always understandably exasperated....  

But not only are his legs and arms way too long to fit into anything but a generously seated Business Class seat, he has the added problem of attracting the worse-mannered passengers anyone could imagine.  And as usual, Alan sat behind the most selfish person on the flight who within seconds of take-off had jolted his seat backward as far as it would go - and just about into Alan's lap. I pointed out to one of the flight attendants just how unfair this was but all she could do was to shrug her shoulders. Trying to look on the bright side, I reminded him that unlike one memorable flight, at least the guy didn't pick his ears whilst laying back in his seat. But Alan was not amused.

Chatting to a lovely Californian woman living in Oslo, on our way to Copenhagen thankfully distracted us from yet another squashy and very noisy flight. 

The flight was packed with families, many with very young children. And most annoyingly, the kids were not only excessively noisy but they were also travelling with heaps of large toys - even plastic bicycles - which of course used up much of the cabin baggage compartments. How the cabin crew just turned a blind eye to this, was beyond us. They always do.... We commented ruefully that we were becoming old and cross. And perhaps, most rightly so. It didn't help either that we were both only feeling "just" health-wise. 

On first impressions, Copenhagen appeared uninspiringly dull. Porsches, BMW's and Mercedes dominated the motor traffic flow. Hundreds of bicycles peddled by helmet-less riders filled every vehicle gap. Streets neatly lined with apartments blocks with no balconies nor overhang, led us closer to the city centre. Ideal fathers adorned with baby harnesses, walked briskly down the footpaths. On an overcast afternoon, Copenhagen exuded an air of boring affluence.... 

Was I becoming sceptical about our stay? Well, yes.... I consoled myself. After all, we were only staying one night in Copenhagen before flying out to Tórshavn, Faroe Islands the following day. It was I had to admit, hardly time to even take in a glimpse of the city, let alone form an opinion. And it was mid-winter. I pondered how interesting the effects of being unwell can make on first impressions... And just how quickly, they can change.

Our Hotel Hebron was charming. Now a Best Western Hotel, this elegant building dating back to 1899, is conveniently located in the central part of Copenhagen city. For an older building it was surprisingly spacious and beautifully appointed with quality, traditional furnishings, antiques and splendid old paintings.

Our room was not quite ready when we arrived, but the friendly staff agreed to look after luggage while we had a drink in the bar area. The bar, although absolutely bursting at the seams with noisy guests, was very friendly and welcoming. And after a few gins and tonic, our spirits improved considerably....

We were also especially pleased to receive a friendly note from Høgni, our Faroe Islands travel agent confirming we were the only tourists on our five-day tour *. The Travelling Recluses were beginning to feel a lot happier. 

Tired and still not well, neither of us could face an evening meal, and so it was a very early night for us both. And yes, the next morning our half-finished glasses of gin and tonic said it all....

I was worried about Alan. After all, four full days without food when you are 85 years old is not a good thing. That morning however, I was highly relieved to see him looking a lot brighter and pleased that we both felt like some breakfast.

The Hebron Hotel breakfast buffet was excellent. Platters of fresh and preserved fruit, and every type of hot and cold food we could wish for, was presented in fine style. Tiny shots of concentrated ginger and orange juice were particularly good. Presented as a "health food", they certainly had a good impact on my ailing stomach. They were quite addictive. Even Alan managed to eat some fruit and a small plate of scrambled egg.

For the first time in many days, he was beginning to look slightly human again.... 

Back in the comfort of our warm room, Alan was sound asleep as I put my sneakers on to take a short walk around Copenhagen. "Don't get lost darling..." he mumbled sleepily as I tried to exit our room without him hearing. Well, that would be just about all I needed....

On a bitterly cold, drizzling morning it was hard to get too excited about walking anywhere. The front desk staff advised me to walk down to the Tivoli Gardens and then onto the main centre of town. Assuring me I couldn't possibly get lost (they didn't know who they were dealing with...), they told me my walk would only include two street turns before I entered the main drag of Copenhagen city - the Vesterbrogade - which would take me to the city square and the old Council Building - The Københavns Rådhus. It sounded straight forward enough.... 

Bold, yet architecturally ascetic, the old buildings of Copenhagen were however, well maintained and in fine conditions. Despite the heavy traffic, there was surprisingly little noise: the city bearing an air of orderliness and prosperity. As I walked, I realised that unlike Australia, many of the motor vehicles would have been electric.

  

Considering it was mid-winter, there were a lot of people walking. And pleasingly Copenhagen as I had imagined, was a wonderfully multi-cultural city with faces from all parts of the world. Everyone I met was polite and pleasant. 

Copenhagen did not however, escape poverty. An elderly Muslim woman sat on the footpath outside the Tivoli Food Centre chanting and begging miserably. A few people threw her some coins but to my surprise, on such a cold morning no one really took much notice of her. 

I reached into my handbag, before realising to my concern that I had no local currency with me. Before our travels, we had been warned that Scandinavian and most other European countries are not keen on handling cash. And so, we had not bothered to exchange any money at all. Unlike what we are used to at home, even the smallest amounts could be paid by credit card. It had never occurred to me how beggars manage in a cashless society. If it had not been such a tragic scene, my wandering thoughts about credit cards facilities for the homeless could have almost been amusing.... But I thought about the unfortunate woman all through my walk, vowing to buy her some food from the Tivoli supermarket on my return journey. Perhaps some fresh or dried fruit might be useful? 

Tivoli Gardens was closed, probably for the winter season. Established in 1843, Tivoli Gardens is the world's second oldest amusement park. It is a place of family activities including theme parks, scenic railways, fun rides, theatres, cafes and restaurants. It is also apparently home to beautiful gardens and Oriental buildings. Not surprisingly, it did not sound at all like me, and I was not at all disappointed to find it was closed.

I kept walking over the huge railway complex bridge and onto the city square. By then the wind was blowing hard, etching small crystals of sleet into my face and hands.

At the city square, a small group of protesters was being passionately addressed by a young Ukrainian woman. I joined in the circle of protesters, but it really didn't help not knowing any Danish language. An overwhelming sadness enveloped me. The suffering, futility and stupidity of the Ukrainian war re-opened a huge hollow personal sore. And I realised just how much Russia meant to both of us. It was I knew, quite unlikely that we would be able to visit our beloved Russia again within our lifetimes....

   

My personal walking tour of Copenhagen was not going well. Københavns Rådhus was closed too so my planned tour of the old 1905 Council Building was also out of the question. And then it began to rain.

As I passed the well-known bronze statue of famous poet and fairy tale writer Hans Christian Andersen, I found an elderly man feeding pigeons with small bags of grain. I thought grimly that unlike the poor begging woman, at least they had something to eat and someone who cared for them. Upon greeting him, I probably overdid thanking him caring for these lovely creatures. He gazed back at me, with just the faintest of whisper of a smile....

Blowing a gale and sleeting was not ideal. It was time to head back and find some food for my begging friend. To my disappointment, she had also left. I wondered what she would have thought being given food instead of money.... 

Our flight from Copenhagen to the Faroes Islands didn't leave until 6:30 pm that evening. Upon requesting a late check-out however, we were astonished that not only could they grant one free of charge, but it was not possible even if we had paid another day's rate. The entire hotel was fully booked. The only positive was that there was no temptation to pay another USD 250.00 for an extended check-out time.

Once again, the hotel bar came to the rescue. But when you are not feeling well, four hours waiting is a very long time. Even in a bar.

We consoled ourselves. At least the Faroe Islands being at rock-bottom season, should be relatively free from tourists. 

But the huge amount of tourist travel we had experienced with our destinations to date, did leave us with a nasty, uneasy feeling....