We crossed back to Denmark from Sweden on the ferry from Helsingborg to Helsingor. It is only a short trip, and as we approached Helsingor we could see Kronborg Slott on the headland. Shakespeare made this castle famous by using it as the setting for 'Hamlet'.

The castle with its many towers and spires is in a magnificent position. As a fortress it was a strong deterrent to invaders. From here all ships passing through the passage could be seen, and all had to pay their dues to the king or suffer the consequences. 

The castle is splendid. It is wonderfully preserved, and as little of the original contents remain, it has been furnished with pieces of the period from surrounding countries. There is a lot of period Dutch furniture. Huge tapestries cover some walls, and other rooms have large paintings. The ballroom, finished in 1582 is 62m long, making it then the largest hall in Northern Europe. There are large areas of dungeons, and in one of these a statue of sleeping Holger Danske. Legend says if he wakes up Denmark will find itself in trouble.

So a good place to visit.



 
Helsingor itself also has some pretty streets. What was most obvious here though were the many stalls in the streets selling liquor. It is apparently big business to sell alcohol to Swedes who pop over on the ferry to stock up. Much cheaper than buying from the Swedish government owned liquor stores. 

We drove south to Copenhagen for a couple of nights in an apartment handy to the airport as we leave on Friday for Reykjavik, Iceland.

The next day we travelled south from Copenhagen to the limestone cliffs in the Stevns area. At Hogerup we saw both the new and old churches. The old church is perched on the very edge of the limestone cliffs. Not a safe position, as in 1928 the cliff gave way and the choir section of the church fell to the beach. A new church has been built, but the old church can be visited. From the beach it is possible to see where the missing part joined the front wall.  

Further south at Rodvig was a reproduction of a flint oven. The kiln was used to produce flint powder for use in pottery glazes. 

Summer seems to have come to Northern Europe - well for a few days so far, and everywhere by the water are people enjoying the sun. The shorts are out and the icecream shops are doing big business. Always interesting to see what a change summer brings to sun starved people.