Michael Carøe Andersen

Category: Trips in Europe

A weekend in Tuscany

Ann spend the month of May in Pisa doing research at a dye analysis lab (correct me if im wrong 🙂 ) at the UniversitÃ di Pisa. The last weekend she was there I went down to visit her and together we explored a bit of the region.

My dad has been going to Tuscany to bike each spring for the last 4-5 years and my mother has been there a couple of times as well and they have always talked very fondly of the region so I was looking forward to finally seeing it myself. And let me just say that I was really taken with Tuscany – I really have to get back there some day and see more.

I arrived in Pisa Thursday where Ann finished up at the university and we saw a bit of Pisa. Friday we headed to Cinque Terra (which is actually not in Tuscany but Liguria).

Cinque Terra means Five Lands and consists of five small villages clinging to the edge of the rocks next to the Mediterranean. Pictured above is the village Manarola. To get between the villages you can either walk on a trail, take the train that runs in a tunnel beneath the villages or take a boat.

See a bigger version of the panorama here.

We took it easy and walked part of the way and took the train for the rest. The weather was just right and the scenery between the villages as well as the atmosphere in the villages was excellent.
After we had spent most of the day taking in the sights we found a small rock beach where we could cool down before heading back to Pisa.

Saturday we headed inland for the city of Siena and this was as Tuscan as it gets. Set in a landscape of lush, green, rolling hills the train ride there was nice.

With all the houses made from a red-brown stone this place is really like something out of a movie. We brought a picnic lunch with us and ate it at the huge Piazza del Campo in the center of town.

It is easy to get a little lost in the small winding streets. But that doesn’t matter. For every corner you turn there is another interesting view.

On our way back to Pisa we made a stop in quaint town of Certaldo where we could take a cable car up to the old town on top of the hill. It was quite small but we also had it more or less to ourselves and the locals.

Sunday I was already heading back home again. So short time with Ann and so short time in Tuscany. I will have to see them both again soon 😉

June 5, 2009
Helping friends move

Last weekend I decided to shoot some video while helping my friends Michael and Sarah move to Freiberg in Germany. This is that weekend condensed into 6 minutes;

BTW where is spring? Exactly a year ago this is what Prague looked like.

February 24, 2009
Christmas Markets in Dresden

Saturday morning early we started out in Prague. 5 people in a car and 4 on the train. The destination was the city of Dresden in Germany.

With Christmas fast approaching a trip was organized (Thanks to Sarah and Michael etc.) to check out the city and its legendary Christmas Market. The Christmas market in Dresden has existed since 1434 so its one of the oldest around. On every corner throughout the city booths offers Christmas decorations and other knick knack but more importantly glÃ¼hwein and all sorts of delicious foods.

After the Christmas market we continued on through the city. First through the Altstadt which is dominated by the newly restored Frauenkirche. The church was bombed during World War II and wasnt resurrected until 2005.Very beautiful both inside and out.

Later in the day we went to Neustadt on the other side of the River Elbe where a whole different revitalization is taking place. What used to be a run down area is now a busteling neighbourhood with loads of kneipen (pubs), cafes and cozy shops. A really cool place with a nice atmosphere, interesting people and buildings and businesses. Here is a picture from the Kunsthof Passage which is 5 backyards connected filled with shops and creative architecture. Have a look at these pictures to see what Im talking about. Here we are at a glÃ¼hwein booth at one of the backyards under the stars and red laterns:

Neustadt was also where our hostel was so we checked out the shopping, dinning and a drinking here before calling it a day. We had a really nice dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant. Here is the whole table (sans me).

The next day we walked some more in the town, did some Christmas shopping, saw the church from inside and headed back to Prague.

Thanks guys for a nice weekend!

December 15, 2008
An update

It’s eerily quiet on this blog these days. It’s been a month since Ive updated it so about time. Well, its not a lack of events thats kept me from posting, so let me give a brief update.

After I went home from London, we moved into a new apartment in Zizkov. Nice new apartment, closer to town and an interesting neighbourhood. I will have to make a full post later about Zizkov the neigbourhood. Zizkov is a lot of things but one thing you cant get away from is the ugly, yet fascinating TV tower from doom that is visible from everywhere in Prague.

Soon after I moved in Mulle, a friend from bording school who I ran into on Facebook earlier this year, came to Prague. Him and a friend had decided to drive down here for a weekend to party. I decided to go back to Denmark with them. It had been quite a while and my grandfarther is not doing so well.

Back in Denmark I covered a good amount of ground. Went to see my grand parents who are in good spirit but old bodies.

With my dad I went to the German border where hundreds of thousands of starlings gather for a couple of weeks to feast before their long migration to North Africa. At dusk they all gather and make wonderful patterns before they settle in for the night.See more of my dads pictures.

The phenomenon is called Black Sun and there is a couple of nice videos on youtube.

After that I went up to visit Majbrit, Magnus and Mogens – sis and family in Odder, visited my mother who was on vacation, and hung out in Ã…rhus with Christian, Rasmus and my cousin Rikke.

From Ã…rhus I took the train to Berlin. I had never been there before so decided to make a day stop over to see the place. Cool city I must say – will return some day

Soon after Ann came to Prague Its nice having her closer this year – although it is hard to classify London as close. She stayed for four days where we went to IAESTE Day 2008 at the universities where we did a presentation on what we have gained from IAESTE. We also went out with my uncle Geert and Elin and her daughters Elisabeth and Majbrit and their husbands who was on vacation in Prague.

Ok that was it for now. I hope it wont be another month before the next post

October 23, 2008
Good times

After my Scotland trip I went to Bremerhaven in Germany where I stayed with Dennis and Jenny, friends I made in Prague last summer. I borrowed their couch for a couple of days. Dennis showed me around in the port area and we went to see a German WW2 submarine U-2540.

The day after I arrived, Ann came from Malta Yay! We spend a nice day with Dennis and Jenny and had a really nice sea food dinner on the boat Seute Deern in the picture above.

The next day we headed east towards Prague. The first leg was with a mitfahrer to Dresden and then a train along the Moldau/Vltava to Prague. The next week I had Ann in Prague

September 18, 2008
A few days in Scotland

(I just got home from a trip to London, but I have a couple of blog posts I want to get written before to catch up so come back soon.)

I had booked my tickets for the wedding in Scotland so I would have a couple of days before going back. I didnt plan much but asked Jamie – a Scottish friend in Prague – for ideas of where to go and what to see.

First leg of my trip was from the place of the wedding in Dunfermline. I was thinking of hitchhiking but it was raining so instead I got a lift with the newlywed couple on their way to their honeymoon in the Scottish Highlands. As we were driving north the landscape changed from flat scenery similar to Denmark to higher hills, less civilization and more sheep. They set me off in Aviemore a cosy little town at the beginning of the highlands. They have Scotlands highest funicular by Avimore but I didnt have time to make my way out to it. Instead I saw the town and jumped on a bus.

Early in the evening I arrived in Inverness where I found a bed for the night at a hostel. In the evening I went out to Hootananny where they have live music every night. I saw a cool Scottish band (didnt get their name tho).

The next day I had a beautiful walk out of town along River Ness.

At the end of the city I arrived at a spot I thought would be good but saw that there was another hitcher. So I sat down with my book behind some trees. A few minutes later the other guy had apparently been lucky and I stepped up to the spot. The third vehicle that passed me was a truck with a very long trailer. He slammed his breaks and I jumped in and I was rolling. The easiest ride I have ever had I think 🙂 Here we are driving by the castle at Loch Ness as the driver talks of the difficulties driving on the roads by Glen Coe.

I got a ride with the trucker for the length of Loch Ness, the biggest of Scotlands lochs or lakes. The weather was great and I had a couple of great hours talking about Loch Ness monsters (he gave it a 50/50 chance of being real), Scottish culture and politics and life on the road. My driver was toothless (or missed at least a bunch of teeth) and was very talkative but after we had been quite for a few minutes he would start making fart-whistling noises with his gums funny guy. The roads in these parts of the country are very narrow and not built for big trucks (and busses as you will later see). There were a couple of times where we were very close to the oncoming traffic but I made it to Fort William in one piece and said goodbye to the driver. I had a lunch break in Fort William and a pint of hand pumped beer at a pub with an outdoor patio with a nice view. Here is a picture from the church in Fort William.

Then I continued on in a bus to Glen Coe. I made it to Glencoe Village late in the afternoon and walked a couple of miles out of the village to find the hostel and a bed for the night. Before the sun set I went for a walk in the beautiful scenery.

Next day I tried to hitchhike southwards but there was hardly any traffic so I ended up taking a bus instead. This was the view from my hitchhiking spot by Glen Coe not the worst place to spend an hour.

Riding in trucks and buses is actually really great in this part of Scotland because you really get to enjoy the vastness of the nature in big panorama windows. However for the drivers its another story. As our big bus was speeding through the bends along Loch Lomond there was a truck coming from the other side. The drivers avoided collision but our bus ended up scrapping the stone wall along the whole side of the bus.

The result was that all the luggage compartment locks broke and the bus driver was not allowed to continue before that was fixed. So we ended up being stuck for a good hour until a replacement bus arrived.

Later I finally arrived in Glasgow. Jamie had said I could stay at his parents house in Glasgow which I was really grateful for. I found their house and talked a bit Scottish history with his mum. All I knew of Scottish history before I went was Braveheart and the story of William Wallace. The rest of Scotlands history is just as interesting and sad with events like the The Highland Clearance.

In the evening I went to explore Glasgow on foot. I was expecting something out of Trainspotting but found a very warm and friendly city.

Scotland in three days is definitely nothing more than an appetizer and I feel I was rushing when I could easily spend a full day or three in all the places I stopped. It is a country I would love to go back to. I think it would be great to go to an area like Glen Coe for a couple of days pull the plug out and just enjoy the wonders of nature.

Thanks to Jamie for his suggestions and help. Jamie Smith is a folk musician and has just moved back to London. I will definitely go see him play next time Im in London. So should you 🙂

September 17, 2008
Wedding in Scotland

Its been quite quiet on this blog lately – I will try and see if I can catch up with the things Ive been up to.

Pete, Helena, Femi and Graham in front of Edinburgh Castle

Two weeks ago I went up to Scotland for my first time. Femis brother Pete was getting married with Vicky and I was invited along. I flew up to Edinburgh were I stayed with Femi, Helena and Graham for a couple of days before the wedding. Pete took us around Edinburgh and the picture above shows the guys in front of Edinburgh Castle.
The wedding was held at a nice hotel in Dunfermeline not to far from where Pete and Vicky lives north of Edinburgh. Here is a couple of pictures:

Peter and Vicky as they thank the guests for coming

The couple and their families

Big hats and kilts

It was a really great day with a relaxed atmosphere and good spirit. I thought It was really impressive to see guys in kilts, ladies in big hats or hair ornaments and for the dance after the reception Femi and Petes parents came in original dresses from Nigeria.

Mr. and Mrs. Oshagbemi and me

As the evening progressed the band arrived and kicked up some dirt and played indie rock music. The young ones danced a lot but I think Pete and Vicky were the ones to dance the most.

Pete and Vicky shaking it

All in all a fantastic day with great people, great food and great fun. I am really glad I got invited.

See the rest of my pictures from the wedding at flickr.

September 11, 2008
Weekend in Lisbon

A week ago (before the Euro08) Femi, Mehmet and me took an extended weekend in Lisbon. We didnt really know much about the city before we arrived but we were very pleasantly surprised.

The atmosphere was really nice and everybody seemed like they took it very laid back. We followed suit and took it easy the days we were there. The picture at the top is fromÂ Praa do ComrcioÂ (Commerce Square) where they had put up a maybe a hundred plastic trees decorated by school classes. On the picture Mehmet is taking a nap in the forest. Behind him you can see the Arch linking the Commerce Square and Augusta Street. After the nap Mehmet was up again.

All over the city they had these violet trees which we thought were lavender (but please correct us if you can). Here its in Alfama the area with winding roads leading up to the citys castle.

Many of the houses had tiles on the facades and it was impressive to see all the different colors and patterns they have come up with. A lot of the tiles even seemed quite old and hand made.

We stayed at a hostel in the part of the city calledÂ Bairro AltoÂ which a quite, sleepy neighbourhood during the day and turn into a block party at night with hordes of people at night.

It was a quick trip but Lisbon is definitely worth the recommendation. After I got back I found this pretty cool pieces:

Lisbon has no idea how cool it is. The city lives in the shadow of Europes superstar capitals, unaware of its own modern charms.
-Â New York Times

A bunch more Lisbon pictures at Flickr

June 10, 2008
Scandinavian Capitals

The Scandinavian trip was great and – as expected – very expensive. Once you are used to Czech prices everything in Scandinavia is quite expensive – especially for alcohol.

Anyways we had a great time and got to cover a lot of ground in the 10 days the trip lasted. We started out with four people Andres (Ecuador), me, Femi (Northern Ireland) and Mehmet (Turkey) here in Copenhagen, King’s Garden in front of Rosenborg Castle.

The best thing about the trip was reconnecting with a lot of friends. In Copenhagen we stayed and partied with Moses, Daniel and the rest of the old IAESTE Copenhagen crew. Went to concert with Sophie who was in Prague last summer. I met my cousin Rikke for some drinks, my thesis buddy Mikkel made a great dinner and my best childhood friend Johannes gave me lunch. Michael, a friend from bording school saw on Facebook that I was coming to town and joined one of the parties and old university buddies Sohl and Corneliussen joined at Christiania.

It was great being back in Copenhagen on some of the early summer days and we did cover some of the touristy spots like Nyhavn.

We jumped on the boat to Oslo and sailed through the night and woke up in Norway. We needed some recouping sleep after Copenhagen and the cabin on the boat was just right for that.

We walked the city of Oslo for the day and met up with Mikkel from my university who showed us Vigelands Parken. After a day of strolling Oslo we took a bus at midnight towards Stockholm.

After a bumpy night on the bus we came to Stockholm very early and checked in to our hostel and went out to see the town. Two more friends from Prague, Murat (Turkey) and Jeremie (France) joined us and for the rest of the trip. Here is a female guard from the Royal Palace in Stockholm, do we have that in Denmark?

We found a cheap cabin on the boat to Helsinki so the whole grouped went further east for a cruise. It took one night in each direction and then we had a day to walk the city of Helsinki. He we are in front of the orthodox church.

Back in Stockholm we met up with Backsell, and Freddy two friends we met in Michigan. They showed us the nightlife of Stockholm and the fashionable Sturaplan in particular.

After 10 days of traveling and partying it was nice to get home.

There is 200 pictures from Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm and Helsinki on flickr.

May 30, 2008
The Scandinavian Tour

Friday morning we are four guys heading on a tour of Scandinavia to see friends and have a good time. First stop will be Copenhagen for the weekend then the boat to Oslo for a day and then bus across to Stockholm. Not everything is planned out yet but Im sure well have a lot of fun on the way.

This will be part of the group from the BeNe(no-lux) trip.

The picture above is Martin the Swede at a Swedish book store in Baltimores more shady area where Adult Entertainment and Swedish Books apparently go hand in hand

Follow the progress at twitter/gelle.

Update May 1st: Our hosting in Stockholm fell through so we are looking for a couch or floor to borrow from Tuesday to Thursday for two of us.

Update May 12th: We found a host through Couch Surfing Thanks Daniel

May 1, 2008