Another sample of photographs from one of the wallets in our corner cupboard of secrets. Mostly the images are from a holiday I took in the summer of 2000 but as usual with our photos there are other pictures from other times. They often got jumbled up over the years.
For example, this picture was taken in the spring of 1989, inside our terraced house in the Crookes district of Sheffield. We moved from that house in the summer of that year. There's my two girls - Shirley and Baby Frances asleep on the sofa:-
Now back to that holiday, taken in the first summer of this new millennium. It was unusual in that it was just me and my then twelve year old daughter Frances. We were going camping in Denmark and southern Sweden.
First we had to drive down to the port of Harwich in Essex before getting onto the DFDS Seaways car ferry that in eighteen hours would deposit us in Esbjerg, Denmark. Once off the ferry, we drove sixty miles to the town of Silkeborg where we camped for three nights.
Nearby was Himmelbjerget - once thought to be the tallest point in Denmark at only 482 feet but following more accurate surveys in modern times - it is now only ranked fourth. Himmelbjerget means "The Sky Mountain"...
Later we travelled to Odense, Roskilde, Copenhagen and Helsingør. Here I am at the age of 46 with Kronburg Castle, Helsingør behind me. This was the castle upon which William Shakespeare based Elsinore in "Hamlet" though of course Shakespeare never visited Denmark himself.
In Copenhagen, we just had to see the statue of The Little Mermaid at the harbourside. Here's our Frances at twelve with her fishy fairytale friend...
We spent less time in southern Sweden but we did manage to get to this incredible ancient site known as "Ales Stenar". It overlooks the Baltic Sea and is probably around 1400 years old. The stones were arranged in the shape of a ship. Many competing archaeological theories surround the site...
And here's Frances by a village road sign in southern Sweden. What a mouthful that place name is! Of course it might be saying "Turn left for recycling site" as far as I know. Perhaps Monica The Dawn Treader blogger from Sweden may able to throw some light on this place name.
That trip to Denmark and southern Sweden - almost a quarter of a century ago - remains sweet in my memory because of the places we went and because of the special time I spent with my lovely daughter, bringing us even closer together. The weather was summery and the campsites were great. We cooked on a camping stove and lived simply. We saw The Tollund Man in Silkeborg Museum, visited Legoland in Billund and Hans Christian Andersen's house in Odense.
Those pictures help to bring it all back.
Sweet picture of sleeping girls. You have good family memories and the pictures to remember. I'm impressed, a Frances and daddy vacation.
ReplyDeleteHer character is very similar to mine. I would not say that of my son.
DeleteFunny how time slips by so quickly and we look back at things and it seems like a long time ago.
ReplyDeleteIt's like a dripping tap. Before you know it the sink is full.
DeleteLooks like a lovely trip and some spectacular sights ... I have never heard of Ales Stenar so I am off to The Goggle.
ReplyDeleteIt is a spectacular location.
DeleteThese days there would be no mystery. You could find out for yourself that it means Rescue Service Practice Area.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the mystery was more fun.
To modern humans, mystery invariably seems like a puzzle to be solved - to cancel the mystery.
DeleteBaby Frances looks so much like Margot does now. The holiday looks wonderful and the photos are just beautiful. I'd like to know the translation of that road sign too. Perhaps google could help.
ReplyDeleteOthers tell me it means "Rescue Services Practice Area". Slightly disappointing as I thought it was a village name.
DeleteA great selection of photos from your trip, but the top one is really the top one for me - there is something utterly timeless about a mother and child, and I can get very emotional looking at it, even though I don't know the people on the picture personally.
ReplyDeleteHow come you and Frances were alone for that holiday? Were Ian and Shirley on a holiday of their own that year?
As a teacher I had a six week summer break and as a school pupil so did Frances. Shirley and Ian were working through those weeks.
DeleteBaby Frances looks just like Margot does now. The holiday sounds wonderful. Google translates that sign to "Emergency Services Training area"
ReplyDeleteYou got it Elsie. I didn't realise that you are fluent in Swedish.
DeleteThat sounds like a lovely holiday, just the two of you. Looks beautiful there.
ReplyDeleteGreat photo of Shirley and Frances too. So peaceful.
Thanks JayCee.
DeleteWonderful photo memories captured for all time. Great post!
ReplyDeleteMaking posts about our old photos means that they are not dead and unseen in a cupboard.
DeleteGlad to hear you have good memories from your trip to Denmark and Sweden!
ReplyDelete*The name of the town in Denmark where Kronborg Castle is situated is Helsingør, not Helsingborg. Helsingborg is in Sweden, just across the strait from there. (There are ferries running between them.)
* That sign with the long words on it is not a place name. "Räddningstjänst" = rescue services, and "övningsområde" = practice area (site). So it is a place that the fire brigade and other rescue services use for practice and education. We have one of those on the outskirts of my town as well.
* Ales Stenar (stenar=stones; the origin of Al or Ale is not clear and there are different theories). It's kind of our equivalent to Stonehenge... (Theories vary from just an important grave site to a cult center and sun calendar.)
Thanks for your expert help Monica. I have now corrected my Helsingborg error.
DeleteIt was great traveling back in time looking at your photos. That first one of Shirley and Frances is priceless. One of the advantages of being a teacher is the summer holiday!
ReplyDeleteSweet photos and sweet memories. Thanks for sharing them with us! I especially love seeing photos of standing stones.
ReplyDeleteOur ancestors left us some tantalising evidence behind.
DeleteThere is a fear in the digital age, that 40 years from now, no one will be able to pull out that box of photos from that wonderful trip and be reminded of great times past. Maybe we should print more once again.
ReplyDeleteThat's pretty much why I am on this cupboard mission David.
DeleteSounds like a fantastic trip, and I love the pictures. That road sign is something else. I'm glad Monica solved the mystery! It doesn't look like there was anything rotten in Denmark at all.
ReplyDeleteApart from the dead fish in a box on the quayside in Esbjerg.
DeleteThe picture of Shirley and Frances is beyond beautiful. That should be on a wall.
ReplyDeleteI love seeing how happy Frances was on your camping trip. And her daddy too.
How nice that you have those photos to remind you of your good times. And you must have them all dated or labeled so you can share that info with your children and grandchildren in the future. I agree with Travel that digital photos will be lost along with those memories.
ReplyDeleteThe photo of your wife and baby daughter is such a precious memory. What a wonderful trip you and your daughter shared and now the photos bring back that marvelous time in your lives.
ReplyDeleteI love revisiting old photographs. We always drove to france for our annual holiday mainly to Charente Maritime when our children were young. They loved every minute, even the long hours on the ferry and in the car. I took loads of photos and got the films developed on the ferry on the way home. I have several albums. I
ReplyDeleteMy eldest son informs me that he keeps thousands of photographs in "The cloud" and pays for the priveledge.
Your photos are beautiful, especially Shirley and Frances.
I love that first photo, two of the beautiful women in your life.
ReplyDeleteI like the travel photos with your daughter too, lucky girl.
You must have inspired me, your talk about going through the photos in the corner cabinet. I went through a lot of old photos, chucking most of them, and made up a photo album for my son with all the photos I have of him. Maybe one day I'll be able to give it to him, or maybe Jack with end up with it. I did the same for my middle daughter when she turned thirty.
Lovely photos. I found myself envious of your father/daughter bond. I have a picture of me, at 16, smiling for the camera as I'm stepping into the driver's side of the car. My father is standing directly behind me, also smiling, but hiding a simmering volcano of angst. He's about to give me my first driving lesson. That first lesson, and those that followed, didn't go smoothly. That was our relationship...somewhat eruptive.
ReplyDeleteLovely photos and wonderful memories.
ReplyDelete(Finally released from Google's grip and able to comment again!)