Harbour Boat Trip

Last week we took the kids out of daycare to travel to Bremen and take them on their first boat tour.  We were lucky to have glorious weather that day and a lovely breeze from the river.  We took water and snacks and had a wonderful family day out.

Sometimes, it's easy to forget that you don't have to go far to get that holiday feeling.  I love these day trips and I hope we'll manage a few more.  This one is still one of my favourite memories from last Summer.

I wasn't sure how the kids would react but they both loved it.  They sat and looked for a while and then they ran around and played a bit but all within limits and they were not a bit of trouble.  Isabella was very proud to tell her Grandma all about it on the telephone.  She loved spotting other ships and some of the industrial areas, especially the 'broken down pirate ships'.  They both slept well afterwards too!

For me, it was a sign that we can do more with the kids and it's wonderful to enter this new stage as a family where we can do more and the kids are a little more independent. 

Our Copenhagen Hit List

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One of my favourite things about visiting is a new city is the unexpected moments and sights that are long remembered.  That said, there are always some things that just have to be done.  Here are a few that I hope to be doing as you read this.

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This is an absolute must.  Not only was The Little Mermaid the first film I saw at the cinema but it's also, the only sight I knew about Copenhagen before researching this trip.  I've been told it's a little bit disappointing but I don't care - I have to see it.

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Tivoli is the oldest theme park in Europe from what I understand and the grounds look lovely too.  It was highly recommended by a colleague who loves the city.  Looking forward to exploring here if we get the weather we've been promised!

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Another colleague, and a Danish one at that, recommended that we take a boat tour of the harbour so we will definitely be trying to squeeze that in.  We loved our tour of Amsterdam by boat and I imagine this will be similar.

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Finally, we will be doing some climbing.  My Dad and I read the Steve Berry books and they are often set partly in Copenhagen.  One of them features a tower in the city centre.  We're not sure which one but we will definitely be looking out for it!

Trip to Schneverdingen

In front of the town hall

 Over the weekend, we took Dad to visit Nico's family again and showed him around Schneverdingen so he has his bearings for the big day.

With the heather queen

The heather park

Exploring the water mill near the venue

Focke Museum

Today was the last school trip of the week (and school year for that matter) with three classes visiting the Focke Museum.  I have never been here before and nobody could tell me much about it but it was actually quite interesting.  I still don't know what Focke is - we think it's a company name.  The museum is actually a little random.

The first section of the museum (the bit we had a guided tour of) is an old Bremen thatched farmhouse that was completely dismantled and rebuilt at the site of the museum.  The guide explained a lot about how life was when these houses were orignally built and how the animals and people all lived in there.  There was even a hole in the top of the house so that owls could get in and live there - so that they would in turn get rid of the mice!

We also saw the old baking oven and well in the farm garden as well as the building where all the tools and carts were kept.  It was really interesting- it almost made me want to become a farmer!

The main building of the museum had all different kinds of exhibits based around Bremen and Germany.  We didn't have as much time there but what I did see was good.  I'd like to go back without 90 pupils and spend some time looking around properly!