Strandby and the northern tip of Denmark

June 21–22, 2019

After the Opera House tour and lunch, it was time to travel 300 miles up near the northern tip of the country. We first headed west, crossing two of the main islands, and on to the mainland of Jutland, and then we headed north to the small town of Strandby. The name means something like "beach town," I think. The summer solstice occurred at 5:54 pm their time during our trip. We stopped to eat, and then a couple hours later we made it to the church there.

The Methodist church in Strandby is the largest Methodist church in Denmark. Unlike in Sweden, where Methodists merged with other Protestant denominations, the Danish Methodist churches remain a part of the United Methodist Church. The Cross and Flame symbol is on the front of their hymnals. Membership in the country is less than half of the membership of Davidson UMC.

The church went all out in terms of hospitality. We were met that evening by our host families with whom we would stay three nights. Don and I had wonderful hosts, Susanne and Peer Thaarup. When we got to their house, they served us a "snack" that included a slab of Norwegian salmon. OK, in our terms, it was a feast. At some point Susanne mentioned that she had been a delegate to General Conference when it met in Portland.

Breakfast was another feast. Don and I took photos. Since it is dark so much of the year, they make the most of the long summer days by eating outside. Breakfast is at the table in the front of the house. The evening meal is taken at the table in a covered area behind the house. They also have a lovely dining room indoors, where we had had our "snack" the night before. Breakfast featured eggs, fruit, and a variety of breads, cheeses, and meats. The strawberries were freshly picked from their garden. And yes, we did have Danish pastry, but of course that is not what they call it. Their name "wiener brød" comes from the fact that pastry chefs from Vienna introduced it to the area.

After breakfast we met at the church to head out on our excursion for the day. First stop was the "Sandy" Church. The church was built in the fourteenth century. By the seventeenth century the sand dunes were shifting enough that they had to keep digging out the church. They gave up and closed the church in 1795. The tower is all that remains.

We continued on to the town of Skagen, which they pronounce like "Skain" in Danish and like "Skaggen" in English. In the nineteenth century it became home to artists and writers. Today there are shops, restaurants, museums, and photogenic houses.

The Anchers Hus was the home of painters Anna and Michael Ancher. The house was filled with artworks, and is now preserved as Anna left it when she died in 1935. Nearby is also a Teddy Bear museum, but I skipped that.