Short Study Tour: Møns Klint 3

from Wednesday, September 4
first three photos courtesy of Lauren

After another delicious breakfast buffet, my class took a tour of Western Møn with a hilarious guide named Stig (Stee). 

Most of the route looked like this, though there were chard and corn fields too.

We first got off the bus to see a gravel quarry, barely used anymore and hardly noticeable in the grassy hill. Sune wandered over to a kindergarten class who was also visiting and explained how glaciers had shaped the land. Both the kids and Sune looked adorable sitting in the grass! We stopped to eat blackberries along the trail as we walked back to the bus.

See its tongue?

Next we stopped at a forest to see two models of forest maintenance. Bushes had been cleared from one section but not the other, and trees had been clearcut from one but selectively logged from the other. Coming from California, where fire is part of forest ecosystems, I was surprised to learn that Denmark doesn't have fires; that's why shrubs have to be cleared by people.

A few stops later we came to a medieval church with chalk frescos depicting biblical scenes. Stig explained some of the scenes and the symbols embedded in them, such as a dog in the corner indicating faithfulness.

The ship is new, but the murals are 500 years old (pre-Reformation). They were covered in plaster after the Reformation until the early 20th century, when they were discovered and restored. They have recently been re-restored.

After the tour we had lunch at Babette, one of the original New Nordic gastronomic restaurants. It opened in 1991 before New Nordic was a thing, as the waiter proudly told us, and the owner was involved in starting Noma. The staff served an elegant version of traditional Danish cooking. Though I had expected tiny artistic portions from such a nice restaurant, I was so full at the end that I didn't have dinner!

Here we are in our hiking clothes at one of the best restaurants in Denmark. They're serving the queen tomorrow. For real.

R: Cucumber with shrimp and cream sauce. L: A salted fish similar to herring whose name I can't remember, to be eaten with rye bread.

Slow cooked eggs (60 C) with sprouts and pickled things. Not featured: egg cake (sort of a frittata/quiche served in the pan) with tomatoes and bacon on top (easily removable), cured meats, and I swear the best bread in the world.

Cakes made of equal weights marzipan and butter, with blueberries, topped with chocolate and caramel. Not featured: brie, crackers, and chutney.

Since we were the only ones there for lunch, we also got to tour the kitchen, which was tiny for a restaurant that caters for up to 2,000 guests. The chefs were very friendly and explained what they were doing to prepare for tonight's catering: cutting white bread into tiny cubes for an ice cream topping, shaping mini loaves of bread, and skinning pieces of monkfish.

The three-hour lunch ended our study tour, and we headed back to Copenhagen. I got home around 5:30, went for a run, and read a paper about tree rings for tomorrow's group meeting.