Aalborg, Denmark

Thursday May 5

We traveled about 2 hours down the river to get to Aalborg.  Another nice cool sunny day.  It is Ascension day, a national holiday in Denmark.  Shops are closed.  Pubs and restaurants are open.  We are docked right in town again, so we decided to go off on our own.  We strolled along the harbor front past the Utzon Center, designed by the architect behind the Sydney Opera House.  Nearby are the university and the new House of Music, home to the Åalborg Symphony Orchestra.  

In the older, quaint part of town, we walked cobbled streets (what else?) amongst 17th-century houses.  In New Square  we saw the Renaissance style Jens Bang’s House which was built for a wealthy merchant in 1624.  Impressive architecture indeed.   Geocaching brought us to Budolfi church which was built in the late 17th century.  

Had we been with the tour, we would have visited 16th century Aalborg Castle, its courtyard and dungeons.  Today, the castle is the seat of the king’s governors.

We stopped for a beer at a pub just across from the ship and visited with other 50 dayers.
We had fun reading the interesting ads on the buses.  We also visited with 4 of the Viking singers.  It was a good afternoon.

Mike Sterling is still on board.  He performed the Phantom over 1,000 times in his career.   We are very privileged to have him here.