Day 2 – Skagen

We’re staying at a holiday center, with a lot of facilities for the families, including mini-golf. So we started the day with a mini-golf round with the two families. I’mo not sure who won. As often with mini-golf, it’s better to quickly move on and never mention all the embarassing failures.

We then went to the Skagen, a lovely town, a tourist magnet with its colorful houses and its active city life. We did a bit of shopping – we have promised everyone pizzas for diner, went to vintage shops – including one selling almost only old french decorative articles: old posters, plates, glasses, you name it.

After the pizza diner, we went to Højen for the soldnedgang – the sunset. Skagen is narrow stretch at the northern tip of Denmark. On the north-west side, the north sea. And on the south-east side, the baltic. Between the two, about 2.5 km. We watched the beautiful sunset, then, stayed a bit longer for an ice-cream at dusk. It was quite windy and quite cold, so we didn’t stay too long.

Easter trip to Skagen

We jumped in the car this morning and headed to Langesund, in the south of Norway, to catch a ferry to Northern Denmark and stay a few days there. Our destination, Skagen, is the northern tip of Denmark. It is renowned for its nice beaches and traditional fishermen towns.

It’s a four hours trip by ferry. We took our lunch onboard, did a treasury hunt with the kids, listened to live music and participated to a quizz, which we were very to winning – if only we knew how high the Eiffel Tower was/is.

We’re staying at the Skagen Strand feriesenter. We met another family there, friends from Timo and Hugo’s rugby club (Sagene, Oslo), half-french half norwegian. They gave us the tips when we were looking for a last minute holiday plan.

Not much activity once we arrived. We had diner with the two families, and… went to bed, really.

Day 15 – some good news maybe?

The weekend starts on a very nice, sunny Saturday. I took Sarah and Timo with me for a bike ride to a nearby shopping center, pretty much empty. We brought a few thing for keeping ourselves busy, and spent some time at a nice photo gallery.

Back home, Hugo helped me oiling the garden furniture, while Tim was helping Séverine with cleaning the terrasse. A friend of Hugo came to visit – first one for 2 weeks, with much precautions.

I had an online aperitif with local friends – although local doesn’t mean much these days.

Could it be that we read some positive news today – the number of hospitalized Covid-19 patients has decreased in the last 24hrs. First time for a month in Norway… It gives some hope!

Music of the day: we listened to Bert Appermont, the composer of a piece that Sarah is playing with her school band.

Day 14 – pyjamas day

Hugo decided to spend the day in pyjamas. It’s Friday, it’s okay!

It was another busy day at work. Timothé english assignment today was translating Bohemia Rhapsody! Nice

After lunch, Hugo went for a walk together with Séverine in the neighborhood and waved to his friends and his teacher from their balcony.

Day 13 – busy at work and at home

The pace is really picking up at work, with deadlines approaching and a good momentum now that everybody has got their routine in place.

Tim and I started the day with a bike ride in the neighborhood, we paid a visit to Munch’s old workshop.

Then it was work work work for me. Hugo was tired and had no motivation to do his homework, that didn’t help.
In the afternoon, Tim and Sarah had their practice with their band, on zoom. It’s routine now!

And my other routine this week is to binge watch Friends! Never had the time in the last 15 years.

Music of the day: Jean Jacques Goldmann touching cover of his 80’s hit ‘Il changeait la vie’, now ‘ils sauvaient des vies’.

Day 12 – Zoom, Skype, Teams…

Another busy day with home school, work and music lessons. I had forgotten Hugo’s lesson, we were a bit late. The teachers are using “Zoom”, an app that nobody had heard about just 2 weeks ago, and that now everybody uses.

I had to go to the office mid day to get my computer fixed. I saw 6 persons in the 20 min I was there. It had been days since I had driven the car, and 2 weeks since I had been to the office. It felt a bit strange, and nice at the same time to follow the old routine of driving to work.

Late afternoon, the kids watched the end of “Le gendarme de Saint Tropez”, another classic movie with Louis de Funes.

Music of the day Sango Yesu Cristo, by Manu Dibango, who sadly passed away yesterday. He had given a concert last summer in Oslo, not bad for a 86 years old musician. Uderzo passed away yesterday as well – it got barely noticed. The medias are somehow focusing on very different topics.