Ribe

Some photographs of beautiful Ribe, the oldest town in Denmark. Originating in the 8th century, its centre is a rabbit warren of beautiful medieval streets that are surprisingly narrow in parts (look out for the "bumper stones" on the corner of each street that were once used to protect the buildings from cart damage) and are filled with half-timbered houses and ornate doorways. I could have quite happily spent the whole day wandering around. How some of the
buildings remain upright at the angles they stand at is beyond me!

The historic 16th Century Inn Weis Stue is worth a visit for a good (if not a little too gargantuan) dinner in historic surroundings. My seventies style prawn cocktail was of such ridiculous proportions, every forkful led to a Jenga style collapse all over the place, which lead to questioning looks from surrounding diners as to whether I was perhaps inebriated (I wasn't - how very dare they!?)!

Also famous for it's storks that once heralded the return of spring (sadly a much rarer sight nowadays), it's easy to imagine them nesting on the top of Ribe's ancient buildings as the town is so well preserved.


If anyone can shed any light on what the purpose of these (frequently seen in DK) window adornments (as seen on the building on left hand side of the picture above - as always, double click on the pic. to enlarge!), I would be most grateful if you could fill me in, it's been bugging me for ages!

(AIP = Angles Ignored Profusely?)