Monday we woke up to a bright golden sky so for 20 minutes while eating breakfast I set up the camera to capture the sunrise you see above.
We live on 4th floor so we get a view of the sky for sunrise and sunset but we do not really have a nice skyline. Do you have any suggestions for the best spots in or around Sønderborg to experience sunsets and take sunset pictures from?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/esbenthomsen/7555560998/in/photostream
Everybody talks about the weather but nobody does anything about it.
Going kayaking, cycling or walking in and around Sonderborg I often check the weather – multiple times – to see if I can dodge a rain cloud or get out and home before the wind picks up. Here is a quick overview of the resources I have used. I would love to hear if you have any other resources you use.
The main resource in Danish is DMI (Danish Meteorological Institute). And if there is one thing Danes like to complain about more than the weather it’s the weather forecasters at DMI. One of this summer’s stories in the papers were that DMI was the worst of the Scandinavian agencies to predict the weather. Hwever DMI debunked that. In a summer like the one we’ve just had with a lot of scattered, very local rain DMI’s rain predictions can be quite misleading so keep that in mind.
Byvejr (What’s coming)
When I look for forecast I first look at Byvejr where they predict the local situation broken down by half hour columns:
Above the first graph is the general prediction. The first red line is the temperature. The blue columns at the bottom are rain or snow measured in mm. The second graph shows wind predictions with the red being gust wind speed and the blue being average wind speeds. At the bottom you can see wind direction.
DMI rain/snow radar (What has been)
After that I take a look at the radar images where a number of radars across Denmark produce a map of the country.
The image is an animation that shows the past hour of weather changes with an image every 10 min. The newest image is at least 20 minutes old so you have to speculate a bit in how the clouds move if you are trying to dodge rain using this. The blue dots indicate lightning with triangles showing cloud-to-ground lightning and diamonds showing where lightning went cloud-to-cloud. Keep in mind that the radar we are depending on here in Sønderborg sits on Rømø and it seems to have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to weather over the border region.
Weather stations
There are two local official weather stations on DMI’s list. That is Sønderborg Airport and Kegnæs Fyr.
Wetter Speigel
At a local camp site I was talking to a guy who always used the radar from the German provider Wetter Speigel as it gave better insight into rain coming than DMI according to him:
Nordwind EV
I recently came across an article in Blandt Naboer/Unter Nachbahn about a grassroot run network of weather stations called Nordwind in Schleswig and they even have one in Sonderborg.
Some where in Sonderborg they have a weather station that gives live data which is great for sailors and surfers.
DWD (Deutscher Wetterdienst) The German equivalent of DMI also creates radar images and Nordwind EV puts these together in an animation of the past 2 hours Click Abspeilen to get the animation started.
My phone is often the first point of attack when I want to know what is coming. DMI and Woerk has made one iphone app called Byvejret that shows – as the title indicates – the same as Byvejr online in a slick wrapping.
In the last update they improved the visuals but also removed radar.
The android app, called DMI Weather, recently got an upgrade but still shows radar and webTV unlike the IOS version.
DMI also has a mobile site that you can bookmark for easy access to countrywide forecast in English or the radar image.
So there you have it. The resources I use to work out the weather. What’s your tool of choice?
UPDATE 23-9-2012: @Casper_O told me about the Norwegian weather service he uses called YR.no. They are very reliable he said and their page on Sønderborg has a lot of info with cloud prediction and web cams:
The quote in the beginning of this post has been attributed to Mark Twain but there is a different story behind it.
The amazing photo at the top of the cloud and the castle is by Esben Tomsen
Let’s face it: weather in Denmark is not always great (to put it mildly!). When the temperature creeps up above 0 and the snow melts away, it’s the turn of the fog and the clouds to make an appearance. I find this worse than the snow…especially the fog!…but being on an island you cannot really escape it.
The alternative is to find something to do inside. One option available is a visit to Sonderborg’s bowling alley, Funbowling, to the north of the city.
I was at the bowling alley last week with some of the girls from work. Although it might not be the most modern bowling alley, it has all the facilities you might need and a relaxed attitude. Perfect for a fun night out with friends!
The place being a bit away from the centre, it is good that the bowling alley offers other facilities as well. We had a go at the buffet on offer since we went there straight after work. Decent food I would say. I especially loved the ice-cream bar and toppings (Thursdays-Saturdays)!
On the website I also spied that there is a mini golf course. Last week was my third time bowling (and it showed!), but I have never been golfing (mini or otherwise). So I guess a return is due when the weather gets better. Anyone wants to join? 😉
6400 Sønderborg, Denmark
Photo by Kevin N. Murphy
In the last weeks weather had squeezed a lot of water eastwards, towards the Baltic Sea. As this water moved back westwards into the inner waters of Denmark on Friday this resulted in flooding of the lower parts of the Sonderborg.
I discovered this around noon when I walked down to the fisherman in front of the castle only to discover that the whole pier had flooded. Quite disappointed that I could not get fish but more so that I for once had not brought my camera with me.
Luckily other people did bring out their camera like YouTube user Nohau1959 who took this 11 minute time lapse video of the water taking over the pier.
Local blogger Stine from 6400 Happimess was also on the spot with her camera and got some cool photos as she tests the waters:
Also on Twitter a great photo appeared from William Philipsen.
https://twitter.com/#!/wphilipsen/status/155318054836912128
Update 10/01/12: William just uploaded more of his pictures to Flickr:
It even made it on national TV with a reporter standing in the freezing water and a happy kayaker sailing down the street (at 1.22 in the video).
The flooding was expected a day in advance so most places people were prepared and so far I have not heard of any major damages.
While the Sonderborg-side was getting flooded the harbour on Dybbol-side is higher and did not flood so with a bit of extra walking I managed to get the fresh fish I was after.
I have now been living in Denmark for a month. What are my first impressions? Are the Danes as unwelcoming to foreigners as a number of other expats make them out to be? Are Danes as happy as they like to think they are? Is the weather really all that bad? This is a short snapshot of my still forming view:
Weather is foggy all the time. At first it makes you feel as though you are in an enchanted land. This feeling, unfortunately, wears out pretty quickly and then it starts to wear you down. I am glad to be able to escape to Malta for Christmas where the weather (I hope!) should be way better. I guess in these circumstances I really need to transport myself to the sun if I am to enjoy any!
Most people can speak English, but would prefer not to if at all possible. This means that when I ask for help people often try to fob me off. However, as soon as Michael speaks Danish the service is quickly and efficiently provided to me. I have already written about my experience when applying for the CPR number. However it happened again when trying to get a bank account (was told that I needed to go back another day) and registering for a tax card (was told I needed to post a form and it would take 2 weeks at least). When Michael tried in Danish he got me the bank account there and then and the tax card within 3 days max. How’s that for service?
Another thing I have noted is that Danes tend to answer only the question put to them and do not try to think of how else they can help me. Therefore, if you don’t know the exact question you want answered it is difficult to get the information you need. Thinking outside the box as to what someone in your situation might need does not seem to be a strong point here!
I have already written about my impression of working in Denmark earlier. So far at work I have been included and made to feel welcome by everyone. I am sure that the presence of other foreigners in the group has paved the way for me here and it also means that I have someone to ask questions to – having an assigned buddy who seems very happy in this role is also a blessing as I feel comfortable enough asking when I need help (and him being a foreigner means that he can often guess as to what I need and answer with that information!).
Food here is what I call real farmer food: meat and potatoes and you’re all set! Unfortunately Danes like to slather their food with salt, and then some. To someone who grew up without using any salt in her cooking this is quite a shock to the system I am sure.
However, on a more positive note, I am happy to see that we have so far found all the ingredients we have looked for – including condensed milk for making Christmas logs at a local ethnic store. We have also found out that there are local fishermen selling their fish from boats on Als Sound – we definitely need to check them out!
They actually do! Unlike London, here, when on the bus, it actually moves! The frequency is not as high as in London, as could be expected in a more rural area. However, when a colleague grumbled that the buses sometimes arrive 5 minutes late I knew I was on to a good thing! Also, rather than traffic, people and buildings here I see sheep, cows and horses – ever so much more pleasant!
Although it is not perfect (and it can never be) I am happy with the decision to move to Denmark for work so far. I am enjoying Sonderborg and I am excited about my work, besides sharing it with Michael. What more could I want?