We have two nights stay in Aarhus - so we better get started and see what we can see in a full day's tour.
Rick Steves: "Aarhus (OAR-hoos), Denmark's second-largest city, has a population of 277,000 and calls itself the 'World's Smallest Big City.' I'd argue it's more like the world's biggest little town: easy to handle and easy to like. Aarhus is Jutland's capital and cultural hub. Its Viking founders settled here where a river hit the sea—in the eighth century, calling their town Aros.
Today, modern Aarhus bustles with an important university, an inviting café-lined canal, a bursting-with-life pedestrian zone (the Stroget), a collection of top-notch museums (modern art, open-air folk, and prehistory/ethnography), and an adorable Latin Quarter filled with people living very, very well. Aarhus, a pleasant three-hour train ride from Copenhagen, is well worth a stop."
Aarhus Cathedral is the longest and tallest church in the country, at 93 m (305 ft) in length and 96 m (315 ft) in height. The construction of Aarhus Cathedral began in the 12th century. Dedicated to the patron saint of sailors, St Clemens, the church can seat around 1200 people.
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R. Steves: "The cathedral was finished in 1520 in all its Catholic glory. Imagine it with 55 side chapels, each dedicated to a different saint and wallpapered with colorful frescoes. Bad timing. Just 16 years later, in 1536, the Reformation hit this region and Protestants cleaned out the church — side altars gone, paintings whitewashed over— and added a pulpit in the middle of the nave so parishioners could hear the sermon. The front pews were even turned away from the altar to face the pulpit (a problem for weddings today).
Ironically, that Lutheran whitewash protected the fine 16th-century Catholic art. When it was peeled back in the 1920s, the frescoes were found perfectly preserved. In 1998, the surrounding whitewash was re-done, making the old original paintings, which have never been restored, pop. Noble tombs that once lined the floor (worn smooth by years of traffic) now decorate the walls. The fancy text-filled wall medallions are epitaphs, originally paired with tombs. Ships hang from the ceilings of many Danish churches (you'll find a fine example in the left transept) — in this nation of seafarers, there were invariably women praying for the safe return of their sailors."
Ironically, that Lutheran whitewash protected the fine 16th-century Catholic art. When it was peeled back in the 1920s, the frescoes were found perfectly preserved. In 1998, the surrounding whitewash was re-done, making the old original paintings, which have never been restored, pop. Noble tombs that once lined the floor (worn smooth by years of traffic) now decorate the walls. The fancy text-filled wall medallions are epitaphs, originally paired with tombs. Ships hang from the ceilings of many Danish churches (you'll find a fine example in the left transept) — in this nation of seafarers, there were invariably women praying for the safe return of their sailors."
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R. Steves: "Look for the fresco in the aisle (right of altar, facing windows) that shows a three-part universe: heaven, earth (at Mass), and—under the thick black line—purgatory as an ugly land with angels and devils fighting over souls. The kid on the gallows illustrates how the medieval Church threatened even little children with ugly damnation. Notice the angels trying desperately to save the damned. Just a little more money to the Church and...I...think...we...can...pull...Grandpa...OUT."
 |  ...from the lower left of the fresco. |
Back out onto the streets of Aarhus...
  |   Thanks TuBorg delivery truck... |
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Just outside a music festival, a beer vendor waits for his first customers of the day (not us)...
"The Church of Our Lady and associated structures were built in several stages in the course of the Middle Ages, from the late 1200s to 1500 AD. The original church at the site, stood finished as early as 1060 AD, but only the stone crypt remains today as evidence of its existence."
We head down to that 1060 AD crypt...
From the art exposition poster below:
"Experience a thought provoking special exhibition about the future species in the oldest church room in the Nordics. The exhibition builds on the artist duo's ecofuturistic work series 'We Are All Hybrids, where found milio-DNA from various species around the Skagerak is put together with the help of artificial intelligence into new hybrid species.' Step into the crypt and experience the artists' fascinating hybrid sculptures in interaction with their animated video sequences."
"Experience a thought provoking special exhibition about the future species in the oldest church room in the Nordics. The exhibition builds on the artist duo's ecofuturistic work series 'We Are All Hybrids, where found milio-DNA from various species around the Skagerak is put together with the help of artificial intelligence into new hybrid species.' Step into the crypt and experience the artists' fascinating hybrid sculptures in interaction with their animated video sequences."
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Now to the art museum!
 |  "ARoS was established in 1859 and is the oldest public art museum in Denmark outside Copenhagen. On 7 April 2004, ARoS opened with exhibitions in a new modern building, 10 stories tall with a total floor area of 20,700 m². Today, ARoS is one of the largest art museums in Northern Europe with a total of 624,000 visitors in 2023. The architectural vision of the museum was completed in 2011, with the addition of the circular skywalk Your rainbow panorama. The installation has helped boost the museum's attendance, making it one of the most visited museums in Denmark." |
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"ARoS has a large art collection with works from the Danish Golden Age to the present, a changing selection of which are on display in the museum halls. Alongside, themed and changing exhibitions of both Danish and international artists are presented."
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We found this one interesting in a special way - it's a scene in Istanbul, where our current country tour began.
 Immigration 125 years ago... |  The Stage gets fresh horses... |
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 Giddy Up! |  |
 |  An art film - peeling onions and painfully crying - yeah, powerful stuff. |
Where were you on July 6, 1974? These are from front pages of newspapers from around the World that day!
Glass refractors set into a parabolic fixture.
Ahhhhh! A newborn in graphic realistic detail..........it gets worse.......
.....it's more than graphic, it's HUGE !!!!
Nearby, in the corner, is the Baby Girl's older brother (or somebody of the huge clan)...
We move along to other parts of the museum...
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This one transported you to another place and time - it's an abandoned Japanese dental clinic in a thunderstorm - it comes complete with realistic storm sounds.
Now done with the art museum, it's been a busy day, we head back to lodging.
A crossing signal is spotted...the pedestrian signal contains a graphic of a Viking walker, no less.
A crossing signal is spotted...the pedestrian signal contains a graphic of a Viking walker, no less.
 | Closeby our lodging is this curious rooftop arrangement of overlooks.  |
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