By Bob Van Leer

  (COPENHAGEN, DENMARK, May 26, 1989) - Today was our last full day in Denmark and the last full day overseas on the whole tour. We left Copenhagen by bus for a tour of the countryside with stops at two castles. By now we have seen castles in five countries on this trip.

  Our guide tells the story of a tour guide who found the diary of an English tourist and peeked at the entries. For most days there was only a three letter entry, "a.b.c.". Curious, the guide asked the tourist what this meant. The tourist said, "Another bloody castle." 

  Our guide gave us a few economic facts about Denmark. She said that taxes are high. Cigarettes cost $3.37 per pack. Gasoline is $4.00 per gallon. A Value Added Tax, a form of sales tax, adds 22 percent to the price of everything. On top of this there is a graduated income tax that has a 53 percent rate for median incomes.

  Government services are provided for the tax. Parents receive $100 on birth of a child, and $200 per year per child until they are 16. Schooling is free through the university level. Handicapped persons get special help. Old age pensions are provided at age 67. Medical care is provided at no cost and part of pharmacy bills are paid. For medical disabilities 90 percent of earnings are provided for two years. Unemployment compensation is 90 percent of earnings for two and a half years. Work six months and you can again qualify for two and a half year's unemployment pay.

  Wages are high. The minimum wage is $7.64 per hour. A secretary makes $1800 per month. But Denmark is having trouble paying for all these services, even with the high tax rates.

  Denmark has a prosperous agriculture. Two-thirds of agricultural products are exported. Farms are small (60 percent under 100 acres) and are privately owned. Livestock is big here - 5 million Danes but 9.7 million pigs and 3 million head of cattle. There is some forest land, a kind of pine and some hardwoods. The pine is harvested by clear cut. The hardwood is selectively logged.

  At Helsingor (Elsinore) we visited Kronberg Castle, setting for Shakespeare's "Hamlet". Our guide said that Shakespeare used a little poetic license. There was a Danish prince named Hamlet, but he died a thousand years before the castle was built. The castle does have a dark, brooding look that fits in with the play. Not far from the castle we saw a spray-painted sign, "Nicaragua, Stop USA". The sign was noteworthy in that this is the only anti-U.S. sentiment we saw in the whole tour.

  Helsingor is on the Orsund, the narrow strait that separates Denmark from Sweden. Here the strait is only 2.75 miles wide and all traffic in and out of the Baltic has to pass through here. This fact has been noticed by conquerors throughout history, including the Germans in 1940 when Hitler occupied Denmark to control the strait.

  After the tour we took one last stroll through the "walking street". It seems to be always wall-to-wall people.

  Tomorrow starts the long journey home. The trip was an enjoyable and very educational one, but most of us are ready to head home.