Yes, Copehnagen was definitely full of windy and rainy experiences. However, this weekend trip was full of fun and adventures that (sometimes literally) blew me away!
For a long weekend, we filled ourselves with lots of Danish danishes and fresh food from the sea. Food halls and open faced sandwiches like you've never seen before, everywhere you go! Hot dogs that surpassed all my childhood memories, and the best asian fried rice- we had it twice!
Okay, we did more on this trip than just eat! We walked... a lot... so we deserved it! We started our weekend vacation with no itinerary and good rain gear. The weather was in between sunny and gorgeous fall temps and super windy and patches of rain. After a breakfast quiche and coffee at Wulff & Konstali, we began our walk across the Langebro bridge towards downtown.
The main mode of transportation was by bicycle. We spent all of our 3 days walking on foot or taking the metro, and every morning we would forget that our hotel rented out bikes and wished we took them. That speaks to how easy it is to get around by foot and get in all your steps on your fitbit. Our first day consisted of over 7 miles total in a roughly 2 square mile main part of town.
After a few tourist photo stops at Nyhavn and getting lost ooh and ahh-ing over the shops on Strøget, it was time for lunch. Imagine that! We were going to eat more! We wound up at Torvehallerne one of Copenhagen's well known food halls. There were stalls with fresh meats and cheeses, gourmet chocolate desserts, wine bars, taco trucks, and of course- smørrebrød. These open faced sandwiches are so fancy I couldn't believe my eyes! They were also so much larger than I thought. I think I could only eat half of one if I tried. Just look!
I wound up getting a duck burger and fried sweet potato from Paleo. I saw it on the menu and it brought me back to the mouthwatering duck confit sandwich from Caviar & Bananas in Charleston. I mean, it's just so good. I had to have it and bring back the memory to my tastebuds. I'm not a food critic so I'll keep the entirety of my opinions to myself, but I must say the bread was so good! You could see each and every grain. So healthy! Now to work off our lunch, we headed to the Round Tower.
Hello København! The view from the top! Entrance was less than $5 and there was no line. It had just poured for a good 10 minutes, maybe everyone was still hiding in a warm dry spot at that point. It was a quick 30 minute visit total. On the way up we only had to take about 20 steps to the tip top. Otherwise it was a pretty easy incline up where we were welcomed with the church bells ringing. Perfect timing.
After the Round Tower it was time to head home. We needed to warm up and dry off so we would be ready for dinner. The sun was just tipping down and the lights of the nearby theme park were just turning on as we passed by. How romantic!
For dinner we headed to the Blågårdsgade area which we read was a great central location for dinner and drinks afterwards. There were many choices of cuisine to chose from, with Asian food being the most prevalent option that we saw. Remember at the beginning I mentioned that we had such good fried rice we ate it twice? Definitely wasn't mad about it! We had dinner and a few drinks and called it a night, our poor feet weren't so happy with us trying to look cute versus practical. Maybe tomorrow?
Breakfast consisted of coffee and 3 mini Danish danishes... a perfect size to try them all between the two of us! I wondered why the Danish danishes were a "must do" until I tried them! We ate at Andersen Bakery a few minutes' walk from where we stayed. They were all baked so perfectly! Soft, but flaky. Sweet, but tasty. Now that I'm thinking about it we should have bought some more for an afternoon snack on the go. Or so that I could have brought them home with me!
We had a nice 30 minute walk along the water to our next destination. Thankfully the clouds parted and we saw beautiful blue skies today, for our walk at least! We were excited for this stop. If you've read any "Copenhagen Must Do's" on Pinterest they probably highlighted this area. It was a town rebuilt on an old military base that essentially claimed this area as their own- with no association to Denmark or even to the EU. It is a peaceful community with tons of street art and doggos walking around. Welcome to Freetown Christiania, you'll understand the vibe after a few photos.
This is another entrance to the town. If you are leaving, the back side of this sign says "you are now entering the EU." There's an interesting relationship between the Copenhagen police and the residents here. There's a lot to read about it, and since I'm no expert, I suggest a quick Google to know a bit more of the history.
It was like a grown up child's dream come true, or a permanent festival grounds. Like living in Woodstock. Colors and art of all kind was woven everywhere into this (free)town's core. Old buildings were made new again or repurposed, which I love. The overall vibe was simply happiness. There's also a few restaurants, bars, and music to be enjoyed outside under the sun. One note! See the sign that says "photo ok?" Originally there were no photos allowed of Christiania- and still isn't really for other reasons you may read about in your Google search- it's a little more accepted if there are no people in them. Absolutely no photos are allowed on Pusher Street, and if you are unsure most buildings have a little spray painted symbol like above to inform you.
On to our next stop! Can you guess where? Lunch! We were heading to Copenhagen Street Food on Paper Island, another food hall. Sadly, when we arrived we realized it was torn down and we didn't walk further to the larger food hall that replaced it, Reffen. Next time! There was an outside area with a handful of restaurants similar to the food hall so we enjoyed our meal in the fresh breeze instead.
I had to stop for a coffee to warm my hands before our next adventure and I look out to this. I mean, where there's a dog, there's Taylor petting pups. #TayPetsPupsWorldwide. Really, I think we need to make this hashtag happen. From Oslo to Budapest, Venice to Copenhagen, there she is! Dogs just make everything better so who can blame her?
We saw this ominous spire to the building throughout the city and decided it was time to inspect it more closely. My phone was going a little haywire at this point so we couldn't pinpoint what it was, but I think we settled on an old Stock Exchange building. There was no activity when we walked by, it looked more like offices. Wish I had a cooler story than that. The building was pretty cool to see at least! Speaking of buildings, we were on to see structures that inspired Walt to make good ol' Disney theme parks! But first, hot dogs!
You have to try a red hot dog when in Copenhagen. I actually grew up hating hot dogs but this one was just good! The bread was fresh and delicious too- no semi stale ball park buns here!
While enjoying our time at Tivoli Gardens we saw some beautiful theme park decor, rode all the rides we wanted, and had a few adult beverages along the way. It was a fun adventure and perfect weather. There were also zero lines for the rides! We were the only passengers in some of them, but it was after dark at this time and it had started sprinkling again.
Our last day was reserved for a castle site visit. We walked the gardens and around Rosenborg Castle all the while fantasizing about "if this were my castle I would have the gardens be full of free-range dogs."
We then took a hike to our last tourist stop before heading home, Den lille havfrue, The Little Mermaid. It was about a 20 minute walk, but again thank you clouds for not pouring on us so we could enjoy it. We heard the statue is like the Mona Lisa, draws quite a crowd and is of surprising size for it's fame.
Well, here you go. Yes the size of her was a bit underwhelming, but it was just about the last thing on our list so we had to see for ourselves to check it off. We were hoping for no people because it had been pouring all morning but we didn't think of the tourists on the big red buses. Oh well. I still managed a people-free snap of her!
On our way back we stopped at Amalienborg. A palace with 4 identical buildings in an octagonal shape. If you can see the streaks in the picture- good. That's hail. It hailed 3 times while we were there! It was unreal how quickly the weather changed. It was also spectacularly interesting to watch the hail hit the ground, bounce up as a solid, and turn to liquid as it finally fell back down.
We stopped again at Nyhavn on our way back for lunch and ate some amazing fresh seafood and took a few more snaps. It also hailed while we were eating, so when you visit Copenhagen be prepared for all kinds of weather!
With a world full of places to see, I still would return to Copenhagen. It blew me away! Full of old fairy tales and modern amenities, it was lovely. The art and hospitality will make you feel so welcome. It was a very easy city to travel to, understand the metro lines, and English is very widely spoken. When traveling it's always appreciated to try to speak the language and say a few phrases. So, tak! Thank you for reading my friends!
No comments
Post a Comment