Cosy Copenhagen
Nyhavn canal
Copenhagen is a cosy city. It is not very big compared to most capital cities, but then the population of Denmark is only about 5 million. It is easy to walk around and see all the sites without having to catch the metro. Many cafes and restaurants are set below the level of the sidewalk, so there are many stairwells leading down to doors and the ground floor windows are at feet level. Inside you can see the people gathered, laughing and chatting by candle light. It really is cosy.
On Friday 4 April, we got a lift to the Stuttgart airport and flew to Copenhagen, Denmark. It was only an hour and a half flight, but as we left at about 8pm we didn’t reach our hotel until after 10pm.
We toured the main sights on Saturday, including the Radhaus (city hall) and central square, the Nyhavn canal (house 67 on the canal was once the home of Hans Christian Anderson), Amaliehaven (palace gardens), Amalienborg slot (palaces of the Royal Family) and the statue of the Little Mermaid.
One of the three palaces of the Royal Family that are situated on this square (not sure if this one is Mary’s)
After walking through the large parks near the centre of the city, we took a tour of the Royal Treasury. The armed guards and their huge guns tipped us off that the jewels on display were the real deal, including the Queen’s Crown.
The Treasury was in the basement of this castle
On Sunday, we had a look at the Dansk Design Centre that displays products of ‘typical Scandanavian design’, which I’d describe as innovative designs of functional items using clean simple lines. In short, an extremely expensive version of IKEA. The centre claimed Denmark to be a leader in innovative designs, although quite a few of the products displayed were by Swedish designers. I really like the simple designs of the products (lamps, bowls, vases etc) but I think the items were terribly overpriced. It has only been open since 2006, so we’ll see how successful it becomes…
We also looked at a couple of churches, including Vor Frue Kirke (where Prince Fredrick and Princess Mary were married). The churches were large, with very high ceilings, and not overly ornate, which I particularly liked (must be that clean Scandanavian design).
Vor Frue Kirke
We briefly left the EU when we entered Christiania (at least that is what the sign said). The ‘free state’ of Christiania was established in 1971 when squatters took over a 41-hectare abandoned military camp in the eastern part of Copenhagen. While the government tried to move the squatters, the hippie revolution prevailed and about 1,000 people settled there to live communally with few constraints (ie laws). They established their own schools, businesses, homes and recycling programs, facing some problems when the free-law approach attracted those with serious drug problems. Hard drugs are now banned, but apparently dope can still be bought on Pusher St. This seems to be the main street. Many signs indicate that taking photos is not allowed on Pusher St, and the market place sells primarily bongs along with a bit of handmade jewellery. It wasn’t the nicest place to be, especially when I saw the signs specifically warning “Please don’t pee here”. It is expected that the government won’t let this social experiment continue for too much longer as Christiania is on prime real estate and some Danes are resenting the community’s rent-free tax-free situation.
One of the streets in Christiania
The next day we had a look inside the Rathaus and climbed the tower to get an excellent view of Copenhagen. I also really enjoyed visiting the University library. It was just the way I’ve always thought a library should be. Old and imposing. The kind of place where it doesn’t feel appropriate to talk. Ladders to reach high shelves. A balcony. Stained glass windows. Wood everywhere.
University library
On our last full day in Denmark, we avoided the rain and had a look at a couple of exhibits at the National Museum. Then we went to the Christiansborg, which includes the parliament, government offices (including the Prime Minister’s office), a large church and the Royal Reception chambers. After a few attempts, we finally got ourselves to the Royal Reception Chambers at the right time for an English tour. The Chambers are currently used by the Queen for royal banquets and state dinners. The tour was excellent and the Throne room, Great Hall and Queen’s library were particularly impressive rooms. The Great Hall was filled with tapestries depicting scenes from the Viking era to the present day. The final tapestry was a collage of famous faces (like JFK and Einstein) and scenes from the last 100 years (like World War II and landing on the moon). It looked strange to have such a modern scene as a tapestry. Anyway, we enjoyed the tour and didn’t even mind having to cover our shoes with big orange slippers to protect the floor.
I think the weather/season prevented us from seeing a more beautiful Copenhagen, which I imagine would look quite amazing when all the flowers are in full bloom. I felt we didn’t quite get as good a feel for the place because a lot of boutique shops, cute cafes and the like seem to be hidden away (its part of that cosiness), and so I think Copenhagen is one place where having a local person to show you around is particularly helpful. Having said that, there was plenty to see and we found Copenhagen a lovely place to be.
Mikey with Hans Christian Anderson