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11.4: DENMARK

Back in March when plans were becoming more firm for Europe, I was looking for any excuse to extend my stay as long as I could. Since Julia couldn't take two weeks off of work and I didn't want to travel on my own, I needed to find another travel buddy! Cue texting Sarah and asking, "What are you doing in August? Wanna come to Europe and travel with me?" It worked out, as long as we could go to Copenhagen (astonishingly it was one of the cheaper places we were considering) and so a day after Julia left Europe, Sarah arrived!

As it would happen, Julia's connection was through Copenhagen from Berlin and she had a long layover--14 hours--so we explored the city! We went up the tour of the Church of Our Savior to get a good view of the city from above. We also went to Nydhavn, the famous canal with the beautiful houses/businesses.

The Copenhagen Opera Festival held a free outdoor concert and we caught the very end of it right on the water!

Nydhavn: much more commercialized than I expected, but still iconic!

While on my own, I explored the area of Copenhagen where The Little Mermaid statue lives, and even though it was crazy crowded, I managed to get a picture with no one else in it!

Once Sarah arrived, we packed a lot into every day, so I'll just be giving you my highlights of the trip!

We spent a day in Helsingor, where we did a walking tour of the city as well as visited Kronborg (aka "the Hamlet castle"). The castle was huge and my favorite part was the tour of the casements, or the underground portion of the castle where they kept the kitchens, soldiers, and staged battle practice. It so super creepy, but also very cool.

Hamlet and Ophelia greet you as you come out of the train station

Composer Dieterich Buxtehude's house!

Spotted in an alley

The famous Kronborg!

Legend has it that Ogier the Dane sleeps in the casements of Kronborg,
ready to awaken and help Denmark when the country is in need.

Tivoli, the amusement park in the heart of Copenhagen, was also amazing. Though we didn't go on any rides, the whole feel of the park was more classy than any American amusement park I've been to, and there was actually great shopping as well!

Beautiful gardens at Tivoli

In Roskilde, we went to a Cathedral with tombs of previous kings of Denmark, as well as the Viking Ship Museum. Back in the Viking Age, five ships were sunk at the entrance of the Roskilde Harbor to prevent an attack from enemies. In the early 1900s, researchers discovered these scraps of wood at the bottom of the harbor and identified them as part of Viking ships, and then reconstruct them for the museum--it was incredible!

Viking Ship Museum

Sarah's going for a sail!

Train snacks!

Christiansborg, the palace in the middle of Copenhagen where the Parliament resides and where the Queen still uses some rooms for dinners and meetings, was great to see because it's still a working castle in some regards. But, the coolest thing about Christiansborg to me is that it's built on top of two other castles that once existed in the same place--and you can see the ruins! The Bishop of Absalon built the first castle in the 12th century (it was plundered in 1259) and then the Copenhagen Castle was built at the end of the 14th century (but it was destroyed in 1730 to make way for the first Christiansborg). 

The dining room, where food is prepared for Danish state dinners.

Christiansborg Palace

Amalienborg, where the Queen lives today, was crowded with tourists and generally unimpressive--but I did see the changing of the guard, which was totally worth it.

Copenhagen was an AMAZING city and had great food, coffee, and people. The best food we had was in Helsingor (the Smorgasbord, open faced sandwiches) and on the last night of our trip, where splurged, went to a restaurant that Rick Steves recommended, and had some pretty amazing small plates.

Two fish dishes and gazpacho for the first course. The next course had
risotto with peas and hazelnuts, and a beef dish that was divine.

I absolutely loved Copenhagen and am SO glad that Sarah pushed for us to visit this city. I would go back in a heartbeat!