How to Cope in Copenhagen
Scandinavia Part One
Scandinavia might not be on your hot list to visit in the winter – unless you’re looking to do research into hypothermia, diamond hard nipples, and frostbite – but you shouldn’t totally rule it out. It’s off-season, so while everything is still more expensive than you would want, it’s still the cheapest you’ll find all year. This trip, a quick two week tour of Scandinavia and a few Nordic neighbors, was booked and planned a bit last minute, but so far, things are off to a good start. I wouldn’t quite call it a kamikaze tour, but it’s close.
Denmark may have a Viking past, but today it’s one of the most advanced countries on the planet. It ranks at or near the very top in social equality, upward economic mobility, happiness, and yes, taxes. It’s a country that uses its wealth to take car of it citizens, and provide for the public good, and it feels that way. Public infrastructure and transportation in Copenhagen are top notch, though most people tend to ride their bikes everywhere. This is made safe and easy as almost every street had a separate bike lane complete with their own set of bike traffic lights. Don’t ride you bike on the pedestrian walkway though, or you will likely end up with a ticket – they are strict about that.
I took a long but relatively inexpensive flight from Boston to Copenhagen, then the train to the city center, which only takes fifteen minutes. Traveling here is almost too easy, as everyone speaks English in addition to Danish. To keep cost down I booked a hostel, though I upgraded to a private room because I’m not an animal.
Tivoli Park, which was close while I was here. Sadly, it didn’t open until April.
Copenhagen in March can be bitterly cold, but I got lucky; it was only frigid. It’s a walk-able city, but do yourself a favor and rent a bike. The city is remarkably flat, almost every hotel and hostel will have a supply of them available for a good price. It will save you lots of time, and enable you to see more of the city, all while feeling like a local.
The Danish passion for design is evident almost everywhere, from coffee shops to parks to the harbor. There’s even a museum featuring Danish design, and while it may sound a little ho-hum, it’s quite fun and worth a visit, especially if the weather is a bit blah that day. You can spend a couple hours there, checking out everything from Legos to Avant-garde Danish fashion. Even if you don’t care about cantilevered chairs, it’s pretty cool. This part of the trip – the first of five Nordic countries, if all goes as planned – was pretty mellow and I took a leisurely approach to exploring. Here area a few of my favorite pics, with the full gallery at the bottom.
Where I stayed: Urban House Copenhagen by Meininger - I’m notoriously, and admittedly mostly irrationally, opposed to hostels, but this one was great. Great location, super clean and nice rooms, fun bar downstairs, and very affordable. A very short walk from the central train station.
What I did: See photos below
City Hall Square - the Radhuspladsen - where H.C. Anderson’s statue will ignore lost tourists. This is also the start of the Strøget, a long pedestrian way that’s quite nice, even if it’s entry is flanked by the hellish triangle of a Burger King, 7-Eleven, and a KFC.
Strøget
Strøget
Changing of the Guard on the way through to town to Amalienborg Palace. The Queen must have been home, as otherwise the changing of the guard is a more low-key affair.
Changing of the Guard, now with 50% more side-eye!
Changing of the Guard
Danish Museum of Art & Design. Way more cool than this photo makes it look. Even if you don’t have any interest in cantilevered chairs, you will enjoy it.
Outdoor activity park Called Superkilen, in the Nørrebro neighborhood.
Nørrebro neighborhood.
Assistens Cemetary(Assistens Kirkegård), the final resting place of Hans Christensen Anderson, and gloomy existentialist Søren Aabye Kierkegaard. They use the cemetery here just like a park, with kids playing, families having picnics, all very different from what you would expect a cemetery to be like; it’s really pleasant.
A tribute to what beer money can really buy, the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek is a huge formerly private collection of art that is open to the public on Tuesday (natch!), donated by the Carlsberg family (of the Carlsberg Brewery), it has a lot of interesting exhibits.
You can’t smell if something is rotten in the state of Denmark if you don’t have a nose.
I title this “How to Lose a Girl in Ten Days”
Lunch one day.
Smørrenbrød - this tradition has been around for over three hundred years, and they call it an open face sandwich. That’s a bit of a stretch, in my opinion, because it only come with the bottom piece of bread. Shouldn’t a sandwich have a top and bottom? For that matter, what about a hot dog, is that a sandwich? Before be fall into a Kierkegaard-in bout of existential gloom by diving into what makes a sandwich a sandwich, just know that these lunch items are the real deal and an absolute must while you're here. I had mine at the TorvehallerneKBH, a large fresh market off of Vendersgade road. Twice!
Little Mermaid Statue (the city really love H. C. Anderson)
This happy dog, living his best life.
Caught this guy day dreaming
Nyhavn at night! Formerly a sailors quarter, it pretty gentrified at this point. H.C. Anderson wrote some of his favorite stories here, and it’s a really nice place to hang out.
Nyhavn by day.
I ate so many hotdogs/sausages. The Danes love for them is manifest, more so even than their love of their namesake pastry, the Danish (which I also had more than a few of, though I’m more of a cinnamon fan myself).
