Post-wedding and with only slight hangovers, our little posse of three made our way back to civilisation. Gemma had a flight to catch and Paul and I had a city to explore.
I've been to Copenhagen twice before. both times in winter where sunshine and daylight were at a premium. The long days, glowing sunsets and warm(er) temperatures of Danish summer were very welcome.
Summer made me understand why people love Scandinavia. I mean this with no disrespect. I just know that minimal daylight would really get me down. In July, life was happening on the streets all around us. People on bikes. People under sun umbrellas eating lunch. People casually strolling in the sunshine.
We stayed at a little mid-range boutique hotel that cost the other half of my bank account that crossing the Oresund bridge had left behind. We were near the heart of the trendy Vesterboro district, a stone's throw from lots of cozy restaurants, shops and cafes.
It took 15-minutes to walk to the train station and city centre, just far enough away from tourist central.
With two-ish days to wander, we made our way around the city on foot and on boat. Our favourite part of the city centre was just to the left (east, west, who knows?) of the central square. There we found some great cafes, bookshops and tiny shops we couldn't begin to afford.
The very special
Paludan Bogcafe is both a cafe and bookshop. AND when you're done with your meal/the book you've returned to the shelf, you can wander into the basement of used books and weird art. It was so beautiful I almost cried.
Christianshavn is famous for its beautifully spired Church of Our Saviour. The tree beneath the church has its own Facebook page entitled: The Most Famous Tree in Copenhagen. Sadly, I got a picture of the church and not the tree but thousands of other tourists have been so lucky.
A short walk away,
Freetown Christiania garners a lot of tourist attention.
This little hippie enclave is labelled as an "intentional community and commune." The history is rather fascinating but, Cliff's Notes version: the community exists on top of a former army barracks and city ramparts. About 1000 residents live within the 7.7 hectare, loosely legislated area of the city. 'No camera' signs are ubiquitous at the heart of Christiania, right at the part where you can openly buy marijuana in its various forms from an array of street vendors.
Weed boots, anyone?
The final day of our trip happened to coincide with the 'Love Never Fails' Tour, the International Convention of Jehovah's Witnesses. There were witnesses everywhere! According to their website, peak attendance was at 24,409 people and 141 baptisms took place. I'm not sure how much conversion happened on the happily secular streets of Copenhagen but they all seemed to be having a whale of a time.
We passed the Convention tour boat on our way out to sea, a term I use loosely to group the canals and rivers of the city. It's a great way to spend an hour and get up close and personal with the greater CPH area.
Because Scandi=efficiency and simplicity, Paul and I hopped on a very regular, local train to the airport a few hours later. We were whisked away 7km in under 15-minutes in order to head back to our lives in London. The hound eagerly awaited our return.
No comments:
Post a Comment