Copenhagen was the second stop on our five country Christmas excursion. We arrived later on the 26th and only had until the 28th to see what the city had to offer. I think that the city of Copenhagen is very easy to fall in love with. The Danes are known to be some of the happiest people in the world and Copenhagen is considered to be one of the world's most livable cities and one of the world's greenest cities. From the architecture, food, cafes, shopping, waterways, physical activities [biking, rowing, running, etc..], free education, free health care, and amazing work/play balance, it seems like a fantastic place to live.
It was interesting to experience their Hygge [hoo-ga]. Hygge is roughly translated to mean 'cosiness', but it is so much more than that. It is about enjoying the good and fun things in life with good people and friends. It is about creating a 'warm atmosphere' and enjoying happy moments. We witnessed men rowing their kayaks down the canals when it was below freezing out. They were laughing and having a great time. That is and example of Hygge [although, falling into freezing water is probably not].
We decided to join the Sandeman free tour [the same company that we used in Hamburg] and headed out for several hours of exploration. Our tour guide was Kristaps and I would recommend the tour to anyone curious about the city. PJ and I didn't have time to continue onto Christianshavns, but I heard that it is worth the visit. After the tour we continued to explore the city to see as much as we could before the sun set.
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| P+J <3 |
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| Nyhavn |
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| Nyhavn |
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| Nyhavn |
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| Nyhavn - I loved this area! |
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| Nyhavn |
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| Nyhavn |
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| Nyhavn |
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| Nyhavn |
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| former stock exchange building |
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| The Dragon Fountain |
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| City Hall Square |
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| Domhuset |
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| The name of the man was Hartmann! |
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| Amalienborg Castle |
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| Amalienborg Castle with Marble Church |
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| The New Opera House - Henning Larsen |
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| The New Opera House - Henning Larsen |
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| The Little Mermaid |
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| The Church of Saint Albans |
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| The Fortress |
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| Rosenborg Castle |
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| Frederik's Church - Marble Church |
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| Frederik's Church - Marble Church dome |
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| The Royal Theater |
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| Stroget |
After sightseeing for the day we found our way to Tivoli. It is extremely pretty during Christmas time with many Christmas booths and Christmas lights all over the park. The rides were running but the thought of whizzing through the air with the temperatures below freezing did not seem all that enjoyable, so we grabbed some hot wine and meandered around.
The next day was spent walking along the Havnebade. It is a pretty area with some surprise walkways and architecture. There are so many areas to explore!
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| The Black Diamond - Schmidt, Hammer and Lassen |
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| The Black Diamond - Schmidt, Hammer and Lassen |
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| The Dome of Visions |
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| The Dome of Visions - Interior |
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| SEB Headquarters / Lundgaard & Tranberg |
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| SEB Headquarters / Lundgaard & Tranberg |
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| The Crystal & The Cloud (Schmidt Hammer Lassen) |
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| The Crystal & The Cloud (Schmidt Hammer Lassen) |
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| Royal Theater Playhouse / Lundgaard & Tranberg |
Some interesting facts that I found online
- Copenhagen is the largest city in Scandinavia
- The city has been under siege twice: Once in 1523, when it was captured by the Swedes, and again in 1807, when Copenhagen's inhabitants were besieged by the English army for four days and nights.
- Copenhagen has been rated as the world's top cities for cyclists. Copenhageners cycle a total of 1.2 km every day along 340 km of cycle lanes.
- Copenhagen has more Michelin-starred restaurants than any other city in Scandinavia, with a total of 12; twice as many as Stockholm.
- The flag of Denmark, Dannebrog, is the oldest state flag in the world still in use by an independent nation. It was adopted in 1219.
- Studies have ranked Danish people as the happiest people in the world
- The World Audit ranks Denmark as the world's most democratic and least corrupted country in 2008. It is also second for freedom of press.
- Danish people have the lowest income inequality in the world, with a Gini index of 23 in 2005.
- The Danish fairy tales writer Hans Christian Andersen, is well known around the Western world, notably for such tales as "The Emperor's New Clothes", "The Little Mermaid", and "The Ugly Duckling".
- The architect of the iconic Sydney Opera House was the Dane Jørn Utzon. In 2007, he became only the second person to have his work recognized as a World Heritage Site while he was still alive.
- In 1989, Denmark became the first country to legalize same-sex unions [although same-sex marriage was not granted until 2012].
- Even though Denmark has one of the highest tax rates in the world, the people are still considered the happiest!
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