It was a quiet Thursday night at home, when my phone started buzzing from the other side of the room. Twenty minutes later, I was throwing my suitcase together, and en route to Denmark. I had 24 hours in Copenhagen and I want to share exactly what I did.
Have I ever mentioned how I like to bike ride? I don’t think I have. Well this layover was no exception. The first thing I did after arrival at the hotel, besides get my post trans-atlantic flight coffee, was rent a bicycle. Mine for the day, I set off in the general direction of Nyhavn road. Staying true to myself I managed to get lost about 5 times on the way. It was well worth it, as this was a beautiful area set around a canal, with stunning colourful buildings.
This whole city to me has old-world charm. Feels like it’s the setting of fairytale book. Castles, cobblestone streets, and stories of princes and princesses. Not the modern monarchy of Wills and Kate either, but the old school feel of a different time. Biking through the streets I imagined that somewhere inside every building a ball was happening. I will be so disappointed to discover this is not in fact true.
Next on my list was Amalienborg Palace, the home of the Danish royalty. Like everywhere else in this city I could almost transport myself back in time to when horse drawn carriages lined these streets. It really has that impact on you, and I was in disbelief the whole time that a place like this actually exists. I can only imagine my brain overload if I was allowed to roam inside.
Pulling myself together I headed to the next site which was The Little Mermaid statue. I could not find it right away until I heard in the distance a Danish rendition of “Part of your world”. It comically led me straight to the statue, with the beautiful buildings in the background. I took the obligatory pictures and headed back down the city.
I had heard that Danish coffee and pastries were amazing. Picking at random I sat down at a cafe called Kafferiet and enjoyed a latte and danish. It also gave me the chance to semi plan out the rest of my day. This was quite hard, as every time I figured out which streets I would go on, I immediately forgot the names. Have you heard Danish before?
Weaving through the streets was so much fun. The bike path system is first class. I never rode along with cars as there is a complete lane dedicated to bikes. On top of being safe, the streets are beautiful to ride around. The architecture of the buildings is phenomenal, and from the road you get a glimpse of daily life. In my head everyone was just out buying their gowns for all the balls they attend, but I guess they could also be doing other things.
Like Cinderella I had an expiry to my day of fun. I had to be back at the hotel for 6pm sharp. The sun beginning to go down I snuck in a quick drive by of Tivoli. It is the second oldest amusement park in the whole world, and I am equal parts in love with it/scared of it. It looks like the setting of a perfect date. But at night the setting of a really scary movie. I didn’t have time to take a visit inside, but it is definitely a priority for my next trip. If you’re going keep in mind it costs about 25-30 CAD to enter.
I made it back to the hotel with some time to spare. I got my dancing shoes on, and made a move on my plans for a wonderful night out in Copenhagen. Till next post.