Copenhagen, Denmark
Copenhagen in May 2015 was a first for me to the Scandinavia region of Europe. Weather during that month still wasn’t warm by any means but tolerable compared to some other months there. The Danish people really do enjoy a high standard of living and it really showed when visiting their country. English is fairly common here so getting around was simple by trains walking around town. I walked to most places I needed to go while staying at the Copenhagen Downtown Hostel. Hostel itself was super clean and had a neat bar area where many other travelers were hanging out. Coming to Copenhagen was inspired by seeing photos of the historic and very picturesque Nyhavn district. The canal front with wooden boats and colorful buildings made it a perfect place to visit. Other attractions on the agenda included castles such as Rosenborg Castle along with the Danish royal crown jewels. Of course a visit to Copenhagen isn’t complete without seeing the Little Mermaid statue paying tribute to it’s Danish author Hans Christian Anderson.
The Nyhavn district is quite small but very condensed with shops and restaurants lined along the canal way. Many of the wooden boats docked are still active with their owners taking care of their ships. This is a great place to enjoy a drink or a coffee outside on the patio front. The first day was rainy and cold which didn’t provide great walking views but however, the skies cleared up on the second day that led to some great photo opportunities.
The main castle in town is the Rosenborg Castle, which houses the Danish Royal crowns. The grounds leading up the castle were filled with folks enjoying time on the greens playing croquet or picnicking. The castle itself isn’t very big but had quite the collection of royal artifacts and staterooms. The red brick construction made it very aesthetically appealing to complement with its green gardens and surrounding fields.
Hillerød – Frederiksborg Castle
In the nearby town of Hillerød is the Frederiksborg Castle. Surrounded by a lake, the scenic castle was much bigger than Rosenborg Castle and had a much more comprehensive garden on its grounds. The neatly trimmed geometric trees and shrubs of the castle garden gave it a very clean crisp look. Add to the fact that there were very few visitors there made walking throughout the castle ground’s pleasant. It was almost like I had the place to myself.
The trip to Copenhagen ended with a visit to Tivoli Gardens, an amusement park right in the heart of Copenhagen. The claim to fame here is that it’s the second oldest operating amusement park in the world. While the rides here are nothing to rave about, it was pretty cool to see just about everything theme represented in such a compact amusement park.
Copenhagen Photos
