Copenhagen - København

What: Seaport of the Danes, capital city since the 15th century, aiming to be carbon neutral by 2025.

(Copenhagen Harbour. Image: author's own)

Accommodation: Woodah Yoga Hostel. Amazing; novel space in an old veg. store. The decor was seriously stylish - perhaps the nicest I've seen in a hostel yet. Beds are contained in little pods - great for changing in private, and minimising the noise and light problems brought in with 24-hour hostels. The staff were consistently helpful, one even drew me a walking-route round Copenhagen! Location-wise: Vesterbro is sort-of trendy with slight overtones of dodgy, I'd compare to Bethnal Green in London.

(Woodah Dorm Pods: Image: Europalust)

What can I do on a national holiday? 

So many things! 

• Go to Tivoli and pretend you are a celeb (they all gather there for the Annual Opening of the park), 
• Go on a walking tour of the city (guides leave the tourist info office daily at 10am, for just 100 kroner see all of Copenhagen, learn so very much about Hans Christian Anderson, gaze at 'the Danish Big Ben' until you get run over by a hoard of cyclists. 
• Sample the local delicacies at the harbour - I surprised myself in that I actually enjoyed pickled herring and gravlax.
• So many churches to visit...
• Climb the Round Tower - wide enough to pull the King's wagon all the way to the top!
• Go see a show! I watched Evita, in Danish at Det Ny Teater! The service and surroundings were both stunning; and the staff all look like Buttons. 

(Kir Royale at the Det Ny Teater. Image: author's own)

Christiania - Freetown

One of the places I was encouraged to visit by my hostel host was Christiania. It is an interesting visit; in my head it was a lake-side walk with a nice vegan cafe half way round. What met me instead was this semi-rural anarchic community, the faint smell of cannabis persistently in the background. Christiania reminded me of Camden in that it is famous for being anarchic and controversial but the reality was fairly tame having been subjected to decades of tourism. Christiania houses about 1000 people in its various houses and squats, usually built by the inhabitants themselves. My experience was generally positive but I chose to leave after one circuit of the lake; you get the impression that if you hit a problem with a local, the police would be powerless to help you. Definitely would not recommend a visit alone or at night!

(Christiania. Image: author's own)

Crossing the Great Belt

I left Copenhagen by train to overnight on Fyn, and that involves crossing the Great Belt. To get an impression of how this feels, try entering 'Storebæltsbroen' into Street View; endless sea in nearly every direction. I did all my Danish travel by bus and train, this was neither the cheapest nor quickest way to travel but it did give me plenty of opportunities to check out the Danish countryside. 

The land of sea, sails and bicycles: Denmark

Hello You!

Its a pleasure to see you! Yes, I am looking a little peaky. Its been a rough week for me with a fever and vomiting bug which I've only just about recovered from. So its time to share with you all of the exciting adventures I got up to whilst I was away in the land of sea, sails and bicycles; the place where there are 5 pigs to every person and about as many bicycles! The place where there are holes in your money and people genuinely enjoy being in the gym at 5am! I had a great time away full of variety, a lot of Vikings and one or two brushes with Harald Bluetooth (did you know the symbol for bluetooth is Harald's initials in runic?!)

 

So as a brief introduction to the uninitiated Denmark consists of three main parts, the islands of Fyn and Zealand, and the Jutland peninsula. Denmark has many other islands (407!) and territories including the constituent countries, Greenland and the Faroe Islands. As you can see from the map I travelled across the Danish regions heading mainly east to west with a brief u-turn near the end to head north and home; I flew in to Copenhagen, had a stop-over in Odense, travelled to Ribe and then up to Aarhus. I took a week to do this but it was Easter - you could definitely do it quicker! More to follow with regard to transport.

What follows is a diary of the trip; complete with local stories and adventures - details of accommodation and things to see and do.

But firstly some sweeping generalisations in a big list:

1. Denmark is really expensive - accommodation, food, even public transport is at the pricey-er end. I never thought I'd go somewhere more expensive than London!

(Danish coins in my hand. Image: my own)

2. You don't need Danish to do well here - everything from bars and restaurants to museum panels and even local bus drivers is in English (and Danish).

3. People are so polite - I wasn't harassed once. I know that doesn't sound like much, but usually on my own people always ask me for money, think they can offer me money for sex, generally make statements about me. This was really refreshing.

4. Being a woman in Denmark doesn't seem to be a problem!

(Cinnamon rolls. Image: my own)

5. There is a strong emphasis on sustainability of food supplies and sustainable living.

6. Its flat (except not THAT flat) so people bike everywhere.

7. You are never more than 30km from the sea.

8. The museums are ace. And their education system is really good!

(Aarhus Viking Museum. Image: my own)

9. Eating out - high quality, but high prices. I paid £28 for a piece of lamb one night, I know! But it was good lamb. 

10. There will be Danish flags everywhere. 

(Ribe Harbour. Image: my own)

Next installment: Copenhagen.