Copenhagen, 2013's Most Liveable City in the World

The rain stopped when we woke up this morning and so we decided on a road trip to explore one of our favorite cities, Copenhagen.  Over a million people live here but the city center is very compact and very walkable.  We spent over 6 hours walking around, enjoying the sights. 

Copenhagen is located on the eastern coast of Denmark's largest island, Zealand.  Copenhagen was founded in the 10th century and became a major Viking fishing village.  It became Denmark's capital in the 15th century.  As someone that disagrees with what Mayor Robinson is doing to Vancouver with the installation of all the bicycle paths, I have to admit that it works in Copenhagen.  They have been focusing on bicycle and pedestrian traffic corridors since 1962 and it is now very well received, even by the motoring public.

Amagestorv (Amagir Square) is one of the oldest areas in the city as it was a produce market in the 1470's.  It is now part of the Stroget Pedestrian Zone in the heart of Copenhagen which is the largest pedestrian shopping area in Europe.  Due to the success of the Stroget Pedestrian Zone it has expanded from 15,800 sq. meters (170,070 sq. ft.) in 1962 to just over 100,000 sq. meters (1,076,391sq, ft,) today

The Danish Palace Guards being marched back to their barracks from their post at Amalienborg Palace, winter home to the Danish Royal Family

Nyhavn (new harbor) was built in 1670 as a shelter for ships from storms and to easily bring building supplies to central Copenhagen.  Today the colorfully restored buildings house restaurants, cafes and bars with the canal being mostly used for tour boats and yacht charters that all cater to the hordes of tourists that visit the area 12 months of the year

Looking at Frederiks Church from Amalienborg Palace Square.  The Church is known as the Marble Church due to its walls being built of solid Norwegian marble. The foundation stone was laid in 1749 by King Frederik V and construction was slow due to its high costs.  In 1760 construction was halted at 20 meters (65 ft.) due to budget constraints and was left that way until 1874 when construction once again commenced, using the original drawings, and was finally completed in 1894 

Nybodor (new small houses) is a historic row house district of former naval barracks built by King Christian V between 1631 - 1657 for enlisted sailors and their families.  They are now privately owned, many by former Danish military members

Rosenborg Castle was built in 1606 as a summer house for King Christian 1V in the Dutch Renaissance style and is located in the Kings Gardens, the most visited park in Copenhagen
 

Castle of Kings

Decided to get out and absorb some more Danish culture today and went to Frederiksborg Castle, the largest Renaissance castle in Scandinavia.  It is situated on three small islands within Castle Lake in the city of Hillerod, about a 30 minute drive from where we are staying.  King Frederik 11 was looking for a summer residence with a hunting forest to be able to escape Copenhagen and its overwhelming stench during the summer months.  In 1560 he obtained the property in Hillerod and created Frederiksborg Castle.  However, it was his son, Christian 1V, who was born at the castle in  1577 that created most of what we see today between 1602 - 1620.  After Christian 1V passed away in 1648 the castle was only used for ceremonial events until 1850 when it was once again used as a residence by King Frederik V11.  On December 16, 1859 s fire destroyed a large part of the main palace interior.  The fire was considered a national disaster and renovations were started in January, 1860 and were funded by public contributions with large sums coming from the King and State.  J.C. Jacobson, the founder of Carlsberg Brewery, also contributed substantial funds as well as being instrumental in the founding of the National History Museum Trust that now occupies and runs Frederiksborg Castle.  

Frederiksborg Castle with the lake and part of its Baroque Gardens originally built in 1720.  In 1995 the restoration of the gardens was started using the original architectural drawings

View of the Castle from the walkway that goes around Castle Lake

 

 Approaching Fredriksborg Castle from the Castle Lake entrance

 

View of Fredriksborg Castle from the outer courtyard with Neptune's Fountain built in 1614 in the foreground.  The Chapel with it's Bell Tower is on the left, the King's Wing in the center and the Princess's wing on the right.  There is also accommodation for visiting emissaries and government staff who would have to accompany the King when he left Copenhagen to continue running the country

The Bath House built by Frederik 11in 1570 is about 250 meters from the castle in part of the hunting forest sitting along side a small lake and was usually used after a hunt.  The bath room is the largest room on the ground floor and its ceiling, walls and floor were lined with pewter so the whole room could be filled with steam.  The building also has a kitchen, dining room and bedrooms.

The Home of Hamlet

We woke to sunshine today and thought it would be great to get out and revisit one of our favorite places in Denmark, Helsingor (Elsinore in English).  Its about a 45 minute drive from where we are and is a lovely port town that is situated at the narrowest point between Denmark and Sweden (they are only 4km (2.5mi) apart).  The reason Helsingor was founded in the 1420's by the Danish King, Eric of Pomerania, at this location was to be able to establish a tax on all foreign ships passing through the Strait.  This was a very smart move as it generated 2/3rds of Denmark's revenue at the time.  The Toll was abolished 428 years later in 1857 and replaced by a one time fee that all navel nations agreed to pay.  To make Helsingor secure the King built a fortified castle called Krogan.  The castle was substantially enlarged in 1580 and renamed Kronborg Castle.  It is the most famous castle in Denmark due to William Shakespeare who in 1601 wrote Hamlet with Kronborg Castle as its setting.  Over 200,000 visitors a year make their way through its gates.  As mentioned, Helsingor is a port city and its harbor is very busy with Ferry traffic that takes people on the 20 minute journey to and from Sweden.  The historic Old Town is very quaint as they have preserved most of the older buildings and most of the streets have only pedestrian traffic.

 Original entrance into Kronborg Castle as seen from the earthen barricades that surround the moat  

 

Through the entry gate Kronborg Castle is still protected by a second moat and third protective wall

 Passing through a second entry gate you are led into the massive Inner Courtyard

 

 Some of the wonderfully restored old buildings as you enter Old Town Helsingor 

 

 A narrow cobbled stoned lane full of residential homes just off the main street

 

 The main street full of people shopping

 

Rita making a purchase at a wonderful cheese shop in the heart of Old Town Helsingor   

Canadians Celebrating German Christmas in Denmark

In Germany, as in most of Europe the big build-up to Christmas climaxes on the evening of December 24th when the presents are opened from under the tree.  The traditional Christmas dinner takes place on December 25th.  After a lovely dinner of Gilleleje smoked fish we settled in around the Christmas tree to open our presents.  For Rita and I getting Christmas gifts for each other was quite a  unique experience this year.  After departing Cape Town we had a four hour layover at London Heathrow Airport before catching our plane to Copenhagen, so we split up and had to find Christmas presents in the Duty Free Shops.  We gave ourselves 90 minutes so it was little stressful but quite a bit of fun as we not only had to find appropriate gifts but also had to be able to hide them from each other in our carry-on luggage before we met up again.  It all worked out fine and everyone enjoyed each others gifts. 

Rita's parents had packed all the ingredients for our Christmas day dinner in their car and drove them here to Denmark, so it was truly a traditional German feast.  It was fabulous and the Schnapps afterwards was much needed as a digestive.

 Franz, Geoff and Evelyn toasting our Christmas Eve dinner of smoked fish

 

 Rita as Santa's helper distributing out the presents from under the tree 

 

 Evelyn, Rita and Franz, the Christmas Day prep team, waiting for our goose to be cooked 

 

 Evelyn and Franz team up to carve up the goose. A very delicate and precise operation

 

 The end result, a delicious plate of goose, gravy, dumpling, red cabbage and kale Yuuuuummmm!!

Gilleleje

Another sunny but cold and windy day.  But we will take it over rain.  Today we headed to a fishing village about 20 minutes drive from us called Gilleleje (pronounced gill-a-lie) to pick up some fresh and smoked fish for our Christmas Eve Dinner.  As you know, in most of Europe, the big celebration day is December 24th when you open your presents after a traditional dinner.  We are combining our traditions and will open our presents on the evening of the 24th but have our traditional goose dinner on the 25th.

Gilleleje is the 5th largest commercial fishing harbor in Denmark and has been a fishing village since the late 15th century.  The town is centered around its harbor and has a very quaint 19th century residential section filled with thatched roof homes between narrow, winding streets.

 At the edge of the property with the in-laws enjoying the beautiful view

 

 Part of the fishing fleet in Gilleleje Harbor

 

 One of many fish markets.  Notice the two chimneys, they are part of the smoke house at the back

 A wide assortment of fresh and smoked fish for sale inside the fish market

 

Built in 1538, Gilleleje Church is the most famous Church in Denmark for hiding Jews in its attic during WW11.  Unfortunately, they were discovered and sent to a concentration camp

 One of the many 18th century built homes that have been lovingly restored in old town Gilleleje

Around Holloselund

The sun came out from behind the clouds today, but it was still windy and the temperature was only around 4c.  After breakfast we got on our power walking gear and headed to the forest, about a five minute drive from where we are staying, as the trails help protect us from the chilly wind.  That was pretty much it for our outdoor activities for the day.  Tomorrow we will head to Gilleleje a fishing village about 20 minutes from here to pick up some fish for our Christmas Eve dinner.

Our view of the North Sea from the top of the stairs that take us down to the beach

A side view of the property as it slopes down towards the sea.  The stairs are in the middle  

We stopped a friendly Dane who took this picture of us in the middle of the forest

 

A lovely old farmhouse and barn at the edge of the forest.  Thatched roofs are very common here 

 

Stopped another friendly Dane who spent several years in Canada to take this picture of us after we finished our walk.  At the edge of the forest is a long stretch of sand dunes that meets the North Sea

 

Spring into Winter

When we left Cape Town at 10:00pm it was sunny, warm (27c) and heading into summer.  When we arrived in Copenhagen at 3:30pm it was overcast, cold (3.5c) and winter had arrived.  We picked up our rental car and headed to our good friend Josh's cottage in a tiny village called Holloselund that overlooks the North Sea.  Thankfully, its only about an hours drive from Copenhagen Airport and we managed to arrive while there was still some light in the sky.  We unpacked, headed to the local grocery store to pick up some essentials, showered and had a very nice dinner before collapsing into bed after 18 hours of traveling.  The next day Rita and I cleaned the place up, as it had not been used for some time, to get it ready for her parents arrival later in the afternoon.  As you can imagine, it was an emotional welcome as they had not seen each other for several months.  We had another very nice dinner over a lot of conversation, most of it in German.  The following morning we headed for Helsinge, a larger town about 10 minutes drive from our cottage to pick up some serious groceries, wine, a Christmas tree and decorations. Tomorrow we will start to settle into our Denmark routine.

Our little cottage overlooking the North Seas as seen from the stairs that take you down to the sea

Rita putting together her Dad's favorite dish, chicken provencal, to celebrate their arrival in Denmark

 Franz, Rita and Evelyn toasting their reunion (Prost, Prost, Kameraden) before tucking into dinner

 Picking out our Christmas tree at the Juletrae Marked (Christmas Tree Market)

 

Almost finished decorating the Jule Trae (Christmas Tree)