Author: Yellow Duckie
•16:23
Despite having heard so much about Copenhagen and the positive review of this city (even from the Swedes), I was a little disappointed with my visit to Copenhagen. I believe I did this city injustice by giving such a remark. You can blame it on the fact that I had to crawl out of bed at 5 am to catch a flight and the uncertainties of being hosted while in Copenhagen. Not to forget that I had to drag my 17 kg luggage all across (a little exaggerated) Copenhagen when my host informed me that he could only meet me at 8 pm.

On a lighter note, I did get to the city free of charge (because the ticketing machine refuse to accept foreign credit cards and only accept small notes) with the metro which I count it a double blessing when I found out how much does it ticket cost. It’s “bleedingly” expensive: it’s about RM 13 per ticket with the duration of 1 hour. Contributed by the exchange rate, Copenhagen is indeed slightly more expensive than Stockholm. To give you a rough idea, to enjoy a can of coke is about RM 17 and a simple lunch in a cafĂ© is about RM 56.

On the overall, I think Copenhagen is beautiful. Although the architecture of the building is pretty similar to that in Sweden but the details of the buildings differentiate its charm from Sweden. Bricks are widely used and they make no effort in covering it up with another layer of plaster, which I believe there is no need of it as the Danes really know how to make these old bricks building beautiful. If you take a closer look at the top end of these brick buildings, it is crafted with patterns. Take a visit to Carlsberg and you’ll know what I mean.

If you think signboards in Malaysia is bad, I think Malaysia has found its match. I can never forget the journey of getting my 17-kg from the island where the airport is to the Main Central station in the city. First of all, not many local can really tell you that in order to get to the Main Central Station (from the Island where the airport is), you will need to change train and the station to change to the line that leads you to the Central is not in the same building but within walking vicinity. You can hardly find any signboards that could direct you and be prepare to climb flights (many flights) of stairs.

Sad to say, the condition of the train station is appalling. Trash everywhere and most part of the station is scented with the foul smell of urine. If you ever use the elevator, the condition is unbearably dirty that you don’t even feel like touching the buttons.

Apart from my tiny unpleasant encounters with Copenhagen, I must admit that this city has got a lot to offer and the people here are a lot more friendlier than the Swedes ( you will most likely get approached if you looked lost or seen fumbling with the map). Here are a few notable ones (based on my personal preference):

1. Sausages or hotdogs or frankfurters or whatever you call it
Unmistakably one of the yummy experiences you can have on a small budget (although not so budget for an Asian pocket). Hotdogs stands are EVERYWHERE… yes practically everywhere. Although searching for proper food in Copenhagen was tough (except when you are in Nyhavn), you can never go hungry as you will bound to bum into a hotdog stand at any corner. According to our host, the red sausages are the true Danish sausage.


2. The little mermaid
Yes, it’s actually quite small compared to its fame but this tiny sculpture of a mermaid sitting gracefully on the rock is indeed a beauty. I supposed the finest touch of the artist and also contribution from the environment which this beauty is situated made this place quite worth a visit.





3. Carlsberg
Even though you are not a beer fan, this is quite worth a visit. The architecture of the buildings itself is quite an art to be admired. It’s amazing how one could think of decorating brick buildings that totally brings out a different image of a brick building. This place is simply magical. Admission is not free but it comes with two drinks of your choice (this includes their fine beers).

4. St Alban Church
I would call this my dream church. I can’t exactly pin point what is the attraction of this church but the first time I lay my eyes on it, it caught my breathless. I’ll let the picture do the explanation.



5. Canal Tour
No matter how touristy this may sound, I would strongly recommend you to take the canal tour. It reveals scenery from a different angle (view of the mermaid from the sea, I must admit, very sensual) and it brings you through the tiny canals of the city.

6. Visiting the National Museum
To get a good history of Denmark and to indulge in the culture of the Danes, I strongly recommend you to make your way to the National Museum. Head straight to Second floor and you can skip the rest unless you are generally interested with the history of the world. The best part of this is that Admission is FREE!



7. Breakfast at Bang & Jensen (http://www.bangogjensen.dk/)
Having a good breakfast at a cozy place is just the perfect thing to do on a Saturday morning. The set up of this place is totally RETRO. It used to be a Pharmacy and it is now converted to a restaurant with a cozy set up. No wonder, our host could spend the half a day here enjoying his weekend breakfast while surfing the web. Although it’s expensive, but the breakfast set is quite worth the try. Ordering the breakfast itself is quite intriguing, you’ll get a list to tick of your choices.

8. Drop by the local bakery

9. Enjoy sunset at one of the 3 man-made lakes in the City
Skt. Jorgens So, Peblinge So and Sortedams So is really a perfect place to enjoy a stroll or a jog (doesn’t matter what time of the day or even season). Surrounded by the urban structures, this place offers you an escape from reality to a quiet peaceful sanctuary.



Word of Advise while in Denmark: Do bother searching for the Danish butter cookies, it’s a myth. Unless someone corrects me, those Danish cookies which could be found in our local Giant store, is quite a tourist thing. Thus far, I’ve only found it in a candy store with a tacky label on it.
This entry was posted on 16:23 and is filed under . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

0 comments: