It’s 10:33pm and my step counter says I’ve logged 24,391 steps today.
And that’s not counting the three bike trips.
I’m pooped!
Today I walked between all kinds of iconic Copenhagen sights. First there was Fælledparken, Denmark’s largest public area, with cute paths and a lake. It surrounds the national stadium.
Then I took the Bycyklen on a round-about tour of town, eventually over to Kastellet, a citadel built in 1626 which now holds military barracks and hosts a beautiful walking trail along its star-shaped embankment. My favorite was the old windmill, one because it’s pretty and two because you can see a gaggle of modern windmills off in the background. Copenhagen wants to be carbon-neutral 2025, bee tee dubs.
From there I strolled along the streets lined with shops and bike lanes and bikes on bikes to check out Marmorkirken, a domed church inspired by St Peter’s in Rome. On weekends you can go up to the dome to see out over Copenhagen, but today was a Thursday so no dice. However, looking out from the front door you get an excellent view of Amalienborg, even though I have no idea what Amalienborg is. (That’s what Wikipedia is for!) A good challenge for tomorrow…
I kept walking, headed toward King’s New Square, which is a plaza faced with several historic and important buildings. However, the current situation of this area is “under construction” as they build a new Metro/subway station! So I got a face-full of green walls as I tried to gaze out over the square.
Luckily, it’s very close to Nyhavn, the famous postcard canal of Copenhagen with the colorful houses and cute outdoor cafes. I do love the colors, especially on a day that turned rather cloudy in the afternoon! I was so tempted to snuggle up under the heat lamps and blankets, but I was mentally ready to be completely out of the cold — my fingers felt solid and my toes, noes, and tail were all froze.
So, I stopped off at Mormor’s. I think I accidentally stumbled into a Copenhagen institution. I didn’t know it at the time, but Mormor is Danish for Grandma. This explains SO MUCH about this place! The staff was welcoming, but very matter-of-fact (I arrived at 4:35 to hear the matron of the counter explaining to two tourists that she closes in 25 minutes and are they sure they still want to order food?) and the surroundings were cozy, but cluttered, and kind of like we gave up on decorating about thirty years ago. It was heaven. And the hot chocolate was HUGE and silky smooth. Definitely worth the 42DKK (£4.20 / $6.30?! Whoops!) especially because I could sit at the window seat and watch the traffic while I thawed.
After that I toodled around on the Bycyklen for a while, winding my way north before heading back south to meet up with Britton for dinner. I still dig the bike system, but today we discovered a rather annoying little glitch: the GPS maps that are oh-so-handy for newbies don’t adjust very well (if at all) once they’re on a “route.” I literally rode in a giant circle around a hospital complex before eventually being put back “on route” when cycling to Kastellet. It didn’t matter that I started out on a street and just turned left instead of the three right turns the little green line suggested. “Nnnooooo… that’s confusing and wrong and would you please just do what I tell you??” Britton also begrudgingly followed the route his bike suggested, and his trip time nearly doubled. I know this because I counted every minute while I stood outside the street food building waiting for him to arrive!
HOWEVER, once he did arrive, we headed inside the fancy food court of hipster street food, and it was quite the atmosphere to behold. There was a live “band” playing/singing/screaming a very strange, slow, euro-pop cover of “Barbie Girl”, complete with a lead singer in high, high platform heels sporting thick-cut bleach blonde bangs.
Get off my lawn and let me through to the food! I chose a Korean noodle dish which I shoveled into my face while wandering around behind Britton while he weighed the pros and cons of beef carpaccio over a surf-and-turf burger. Surprisingly, he chose the beef (bøf) carpaccio! It was quite delicious.
And now, dear reader, I’m finally warm but now very sleepy back at the airbnb. Commencing sleep phase in threeeeee… twooooo… zzzzzzzzzzzzz
