Monday, July 7, 2014

Denmark Tasted. Copenhagen in a Nutshell

Energetic windmills wave their arms excitedly, greeting our plane from the Baltic Sea below.

Metro- clockwork. People helpful, calling my host to inform her I have arrived.
Put away luggage, venture out. Shwarma and fruit stands abound, working class. Graffiti marking the walls of all the buildings, Islamic hijabs on many of the women; neighborhood more Othello than Hamlet.

Walk a kilometer, graffiti sparser, streets nicer, though that's relative, short squat buildings mainly comprised of dirty brick and stone; Prague it's not. Several decimating fires mark Copenhagen's history.
The most interesting building I found in Copenhagen; statues built into the walls

Bike paths on every street, cyclists abound. Pedestrians walk the sidewalk encased in a bubble, eye contact actively avoided.

Runners in workout attire, dichotomous with the numerous smokestacks lining the sidewalk cafes and bars, spewing fumes de cigarettes, fires quenched by liters of alcohol.
Blonde is common, habits aging them quickly.

In the middle of the city is Tivoli, the world's oldest amusement park, the inspiration for Disneyland. Small, yet utterly charming and beautiful, impossible not to instantly adore and love.
Tivoli's Peackcock Theater
A rare, warm, midsummer day, numerous people laid out in a grassy park by the lake absorbing the rare rays of Scandinavian sun, tans absent, vegetation lush.
Many decorative statues line public areas, some magnificent, adding decor otherwise lacking, especially compared to other European capitals.
Taxes high, VAT (Value Added Tax) 25% on all items on top of the 50% citizens pay on their salaries. Building a healthy bank account impossible, but medical care guaranteed by the state.
Safety- certain; crime- scarce, and why would there be? Wealthy society takes care of everyone, most Danes proud of this, even with awareness that some abuse the system. People here fear little, except perhaps social interaction.
Cold and dark days invariably minimize social contact during the winter months. People thaw a little in the summer, but personalities here rarely bloom.

Christiana- the "green light" district. Unlike Hollywood, cameras are not welcome in this druggy enclave as distributing hash and marijuana is still illegal, though large blocks of Moroccan black are cut right out in the open by sun-glass wearing dealers, some shrouding their faces further with tall, stiff jackets.
Throngs of stupid looking customers sit in dilapidated structures baking their brains and numbing themselves further. Their right to do so, I suppose.
on the canals of Copenhagen

A boat ride through the canals. Much of Northern Europe has them, Amsterdam, St. Petersburg, Stockholm.
Check the over-hyped statue of The Little Mermaid from my list.
Our guide's voice is drowned by my cooing over a golden retriever someone brought aboard. This being Denmark, I missed nothing important, and on the off-hand chance I'm wrong, the slobbery, grateful kiss I received more than made up for it.
My Danish best friend- Mavin

5 comments:

  1. I wanna visit Denmark now... Tivoli looks awesome!

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    Replies
    1. Albert,
      Tivoli was very very charming and cool. Still, Denmark wouldn't be my first choice, it would be Norway for Scandinavia, followed by Sweden.

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  2. It's a very good article on Denmark but didn't you like Copenhagen? What I read feels like you didn't enjoy the capital that much, would you recommend it?

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    Replies
    1. I honestly feel there are much prettier better places to see as a tourist than Copenhagen. If you are in Scandinavia, then both Oslo and Stockholm make much better destinations. I would also recommend the nature of Norway. Denmark is unimpressive. Thanks fort he nice comment

      Delete
  3. We visited Denmark once and toured it with the nuns who brought us to the most interesting places.

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