Wednesday, September 10th - Arrival in Copenhagen

I flew SAS 11 hours direct from LAX to CPH. SAS's A350 business class was very good. I managed about 5 hours of sleep. Landing in the afternoon, I activated my 96 hour Copenhagen Card, found my way to the M2 Metro, and was at Norreport in the city just after 4pm. I got lost briefly walking the half mile to the excellent Wide Hotel. I unpacked, cleaned up, and then called my brother-in-law Tom who joined me in Denmark for the first 4 days of my trip. We walked to a relaxing dinner at the traditional Danish Restaurant Puk, catching up on years of family stories.

17th century Nyhavn canal

Breakfast at the Wide Hotel was excellent. Tom and I met in the lobby of the Tivoli Hotel, where he was staying. We headed out for a walk along the Christianshavn canal (large picture, top of page left) not knowing how far we would get on foot. We passed the Opera House (first picture above), beautiful Nyhavn (second picture above) and interesting sights along the way (third picture above). It turned out we were in good enough shape to walk all the way to the Little Mermaid (fourth picture above) and then inland all the way back, tracking Rick Steve's suggested sights along the way (e.g. Marble church, first picture below) - over 10 miles total! With both of us working our map apps, we were never lost for more than a few minutes.

We stopped midway on the way back at the top of Nyhavn (large picture, top of page right, and second picture below) and enjoyed a great late lunch featuring my first smørrebrød open faced sandwich at Told and Snaps. We went back to our hotels for a quick rest and set 7:30pm to meet for a casual dinner at the local Hard Rock Cafe. On my way back to my hotel, I bought pastries at a Lagkagehuset pastry spot so that I could indulge with a Danish beer later. After dinner we walked through Tivoli Gardens, but drizzle coupled with our already long day cut that short. On my balcony after Tivoli, armed with pastries and Danish beer, I backed up photos, did a bit of journaling, and retired for the night.

Friday, September 12th - Frederiksborg Castle in Hillerød

Tom and I met at Copenhagen's central train station at 9am, figured out the S train tickets and tracks, and were on our way to Hillerød mid-morning. Hillerød's train station is close, but not at Frederiksborg Castle. We figured out the free bus to the town center, scouted the area for restaurants, then walked to the castle. The weather was fickle. The bright sunny day turned cloudy, so we headed for the outside areas first, hoping to beat the rain. The gardens (third and fourth pictures above) are gorgeous, reminiscent of Schonbrunn castle in Vienna. However, the weather changed faster than us and a downpour began when we were near the top of the gardens. Luckily, the on-site Havehuset Cafe was close by, so we ducked in and waited out the rain (first picture below). We walked back to the garden's base and entered the castle's interiors. They were impressive, rumored to be a 17th century Danish royal attempt to one-up Versailles (second and third pictures below).

Exiting the castle grounds, we found Valentin Kichen Bar in Hillerød where we enjoyed a leisurely lunch. I had other sightseeing opportunities planned heading farther from Copenhagen, but we decided instead to take the win for the day. The return bus stops in Hillerød were convoluted, so we walked through town to the train station for our return to Copenhagen. We went back to our hotels for some rest. We met at Restaurant Kronborg at 6pm for what turned out to be the best meal of the trip. We got the full treatment from a good waiter: aquavit education, two smørrebrøds - pickled herring and beef, then sweets for dessert. Exiting the restaurant, a brilliant rainbow appeared across the city. The streets filled with selfie takers. Back at my hotel, I did a pastry and beer decompression on my balcony. I backed up photos, journaled, and marveled that at my age I pulled off another 7 mile plus walking day!

Saturday, September 13th - Day trip across the Øresund bridge to Malmö, Sweden

Tom and I decided before the trip that we would spend one day in Malmö, Sweden, across the bridge from Copenhagen. We met at 9am at Copenhagen Central station. I activated my Eurail Pass and Tom bought his ticket. At 9:30 we were on our way. The Øresund bridge is an engineering marvel, spanning 8 miles above and below the Øresund strait. It looks impressive in pictures on the web, but while on it, all we saw was water and train tracks. We arrived in Malmö around 10am. Crossing the main square (fourth picture above), we walked to the impressive 14th century Saint Peters church (first and second pictures below). Heading northeast, we crossed Kungsparken trying to find Malmö Castle, which was surprisingly hard to accomplish due to a lack of signage. The park is over 8 acres and had lots of people and weekend activates underway.

Passing a big windmill (third picture below), we finally found our way to the castle. Frankly, the castle is pretty ugly as castles go (fourth picture below). We had hopes for an impressive interior, but it too was a bust. We walked back into town and had a wonderful lunch, including Swedish meatballs of course, at a Michelin listed French restaurant, Brasserie Sture. Figuring we had gotten the gist of what Malmö had to offer, we caught the afternoon train back to Copenhagen. Back in Copenhagen, we went back to our hotels for some rest and packing for the next leg of each of our trips. We met up for a casual dinner at Brewpub Copenhagen and said our goodbyes. Checking my watch, we had logged a third 7 mile plus walking day!

Copenhagen was a great starting spot with a lot to offer for first time visitors like myself. Mentally, I settled into a Scandinavian vibe, which is hard to describe. On Sunday morning, Tom took an early train to Hamburg to meet up with his friends there. Midmorning, I headed to CPH airport and the next leg of my trip in Bergen, Norway.