COPENHAGEN
Norway & Denmark Diary : Day 1 to day 4 - 31st March 2019 to 3rd April 2019
The Scandinavian lands are accessible from India in more than one ways. However, considering the cost factor, the air fares from our own Bengaluru to Copenhagen, were cheaper during our “planning" period. This caused us to consider the India-Denmark-Norway route.
Further, the proximity of Copenhagen city to the southern most tip of Norway & Sweden coupled with affordable transport modes, gave more reason to stick to this route. The planning process lasted longer than expected. I decided to go with the idea of covering more of Norway in three weeks instead of adding visits to Sweden & Finland resulting in seeing less of each country. The ideas slowly took shape.
Finally, Denmark was included as a 4 day visit in the itinerary. After all, it would be a sin not to visit to this beautiful terrain after having utilised it as a transit point to get further north.
From Bangalore to Copenhagen
The outlay of Copenhagen
The much raved about Copenhagen city exposes one of its boundaries to waters of the ORESUND, a strait formed by the North Sea and the Baltic Sea touching fingers at the southern tip of Sweden. As such the city is at just a 40 minute driving distance from Malmo in Sweden, where the ORESUND BRIDGE links both countries by rail and road. This fascinating rail-cum-road bridge runs for nearly 8 kms, caving into a tunnel in the waters.
Titled as the capital of Denmark, where more than 50% of its population uses bicycles as a regular means of transport, COPENHAGEN is home to the longest shopping, “pedestrian only” street in the world - the “STROGET” . It also hosts a sizeable number of MICHELIN STAR restaurants. This ravishing city is incredibly eco friendly and has also been awarded the title of GREEN CAPITAL in the recent past. It is one of those cities in EUROPE which desists the EUR currency and uses its own Danish Kroner as a medium of exchange instead. It ranks second to Amsterdam in the number of canals and is therefore referred to as “LITTLE AMSTERDAM”. Apart from this, the city is also known for its world renowned bakeries, the TIVOLI gardens, beer breweries and umpteen historic attractions.
Day 1- 31st March 2019
MURMANKSGADE, NORDHAVN
Our entry into the city happened late night, as there was substantial delay in our flight schedule. We reached the Copenhagen (Kastrup) airport on 31st March 2019 by 9 pm. (A couple in our group had arrived earlier that afternoon, directly from Amsterdam )
A taxi drove for about 30 minutes get us to Murmanskgade, Nordhavn. The first looks of the city drove me completely crazy. The entire city was shimmering in soothing, dim, mild yellow lighting. Beautifully structured houses & buildings of strikingly uniform nature, featuring low roofs, all coloured in chocolate brown were neatly stacked up on either side of roads & bridges that we crossed. I can never forget that scene. There was absolute silence at that time of the night and the stark clean roads were free from traffic. It was a fairytale set up. Breeze blew on our faces as our heads peeked out of the taxi, trying to slurp all what we saw, at once.
Before long we reached our abode. The well-designed layout of Murmanksgade showcased residential & office complexes, mostly cubically shaped, stationed next to one another. The taxi came to a stop at the southern most tip, beside a water body. We had booked ourselves through booking.com at STAY SEAPORT. (Click here to check their website. It is sure to leave you spellbound). The brown coloured, cubical apartment stood literally atop a water body, under the black night sky, showcasing the lights in Sweden at a far away distance. During our entire stay of 3 days here, the wind blew so heavily, with a capacity to sweep off any light-weighted person.
The stay for 10 individuals was split between 3 Apartments - 6 in one and a couple each in the 2nd and 3rd one. The only downside was that we all stayed in different apartments in the same building. Nevertheless, we put our act together and co-ordinated beautifully.
The NETTO supermarket right behind the apartment complex, the NORDHAVN Train station at a walkable distance, a local bus stop not far away, and the completely sunlit apartment of ours with big windows and balconies, made our stay a memorable one.
The beautiful Sunrise and Sunsets from our balconies were the added bonus. It wouldn't let my camera pause even for a minute. The various colors of the skies were so attractive.
The interiors of the apartment for 6 of us, as you can see in the pictures, was spacious and welcomed the sunlight from all corners.
As we were at the end of the Wharf, we were probably lucky to spot MALMO. There were these 40 minute ferries plying between the two countries from the wharf area. We never had the time to try one though.
We settled in our flats and rested to regain our energies, well aware of the power packed city tour coming up the next day.
Day 2- 1st April 2019
The city became our own in just 3 days. The effect of travelling like a local paid off.
We set out at quarter past 10 for some exploration. A City Pass covering unlimited usage of all public transport for 24 hours, meant for zones 1 and 2 within the city, was purchased online, well in advance and loaded onto the mobile phone for quick usage. A 10 minute pleasant walk was all it took to the nearest bus stop. A little wait there, in the chilly weather was fun.
We soon hopped onto a bus that reached Sondre FRIHAVN stop in about 10 -15 minutes. We got off the bus, climbed our way through a well maintain garden right there, finding ourselves amidst inviting green vistas. A less than 5 minute walk through this area got us to the LITTLE MERMAID.
The LittleMermaid
Tucked away in LANGLINE promenade, on the same side of the waterfront as Murmanksgade (the place of our accommodation), is the LITTLE MERMAID.
Inspired by the fairy tale of Hans Christian Andersen, this early 20th century statue is nothing but a petite, roughly 2 metre high, bronze sculpture of a mermaid, installed atop the biggest rock amongst the many lying alongside the water banks of the Oresund strait. It was a gift by the Sculptor himself, to this city.
What makes it iconic to Copenhagen, attracting millions of visitors each year we wonder. Undoubtedly its location - The waterside, fresh air, making it a worthwhile visit.
The place was crowded when we arrived there. A sudden burst of soulful, instrumental music by a street musician caught our attention. We watched as he magically tapped his fingers, creating rhythm over a few huge sized, inverted black metal PANS. It was something I had never heard before. He sat across the "Little Mermaid” continuing his act, while the soulful nectar engulfed our ears. It caused us to occupy a few benches there and soak in his melody for a while. The music continued as we waited for the crowd to steer clear off the statue, to enable us to capture a few private moments. ( video in gallery.)
We crossed a small barricade to get the closest view of the sculpture and finally succeeded in our mission.In the next half hour, we continued walking the promenade in the direction of the Royal PALACE. A slow walk, relishing beautiful structures all along, with a couple of photo stops, took us a good half hour.
St. Alban's Church
Up first was ST ALBANS CHURCH. The charismatic, gothic styled church, sits amidst a picturesque surrounding flaunting its English charm. It is strategically placed half way between the ‘Royal Palace’ and the ‘Little mermaid’, accessible by a little bridge branching out from the promenade. We found a suitable place to settle down for a few pictures. We didn’t bother visiting the interiors of the church.
A temporarily out of service fountain next to the church, known of the GEFIONSPRING displayed a mighty structure of a woman driving a cart pulled by giant sized animals. An engraved serpent, winding around a pillar below, is indeed a work of Art !!
It is said that when the fountain operates in full force, it creates the feeling of the cart being in motion in the middle of a raging stream. We spent a while here clicking pictures, before we got back on track. Next up were a few impressive buildings that exhibited massive sculptures in the vicinity.
The Opera House
We strolled further alongside the boulevard. Soon in view on the other side of the harbour, was the renowned OPERA HOUSE, another iconic landmark of the city. The metropolis is clearly a fusion of modern technology with ancient legacies.
Jutting into the water this remarkable, state-of-the-art structure stands right opposite to the centuries old Amalienborg Palace Axis. With its construction costing around half a billion dollars it sets a record of being one of the most expensive buildings ever built in modern times. I could instantly compare it to a grinning face wearing a fancy hat. The flat, cylindrical, elegant glass structure, protruding from a rectangular block, standing under an elegant, squarish roof, built of glass, steel and concrete, shines in all glory, especially at night when it literally charms the City with its illumination. Although viewing it from the opposite side did no justice, we couldn’t make better use of the opportunity for a few pictures. We walked into the Royal Palace square.
AMALIENBORG PALACE
A bubbling fountain adorns the entrance to the Palace square on the harbour side, with the evergreen “Amalie gardens” running in a lengthy, rectangular shape on either side of it. This pathway leads you to the Palace square. The unusual layout of the palace is the surprise element here. A vast piece of square land flanked with four, identical Royal mansions in each of its corners, placed to create a perfect, octagonal, cobble stoned courtyard in the centre, is what one can expect to see. These Royal buildings are separated by wide walkways on its Northern, Eastern and Southern (promenade) sides but a high roofed, triple passage gateway on its Western side. The centre point of the courtyard adorns the monument of King Frederick V fitted on a high pedestal. At the tip of the Northern walkway ( opposite to the fountain on the Southern side, beyond the palace square), forming the focal point to the entire area, lies the Fredericks Church. The light green dome of the church, with golden decorations running around it, creates the perfect Royal ambience.
A lot can be discussed about the palace and its history. For centuries the Palace has been the residence of the ruling Royal family. The initially palace built in the mid 17th Century on the waterfront was named SOPHIE AMALIENBORG after Queen Sophie Amalie, spouse of King Frederik III. This palace was destroyed in fire a few years after the queen died there. A second palace was built on the same ground during the reign of King Frederick IV. A single building with two stories, facing the harbour, decorated with a French-style palace garden is how this structure looked. It continued to be known under its previous name. However, this palace failed to withstand the ambitious & creative plans of King Frederick V. The King demolished it, included few sub-urban parts bordering the palace and re-designed the entire area creating FREDERICKSSTADT (Frederick’s town), placing prestigious buildings and residences of well-known aristocrats & Noble families there. The current day’s Rococo styled Palace Mansions were a result of his ideas.
We had the pleasure of witnessing the CHANGING OF GUARDS ceremony. The centuries old tradition was a treat to watch up-close. The ceremony as such did not differ from that conducted in the Buckingham Palace. As the crowd was less, we were not forced to push our way for a good view. Soldiers dressed in black uniforms and head gears, marched to the music from their own band, right past our noses. The ceremony concluded with a few of them exchanging positions with their peers who currently guarded the entrances of all the four Palace buildings.
Fredericks church
After a few pictures in the place square, we walked down the northern pathway, leading to the Church. The entire layout of the pathway closely resembled the set up of the walkway leading to St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican city. The Dome of the Church follows the Rococo form of architecture, similar to many of those around Europe, giving the Palace its shape & appearance. Of course, this was just a miniature in comparison to the one in Vatican City, though. How could we not have a peek inside and get mesmerised by the interiors of yet another European Church.
Later, we walked to a bus stop stationed on a parallel road. While waiting for the bus, we witnessed the royal march of the Guards yet again. They were completing their circle around the palace area. Woah ! It was so unexpected. They almost marched past us even before a proper picture could be taken.
Subsequently, bus no.26 approached and took us to a crossroad near the ROSENBORG CASTLE GARDENS. In about 6 minutes or so, we got off at the George Brandes Plads bus stop, lying diagonally opposite the ROSENBORG CASTLE GARDENS. In the vicinity of the bus stop is also the KUNST MUSEUM , Natural history musueum, Geological museum and the Botanical Gardens.
The STATEN MUSEUM OF KUNST (the NATIONAL GALLERY OF DENMARK) is a stunning and colourful structure, but we were short of time to visit all in one day. After a photo stop with the museum as the backdrop, we crossed over to reach the gates of the Royal Castle Gardens.
The Rosenborg Castle
A winding pathway led us towards greenery. Amidst the trees and shrubs, we spotted the majestic Castle. A small brook forms a moat covering one of the sides of the castle, with a little bridge running over it.
The Lovely red castle looked right out of a DISNEY movie. The 17th century masterpiece, built under the supervision of the ostentatious King Christian IV, adopts the Dutch-Renaissance architectural style. The Royal Garden attracts millions of visitors throughout the year.
The Flamboyant castle, initially built as a Royal residence, is now available as a museum for Public visit, at a price of around $18 as entrance fees. It houses the Danish Crown Jewels amongst other precious legacies. The entry to the Gardens is FREE. The impressive, enormous and well maintained Royal Gardens, lie right outside the Castle. A rectangular portion of the Royal gardens has well shaped and cut trees and shrubs and it is obvious that this portion is more systematically maintained than the rest of the land.
The other portions around the castle has large sheets of green grass, decorated with weirdly shaped trees that has no leaves or flowers. They , however, suited the ambience, making it a perfect backdrop for a photoshoot. There were many localites spending their day with their families. We also found a few cyclists, zooming past pathways, enjoying their ride.
We decided to give the castle visit a skip, as we had a similar visit coming up the next day. We hung around the gardens for a while and had lunch on the benches there. Can you spot us in the last picture in the gallery here, settled on benches for our lunch session? Though the day was bright, it was chilly. The windy weather caused us to cover our mouth & nose using scarfs or with anything warm. Suddenly, out of nowhere, we were approached by a man who seemed annoyed. He screamed orders at us to take off the facial covers, and threatened to report us to the police if we didn’t follow it immediately. It took us a while before we gathered that our temporary face masks might have got him suspicious of us. It was humourous.
Botanical Gardens
We had accessed the Rosenborg gardens via the Øster Voldgade street. Post lunch, we exited through the same gate, crossing the road to reach the Natural History Museum building on the opposite side. A relatively lesser known entrance in the form of a small gate, installed inside this museum building, led us into the massive, 10 hectare, Botanical Gardens. Through small, rugged pathways that curved their way around huge green mounds, we strolled till we got to a certain bridge. A beautiful brook lay below it. An ideal place for a photo shoot we thought. A total of 8 to 10 minute walk got us to the main portion of the garden area.
Here was the PALM HOUSE - an attractive green house stationed at a height, with a wide stairway leading to it. The reason for its popularity was clear. The glittering construction has cascading, double cylinders as its central structure with two cuboidal structures running to lengths, on its either side. It holds a record of maintaining the rarest of Danish medicinal species including many of the rare foreign plants. The visual treat totally swept us off our feet. Sadly the glass house interiors were not accessible during our period of visit. We were allowed to take a peek through the windows.
Happy to soak in the surrounding lawn, we ended up warming ourselves in the sunlight. There was ample opportunity to play with a few ducks and other birds. It was a relaxed and pleasurable afternoon with loads of time to explore a few other parts of the massive garden area. It was educative too. Research students and botanists were found stationed in various corners with their paraphernalia. I was quite envious of their experience. It was a couple of hours well spent. Most of us managed to take a short nap on the lawn.
Getting out of the Botanical garden posed a challenge. The rear entrance was closed which caused us to take a round about route within the garden area, to reach its western gate. The NORREPORT was at a walkable distance from here. .
Norreport
The Norreport is basically a centrally located, “station" area in the city. It has a history of being the meeting point for traders and merchants. It gradually developed into a modern hub consisting of bus stops, regional train lines and metro stops, as we see it today. The area connects almost all parts of the entire city. Its main attraction is a bunch of fancy looking sun-shade roofs covering the various stops & metro station entrances. Apart from this there are ventilation points of the underground subways that rise in the form of cylindrical structures stationed on circular pedestals. Each of these, covered with translucent glass and metal, are lined up all along the street at regular intervals. Most parts of the street is covered with bicycle stands. These parking spots secure bicycles of passengers who use other modes of transport to get to their final destinations, till their return. The night view of the street here, is definitely Insta-worthy due to all the illumination it offers. However, we could sense the chaotic vibration that defined its unpopularity amongst the locals.
It started to drizzle by the time we got there and we stood under one of the shades till the skies cleared out. A service road from here lead us to the KULTORVET square. The square seemed less cluttered. It was more of a “family” space. A quick walk around, relishing the yummy road-side strawberries, exploring the souvenir shops & other such, was inevitable. Our next destination was the RUNDETAARN
Rundetaarn (The Round Tower)
A short walk of 5-6 minutes from the Kultorvet square further led us to the RUNDETAARN or THE ROUND TOWER, another historic landmark of the city. The tower, as its name suggests, is cylindrical structure that stands attached to the rear wall of the TRINITATIS CHURCH. We approached the tower through a narrow road. Entry is free. There was no queue whatsoever. After a photoshoot to our heart’s content near the entrance, we ventured to climb it.
The tower adopts Danish-renaissance architecture. Initially built as an astronomical observatory in the 17th century, the unique tower boasts of a spiral corridor/ramp curving all the way to the top, instead of a normal stairway. It was built this fashion to allow passage of horse carriages to the library stationed on one of its top floors, to facilitate pick up of books. It is possible to savour the grandiose of the church interiors through a small door attached to the walls, on the way up. Cyclists are also allowed to cycle to the top.
The walk was easy and hardly strenuous as compared to most of our similar climbs. We frolicked all the way to the top. We were happy to get a peek into the interiors of the church. However, entry to the church was restricted at the time we landed there. Climbing our way further, we reached the library. We decided to give it’s visit a skip. The last lap, before getting to the viewing ramp at the pinnacle, did have a few steps.
Tourists are rewarded with beautiful, aerial city views at the top. The circular viewing pandal is narrow but fenced high enough to ensure safety of all who get there. We spent a while relishing the visuals before we headed back to the ground.
A Walk to the Sankt Peders Bageri
None can afford to miss visiting a Bakery when in Denmark. The country is renowned for its top-class , super delicious bakes. We decided to visit the Sankt Peders Bageri that finds a place in the top five of the city.
A good 10 minute stroll from the Rundetaarn past the busy market square, Copenhagen cathedral, Copenhagen University, Sankt Peder’s Church took us to the famous SANKT PEDERS bakery. We were fortunate to find many picture worthy stops all along the way.
The Bakery was surprisingly a smaller shop than we expected. We sadly reached there at their closing hour thus missing all their fresh bakes. The shop owners were extremely friendly. As a rule, only fresh breads were allowed for sale and the unsold ones were mandatorily discarded at the end of each day. Our heart sank to see yummy loafs being discarded right before our eyes. It surely was a lot of waste considering the shop’s elaborate, daily menu but the rules were stringent. The owners were happy that we had included their shop in our tourist itinerary. We walked out of the bakery with loads of packages, consisting of free goodies. It was a 5 minute walk to the city hall square from here.
The City Hall Square
We reached the CITY HALL in less than 15 minutes. The fascinating architecture all around, displayed a unique fusion of modern and ancient at every nook and corner. The huge square was under renovation and the area was completely busy with traffic trying to wade around the re-construction site. The beautiful, brown coloured, city hall building has similar looking buildings flanking it. On the other side is the “Tivoli Gardens” - a much raved about theme park of the city.
Coffee Break
We stopped over at at EXPRESSO store for coffee and snacks. It was a great evening in the heart of the city. Later, we boarded a bus just outside the coffee shop to get to the Vesterport stop.
Vesterport
The VESTERPORT is one of the station hubs of the city from where trains and buses are available in plenty to get to most parts. A colourfully painted building caught our eye here. We had sufficient time for a photo shoot before we boarded a bus to get off at the beautiful NYHAVN in less than 20 minutes.
NYHAVN
As an erstwhile maritime port, NYHAVN (pronounced NAI HAVEN) holds a record of being the most visited tourist spot of the city since ages. It closely mimics the waterfront scenes of Amsterdam, Venice and the like. Music and aroma fill the air in various corners. The place is characterised by narrow streets running on either side of a canal. One one side are the centuries old colourful buildings (now renovated), stacked together, mirroring themselves in the canal waters. This side is rich in restaurants, pubs and shops too. It is therefore referred to as the SUNNY SIDE. At the mouth of the canal, enthusiastic tourists queued up for boat rides. Beautifully decorated shops, a cobble-stoned square fed with a central wooden monument , families enjoying their leisurely evenings are some of the common sights here.
We simply walked up and down the streets, witnessing boating sessions being enjoyed by other tourists. The unforgettable sunset made it all worth a visit. After clicking a few pictures in the square and around, we returned to the bus stop. This time we boarded a bus to get off at the Kobenhavn main railway station.
KOBENHAVN RAILWAY STATION :
The Central station isn’t just a station. The massive central hall of the station hosts a market place where most purchases happen. The station not only links all parts of the country with intercity and express trains but also facilitates international connections to many of the European countries. Apart from trains there are subways, metro and buses that ply from this area. We window shopped in the main hall before taking a subway to Nordhavn. It was easy with the day pass & access was easy. We managed to steer through the heavy winds on our walk back home. We called it the end of day 2 in Copenhagen, after a good home cooked meal. The evening sky was to die for !!.
Day 3- 2nd April 2019
Bright sun rays drenched our apartment that morning. We were up early, feeling all enthusiastic and ready to embrace yet another day in the city. The plan was to visit a few places outside city limits. Breakfast and packed lunches were ready on time. After a few pictures in the apartment and its vicinity, we walked toward Norhavn station to board an ' S' train to get to Emdrup. Bispebjerg was our first destination of the day.
The Grundtvig's Church
An unquestionably attractive, unusual structure for a church, the Grundtvig's is a manual masterpiece. This beautifully sculpted, stupendous stone structure is sure to catch one’s eye. We surely were bowled by its looks.
It was an easy journey by the "S" train from Nordhavn to Emdrup st. Thereafter a bus dropped us off right behind the church, at the BISPEBJERG stop.
The church has three entrances. We entered the church from its rear entrance with no entry fee. We wound our way around the wide corridor surrounding the church to get to the main entrance.
Handcrafted solely by bricks, this early 20th century structure, is new to town and therefore relatively new to a traveller’s bucket list. Close to 6 lakh bricks were utilised in its construction. It was built in the honour of GRUNDTVIG - a Danish historian, poet & philosopher, whose influential ideas labeled him as one of the top reformers of his times.
Though the builder, Peder Vilhelm Jensen, has adopted the gothic-renaissance style in its construction, the church surprisingly wears a highly modernised look. This ambitious building is unlike any other church in the world. Its distinctive exterior, features an attractive facade that appears to have drawn inspiration from a “pipe organ” usually found inside Churches around Europe.
Stationed at the end of a small street between two similarly styled buildings, a photo of the church with its surroundings is definitely insta-worthy. After a few pictures at the front entrance, we visited it's interiors. We found it to be in striking harmony with its exteriors.
The interiors purely display brick work with the absence of any other form of ornamentation. The central hall is lined up with a dozen, tall pillars on either side. At least 30000 bricks have been utilised to create each pillar. Sunlight passes through longish windows and falls on the polished bricks creating a unique effect. The ambience is gorgeous yet simple. We occupied the benches and offered our prayers. We had enough time to admire the architecture and the decorations at the Altar, before heading out.
Bispebjerg (known for its hospital) lies a little outside the main Copenhagen city. The area is therefore laid back, filled with peace and tranquility. We walked up the streets, crossing a few other landmarks to get to the nearest bus- stop. We headed further north to Hillerod. (Read HILLEROD , Denmark for our experience at the Fredriksborg Palace). After a tour of the Palace we got back to the city for an evening adventure.
Go Boat Tours
We boarded a train from Hillerod to get to Norreport station. From here, bus 5C brought us to the "Amager Boulevard stop" on the other side of a water body that divided the city. A five minute walk from this stop saw us at a bridge above the Islands Brygge area. We climbed down a few stairs at the bridge to get to the GO BOAT TOURS office (a little hut type) on the water front.
Booking this tour was the best decision ever. We produced our online tickets in exchange for 2 boats to fit our group of ten comfortably. We had chosen a two hour slot (4:30 pm to 6:30 pm) that was enough to acquire a unique, sight-seeing experience of the city. Having to steer the boats ourselves was the “fun” part. The little blue boat could fit upto 8 members. Fitted in it was a central wooden table which was ideal for a little snack that we had carried along.
The instructions received from a staff member seemed pretty easy to follow. We split into teams of 5 and boarded our respective boats. The staff member handed over a map, per boat, suggesting a few possible routes to match our time slot. He also explained a few do’s and don’ts. We were on our own from then on.
Initially making irregular zig-zags in the water, we took off enthusiastically, though most of us screamed in amusement. Finally succeeding in our trials with the rudder, we managed to navigate smoothly. It was thrilling to wade under bridges and curve into narrow canals while simultaneously picking up exquisite views of the city. We also had a race between our boats. Waving out to friendly people on the land was fun. Time flew past. Half way through, we enjoyed our leisurely evening snack amidst these priceless sights. At 6 pm, the skies looked bright as ever. Look out for a short video of our exciting ride in the gallery.
We sighted THE CHURCH OF OUR SAVIOUR. This church is renowned for its unusual, richly decorated steeple, that has steps spiralling on its outer end to reach the topmost point. It gets narrower on each lap upward. Only brave hearts can attempt a climb here. We were more than happy to just view it from a distance. An unusual sight of clouds forming curves, felt like smoke rising out of its summit.
We passed by many other attractions (most of which we had visited on land), before moving towards the Opera House. Here, the deep, unsteady waters began to toss our boats around, providing some adventure. It occurred to us that our group had no swimmers. We shouted & screamed with fear of falling off our boats. We finally managed to move away from the tide and get stable. This did lead us a little off track. We etched our own route by rowing past the narrow water course, running adjacent to the Opera House, to return to the shores of GO BOAT TOURS' office. We were there on time. The evening was entertaining, promising & fruitful. We returned the boats and walked to a nearby bus stop.
After a long wait we realised that the stop was no longer in use. We climbed up to the bridge and strolled to reach our earlier bus stop. A bus to Norreport and further to Nordhavn took us to our accommodation in Murmanksgade.
It was end of day 3 in Copenhagen.
3rd April 2019
The morning of 3rd April consisted of early breakfast. Packing was completed the earlier night. A pre-booked taxi arrived at 7:30 am. We bid farewell to Murmanksgade and reached the Kastrup airport in less than half hour. Our flight to Tromso via Oslo was scheduled at 9:10 am. The SAS flights were punctual and comfortable. We reached Oslo in an hour or so. The connecting flight to TROMSO was scheduled at 11:30. The entire journey worked like a clock. We reached Tromso, NORWAY by 1:30 pm. For further story read TROMSO TOWN under full story of TROMSO, Norway) ( As we moved out of Copenhagen early, it has not been considered as a day in the city. This day is included in Tromso instead).
Back in Copenhagen
Day 4- 19th April 2019
Our last leg of the entire tour of 21 days, consisted of taking a return flight to India from Copenhagen. We bid goodbye to Norway at the Oslo Central train station that morning. We got to the Oslo airport from where we boarded flight to Copenhagen. The journey was complete by 3 pm. We had booked ourselves for the night at "AC Hotel by Marriott Bella sky"- an affordable airport hotel near Kastrup Airport. It swept us off our feet with its unique structure. We used the hotel's shuttle van from the airport. After an hour of resting in our luxurious rooms, we felt refreshed. Whilst few of us were contemplating on getting out of the hotel the rest of us decided to visit the TIVOLI GARDENS that evening. The enthusiasm of few soon spread to the others. In any case the gardens was something which we had missed at the beginning of the tour.
AC Hotel by Marriott Bella sky
A bus stop right outside the hotel was convenient enough for a local ride, to directly reach the entrance of the GARDENS. It was easy and comfortable to board a bus here. To our surprise we had an Indian bus driver. We struck a friendly conversation with him and learnt that the route we had chosen was temporarily closed. He dropped us off half way through and guided us on a shortwalk to get to a nearest train station. We were asked to get to the Copenhagen central station from there. TIVOLI GARDENS lies just opposite to the central station. It was still bright when we reached the entrance of TIVOLI.
Tivoli Gardens
Tivoli is a theme park, a get-together venue, a concert hall loaded with street food, exquisite restaurants, shops and Cafe's. In short it is a not-to-miss tourist attraction that summarises the city itself. As the Garden was closed till 15th April we could not visit it during our initial stop at COPENHAGEN. However, we were lucky to pay a visit on our return journey.
We entered the gardens after purchasing our entrance tickets at the office counter. One of us accompanied the two children in the group, who were both adamant & excited to try various rides. The rest decided to walk around and explore the place at a leisurely pace. The children with an accompanied adult, were busy hopping from one ride to another. Even as dark skies set in they didn't seem to have their fill . Tivoli Magic I guess!
We witnessed a large crowd gathering in the centre of the garden, where a podium was installed. A LIVE music concert about to begin and people were finding their own space & making themselves comfortable. The environment was lively and bustling. It was clearly family friendly. The place is truly a cultural hub. Bedecked with flowers and fountains at every corner, the gardens spared no effort to keep the audience entertained with variety games, rides, food and shopping. The concert soon began with the loud, lively music entertaining not only its specific audience but also the people in every corner of the garden area. (swipe to view the gallery)
Roller coaster, cup & saucer and endless other rides were all successfully conquered. Finally came the tallest -THE FATHER OF ALL RIDES . Check out the video in the Gallery. The ride seems definitely scary to an onlooker from a distance. The kids were so excited. They waited in the queue patiently amidst other "ride" enthusiasts, as we stood watching them from a distance with our hearts in our mouth.
As you can see in the video, the chairs are spun around a vertical, green lit, central pillar while simultaneously being lifted upward to reach the top. This action continues on its return to the ground. It was a sight to see. As per their experience, it turned to be far too cold at the topmost point while they were being spun around mercilessly.
The Mini China Town
The attractive "Mini China town", inspired by the culture of that country, shone in bright red, lighting up the night skies. A mighty roller coaster was accessible from here. There was a stall for a virtual reality experience. We treated ourselves to some cotton candy, burgers & French fries in a restaurant around, once the rides were done with. It was the only food stall opened at that time of night in the park. Once we were done, we walked towards the bus stop in front of the Central Station. A long wait was followed by a bus ride which got us to our hotel.
The hotel seemed well lit and was glittering in its unique architecture. We rode the elevator right up to the 23rd floor for some unforgettable aerial views of the city. It was fabulous. We retired to our rooms and called it a day.
Bidding Adieu to Copehangen
20th April 2019
The buffet breakfast at the hotel was interesting that morning. We were scheduled to leave the hotel by 12 pm. The shuttle bus arrived on time and there were no hiccups in getting to the Airport. We left Copenhagen, our gateway to Norway, with wonderful memories of a life time, and till date can't stop raving about our entire experience.
