I’ve been recounting my adventures while not on the road. My sister and I have had an annual sibling trip tradition for several years and in 2013 we decided we visit Scandinavia
In September of 2013, my sister and I spent a couple of weeks in the Scandinavian countries. The next few throwbacks will take us through Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland.
Copenhagen Bound
We took advantage of an Icelandair stopover option where transatlantic flights are able to stopover for an extended amount of time for no extra charge. The stopover would be on our homeward leg of this trip. But we did end up transiting through Keflavik Airport (Icelandair’s home airport) on our way to Copenhagen, Denmark.
We arrived late morning and made our way to the hotel. After a short time to freshen up, we set out to get our bearings and explore a little.
Glyptotek
We hadn’t walked more than a block before stumbling upon the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek art museum. The art was spectacular, but truth be told, the jet lag hit us pretty hard while we were inside, so we had to escape to fresh air and continue our exploration (lest we turn into walking zombies!)
Restaurant Puk
We got as far as a restaurant named Puk a few blocks away before plopping ourselves down on this streetside patio.
We ordered a “Scandinavian Sampler” to start. This would be the start of my love affair with the food in this region. Included in the platter was cheese, fried fish fillet, pickled herring, pork crackling and an assortment of veggies. Throughout my trip I would not be able to get enough of this cuisine!
I’d like to say that the food energized us, but jet lag was winning and we ended up retiring to our hotel in the early evening and crashing.
Copenhagen
We woke up VERY early the next morning and decided to seize the day. We set out for a full day of exploration. Copenhagen is a beautiful city, with Canals, distinct architecture including a number of castles. Simply walking around town incited an appreciation of this city quickly elevating it into a favorite amongst cities I’ve travelled to.
Of note we visited some fairly notable landmarks in Copenhagen.
The Little Mermaid Statue
This is a bronze statue that was based on the Little Mermaid fairy tale. While the statue is lovely, seeing it was a bit anti-climactic and very touristy (we counted at least 5-6 large tour bus groups).
Nyhavn
This is a very iconic Copenhagen canal with its colorful buildings and picturesque views. along both sides of the canal are a lot of patios where people can have some food and drink and enjoy the hustle and bustle. We spent some time here and really enjoyed the vibe! There were several outdoor performances and it was simply a great place to chill.
Amalienborg Castle
This is where the Danish Royal family resides, it’s a beautifully built compound and also has its own ceremonial guard. We would return the next day to visit the museum and witness the changing of the guard.
Torvehallerne Market
We made our way to a Torvehallerne market we had researched prior to our trip for lunch. There were tons of stands for all sorts of food! I can safely say my fires for the food in this region intensified!
Back to Puk
We were still dealing with the lingering affects of the time change as well as the super early start that we had today, so we returned to our hotel for a short afternoon nap, we woke up for dinner time with the intention of re-visiting the first restaurant we went to when we had arrived, Restaurant Puk. We had scoped out a dish that a neighbouring table had and we made it a point to return and get it.
How can you possibly go wrong with steak (Yes there was a steak under that) completely covered in mashed potatoes?! When we saw this we knew we would be returning and we were not disappointed!
With dinner over, we strolled around Copenhagen in the evening, and ended up wandering into Copenhagen’s city hall, which was a beautiful building and we were pleasantly surprised that there was also a small art exhibit inside.
We walked back to our hotel and called it a night. We had a full day planned the next day and if this first day was any indication, we were going to have a GREAT trip.