I thought there was only one little mermaid in Denmark. Wrong....
When a birthday or some anniversary comes, you have to receive 30-40 people. And they drink and eat. And again they eat and drink. And they have fun and good, and at the end of the day you fall down exhausted by cooking and pouring. And some bastard will definitely give shaving cream. (Well, look at my electric razor in the bathroom first. ) Or else, little coffee cups. Damn, I already have a warehouse of creams and cups. In short, I decided to score everything and run away to Copenhagen.
It so happened that I spent a significant part of my childhood in this city, at the turn of the seventies and eighties, and I really wanted to see how Denmark has changed over the years. Then, as communist cartoonist Herluf Bidstrup caustically wrote, it was a kingdom of general welfare. The Soviet-sponsored leader of the Danish communists, Jø rgen Jensen, waged an uncompromising struggle with Prime Minister Anker Jergensen. For example, people rallied about the fact that the villain Anker ordered to allocate free three-four-room municipal apartments to young families only after the birth of a child. But this child had to be conceived in inhuman conditions, no one knows where. Tyranny eprst. Or, then, the law really worked according to which any person, if he was impatient for the most part, and there was no toilet nearby, could call at any door and the owner of the house was obliged to take him to the toilet. And then there was total nudism. It was in the order of things to see a topless woman riding a bicycle down the street. Or a naked man walking down the main street. About the beaches, I generally keep silent.
I was afraid that Denmark was affected by the same irreversible changes that are killing familiar Europe. Fortunately, almost everything remained in its place.
Copenhagen is a very walkable city. You can actually get around it in one or two days. I recommend walking along the central pedestrian Strø get street. (More correctly Stroyebrogade). Despite the high cost, you need to sit in a cafe on the Nyhavn canal. You have to hug the little mermaid. It is necessary to come to the square of Amalienborg Palace at 12 and look at the divorce of the royal guards. If you want, you can even visit the apartments of Queen Margrethe II herself. She is an absolutely democratic aunt and lets tourists in. All in dad. Frederick IX was a very simple guy. He was remembered by his compatriots for obscene tattoos, which, being a prince, he did while serving in the navy. Or, when he came to the city skating rink and broke his leg there, he himself hobbled to a taxi, arrived at the clinic, sat in line, and only when filling out the questionnaire it turned out that the grandfather’s profession in skating is king.
If funds allow, it is possible to hire a cycle rickshaw (150 DCC). You can also use the double-decker tour bus, but the rickshaw takes you through the crowd and it's much more interesting. Be sure to ride on a tourist boat on the sea and canals. Because Copenhagen is a port city and must be seen from the water. (From 40 to 150 DCC. Start from Nyhavn. )
I can’t say anything about museums, because. not a fan.
If you are interested, you can visit the Christiania area. It is the hippie capital of the world. Unfortunately, Christiania has changed a lot. Previously, bearded long-haired hippies and their girlfriends, deliberately hairy everywhere, really lived there. Now Christiania is a tourist attraction. I hoped to meet the same hippies there, albeit older, but alas. A bunch of non-Danish merchants. Homeless. And puffy. There is so much of it that you can go crazy just breathing in the air. On the territory of the district, any byaka is sold almost legally. But in no case do not try to take the joint outside of Christiania. The police specifically shmonat, both pedestrians and cars. It is strictly forbidden to take pictures on the territory of the district under the threat of being hit by cabbage soup.
Where to eat. Everything is not so simple here. There are a lot of cheap eateries with Italian, Korean, Thai food. For the very economical, there is the Seven-Eleven chain, where the food is good, tasty and cheap. Can be taken out. You can eat there too. But I managed to taste real Danish cuisine only in expensive restaurants, where tables had to be ordered and they let me in a couple of times just because there was a cancellation of the reservation. (Account 100 - 150 E for two. ) It is difficult to find a place in mid-level establishments, and the bill will still not please $ 100 - 120 for two).
What to buy. And you don't have to buy anything. Everything is expensive there. Wildly expensive. Dazzlingly expensive. As a souvenir (or for yourself), I advise you to buy the national Danish drink “Kirchbury”. On the bottle in the medallion is a small copper glass. Beautiful and wildly delicious. If you are a lover of antiques or good porcelain, then it makes sense to visit flea markets. The prices there are normal. The most literate, specifically antique, market is located near the building of the Thorvaldsen Museum. The best selection on Fridays. A more “flea” market is located at the junction of the Hellerup district and the forest. There is also an antiquark and all sorts of funny junk. I have been to two other markets. You can't go there.
Where to go.
Be sure to drive to the outskirts of the city. Any. Everything there is built up with houses of real Scandinavian architecture. Very unusual. Looks like stills from a 1975 movie about the future. Or as a layout.
By train, you can go to Roskilde. There is the Viking Museum and Roskilde Cathedral, where Danish, Norwegian and Swedish kings are buried. And another one of our queens.
At the Roskilde station I met with an amusing cupcake. He, having heard the Russian speech, approached, introduced himself and said that he was a Banderite from Lvov. We got talking. The guy, having received the education of a veterinarian in Ukraine, went to practice in the Danish outback. From Roskilde another 30 km. The guy really talked for 8 months, mostly with pigs and cows, and then became wild. During the entire stay, he only rode a bicycle into the city a couple of times and that's it. I told him that against the backdrop of all the events and the presence of a profession necessary for a livestock country, he can safely apply for Danish citizenship. He said that he thought about it, but decided to return home to Lvov anyway. Respect and respect.
Elsinore. There is a castle, like, Hamlet. If you are limited in funds, then you can take a ticket only to the casemates. It is something. A giant dark labyrinth, fragmentarily lit by kerosene lamps. You can really get lost there. But in Kronborg itself there is nothing interesting except for tapestries.
Sweden. Not so long ago, a bridge was built across the Ø resund Strait. This is a fantastic building. First you drive under the sea through a long tunnel. Then you jump out to the island, poured for the rest of the birds. Then you drive over the bridge over the water at an incredible height. And then there's the ambush. Even at the entrance to the bridge, signs warn you that the passage is paid. Other signs several times indicate to you that right now there will be the last exit to the territory of Denmark. Then you joyfully cross the strait and the gloomy Afroshved informs you that a one-way trip costs 48 E.
Follow the signs to get to Malmö . Because the city is industrial, that is, it makes sense to get to the center. There is something to see. True, there are problems with parking. I didn’t want to change my native dollars for Swedish krona, and having driven the car into the underground parking lot, I tried to pay for it with my wife’s card. Did not work out. I didn’t want to leave the car without a ticket under the windshield and I found a way out. There was a bin where people threw their used coupons. And almost immediately, next to this urn, I found a coupon valid for another hour and a half. This was enough for me to wander around the city, drink coffee (card) and buy a couple of magnets in a souvenir shop (evry. )
Features of Denmark. It is almost impossible to buy bottled water in large containers in stores. The tap water is so pure that everyone drinks it.
The people are friendly and always ready to help. I don't know how to use ticket terminals, but I've never had any problems. Seeing flour on my forehead, passing Danes came up and helped. If someone asked for directions on the street, they simply escorted me to the right place.
Tipping is almost not accepted. In the hotel, the maid put on the table the 2 e left on the bed.
Everyone speaks English. But it's very peculiar English. You may not even understand at first that this is English and not Danish.
You can smoke everywhere. Including metro stations and train stations. At the airport, on departure, there is a comfortable open veranda for smokers.
Often wildly windy. Bring a scarf or even a hat with you to protect your ears. The most interesting thing is that the Danes do not notice the wind. I walked around in a jacket and protective headphones, and young girls in shorts and T-shirts were spinning around me. Descendants of the Vikings, damn it.
Dream come true. The metro in Copenhagen is automatic. There is no driver. In place of his cabin - a huge windshield. And you can ride in the front seat and see what the subway tunnel looks like in the light of the train spotlights.
A dream come true. Copenhagen has very few cars and a lot of bicycles. There are bike paths everywhere. (Do not forget about them when you rent a car. Parking is not along the curb of the sidewalk, but along the line that encloses the bike path. The view is wild. Like cars are parked in the middle of the road. ). So here it is. Tried to rent a bike and ride around the city like a real Dane. Did not work out. There was an idea to steal some old bike, but I drove that thought away.
And in general, everything worked out. Highly recommend to visit. (After Paris, Rome, Berlin and Prague, of course. )
