Copenhagen, Denmark

My long awaited holiday to Denmark was a blast! It couldn't have been better, in the company of fantastic people in one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

My first impression of Copenhagen was how warm and polite the people were. The shops and restaurants were mostly understaffed and sometimes getting served took a while but the Danish are patient and understanding. In return, the service staff worked extra hard to attend to every customer with consistent regard. This is so unlike Singapore, where most places are overstaffed, and you still either are completely ignored or find yourself at the receiving end of incredibly moody (dis)service.

The weather was a cool average of 15 degrees, with the occasional showers. Luckily for us, each time we went sightseeing to Rozenbourg Castle and Nyhavn, or even shopping along Stroget, we were blessed with glorious sun.

This was one of the squares along our Stroget shopping route. The preferred mode of transportation on short distances is the bicycle. As a result, they're parked everywhere!

This was taken at the King's Garden, with a view of Rozenbourg Castle in the background. Unfortunately, we got there a little too late to take a look around inside the castle, but the grounds surrounding it sure are beautiful.

My favourite place in the city definitely has to be Nyhavn, also known as New Harbour. Lined with rows of charming cafes and restaurants, it's the perfect spot to park yourself for the afternoon and watch the world go by. Not to mention, the spectacular view of the harbour and the lovely street musicians - no doubt it definitely feels like Europe.

I didn't really get photos of Christiania (big graffiti signs say 'No Photos' and we were warned that they may turn violent if you ignore the signs) but our visit there was definitely one of the most memorable. Freetown Christiania is a self-proclaimed autonomous community and is regulated by their own special laws, separate from the Danish government. At first, we thought it was a street of hippie squatters who do nothing but stone all day (Christiania is most famous for their thriving cannabis trade) but we were pleasantly surprised to find that their little neighbourhood was kept very orderly, appealing even.

The government has cracked down on the marijuana trade a lot since 2004 but walking through you could still see bushes of their own ganja plants, and stalls selling bricks upon bricks of aromatic grass. Even if you didn't want to smoke a joint of your own (which were as big as CIGARS!) all you had to do was take deep breaths as you walk around and you would have been as calm as millpond!

On our last day, we took advantage of the gorgeous weather to spend a day at Tivoli Gardens, an amusement theme park just outside Copenhagen Central train station, and a 5 minute walk from our hotel.

Tivoli Gardens is really quite an alluring place. Completely different from the modern theme parks out there, it exudes an old world charm (something Denmark seems to be all about) and the rides aren't as extreme as the adrenaline junkie ones out there today. Sure, you could still feel your racing heart in the pit of your stomach on some, but you needn't worry about wetting your pants at any point.

We definitely had the best view of Copenhagen on this ride...

What's more, Tivoli lights up so beautifully at night that it looks like a completely different place. I only wish the restaurants didn't close so early so that we could enjoy it a little longer...

Holiday post not over yet, keep a look out for the next installment featuring bytes on the wedding and our day trip to Malmo, Sweden!