I was lucky enough to have my whole family come visit me in Copenhagen over Thanksgiving last month and, despite the very typical Danish weather, I had so much fun showing them around the city I've been calling home this semester. Click here to check out the video I made of our trip:
My Thanksgiving celebration actually started a few days before my family arrived, with a 'Friendsgiving' dinner at my apartment! Each of us contributed a dish (I was in charge of the mashed potatoes - they got rave reviews) and we all talked about our family Thanksgiving traditions from home. It was a delicious meal, probably the best we've made all together, and such a fun way to kick off the holiday before everyone left for the break.
the friendsgiving spread...makes me hungry just looking at it!
(almost) all of Henrik Ibsens Vej enjoying our feast
I met my family at the airport early on Wednesday morning. Usually I'm the one being greeted at the airport - not the other way around - so it was fun to see what it feels like from the other side of the gate! It was too early to check-in to our Airbnb so we headed to Coffee Industry for a little breakfast. Of course, Copenhagen greeted the fam with beautiful rainy gray skies. After a quick bite to eat, we took the metro to Islands Brygge and got settled into the apartment. Mom, Dad, and I picked up a few essentials at the grocery store while everyone else took a quick power nap before heading out into the city to explore.
The first stop was to the Round Tower to get a good overview of the city. Even though it was a little foggy, it was still really cool to get an idea of what Copenhagen looks like from above. And we even popped into the church that's attached to the tower which I hadn't been in before and it was absolutely beautiful! Next, we walked through the Christmas markets around Stroget, the main shopping street here in Cope, before heading to Nyhavn. We walked all the way down the Christmas market along the canal to see the iconic colorful houses but, after exploring a little more, everyone was pretty tired from the time change so we headed back to the Airbnb for an early night in.
gloomy city views
one of many Christmas markets in the city center
they have some pretty majestic market decor around here
The next day, we headed back towards Nyhavn to take some pretty iconic family selfies and to test out the famous trampolines along the water. It was all fun and games until I got a little too ahead of myself and completely wiped out on the last trampoline - both my ego and hip bone got a little battered ;) Next, we headed across the bridge to one of my favorite places to eat in the city: Paper Island. Everyone got something different to try and we topped off the meal with crème brûlée donuts, a dessert I've been dying to try for the past few months. So good. And, as we were leaving lunch, the sun actually started to shine, which was a welcome change from the usual late-November gloom.
Nyhavn at Christmas!
the lovely parents :)
the first of many family selfies
these things are too much fun
After lunch we walked over to Christiania so I could show everyone the alternative hippie community side of the city. It's definitely unlike any other place I've ever seen before. I think this article sums it up pretty well if you want to learn more. We also walked by the tower at Church of Our Saviour, and checked out the interior which was stunning. The organ they have there is ginormous! Every church in Europe just exemplifies how old all of the cities are - some of the churches here date back to the 1400s which absolutely blows my mind.
the tower at Church of Our Saviour
We walked back towards the city center, for the much anticipated visit to Tivoli! This amusement park is located right in the middle of Copenhagen. It is the second oldest amusement park in the world, opening in 1843. and rumor has it that Walt Disney even based Disney World off of Tivoli. The park is known for going all out for the holidays, and the Christmas season that is currently going on is no exception. (Side Note: Since the Europeans don't celebrate Thanksgiving, they go straight into the Christmas season after Halloween. That means I've pretty much been seeing Christmas decorations everywhere since the beginning of November, and our family Thanksgiving celebration certainly had more of a holiday twist. But, with Christmas as my favorite holiday, I really can't complain!) I had only been to Tivoli once before, actually just a few days before I went with the fam, because my Danish class took a field trip there to see the Christmas Cabaret. But this time it was actually still light out so I got to see the whole park much better! We walked all around, through the Christmas market stores, and even rode one of the roller coasters! It's such a magical place, and definitely a must-see if you ever come to Copenhagen.
the entrance to Tivoli at Christmas
winter wonderland style
saw this giant Christmas tree and a full on photo shoot ensued
coming to a Christmas card near you
loved this shot
a whimsical oasis in the center of the city
nighttime views like this are hard to beat
After Tivoli, we headed back to Paper Island to check out the Contemporary Art museum located right next to the food market. Since the whole Island complex is shutting down at the end of this year *sobs* they were having a farewell open house at the museum with free admission to all of the exhibits. We all got to try out the Virtual Reality headsets they have, which was equally weird and cool at the same time. But mostly weird. After our jam-packed day, we went back to the apartment for a gourmet Thanksgiving dinner of...pizza! Not your average holiday meal, but no one was really up to making a huge feast. Besides, Thanksgiving is all about spending time with family anyway and we sure ticked that box!
Thanksgiving, the Copenhagen way
The next day began with a visit to Rosenberg Castle! I had been here earlier in the semester, but I had only walked around the castle grounds. This time, we actually took a tour of the castle and got to see the crown jewels! The inside of the castle itself had so many ornate decorations, fancy clocks, and obscure objects from back in the 1600s. One of the coolest rooms was off the side of the ballroom, and was where the royal family kept their china and glass collections locked away. To see the crown jewels, we walked down into a dungeon-esque area below the castle that's still guarded round-the-clock by the Danish military (reminded everyone of Tower of London). The collection was absolutely beautiful - and definitely gave me some inspiration for my Christmas list..kidding..sort of.
quite the desk!
the castle was filled with such beautiful artwork and furniture
the throne!
one of many insanely ornate crowns
seems like they might have a few to spare!
Rosenberg in all its glory
For lunch we walked over to the Glass Market, another favorite of mine. This market definitely gives more Reading Terminal vibes than Paper Island, as it has actual market stands mixed in with restaurants. Meghan and I shared the seasonal risotto from Grød, a delicious parmesan pasta topped with kale and apples. It was pretty life changing actually - I'm pretty sure Meghan is still talking about how good it was. Afterwards, we went to tour the Carlsberg Brewery! While quite different than the Guinness experience, it was fun to learn more about how the brewery has been around practically as long as the city of Copenhagen has. Highlights included the stable full of Carlsberg horses, the bottle collection room, and the complimentary beer tasting, of course. Since I don't live too far from the brewery complex, we walked over to my apartment afterwards so everyone could see my home for the semester.
pro tip: you can trade your souvenir pin in for another beer
over 22,000 unopened bottles of beer!
The next day, we decided to hop over to Sweden for a bit to check out the Christmas markets in Malmö. And also just because it's cool to say that you visited another country for the morning. The city is only about a 45 minute train ride away and it's very similar to Copenhagen, but maybe a little quainter in my opinion. It was decorated so nicely for Christmas, and even though the markets were a little disappointing, it was still fun to walk around and see something different for a change. We got muffins from a delicious bakery before walking over to the Malmö Castle. There was also a random Dutch windmill on the castle grounds that we got to explore. Four hours was just the right amount of time to explore the little city so around lunchtime we headed back to Cope.
one of the main squares decked out for Christmas
more Christmas in Malmö
definitely reminds me of Cope
so many cute stores and boutiques!
the Malmö Castle
not quite sure what this was doing in Sweden!
Next on our tourist bucket list was the iconic Little Mermaid statue on the harbor. This statue was gifted to the city by Carlsberg brewer, Carl Jacobsen, in 1913. It is based off of the Little Mermaid fairy tale written by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. I feel like everyone has a big idea of what this statue is supposed to be, seeing as it is supposedly one of the major landmarks in Copenhagen, but it's actually quite small and a little (dare I say) disappointing. However, I feel like I would be a failure if I spent four months in this country without at least paying her a short visit. Afterwards, we ate our way back through the Kongens Nytorv Christmas market, trying everything from mini pancakes to traditional German sausages, before heading back to the Airbnb for the night.
there she is!
for such a little mermaid she does draw a pretty big crowd
one of the nicest hotels in the city transforms into an Advent calendar at Christmas time
delicious mini pancakes
On Sunday, we visited Maddie's host family for brunch! Heidi (Maddie's host mom) did not disappoint, serving up her delicious bread rolls, crepes, and traditional danish pastries. I'm definitely going to miss her delicious home cooked meals. After we ate, we walked up a big hill by their house and got a really good view of their entire neighborhood. It was so fun for everyone to meet and it ended up being a highlight of the trip for my whole family. The rest of the afternoon was spent finishing up some last minute shopping in the city center and cleaning and packing up the Airbnb. We found a traditional Danish restaurant for dinner and reminisced about the trip over frikadeller and flæskesteg.
Denmark meets America
the whole gang :) definitely a peak of the trip
It was so nice to have my family here for a few days and play 'tour guide' for my staycation Thanksgiving break. While I'm sad to see this semester come to a close, I can't wait to see them (and all the rest of my family) in less than two weeks! The only thing standing between me and my final adventure - a week in London and Austria - is my Danish exam on Saturday. Wish me luck and let the countdown begin...
Breath of fresh air. These are quite literally the only words I have to describe my trip to Sweden over the weekend. Besides being a much needed break from the hustle and bustle of the city, I seriously cannot get over how fresh and clean and refreshing the Swedish countryside air was. I convinced a few of my friends to book this trip with me over the summer (it was 100% organized by our program) and ever since then we had been counting down the days! After two jam-packed days of adventure I can happily report that it did not disappoint. You can check out the video montage I made of the weekend here:
The trip started bright and early on Saturday morning when we boarded a bus to the ferry that would take us to Sweden. I was surprised at how quick the ferry ride was - it only took about 20 minutes! We drove off the ferry and the Swedish border control officers came onto the bus for about two seconds to 'check passports' (border control seems pretty lax here in Scandinavia) before letting us go on our way. We drove through the beautiful countryside and headed straight to a little dock for a 6 mile canoe trek down the Rönne. The rolling hills and farmland surrounding the river reminded me a lot of home and the weather was absolutely gorgeous - sunny and 60° with a little wind. My friend Jane and I were paired in a canoe together and only got turned completely around by the wind once. About halfway down the river the people from the canoe company were stationed on the river bank throwing ice cream treats into our boats! We took our time making it down to the next dock, chatting with everyone in the other canoes and enjoying our snack.
Mads and I on the ferry
Afterwards, we got back on the bus and headed to our hostel. This place was a big farmhouse that was so cute and quaint. Jane, Margaret, Emily and I got a cozy room with a view of the apple orchard and stable out back. We ate lunch and took a little nap before heading to Kullaberg National Park for a hike. The path there began as an easy walk past Himmelstorp, an eighteenth-century farmstead, but it quickly became a steep and rocky climb down to the coast. I'm so used to hiking up to a summit first so hiking downhill felt very backwards! We followed the trail all the way down to Nimis, a series of huge driftwood sculptures you can climb through and up. The sculptures are actually located in a micronation inside the park called Ladonia (the history behind the nation and sculptures is super interesting and you can read all about it here). It was super unique, and at times felt a little dangerous given how old and worn the driftwood looked, but it was definitely something I never would have known about if I hadn't gone on this trip. After the hike we headed back to the hostel for a barbecue dinner followed by a bonfire and s'mores. Everyone kept saying how they felt like the whole day was a throwback to summer camp and this was definitely the perfect way to end it. We all enjoyed a s'more (or three) before calling it a night.
view from the hostel
Himmelstorp, the old farmstead on our way to Nimis
the driftwood structures at Nimis
climbing the towers
relaxing on the rocks
The next morning started out with a traditional Scandinavian breakfast of assorted bread, cheeses, and jams. Then we each grabbed a bagged lunch and packed up the bus to head back to Kullaberg. This time the group was split into two and for the first half of the day I did an orienteering and hiking activity. We picked teams and had to go to different spots around the island to complete activities. Our first stop was to a rocky beach along the coast that was absolutely incredible. The water was so calm and the views were unreal so we accidentally spent about 45 minutes there when we only had two hours to complete the whole scavenger hunt. After that, we hiked through the woods, across a golf course, and up to a radio tower where we had to solve a few different puzzles. All around the tower were grazing sheep and cows. The scenery reminded me so much of Ireland! Next stop was down to a cave where we had to copy some knots. Then we climbed up to a lighthouse where we had to guess how far we were from other European destinations. The craziest part of the whole hike was how many different kinds of landscapes and terrains there were on one tiny island! After returning to home base we enjoyed our lunches and then geared up for the most anticipated event of the weekend: rappelling.
can you spot us?
view on our way down to the beach
some friendly sheep!
serious Ireland vibes
adventure gang
I remember seeing people rappelling when were in Maine two summers ago and thinking how fun it looked! Well, turns out it is equally fun and terrifying :) We started out easy with a 10 meter rappel down a flat rock surface just to get the hang of it. Then we climbed up a bigger mountainside for a 25 meter rappel on a more jagged cliff. When I got to the top of the bigger mountain it was SO windy and cold and it was starting to rain a little bit. There were five people in line before me to go down so the anticipation and weather conditions made it all the more difficult to convince myself that it was a good idea to go down. When it was finally my turn the guy helping us get clipped in assured me that a five year old had "just done this last week" so I had "nothing to worry about" (something tells me this is what they say to everyone who looks a tiny bit nervous to go straight down the side of a cliff with only a rope securing them). The big rappel was 1000 times scarier than the first one and it felt like I was descending for ten minutes when it probably only took two. I don't think I've ever been more relieved to have my feet on solid ground :)
ready to rappel
starting out easy
epitome of 'do something everyday that scares you'
After another full day of outdoor adventure, we headed to a cozy little cafe for what the Swedes call 'fika', the concept of gathering with those around you for coffee, cake, and good conversation. We warmed up with blankets and hot tea and enjoyed rhubarb pie with toasted almonds on top. It was truly the perfect way to end the weekend. After a quick bus trip and a final ferry ride we arrived back in Copenhagen on Sunday evening. Back to reality today with group project meetings and impending midterms, but I am so looking forward to my class trip to Berlin and Prague next week - and a lot more adventures to come!
