Good-bye, Copenhagen, we hope to see you again soon!

Our night in Copenhagen was uneventful. Even little r slept through the night and didn't wake until 6:30 a.m. Impressive considering he fell asleep on my chest at 6:00 p.m. the night before! We enjoyed our morning, which was another beautiful day in Denmark. Breakfast was simple but perfect, and we took our coffee upstairs to enjoy our little porch before checking out of the hotel.

A perfect cup of jo

The only picture we got of the two of us in Copenhagen. Not sure how we managed this one!

Big R escaped downstairs to get some artsy photographs of Nyhavn while little r and I watched otters near the canal. Big R was able to get some amazing pictures - here are a few samples...

The sweet little balcony from our hotel room

Beautiful black & white of Nyhavn Kanal

Doesn't this look like a painting? Big R has such amazing photographic talent!

We reluctantly checked out, and decided to take a walk along the main canal through Amalienhavn park to visit the grounds of Amalienborg Castle and then eventually make it down to see the Little Mermaid at Langelinje pier.

Fountain at Amalienhavn park

St. Albans Anglican Church

Gafion Fountain adjacent to St. Albans Anglican Church

If you are wondering why seeing the Little Mermaid is such a tourist draw in Copenhagen, you share my initial sentiments. The banks of the Øresund, which is the strait between Copenhagen and Malmo, Sweden, was known to all sailors back in the day as the home to all mermaids, and the straight was therefore full of mermaids. The banks are no longer there, but the Little Mermaid stands to welcome all sailors into Copenhagen harbor as a reminder of this legend.

The Little Mermaid

We left the Little Mermaid and the team of tourists to walk around the Kastellet Copenhagen, which is one of the best preserved fortifications in northern Europe. Today it houses several military activities, but it's mostly a park and historic site. We saw guards carrying machine guns and runners enjoying a beautiful Saturday morning. One impressive observation was the healthy lifestyles lived by the Danish in Copenhagen. Everyone was in shape and eating healthy was a way of life instead of something you had to search and try for. The latest numbers state that 1 of 6 Danes commute by bike, so the crisp air is also fresh and clean. This is a lifestyle I could very quickly get accustomed to.

Little r took a moment to guard the Kastellet Copenhagen

A proud little r walking along the trail of the Kastellet - we had to take care not to be run over by joggers!

A view from the Kastellet of the adjacent neighborhood and a windmill

Little r's favorite mode of transportation on this trip

Beautiful building near the palace

Marble Church

A guard at the Amalienborg Palace just after the change of the guards

Our final stop in Copenhagen before catching our train to Sweden was Trivoli. It is located right across the street from the main train station making it a convenient final stop. This was the only part of our adventure that would have greatly benefited by some prior planning but that's only because we had very little time to see Trivoli and it's a place that you could easily get lost in for hours. We had precisely one hour to see the whole park, ride a few rides, and grab lunch before our train left the station. We managed to do all of those things, but we hated saying good-bye to all the fun and barely touched much of the park.

 

Trivoli is really neat. They say that fairy tales are created every day here, and I can understand what they mean. You could easily spend a day here without even trying. There are dozens of restaurants, pubs, games, rides, shows, and even wildlife!

A stage for performances at one of the entrances to the park

The tallest ride in the park is visible throughout most of the city.

Old building at the entrance to the park - amazing!

Yes, that is a peacock we are looking at, just wondering around the park!

Trivoli is truly designed for a family to come and stay all day and late into the night. The tickets for the rides are designed this way. Although you can purchase "tickets", it really makes more sense to get an all-day pass. We ended up doing a combination of the two, and I'm not really sure we broke even. Ah, bygones. We'll get it right next time...

 

I took little r on a pirate ship ride. In theory, it seemed like a great idea...

 

Let's go, Mommy!

Until the ride got started. Not only was the pirate ship spitting steam and giving off a cackling laugh, but it went really fast. I thought it was fun, but poor little r was scared to death. He seemed awfully proud of himself for riding it afterwards though, and still talks about it with us sometimes.

Wait, you didn't tell me this was going to be scary!!!

We decided to try a few more relaxed rides with little r, and then mommy got to do a big girl ride and go on the flying swings!

 

Weeeeee! Mommy had fun :)

Taking down enemy fighters!

And taking a drive in an antique car with Mommy

We rushed to find lunch (only to wish we had waited for better selections and healthier options at the train station, who knew?!), and gobbled it down as we took off for the train station.

 

It was sad to leave, but we were excited about our time in Sweden and finally meeting Big R's Swedish family. I know I say this everywhere we go, but I really do hope that we have an opportunity to visit Copenhagen again in our lifetime. There was so much of the city we still have yet to explore. If not, I'll just dream about living in the streets of this beautiful place.

 

Good-bye, Copenhagen. We hope to see you again soon!

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