To Sweden with love..

It was time to leave Copenhagen, but our next adventure awaited. We were heading to Sweden to do more than just see the beautiful country; we were getting an introduction to Big R's Swedish heritage by visiting Gothenburg and meeting his wonderful family for the very first time. When Big R's grandmother was just a girl, she left Gothenburg for the U.S. and sailed across the Atlantic. Although she made the U.S. her new home, a part of her heart stayed in Sweden. She was certain to keep in touch with family, and even more determined to continue speaking Swedish.

Because of her attachment to her home country, all of her children grew up learning about Sweden and wondering what this part of the world was really like. Big R was definitely among the curious, and he always would say that he was going to make it to Sweden some day. It is therefore no surprise that Sweden was at the very top of our list of places to see. I think we were both waiting to visit this part of the world during the summer when it might be a little less...frozen...

While making plans to visit Sweden, we had originally thought we'd go to Stockholm. As beautiful and intriguing as the city might be, it's also fairly expensive to get there and to visit. We decided instead to visit Gothenburg. Not only was it a tad bit easier and less costly, but Big R was certain he still had family that lived in the area. Once she heard that we bought our tickets to Sweden, Big R's mom quickly got us in touch with family in Gothenburg. Facebook was amazing for helping us connect with our Swedish family. Before we knew it, we had arrangements to stay with Big R's second cousins, Brigitta and Bill, that live just outside of Gothenburg.

We arrived in Gothenburg after an easy 3-4 hour train ride from Copenhagen, and we were greeted by a friendly face. Mattias and I had been communicating on Facebook for a couple months, and we recognized each other right away. He drove us into the countryside to Brigitta's home where the rest of the family was waiting to enjoy an evening of good eats, better conversation, and fun, all Swedish-style. It was fabulous. Despite us not knowing a lick of Swedish (except maybe a few words Big R picked up from his grandmother), the conversation flowed easily, and the evening ended with strong new connections and friendships.

We were quick to fall in love with the countryside, the food, the language, and the people. Our family made it easy.

The kids playing in Birgitta and Bill's beautiful backyard

Children of America and Sweden!

Delicious cake to celebrate Brigitta's birthday

Lovely countryside surrounding Bill and Birgitta's home

little r was fascinated by Birgitta's hens

We had to take at least one walk to explore the Swedish countryside - we were happy the weather cooperated

BEAUTIFUL!!!

Real homemade Swedish buttercake - can we say, "YUM"?

little r found an egg!

All of the homes had sweet Swedish charm

Our visit to Sweden was short - only two days - but it was such a wonderful visit. Birgitta made sure to arrange time for family to meet us, so we were blessed with another day of family and good food.

This visit wasn't much about sightseeing, although we did get Bill's whirlwind tour of Gothenburg by car. We saw enough that we knew it was definitely worth another visit (or two or three) to do some exploring. Big R was able to grab a few shots from the car of this place his grandmother once called home.

Example of Swedish architecture in Gothenburg

More of the Gothenburg skyline

The place where Big R's grandmother departed Sweden nearly 75 years ago!

And she traveled by boat not unlike this one, can you imagine?!

The time came for us to say our good-byes. It became less of a farewell, and more a time to discuss when we'd be returning for another visit. We think that frozen Sweden might not be that bad afterall. They do have ice fishing there :)

Thank you so much to all of our extended family in Sweden for providing such a warm welcome. Brigitta and Bill, you will forever be close friends!

Ha Det Bra!

 

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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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Copenhagen, do you mind if I call you "home"?

There is something about Copenhagen that I really identify with. Whether it's the eco-friendliness of the way of life or the beautiful architecture or the surrounding waterways, there is just "something" about it that pulls me in. We could have spent more time there, heck, I could quite frankly LIVE there and be quite happy for a very long time. Our quick 26-hour whirlwind visit of Copenhagen was enough for us to mark it on our map of favorite places.

We were in Copenhagen for a mere 26 hours. It was a very quick visit, and we filled it with as much exploration as we could possibly handle. This was our first intercontinental European flight, and it was interesting to note the differences between flying in Europe and flying in the U.S. They have security here, obviously, but they are much more relaxed about travel. On our entire trip, including all air, train, and boat travel, the only time we showed a passport was to get the souvenirs tax free at the airport. I am not kidding. And by passports, I mean any identification whatsoever. At no point in time did anyone question that we weren't who we said we were. It was a somewhat bizarre feeling to be taken at face value. I'm still not sure how I feel about it, but then again, what does it really matter?

The flight was quick. It took us longer to drive to Frankfurt International Airport than it did to get from Frankfurt to Copenhagen. We drove to the airport because although convenient, the train fare is quite expensive for that route. Also, although the airport has a holiday lot where you can save some cash, it's a little bit of a hassle. We were all versed on how to get to this parking lot and prepare ourselves for the adventure when Big R made the last minute decision that it wasn't worth it to save 30 EUR. Sometimes the little extra money is worth the convenience. As it was, we parked in the garage and walked right into the terminal - no buses or getting lost on the way to the parking lot. It removed an incredible amount of stress from our vacation.

We were in the Copenhagen city center by noon after our flight and a quick train ride. The weather all through central and northern Europe was forecasted to be nothing but rain and colder than normal temps. We had prepared ourselves for a chilly and wet visit with layers and raincoats. Much to our happy surprise, our time in Copenhagen was mostly sunshine. How did we get so lucky?! The only thing we dreaded is that we left our sunglasses behind. That is something we will surely not do again. And holy cow do they have a lot of sunlight in Scandanavia right now. It's fascinating that the sun shines all but about 5-6 hours a night, if that.

We arrived in Copenhagen without any plans. In fact, we barely read anything about the city before we arrived. Before entering town, we bought our train tickets to Gothenburg for the following day, and then quickly and effortlessly found the tourist information office across from the train station. It was one of the more helpful and clean tourist offices we've experienced. They clearly want you to enjoy their city, so they offer so many guides and maps for free. It was great! Armed with a city map and a loose plan, we started our adventure through the streets of Copenhagen.

Radhaus - first introduction to Danish architecture

More medieval architecture as we made our way through town

Amager Square -
The Jazz Festival was in Copenhagen during our visit so the streets were alive with music!

We walked through the Strøget pedestrian zone full of shops, restaurants, and people enjoying the beautiful day

We grabbed lunch and kept walking - little r had a hot dog wrapped in a croissant and Big R and I both had quiche - YUM!

Our room reservation was at Hotel Bethel in Nyhavn. We knew we were early for check-in, but we were relieved they let us leave our luggage behind. We packed light considering all things for the three of us for the entire visit was in one backpack, but that backpack was heavy and we were ready to enjoy the day less encumbered. Arriving in Nyhavn on this sunny day was almost magical. The colored buildings along the beautiful canal were breathtaking as we turned the corner.

After we dropped off our bags, no time was wasted finding a canal cruise to enjoy the city from a water's view. This was also when we quickly realized that such beauty comes at a small price - the canal cruise was inexpensive, but we paid the equivalent of $8 for one beer! Ouch, it was as if we were in Yankee stadium. Ah well, it was a good beer, and one greatly enjoyed before our water cruise. My little man absolutely loved the cruise, and Big R was able to get some incredible photographs from the water's view. I've shared a few of them here, but I had a hard time picking my favorites!

All smiles!

Large sailboat parking inside Nyhavn - we're still not sure how it got there!

The Marble Church and Amelienborg Palace where the Royal Family lives

We loved all the boats anchored along the canals

Big R is going to buy this one for me :)

Sea kayaking through the urban center - very cool idea

Børsen or stock market building where all of the fair trade used to occur

Noma (building on the left) - the No. 1 restaurant in the WORLD - no joke, you have to reserve a table at least 3 months in advance

Our canal cruise was followed by a quick break at our hotel after we got ourselves checked-in. Big R picked the hotel for this part of our trip, and we couldn't have been more excited about his gem of a find. Copenhagen, no Scandinavia, in general is expensive, but we got our hotel room in Nyhavn with a small balcony, a view, and a sweet breakfast for the equivalent of $180 for the night. Not too bad considering most of the hotels in the area were over $250. I'm sure we could have gone cheaper, but it was worth it for this view, don't you think?

And this one...

Yep, totally worth it...

Our agenda was loose, so we just set out to explore all that we could see. We knew the daylight would be on our side since it wasn't going to set until probably midnight or later, so we tried to fit in as much as we could. Initially we were going to head to Trivoli, which is the second oldest amusement park in the world. We didn't really have time for a day at the park, but both of us really wanted to see it just to experience such a place. Instead we found ourselves wondering over to Christianshavn. A first look at the map, and we thought it would take us far out of the way. Truth is, Copenhagen is not very big, and before we knew it, we were walking along the canals of Christianhavn.

Christianhavn Kanal

We found ourselves next at Our Savior's Church, which has a beautiful spire that is visible from most of the city.

Our Savior's Church in Christianhavn

It turns out, that at the top of that spire, you can SEE most of the city as well. How do we know this? Well, we climbed it, of course. Climbing to the top was something we had to debate somewhat. The spire looked a little risky with little r in our arms. We knew that one of us was going, but quite frankly, it wouldn't be a proper visit without us climbing the dome of a church with little r in tow. It's a prerequisite that I carry my little man up at least 400 stairs, if not more, on each trip to make the adventure complete. So our minds were made up, and we all started the climb. This particular climb included 400 steps with the last 150 being outside, and the spire reaching 95 meters into the sky. The ascent to the top of the spire followed a wooden staircase that at times became more of a ladder. When we got to the spire, we decided it would be safer to take turns going up because it didn't appear quite safe enough for little r.

The views from the top were spectacular! This goes down in history as the absolute coolest and most beautiful church "domes" we have ever climbed. As you go around the spire, you get a 360 degree view of Copenhagen and beyond. Just stunning. I was incredibly impressed with Big R for climbing to the top with his overwhelming fear of heights. I suppose his most recent single chair lift excursion in the Alps might have helped him overcome some of those fears? Here are a few photographs from the top:

If you look closely, you can see me waving from the top to Big R down below.

Christianhavn is also home to the freetown of Christiania. Christiania was founded in 1971 when a group of hippies took over old military barracks and developed their own town with their own set of rules completely independent of the government - it even has its own flag and currency! Things have changed over the years, but it still exists including its rules such as: no cars, no guns, no bullet-proof vests, and no hard drugs. Hash is sold and smoked openly in cafes throughout Christiania. I would have loved to have taken pictures of this freetown full of artists and hippies, but no cameras or pictures allowed within its walls. Instead, we took a quick photo at the entrance.

Entrance to Christiania

Trivoli didn't happen that night. We decided instead to grab a pastry snack and walk back through some of the crowds watching the jazz musicians, and eventually end up back in Nyhavn for dinner. We could sense that little r was running on empty and was ready to crash, but I, of course, forgot the Moby or any other means to assist in carrying him. So, instead we used a raincoat and my scarf to create a little cocoon for him and he fell asleep on my chest. Somehow my arms held out and carried him that way for another couple of hours until I fell into a chair at a canal-side restaurant in Nyhavn. Man was I happy to take that seat!

Dinner was lovely, especially since little r slept through the entire meal. We took our time enjoying our meal, and then walked along the canal. Finished off the evening with an Irish Coffee at another canal-side cafe, and then walked across the bridge to our hotel. Little r didn't even wake up while I dressed him for bed. Poor kid was whipped. We were pretty darn whipped ourselves. Big R woke himself up just after midnight to get some pictures of Nyhavn in the dark. Even at that hour he said there was still a touch of light in the sky.

Nyhavn at night - so pretty

Good-night, Copenhagen. It was a full, fascinating, and marvelous day. I'll share more about our morning adventures in Copenhagen before we got on the train to visit family in Sweden in my next post.

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