Thursday 1 June, 2017
I keep hearing the melody to the lovely old song “Wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen” in my mind and have discovered today that Copenhagen truly is wonderful.
I took a leaf out of my travelling companion Sue’s book and have enjoyed being driven around all day on the Hop-on-hop-off bus and found that this is the best way to see the city of Copenhagen.
I have also learned a lot about this beautiful city. The University was first opened to students in the 1500’s.
The old city was ravaged by fire in the 1700’s. A 7 year old boy started the fire when he knocked over a candle. 1/3 of the houses burned to the ground and 1/5 of the population of Copenhagen were left homeless.
There are still areas that have traditional buildings but most modern buildings have taken the place of the burnt out buildings. Hence, the two extremes in architecture.
The first time I hopped off the bus was to take the Canal cruise. Luckily the weather was fine and sunny although cold today.
There are some amazing buildings along the Nyhaven canal, the new Canal that was dug by soldiers between 1671-1673. When Hans Christian Anderson lived here, the area north of the Canal was a notorious red light area. Today it is one of the most expensive areas to live in Copenhagen.
Christianshavn built in the first half of the seventeenth Century, is often referred to as “little Amsterdam” and I could see how this comparison could be made. With the lovely old buildings and boats moored alongside the tow path, it has become a desirable area to live in. It is now also a trendy artists area.
The Little Mermaid statue was pointed out to us but I could only get a photo of the back of the statue from the canal. There were dozens of people taking photos of her. About 5 million a year take her photo according to our guide.
My next hop off was near the shopping centre of town. I needed another battery for my Camera as I had taken so many photos that both batteries had become flat. Also it was time for lunch.
After lunch I hopped back on the bus and headed for stop 11. Amalienborg Castle where Australian born Princess Mary along with Prince Frederick and their family were in residence today. How did I know this? The flag was raised at full mast. I enjoyed walking around and watching the guards on duty.
Designed by Nicolai Eigtved, the Amalienborg Palace has been home to the Royal Danish family since 1794. The complex consists of four buildings that are built around an octagonal square. In the centre of the square is a large statue.
I would have loved to have watched the changing of the guard at 12 noon but I was still on the hop-on-hop-off bus so I missed out.
I spent many happy hours enjoying the sights of Copenhagen. To see everything of interest would take a month. I hope to one day return and see more interesting sights.
Families of Ireland 