Copenhagen, Denmark

Thanksgiving weekend Danielle and I went to visit my two best friends from Middlebury who were studying in Copenhagen, Denmark. This was definitely one of the most memorable weekends for me abroad, and although Copenhagen originally would not have been on my list of cities to visit in Europe it was very cute and I enjoyed my time there.

The danger of Danish sweets in Copenhagen....

Our first day in Copenhagen was spent exploring some of the famous landmarks. Erin and Sara, my two best friends from Middlebury both had class during the day, but Erin decided that her time would be more useful being our personal tour guide (academics first??). We visited the Round Tower that is one of the old medieval part of town landmarks. 

Minor rest stop on our way to the top.

The view from the top of the was great and really helped us get perspective of the city.

Top of Round Tower.

Afterwards we went to Nyhavn "New Harbour." This part of Copenhagen is the old port and it contains many 17th century houses that are different bright colors. In addition there was a nice blend of old restaurants with 100 year old cafes that surround the main river running through the middle of this part of the city. At this time of the year there were many stands selling Christmas products set up along the side of the river.  

We went to Amalienborg Palace and saw the changing of the guard there. The guards change at noon each day and are relieved by guards coming from Rosenborg Castle (another landmark we saw while in Denmark).

I loved visiting the Little Mermaid statues, that was located on the water and just celebrated her 90th birthday a few years ago. This was probably the busiest location in Copenhagen and it was quite challenging to get a picture with her as there are a million tourists trying to snap a shot with her.

That night we celebrated Thanksgiving with Erin's host family. They made an entire Thanksgiving meal of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, vegetables, and much more. The house was decorated beautifully and I absolutely loved the atmosphere. It was great practicing one of my normal traditions while abroad. The celebration was initially for Erin and her friends (us), but a number of Danish friends of her host family came to join in the celebration.

There were a number of Danish traditions that were added to our Thanksgiving traditions. We not only drank tequila with pomegranate (apparently popular at Danish holiday events), but we also sang two Danish songs during dinner. It was quite challenging to join in given that some of there letter are a combination of three of our letters. Danish is not an easy language!

Erin's host family was fantastic. She lived with a host mother, host father, and host sister. Her father really took over the show in terms of cooking and in the morning we made him some pancakes as a taste of an american breakfast.

Although Erin made the pies the day before, Sara and I had no problem taking credit for the delicious apple and pumpkin pies. Erin's little host sister made some home made whip cream to put on top of them.

Overall, it was a fantastic night and one filled with new traditions, old friends, and great memories. This was probably my favorite night of my time abroad!

We slept at Erin's host families house and woke up in the morning fairly early. Erin lives about an hour from the center of Copenhagen so taking the train and walking requires a bit of time. We immediately went to a large market in Copenhagen and explored some of the rather interesting products that they were selling. We met a half dozen of Sara and Erin's friends there.

That afternoon we went to Tivoli Gardens which is a famous amusement park in Copenhagen. It is 165 years old and as soon as you enter the park you are engulfed in a winder wonderland (during the time of the year that we visited- the decorations change). Inside the park there are many decorations, holiday lights, holiday Chistrmas stand and stores, small and large attractions, and restaurants.

I absolutely love roller coasters so of course we got an all inclusive (all-you-can-ride) pass. Erin, Sara, and I took full advantage and went on every ride possible within the park. The swings ride was really unique as at the top you got a phenomenal view of the entire city.

At night we had some (traditional?) apple cider doughnuts and walked from little shop to little shop looking at the adorable Christmas decorations and products before heading back to Sara's apartment to get ready for the night.

That night we went to one of Sara and Erin's favorite bars/club. It was definitely a lot different than the clubs (that are sometimes seven stories tall) and bars (that are always packed with people) in Madrid. It was great getting a taste of a different, somewhat more relaxed yet very fun, scene in Copenhagen. The weekend was one I am going to remember forever and I had a fantastic time being immersed in the culture with my many of my best friends.