Copenhagen, Part II (Denmark)

Another pleasant surprise in Denmark was how good the food was. Sure, the prices can still be a shock. Four hundred kroner, or 54€, for two main courses, a beer, and a juice would probably be considered reasonable by Scandinavian standards. But the right perspective on the fresh and local ingredients can be just as valuable. Eight euros for decadent heaps of smoked salmon, lashings of fresh dill and chive spread, and mesclun salad on newly baked bread the size of a sub is a bargain in my book!

At dinner in Copenhagen's Latin Quarter, we first became acquainted with the Danes' creativity with salads. Lentils with seaweed, anyone? For lunch, smørrebrød is really traditional. Billed as an "open-faced sandwich," the topping can be piled on so heavily as to render the bread invisible. The bread itself is a beautifully dark rye, densely packed with grains and seeds. Layers of thinly sliced meat, fish, or cheese are artfully arranged on top followed by various accompaniments - salads, pickles, and/or spreads - that seem to be sandwich-specific.

Even ordering just a roll at the bakery for breakfast, each kind receives a specific jam (e.g. sour cherry for poppyseed, rhubarb for pumpkin-seeded). Curiously, these rolls were labeled "danishes" on the menu. What we would call "danishes" were known as wienerbrød (or "Viennese bread"), and a dizzying array confronted us. Cinnamon swirl made for a good choice. The dearth of baked goods in Spain caused me to lose my head a little among such bounty that first time around, and 3 cakes seemed to just order themselves. They became an addiction really, especially when we discovered that Copenhagen's delectable Lagkagehuset bakery has multiple locations. In all seriousness, as a connoisseur of fruit tarts, let me just say that their jordbærkage (or "strawberry tart") is the absolute ideal. This blissful creation has a moist almond cake base coated in dark chocolate and crowned with a delicate chantilly cream and perfectly ripe strawberries. Don't even try to share it. Maybe get one for the road, too... easily achievable, since Lagkagehusets are at the train station and the airport!

Copenhagen (Denmark)

Five years already?!? Denmark sounded like a fine place for my best travel partner Rich and I to celebrate our wedding anniversary.

First impressions of the country are from the train. The train itself is fast, clean, and smooth. It is so quiet I feel like I must be wearing noise-cancelling headphones. Rich comes back from the bathroom to whisper excitedly, "It's like a real one.. with porcelain and everything!" The landscape is flat, populated by bright, detached houses with modest gardens. Spring is ascendant with the green carpets of lawns and riotous arrays of daffodils and tulips on the borders. There are bike paths everywhere, including one that runs parallel to the track just beyond a hedgerow. Though sunny, it is still a little on the cool side - this is Scandinavia, after all - but the daylight hours are long - again, Scandinavia.

Copenhagen, the capital, continues along the same vein, albeit, in a big city way. It is easily walkable... and cyclable... and possibly even navegable, in the most traditional sense. Copenhagen is built on the islands of Zealand and Amager so there are quite a few interconnecting waterways, and a canal tour is supposed to be a good way to orient yourself in the city. We opted to go on foot, as usual.

A wander along the waterfront will bring you by the Royal Library (its "Black Diamond" wing should cue 2001: A Space Odyssey's score), the statue of The Little Mermaid (from the original story by Denmark's favorite son, Hans Christian Andersen), and the Copenhagen Opera House (like a fly's eye, but in a good way). We took a look at the wooden ships in the Nyhavn heritage harbour and had cozy drinks in a canal-side café in the Freetown of Christiania, an old hippie commune.

For the culturally-minded, Copenhagen has many museums. The National Museum is a good, free one... although a little overwhelming in its wealth of artefacts per exhibit. Looking at the maps, the huge eskimo section in a Danish national museum perplexed me until Rich pointed out that they do own Greenland. Then I just felt sheepish.

For the royally-minded, Denmark is also home to the oldest monarchy in Europe - over 1000 years old. In Copenhagen, you can visit Rosenborg Slot with its pretty formal park (aka Kongens Have) and the crown jewels in the basement. At Amalienborg Palace, current home of the royal family, the ceremonial changing of the guard takes place daily in the central square. It has nearly as much pomp as those of the British royal family's, and yet, I fancy, much smaller crowds. Even only arriving 10 minutes early, we managed to get close enough to see how fresh-faced the soldiers looked and critique their marching steps.