Chapter 1 - Days 1/2: Settling in to Copenhagen

June 9

So our next adventure begins--shorter than the last one but still new lands and new sites.  This trip should be very different--more like Amsterdam.  We have an apartment and our itinerary is more relaxed--wandering the city and exploring shops and neighborhoods. But, no wineries to visit :)

A late morning flight from RDU took us to Newark for lunch and a 4 hour layover before hopping our SAS flight to Copenhagen - that wound up being 2 hours late - ugh! SAS business class was pretty disappointing. The "lie flat" beds didn't really go flat and the food and service were just ok; made us miss Quantas bigtime.

 
The only saving grace was an incredible sunset around us...

June 10

Getting in two hours late put us right in the middle of rush hour traffic, complicated by street closings for the building of a new subway line. It took us nearly an hour to get in from the airport.

What a lovely apartment! A couple of shots...the dining room. The owner collects art from all over the world. More later....

We spent the day settling in--going to the supermarkets, walking around the neighborhood, getting our "Copenhagen Card" for the bus train and museums - a very super deal.  The apartment is in a lovely area near a large garden and filled with charming buildings, interesting stores , and good restaurants.  

Lunch was beautiful at a wonderful French Bistro a block from the apartment.

 We had spring pea soup, a crab salad and a great Sancerre. It was truly picture perfect. 

The afternoon was slower as we tried to recharge our batteries. We went to a nearby park along the waterfront which had a lovely church and magnificent. fountain.

And a somewhat famous statue...

Before dinner, we went to the David Collection. This was a surprising private museum filled with incredible Islamic art.  Built in an old house. it rambles over 4 floors. There was much to see in a wide variety of styles and materials. A few of many pics from here:

We ran out of time, but planned to return to see the textiles.

Dinner was at a wonderful neighborhood Italian restaurant we were served by the owner who was from Italy.  Notice the old espresso machine--an original from Italy.  It made a wonderful after dinner treat.

He told us charming stories and selected a wonderful Pinot Grigio and Sangiovese for us to drink. We started with a saffron risotto followed by a lamb stew and a quiche and had a small strawberry semifreddo for dessert.  It tasted like a wonderful home cooked meal.  Just what we needed after a very l-o-n-g body time day(s).

Chapter 2 - Day 3 - Food and Design

June 11

It was so nice to have the apartment for a leisurely breakfast of yogurt, fruit and coffee. Then to begin our full day of sightseeing.

We spent most of the day on a food tour.  While the guide was not the best, she was knowledgeable about the city and took us to some very good food sites.  We began the day at the market which was rebuilt in 2011.  There were several excellent food stalls--we started with cheese and apple schnapps.

Then we moved on to mustard and jam.  

As we walked along the streets, we had a chance to take in the architecture of Copenhagen.

One of the highlights was one of the best smørrebrød (traditional open-faced sandwich) places in Copenhagen, Aamann's. We had four small sandwichs egg, chevre, chicken salad, and beef. They were really excellent.  

We continued exploring the city and walked thorough a lovely old residential neighborhood.

Next was a brewery/restaurant. 

We had a flight of some great craft beers - a pilsner, a red beer (Elaine's favorite) and a stout almost like Guinness, but not as bitter. 

Continuing our walk,  we passed the King's bridge, with his insignia.

And a lovely square with an old kiosk.

The metalwork on the kiosk was quite elaborate.

Next stop was a "all-natural" candy factory and store.

In the factory, we watched them make hard candy - fascinating!

We ended the tour with a second lunch at a tiny street stand. Elaine had a great Danish hotdog--spicy beef on a wonderful roll with pickles and several sauces. Lester had a sausage made from goat.  This was the best real food we have ever had on a food tour.

After the food tour, we visited the Round Tower the signature of Copenhagen--an old observatory in the center of the city with a ramp going up 6 stories, but no stairs.  We wondered if Frank Lloyd Wright saw this before he designed the Whitney. This is the outside.

Here is the inside going up the ramp.

You can go outside at the top where there are great views of the city. Here we are!

Here is what we saw... 

On the roof is the old observatory, still in use sometimes. We took a peek inside.

We had dinner near the apartment, a French restaurant named Le Sommelier.

Elaine started with hake and vegetables in an incredible sauce.  Lester started with the most perfect white asparagus.  I had veal as a main while Lester had venison.  At this "fine" restaurant we had a VERY inexperienced waiter. He first told Lester his French wine was 80% cab franc to only come back and correct himself that it was 100% cab sauvignon! We both wound up with a savory burgundy Crozes Hermitage, primarily Syrah. Mmmm good!

We walked off dinner a bit in the nearby park which had a sculpture exhibition scattered throughout. Elaine made a new friend to end the day.

Chapter 3 - Day 4 - Galleries, The New Harbor and Jazz

June 12

We started the day in Nyhavn. "Nyhavn ("New Harbor") was originally conceived in the 1670s by the Danish king as a shelter from the storms of the North and Baltic Sea, and as a means of hauling building supplies into central Copenhagen. Nyhavn today is the site of a denser concentration of restaurants than any other neighborhood in Copenhagen. Moored beside its granite embankments, you'll see old or even antique fishing boats, some of which remain in place to preserve the sense of old-fashioned nostalgia."

The colorful buildings are Copenhagen's signature postcard.

There are lovely old buildings.

And funky signs and sea-themed restaurants.

In contrast, the contemporary opera house sits just across the harbor.

We then walked back over to the David Collection (see Day 2) to see the rare Islamic textiles hidden in drawers. They were quite amazing.

The rest of the morning we checked out some galleries. We were pretty disappointed and only saw one nice piece of pottery.

On the other hand, we had a chance to see more of the character of the city, including paintings covering the sides of buildings.

More charming metal signs...

This is the garden in the front of a jewelry gallery.

And a quaint old church with more of the great brick and stone work...

After a morning of much walking we were ready for a hearty lunch. Told Og Snaps, a traditional Nyhavn "pub" was just perfect.

 The food and beer were delish!

The afternoon was devoted to seeing classic Danish furniture in some high-end shops. Can you really call these antiques?

This evening was food and music, so we got a bit "dressed up".

 It started with a fabulous dinner at Godt restaurant. 

They have a fixed menu. The meal started with an amazing lobster bisque with shrimp and langostino. That was followed by a hake with white asparagus three ways - poached, grilled and sauteed,  so wonderful flavors.  The main course was am amazing veal in black truffle sauce.  The wines were also perfectly matched.  We started with a Spanish albarino.  For the veal we had an Anjou which was 100% cabernet franc, a savory rich rich.  Godt was a delight. The meal was exceptional with excellent service.

We followed that by a fun trip to the jazz club across the street.  The trio of piano, bass and drums was excellent with an ok vocalist.  

We got home around 11 pm.  It was finally getting dark! These long days were really something different.