Copenhagen

We arrived at 5am in Copenhagen, after a fairly easy bus ride. The coolest part was being woken up at 2am and forced off the bus and realizing we were in the car deck of a large ferry. Met up with Stephane Eisen, a good friend from Seattle (and before that, Connecticut), who has lived in Copenhagen for the last three years. In true Stephane fashion, he met us with a thermos of coffee and fresh pastries. We enjoyed them in front of the “Black Diamond”, a modern addition to the royal library.









Some shots around town:

Big brick.



















































The Copenhagen Opera House









Wild juxtaposition









Boat taxi

View from Freidricksburg (a neighborhod in Copenhagen) city hall’s clock tower.

Stephane arranged an apartment for us to stay in for several days. It was a real treat to have our own place and get a feel for living in Copenhagen.

The view from our apartment.












Copenhagen is known for its bike-friendliness; here’s how they mark the bike lanes crossing an intersection. They also had some smart guides for the blind and demarcation for pedestrian only streets.



























A lovely little Danish café called Kalaset. This was a super hyggeligt place (Hyggeligt, pronounced 'hoogleech', means “cozy”, a quality that is highly valued in Danish culture. Think candles, chotchkeys in windowsills, cushions, embroidery, doilies, a glass of beer).

First page of the menu, double click to enlarge to read the story of Kalaset.









Joe and Stephane had, can you guess, hamburgers! Served with homemade ketchup and lots of love.









Lesley had fried goat cheese on Danish seed bread. Delicious.









This nearby café had a disproportionate amount of moms and babies and strollers (Joe and Stephane were the only men there above the age of 1). It brought to mind Denmark’s progressive parental leave policy.









Thai food in Denmark, complete with a waiter that looked like a modern day Leif Ericson. Bizarre.












Today is Lesley's birthday....Danish birthday danish! The danish here are just like back home, but a lot better! We think they are made with a lot more (better) butter and they are less sugary sweet. The chocolate croissant also had nutella or somethinginit. Are you kidding?









Birthday brunch at Fata Morgana.
























Our Copenhagen hosts, Stephane and Camilla









At a beachside suburb @20 minutes south of Copenhagen, where they just rented a house!









Late night polse. Stephane prefers the sausage with bun on the side that you dip into mustard and ketchup puddles squirted on a piece of wax paper. Joe, in honor of his father, got the one that most resembled a Chicagoan. Lesley shared.



























We stumbled upon this lego free-for-all in the city hall square one evening.