Denmark- Copenhagen

We last left our euro travelers in sunny happy Amsterdam about to depart the Netherlands for Scandinavia with a two day stop over in Hamburg. In Holland we had planned and booked more than 3 week in advance so something was naturally bound to go wrong, we just didn't think it would be this early. on our last night in Amsterdam we went out for sushi and a last  walk through the Red Light District with a waffle doughnut. one of these was a bad idea for the next morning Nic was definitely not going anywhere... the sushi won and I got to spend an extra day walking around Amsterdam, while Nic got to enjoy our room a little more ;)
The next day, whilst still feeling shaky I loaded Nic onto a bus to Hamburg where we shortened our stay to only one night to make sure we got to the main event in Copenhagen as planned. So unfortunately we didn't get to see anything in Hamburg besides our hotel but we are saving that city for next time :)

After our night in Hamburg, we discovered a Horrible fact about Germany that i hope doesn't put too many people off travelling there (cause really it is a wonderful country) but we feel people need to be warned... There are no hash-browns at McDonalds! The Horror!! We were getting an early bus and there was a Maccas at the station, so we thought we wouldn't buy food for breakfast but just get that instead... plans were dashed quickly! With 'broken hearts; we boarded our bus to Copenhagen. ;) :D

Scandinavia has always been a main destination for both of us and on this trip we plan to explore as much as we can. First stop- Denmark!

So some fun facts about Denmark. They LOVE FIRE!! Copenhagen has had two great fires (and many smaller ones) burning down at least half the town each time (and a different half each time meaning that in the past few hundred years, the entire city has been rebuilt). The palace has burnt down twice and their town hall has burnt down 4 times.
The people of Denmark are happy fun loving people why you may ask. Hygge (pronounced hooga) which means cosiness in English but to the danish its a concept of spending time together and enjoying the sun and generally being and giving contentness and happiness.
Part of the reason this may be possible is the benefits you get for living in Denmark. They have free medical, free university and if you go study the government gives you an allowance to study, allowance for child care. if you lose your job you get 80% of your last wage for a year, paid parental leave and many more benefits. How they are able to do this they are taxed 40 - 60% of their income but it seems worth it.
They don't have much of a homeless and begging problem as they just go around collecting empty bottles so they can take them to bottle return machines and get money vouchers to buy food. all in all the country looks like a very hygge place to live.

Below are a few pictures of our adventures through Copenhagen and our day trip out to the historic capital Roskilde.

Our trip to the Royal Palace- only in name as the royals live elsewhere, these buildings now house the entire government and the palace sections are used for royal and government engagements

        If we try in every country we go to, someone has to give us a job as a guard... right???? ^^^

Fancy plastic blue elf shoes to protect the floor

Hey look its Mary! We found her 

Nic loves her shoes

they paint life size plants onto thier dinnerware... and not just pretty flowers, actual useful plants and fungus :)               

                                   ^^^^^   A few of the inner rooms ^^^^

bec loves her shoes too

Look at all of the books!! The queens library if made up of over 9 million books

one of the only original streets rebuilt to look as it did before the two great fires. The first great fire burnt and destroyed from the end of the street up to the white building. After that they rebuilt that half of the town. When the second great fire tore through Copenhagen, the fire burn from the direction we are standing and they stopped the fire with the last house being destroyed , you guessed it, the green house... so in two great fires, the entire town was destroyed and rebuilt 

We were satisfactorily disappointed by the little mermaid statue :) 

Mary lives here and she was home!

We learnt that the Danish royals were actually very cool and very much like normal people, just with an important job they were born to. The royal family are regularly out walking the dog and Mary rides her bike to pick up the kids most days (who are enrolled in public school).

Not only that but their Queen is one seriously talented lady. She speaks 5 languages fluently, is an accomplished artist and has hosted several exhibitions, is a designer and dressmaker and has made several costumes for the danish operas/theater, she helped translate the lord of the rings into danish and completed all of the illustrations for the danish version not to mention is head of a country and has been for several decades. Her husband on the other hand is french and not so popular.

The postcard shot of Denmark. Fun fact. this use to be the docks area and the houses were all filled with bars and hookers. and  Hans Christian Anderson lived here (on the side we were standing) during these times as it was said to give him inspiration....makes me rethink the meanings behind some of the fairy tales i grew up with.

everybody loves Lego in Denmark... Lego and Beer, the best of the best from Denmark

VIKINGS!!!

building a new viking ship 

Ay, Ay Capt'n

Some of the reconstructed ships they have built

The Viking museum is centered around 5 viking ships that were discovered, excavated and reconstructed from the sea near Roskilde. They were built in the early 1000,s and had been at the bottom of the ocean for close to 1000 years. 

Roskilde Domkirke

The old royal palace from when the royal family lived in Roskilde and it was Denmarks capital-- it was a while ago though and was moved to Copenhagen when trade began to increase there

Carlsberg Brewery!!!

A room with a lot of full bottles through out the years. There are currently 16879 bottles in the room and they have a total of 22558 bottles in the collection they dontt all fit in this room

beer beer beer :)

And then after beer beer beer :D