First of all: Holy vikings! The men in
Denmark are not just good looking. No, they are ridiculously good
looking. Is there something in the water? There has to be. How are
they all so tall, with such amazing skin, hair and bone structure?
And where does the style come from? And the eyes? I have to hand it
to them - Denmark leaves even South Africa in the dust. Though I will
give the South Africans the better accent of the two....but then
again, Denmark has that European sophistication.
Anyway, I LOVED Denmark. Not at
first....it took a little time to grow on me, but once it did I was fully invested...I think I am just a fan of Scandinavia in general. It's like
Canada but with way more style (and vikings). The main complaint - their bad weather - doesn't bother me in the least. I grew up in Vancouver, so rain and grey
skies are my normal. I actually like to be cozy, or as the Danes
would say 'hygge' (pronounced hooogelich) despite the fact I have lived in some
pretty hot places. There's something so, dare I say romantic, about
being snuggled up against the cold with a view of a stunning yet
barren crystalline landscape or in the city with their orderly, oh so
Scandinavian style of buildings.
While I have been meaning to travel to
Denmark for some time, I actually finally made it there thanks to
official business. My Masters program decided to hold its annual
summer school in Jaegerspris, a beautiful commune (yes, a commune –
one of those things I suspect you only find in Scandinavia) about two
hours outside Copenhagen. It sits on the coast and the land is home
to horses and chickens and little Nordic painted wooden cabins.
The beach is exactly how you would picture a perfect Baltic beach to be,
wild, tall grass, wind swept, rugged, a little rocky but with clean sand. But, or
should I say BUT, in the middle of all this pristine scenery lies a
military practice base. My first reaction was 'Denmark has a
military'?! Yes, it does. In between seminars, as we lay on this
beautiful little beach and occasionally ventured to swim in the icy
water, we were not accompanied the sound of the wind rustling in the
trees, nor squawking seagulls...no, rather it was machine gun fire
and bombs exploding. Until 11 pm. Believe me when I say that it is
hard to fall asleep to the pitter patter of an... uzzi. There's
something so not soothing about it.
During summer school were were cooked
for by a local chef, and boy did we eat well. Danish cheese, yogurt,
fish, berries – this is very much my kind of food though it's probably hell for the lactose intolerant. But despite the beauty of
the place, and perhaps in part due to its heavy artillery, I was even more excited to check out the cities, Copenhagen and Arhuus. I will start with Aarhus because it was much smaller: It is a
cute, cold, and small seaside city four hours drive from Copenhagen
over what I believe is one of the world's longest bridges (and what
views on the drive!). Because it is home to one, it very much has the feel of
a university town. It has some nice old buildings but what I
was really excited to check out was the world renowned Contemporary Art Museum. Alas, I made my trek on
a Monday, the one day of the week it is closed. So I got to see
'Boy', the giant statue of a crouching boy and 50% the reason for my
trip, from the window only. Better than nothing, but not quite what I
had hoped for. I also met up with a good friend of my ex who is a
professor at the university, and who happens to be married to a
Canadian called Sarah ( I like her already) himself. He took me for
the Danish food staple lunch of open face sandwiches, pronounced
something like “smoooeeerrrbrooeeet”. Heaped with toppings like
smoked salmon, herring and other fishy delights, they were awesome. I
know I already said this but I will say it again: I really liked
Danish food, mostly because fish and cheese are two of my favourite
things. What's not to like however, is how expensive food is. I
mean, it is crazy. We are verging on Norway and Switzerland territory
here. But ghastly prices aside, Arhuus has some great little areas,
including a Latin Quarter, canals running through the city centre,
an interesting old church...it's a sleepy, Nordic little city that makes for a perfect weekend escape.
The
capital Copenhagen on the other hand is far from sleepy. Brimming
with gorgeous little neighbourhoods, even the red light district in
Vesterbro has charm (albeit also sketchiness). There are so many
welcoming cafes and bars, it feels impossible to pick just one per meal. Even
the tourist trap areas like Nyhavn harbour are still adorable. I will
say however that the Little Mermaid statue in the harbour does live up to its reputation as
Europe's most disappointing tourist attraction. During our visit we
had the added bonus of the jazz festival, so the city streets were
alive with the sound of music and the sight of dancing. And since we managed to hit Copenhagen in the middle of a 36 degree heatwave, this just added to its steamy charm. There are a couple of very
Danish palaces to explore (and not a half bad crown prince - vikings again!), and you can even follow the changing of the
guard between the two palaces, as they march through the city streets, which we of course did. With their big furry
hats I couldn't help but feel bad for the soldiers (who I was shocked to realize are only teenagers) in the 36 degree
weather. There's also the huge Street Food Copenhagen market on Paper
Island with still more Danish edible delights, and there are some
fantastic museums, especially the National Museum brimming with viking
treasures – and the Glypokotek, with its collection of Picasso, Degas, Monet and
the most Rodin I have ever seen in one place. There's also an old
fortress area and windmill by the harbour, a tower to climb at Christianbourg Palace from which you can see the whole city and its many spires below...and if amusement parks are
your thing, Tivoli Gardens. Much of the city is dedicated to preserving the memory of local hero Hans
Christian Andersen, and you will find little signs of him throughout. I
loved his fairy tales when I was little, and felt inspired to
reread them after this trip. Even after all these years they are
still so beautiful to me. Just in general, it is such a gorgeous
place – with canals running throughout, life is lived on the water here.
So many little houseboats! The one thing I did not like
(well, besides the prices) was the independent city of Christiania. Stinking of weed and cheap incense, dirty, and full of drunks and druggy types stoned out of their minds by 10
am, it was not my kind of place and I couldn't wait to get
away. It reminded me of the worst parts of Commercial Drive and I was
ready to leave as soon as I arrived. My only other disappointment in Denmark were the supposedly legendary hot dogs. Not that I really like hot dogs anyway,
but I was over and over again that I must try these magical street hot dogs. Nyaaah,
they were okay, but not amazing.
I have for many
years, and my parents before me because they have a house full of it,
been obsessed with Danish design. Their furniture is amazing,
timeless...to have a house full of their teak is really the dream I
think. So peering into the windows of high end furniture stores (I
didn't dare go in) was just such a treat. And it's not just furniture
(and lighting!) they do well. Their clothes designers are also top notch. It's not just the men who look good – the women are also
fantastic dressers, no matter how casual the outfit. Everyone here just oozes style like it is the most natural thing in the world – there definitely is a certain Danish aesthetic. I
would in fact argue that even more than the French, it's the Danes who
really know how to put together the perfect outfit. Their style is
so....just so! And yet unforced – no one looks like they are trying too hard. Whatever 'it' is, they just have it in spades. It is slightly depressing
yet also very inspiring to see.
Anyway, Denmark is
awesome. It's as simple as that!
