Denmark:
Copenhagen Denmark:
Copenhagen
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We went to Copenhagen Denmark for 1 night (2 full days) specifically to see the Tivoli Gardens Christmas Market as well as the Little Mermaid Statue in the harbor. Copenhagen is a nice town with a metro system but small enough to walk to the main tourist areas. From the airport there is a train that departs every 4 minutes for a 14 minute ride to the Copenhagen train station. Our hotel was behind the station and the Tivoli is directly in front of the station. We had beautiful weather the first day as you can see from the blue sky photos. The second day was somewhat rainy but slightly warmer. |
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| Amalienborg Slot: Consisting of four almost identical buildings, the palace has been the main residence of the Danish royal family since 1794. Here we watched the changing of the guards at 12 noon. | |||
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The Little Mermaid: The tiny figure
sitting on a rock and gazing wistfully at the passing ships is Denmark's
best-known monument. The statue is based on the story of the mermaid
who falls in love with a prince by Hans Christian Andersen.
The final bronze cast was place at the end of the harbor promenade in 1913. Since then, the sculpture has fallen victim to vandals and pranksters on a number of occasions. In 1961 she had her hair painted red. In 1964 her head was cut off; some time later she lost both arms and in 1998 she lost her head once again. Now, moved a little further towards the sea, she enjoys more peace. The Story of the Little Mermaid - The heroine of Andersen's tale is a young mermaid who lives beneath the waves with her five sisters. The little mermaid rescues a prince from a sinking ship and falls in love with him. Desperate to be with the prince, she is seduced by a wicked sea witch into giving up her beautiful voice in return for legs so that she can go ashore. The price is high and the witch warns the mermaid that should the prince marry another she will die. For a long time the prince adores his new, mute lover but in the end he is forced into marrying a princess from another kingdom. Before the wedding is to take place on board a ship, the mermaid's sisters swim to it and offer her a magic knife. All she need do is stab the prince and she will be from to return to the water. The mermaid cannot bring herself to murder the prince and, as dawn breaks, she dies. |
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| Street Food: A hollowed-out baguette with a hotdog and white sauce. | |||
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| Around the Town | |||
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Various Buildings
Ice Skating
The sign to the shared Bath and Shower at the hotel
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Frihedsmuseet: The armored car
standing in front of the Danish Resistance Museum was built by members of
the Danish underground movement and is one of the star attractions of this
fascinating museum, which tells the story of Denmark's role during World
War II.
Many of the secrets of sabotage are revealed and exhibits include a makeshift printing press, home-made weapons and police reports. Another section is devoted to the evacuation of Denmark's Jewish population, who were spirited away to Sweden by the Resistance. Photographs of resistance workers killed in action are especially moving, as are letters to family and friends written by those sentenced to be executed by firing squad. The thorny issue of Denmark's collusion with Germany during World War II is also covered and uniforms from the Danish Freikorps volunteers who signed up to fight with the German army are on display. |
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Entrance to the museum
Danish resistance armored car. The sign reads - The armed car is built by a resistance group at the railway factories at Frederiksvaerk, North Zealand. and used in action on May 5th 1945 in fight against Nazi groups. Its most important task was a fight against a Danish Nazi group, which was entrenched in the plantation of Asserbo in North Zealand. The armed car is donated by the Frederiksvaerk Railway and is kept in repair by the Tuborg Foundation.
From all our travels around Europe, we have visited many Jewish Synagogue's, Holocaust Memorials, WWII Museums and even Auschwitz and Berkenau in Poland. This is the first time we have ever posted any photos showing Nazi symbols, but we do so as an example to show what the museum is like.
A Jewish prisoner's shirt showing the Star of David and a sign from the museum.
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Gefion Springvandet: The large
fountain was built in 1908 and contains a statue of the goddess Gefion - a
mythical Scandinavian figure.
According to legend, the king of Sweden promised to give the goddess as much land as she could plough in one night. Gefion, who took him at his word, turned her four sons into oxen and harnessed them to a plough. By the time the cock crowed she had managed to plough a sizeable chunk of Sweden. She then picked it up and threw it into the sea, and so formed the island of Zealand. The hole left behind became Lake Vanern (whose shape closely resembles that of Zealand). |
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Guinness - World's Tallest Man: I'm 6'
tall standing next to a statue of the world's tallest man.
The sign reads - Tallest man in the world - Roberth Wadlow weighed 8.5 lbs. just like any other baby when he was born. At the age of 10 he was almost 6'5" (2 meters) tall, and during the following 12 years he grew 1-4" each year. When he died at the age of 22, he was 8'11.1" (2.72 meters) and weighed 439 pounds (199 kg). |
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Kastellet: A fortress was first built
on this site in 1626 but a Swedish attach in 1658 revealed its
numerous weak points and on the orders of Frederik III the defenses were
rebuilt. The works were completed in 1663. The final
structure, known as the Kastellet (Citadel), consisted of a fort in the
shape of a five-pointed star surrounded by high embankments and a deep
moat. In the 19th century the fortress was partially demolished and
rebuilt once more. During World War II it was taken over by the
occupying German forces who used it as their headquarters. It is now
used by the Danish military, although the grounds and ramparts are open to
visitors.
In the 19th century Kastellet served as a prison. The prisoner's cells were built against the church so that the convicts, unseen by the public, could participate in the mass by peering through small viewing holes cut into the walls. |
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Outside of the main gate and a small pond full of
Coots.
Inside looking out of the main gate
Standing in the guard posts
Some of the interior buildings and a map of the complex
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| Marble Church: The Marble Church (Marmorkirken) also known as Frederikskirken is just west of Amalienborg. Its huge dome rests on 12 pillars and is one of the biggest of its kind in Europe, measuring 31 meters (102 feet) across. | |||
Stained glass above the entry way when you first walk in
Beneath the main dome and the alter
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| Radhus: The Radhus is the City Hall of Copenhagen. | |||
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| Rosenborg Slot: This is the royal palace and is one of Copenhagen's most visited attractions and contains thousands of royal objects including paintings, trinkets, furniture and a small armory. Most impress of all is the underground treasury containing the crown jewels and other royal regalia. | |||
Military training base next to the Rosenborg Slot
Rooster Bushes
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| St. Alban's Anglican Church: The church was built in 1887 to serve the city's Anglican community and is named for Saint Alban, a 4th century Roman soldier who converted to Christianity and suffered a martyr's death. | |||
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| St. Peter's Church: The church has been the main church for Copenhagen's German community since 1586. It dates from 1450 but suffered serious damage in the course of a series of fires and the British bombardment of 1807. | |||
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| Vor Frue Church: The Church of our Lady and Copenhagen's cathedral is the third consecutive church to be built on the site. The first, a small 12th-century Gothic church, was consumed by fire in 1728, while the next one was destroyed by British bombs in 1807. The present structure dates from 1820. Lining both sides of the interior of the church are statues of the 12 apostles, the central section of the alter has a kneeling angel and a vast figure of Christ. | |||
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| Alexander Newsky Church: The Russian Orthodox church was completed in 1883 and was a gift from Tsar Alexander III to mark his marriage to a Danish princess. The church was closed so we did not get to go inside. | |||
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