Nyanko's Adventures!

Our itinerary of the the last full day in Copenhagen, Denmark, involved exploring the city center. We grabbed a quick affordable breakfast at Espresso House (which turned out to be a coffee chain with branches in Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland) to fill our tummies.

Good and affordable breakfast at Espresso House! The breakfast set came with the scone (with cheese, butter, jam), choice of fruit juice and choice of coffee.

Along the way, we also grabbed some fruit juice from Torvehallerne market hall. The juice cost as much as the breakfast set at Espresso House but it just looked so delicious and nutritious we had to try it!

Select the combination of fruits you want...

And they will blend it on the spot for you, with the fruits prepacked in the bottle!

All smooth and yummy!

From the market hall, we walked to Rosenborg Slot to catch the "changing of guards". The changing of guards takes places every day at Amalienborg at 12:00 and the Danish Royal Guards start marching there from Rosenborg Slot at 11:30. Amalienborg is slightly further away from where all the main sites/ attractions are, so we decided to just catch the beginning of the guards' march at Rosenborg Slot instead.

The marching was a rather quiet affair, with no accompanying music and most definitely no announcement of any sort. If you do wish to catch it too at Rosenborg Slot, do note that it is at the opposite end of the Treasury, parrallel to Gothersgade Street. It appears that they will march along that street to Amalienborg.

Nice to just take a look of the soldier's attire in each country!

Back to the castle, Rosenborg Slot does look petite compared to the Kronborg Slot we visited on Day Two, but that is mostly likely due to the different reasons for which they were built. Rosenborg Slot was built by King Christian IV, eldest son and successor of King Frederick II (who did the major construction and fortification of Kronborg Slog). The palace was completed in 1633 and it was meant primarily for his residence. Officially, they call it his "pleasure palace". Hmm...

I find the red brick walls adorning the castle very unique.

When the palace was no longer used for the kings' residence, it became the place where they store their priced objects. For example, there was the Ivory and Amber room, the Porcelain Cabinet, the Mirror Cabinet and the Glass Cabinet. Some of these rooms are filled from top to bottom with the royal family's expansive collection!

The Ivory and Amber Room

The Glass Cabinet, said to be the only one of its kind in the world.

I felt that the rooms here are more vividly decorated, and it is amazing how the different rooms in the very same palace could have entirely different style and fashion.

The Marble Chamber decorated with Italian scagliola feels a little cold

While Christian VI's Hall is warm and inviting

We were also lucky to catch the three silver lions and in the Great Hall, where the king and queen's thrones also sit. The silver lions are moved to Christiansborg Palace Chapel during the lying in state. Till this day, all royal children are baptised in front of these thrones.

The Great Hall

I daresay that the most memorable part of this castle is the Treasury, where actual crowns and regalia of the royal family are displayed. Obviously many others think the same way as I do, and the small basement was terribly crowded.

The Crown of the Absolute Monarchs (from 1671 to 1731)

Christian IV's crown loaded with symbols of his virtues.

After seeing those beautiful crowns, we finally understood why they are one of Denmark's symbolic icon. I can't believe I grew up eating these Danish cookies thinking that the patterns are just decorative!

See those hidden crown shapes?

After Rosenborg Slot, we walked over to The Round Tower (Rundetaarn), where visitors have been able to enjoy views of the city since 1642. It was also built by King Christian IV and was originally used as an astronomical observatory (apparently it still served the same function in winter season). Accordingly, its thick walls also provided fire proof protection for the citizens during the Copenhagen Fire in 1728!

It literally is round and you can't miss it in the city center.

It's interesting in that you ascend the tower via slopes spiraling all the way to the top. The slopes actually take up all the space in that tower, and only on certain levels, it leads to a room or open space. The round tower used to house the first major university's library collection and now The Library Hall midway up is used for various art exhibitions. We were free to entire the Library Hall with our tickets for the round tower.

Some of the famous names who had visited the library include Ludvig Holberg and Hans Christian Anderson.

The spiraling paved slopes

Since the university's library used to be in the round tower, it naturally had to allocate space for washrooms for the studious who barely leave the library. One of the two original privies still exist and had been restored for exhibition. The privies had an arched ceiling where nicotine could seep through the limestone (if the patron smokes a pipe).

You can try sitting down and picture yourself in those days.

Right at the top of the tower is the Bell Loft, where the bells of Trinity Church hang. Over the years, the loft space had been used for various purposes including laundry and storage spaces. If you do climb on to the very top observatory, you will be rewarded with one of the best unobstructed views in Copenhagen.

Views of the City

Views of the adjoining church

From there, went to the main shopping area for lunch and some leisure walkabout on our way to our complimentary canal tour (complimentary because it was included in the Copenhagen Card!) We had lunch at Peder Oxe, a short walk away, which serves really Danish food! One of the lunch menus includes two or three smørrebrød of your choice (from a selection of 14 smørrebrøds!). I wasn't hungry, so i just had one smørrebrød and a dessert, and i'm so glad i left space for dessert for it was sooo good! Yums!

Shrimps tossed in light cream

I can't remember the name of this danish dessert but the yoghurt like drink which you pour over is slightly sweet and sour and blends really well.

Lego's logos over the years.

This is one of the new hip places for the locals to relax in summer!

We totally love the 1-hour ride and it was a great investment of our time. If you too didn't have a lot of time to spend in Copenhagen, you should at least take this tour for an easy view of the famous sites. The commentary provide by the guide on board was also useful in provided us background information of these places. Hint! It could be a little difficult to catch the guide at times cause of the noise from the engine so it would be best to sit in front. Also, if you do want a close up photo of the Little Mermaid (and do not have extra zoom lens), you have to sit on the right side of the boat.

The waters are really clean and beautiful

One of the numerous bridges which we went under

Spot the "little" mermaid! (This is what happens when you sit on the wrong side of the boat.

The canal tour begins and ends at the same place and we weren't allowed to alight anywhere else. Our main itinerary is Tivoli Gardens for the evening night, but since it's along thte way, we decided to pop by H.C. Andersen Fairy-Tale House.

The only photo i took of the place. X:

Some construction going on to enhance park experience

See the one-man empty seat in the middle? There's where the operator sits and manually controls the breaks of the roller coaster.

The next morning, we woke up to beautiful sunshine again and went early to have our breakfast at Torvehallerne market hall. It is about 5 minutes away from our hotel and according to my research, it's one of the more affordable places to have a meal.

We were really early and some of the stalls were not open yet.

We found a stall which sells all kinds of Danish bread and decided to settle for it. It was a good decision!

Chic decor

We just ordered whatever looked nice from the bakery and have no idea what their danish names are. The white pastry at the bottom right hand corner was surprising good! It was glazed with icing and has raspberry bits sprinkled on it.

Fresh flowers at every table!

We didn't have any concrete plans for sightseeing and decided to get a Copenhagen Card when we arrived at the train station on Day 1. It grants you admissions to 73 museums and attractions (assuming that it is even possible to visit all), free transportation to nearly every where you need to go in Copenhagen, and discounts at restaurants, attractions and entertainment.

A complimentary guidebook and map comes with the card. The card is of the same quality as your credit card so there's no worries of it disintegrating even if you were to purchase the maximum 120 hours validity

For our trip, we purchased the 48-hours card for DKK529 per person (about S$108 or €71). You can specify what time to start using the card and the 48-hours start from there. It's really useful if you arrive in the city late or decide to sleep in a little later in the morning.

After the satisfying breakfast, we proceeded with our first destination: Kronborg Castle (Kronborg Slot). It is a UNESCO site and more famously known to be Shakespeare's Hamlet's Castle. It is only an hour's train ride from central Copenhagen and trains depart regularly about every 20 minutes. Naturally, the Copenhagen Card covers both the admission cost and the cost for travelling to the Helsingør Station.

Hint! When you arrive at the Helsingør Station, don't hurry to the castle! There is a small quaint town a few steps away from the station selling a huge variety of things and lined with cafes. We found out that the souvenirs here are actually cheaper than the exact same ones selling in central Copenhagen. It is also less crowded and a really enjoyable place to take a stroll.

The colors are just so beautiful

As we had a long schedule ahead, we could not linger as long as wanted and started off for the main site:

Pretty even from the distance!

In years of peace.

Closer up

We were fortunate to be here while they were celebrating Shakespeare's 400th anniversary. Being also the setting for Hamlet's castle, they had many related activities going on, including short skits held at various places in the castle. We caught Hamlet and Polonius in action at the courtyard!

With the castle grounds as backdrop, you feel as though you are part of the play!

"Insane and cheeky Hamlet

Schedule of the short skits

In my opinion, Kronborg is definitely one of the most beautiful castles that I've visited. (Also check out our visit to Rosenberg Slot on Day Three!) The castle grounds itself is so vast, you would need at least 2 hours to quickly finish touring the place. There is a huge inventory of paintings, tapestry and even original furniture from the royal family. There are also the underground passages where the Danish mythical hero Holger Danske sleeps until the day when Denmark is threatened by enemies and wakes to save the day!

Even the royalty had small rooms and beds to keep out the cold

A vast collection of original tapestry

The castle's chapel

For the fit and mobile, you should definitely go up the spiral staircase up the tower. It wasn't a very easy climb, but we made it to the top and we well rewarded by the magnificent view of the old town and beyond.

View of the courtyard and the sea. Across the sea lies Sweden.

Looking across to the old town

The castle's spires

After visiting the castle, we headed back to the small town for lunch. We quickly realised how erratic Denmark's weather could be as it transformed from beautiful sunshine to heavy windy rain with barely any warning.

Simple fish and chips equivalent for lunch. Notice how dark it had become and we were sitting at the outdoor terrace.

Once the rain subsided, we quickly ran back to the train station to catch the train to our next destination, hoping that the skies will clear up during hour ride. Fortunately, it did! :D

Our aim was the Visit Carlsberg brewery and but when we caught the last Carlsberg free shuttle bus at 6 Vesterbrogade street and realised that it also stops right outside the Copenhagen Zoo....

WE ENDED UP HERE!

The great thing about having the Copenhagen Card was that we could make impromptu decisions like these. We decided that since the card offers free entry, there's no harm in popping by and take a quick look around. And i was so glad that we did!

Really pink flamingos

Really sleepy cows. Lucky them!

And hello llamas! It's my first time seeing them in real life.

Happy trotting around to show us how beautiful it is

The Copenhagen Zoo is really amazing. Their children's zoo area actually allows visitors to enter goats and ponies' compound to have closer interaction with them!

Every kid's dream to climb into the animal's compound has finally come true!

For the little animals like rabbits and guinea pigs, they made the fence so low, and the miniature hills so near that you could just stretch your hand and pet them!

I didn't even have to zoom in to take this photo.

And these reindeer are so cute. For some reason, the entire herd kept patrolling the compound again and again. I wonder if they thought they were migrating somewhere?

Even the baby reindeer had to follow along.

We spent only about 45 minutes at the zoo as we still had to rush to Visit Carlsberg before it closes. The brewery is at a rather far flung location and we had to walk at least 15 minutes before we reached. The directions to the entrance were not very clear and it took us some time to figure out as well. Hint! Do try to catch the complimentary shuttle along 6 Vesterbrogade street to save the troubles of locating the place!

Cutting through the Søndermarken park

Are all the parks in Denmark so beautiful??

Saw the banner but not the entrance...

Finally arrived!

We presented our Copenhagen Card and exchanged for the Visit Carlsberg ticket which included two complimentary beer or soft drinks. (*Hint! The Copenhagen Card allows you to visit any of those attraction once a day. Hence, with a 48-hour card, you could come here twice in total and enjoy a second round of drinks if you are in the vicinity!) 

Unfortunately, due to our trip to the zoo, we missed the last guided tour which departed at 18:00. Nevertheless, the ticket/ brochure included a rather useful layout plan so we could orientate and guide ourselves around.

Free beer! The man was so happy.

Enjoying the free beer overlooking the modernised brewery

The old brewhouse welcomed visitors with the world's largest collection of unopened beer bottles.

Did you spot any familiar brands?

Gl Carlsberg vs Ny Carlsberg when the father-son relationship soured.

Besides beer, there is free horse carriage rides from 11:30 to 1430 every half an hour. It's break time now for the horses.

The original gate

With the sun finally starting to set at 20:00, we headed back to our hotel in search of dinner. It was a long walk to the nearest train station at Carlsberg, as there were no roads leading down to the platform and we had to take a huge detour round the brewery and some construction sites. Fortunately, we saw that they are trying to build some form of bridge as a shortcut from Visit Carlsberg to the station.

Finally got on to the train!

Back at our hotel's vicinity before sunset:


Total admission cost based on sites visited: 355 DKK
(Kronborg Slot 90 DKK, Copenhagen Zoo 170 DKK, Visit Carlsberg 95 DKK).
A one-way train ride from Copenhagen to Helsingør is about an additional 40 DKK. 

 A 24-hour Copenhagen Card costs only 379 DKK and includes all your public transportation needs to go to these places. Hence, we would have saved money even if we had only purchased a 24-hour card.
Moving on to the last full day at Copenhagen!
If you haven't read our Day One itinerary yet, click here!