A city trip with friends in Copenhagen

 

The search for a place to stay

We chose an accommodation through Airbnb. This is a site where you can, for example, rent a bed or sometimes even a couch at someone's home. They also have complete apartments for rent, which we liked and that is why we chose a complete apartment. Especially if you travel with a group, this is the ideal option, and much more fun than all separately in a hotel room. After days of searching the site, we had found a suitable apartment with four beds in the Norrebro district. This is a very hip neighborhood that is easily accessible.

Time to settle down

After only a short one and a half hour flight we arrived in Copenhagen. We could easily reach the center by train and from there it was a short bus ride to our apartment. Once there we were given a short tour and the key. We rushed to the supermarket on the corner to quickly get our breakfast for the next morning. After a wonderful night and a homemade breakfast we walked to the bicycle shop at the end of the street where you could rent bicycles. Here we rented four lovely city bikes for the next few days. Just like Amsterdam, Copenhagen is a real cycling city, so as a tourist this is the ideal means of transport to discover the city.

Rent a bike in Copenhagen Rent a bike in Copenhagen

Mini village Christiania

With a map in our pocket we went to our first sight, Christiania, a self-proclaimed semi-independent neighborhood in the middle of Copenhagen. It is a strange place that you absolutely must have seen. In this mini village you have one street called 'Pusher Street' where soft drugs are sold. The government tolerates this, but nevertheless the 'sellers' make sure that they are unrecognizable. They do this by wearing Balaclavas, which created a rather grim and scary atmosphere, nothing for us and we quickly walked through it. As soon as you get close to this 'street' there are signs that say "no photo or video footage". When you see those men in balaclavas, you'll think twice about getting your camera. The rest of this free state has a rather hippie feel, people with dreadlocks playing music everywhere. There are also some "restaurants" where you can buy delicious mostly vegan things.

A gate with two totem poles as you exit the Free State of ChristianiaA gate with two totem poles as you exit the Free State of Christiania

Hippie-like and colorful house in ChristianiaHippie-like and colorful house in Christiania

Delicious ice cream and good tips

After this special experience it was time for an ice cream. The sun was shining so we went to an ice cream parlor on the water where they have delicious ice cream. At Siciliansk Is you can get real Italian ice cream, because the owner is Italian and they can make the best ice creams. The owner's girlfriend happened to be in the ice cream parlor and she turned out to be Dutch. We were secretly allowed to go to the toilet and she gave us nice tips regarding nice restaurants and places to go out. I will tell more about this later.

The famous Nyhaven

From here we cycle to the famous harbor, Nyhavn. From here you have a great view and you enter busy, touristy Copenhagen. There are many restaurants on the water, these are often unaffordable. I therefore recommend that you get a nice sandwich from a small eatery and take it with you to eat in the sun on a square or by the water. Much cheaper but no less tasty or cozy.

The famous Nyhaven with fishing boats and colorful housesThe famous Nyhaven with fishing boats and colorful houses

Eating delicious pizzas at Mother

After this it was time to cycle to the number 1 most famous landmark in Copenhagen... Yes, the mermaid! Don't expect a huge statue, but expect a lot of tourists. But despite the fact that the statue is not much, you must have been here. In the evening we had dinner at 'Mother' on the advice of the girl in the ice cream parlor. This is an Italian restaurant where you can only get pizzas. Mother is located in the hip Kodbyen district. These pizzas are prepared in a stone oven. You can't book here and it is super busy here at the weekend, you can sit both inside and outside, outside there are blankets so that even in colder weather it is good to sit outside. Unfortunately, it takes a very long time before you get your pizza, because there is only 1 oven. If you finally get it after at least 1.5 hours of waiting, then it is also very tasty! The atmosphere here is great and there are a lot of other restaurants nearby if you don't like pizza. You can also pop into a pub after dinner to drink priceless wine. Expensive but fun, so just factor this in and enjoy!

Stock up on goodies at the bakery

After a very successful day we fell tired but satisfied in slaap. The next morning we walked to the bakery to get all delicious sandwiches. That was fun! And the choice was huge… However, we are not very good at making choices, so we bought almost the entire bakery empty and shared everything. Concentrate for another day of exploring the city!

The tastiest Danish delicacies in the Torvehallerne

The next day was mainly dominated by shopping, lounging and eating. And if you're talking about food, you should pay a visit to 'Torvehallerne'. This is a modern covered market hall and here they have the best Danish delicacies, but also cups of coffee, brownies, chocolate chip cookies, cheeses, wraps and so on. So don't walk through this with an empty stomach because the prices again don't lie. Buy something small here and sit outside in the sun.

Outside in the sun at the harbor at the TorvehallerneOutside in the sun at the harbor at the Torvehallerne

And walking and cycling makes you hungry again, so in the evening we ate a delicious hamburger at 'Halifax', here they have divine burgers with fries and/or a salad. There is also a vegetarian option so something for everyone!

Eating burgers at Halifax with his 4th Eating burgers at Halifax with his 4th

Extensive lunch at The Laundromat Café

After another very successful day, we watched a movie in our apartment and then slept like babies again. The last day we decided to have an extensive brunch at 'The Laundromat Café' before we had to go back to the airport. Here you can have a very extensive lunch and believe me this will get you through the next few hours. Apparently this is something a lot of Danes do on Sundays because it's super busy everywhere.

keepsake

At the airport we decided to buy a souvenir. A memento of this successful city trip and of our friendship. May this one last for many more years and that we may make many more trips together.

Written by Marina de Graaf