Our Last Day in Copenhagen

This evening we take the train to Gothenburg, Sweden. And today, we wandered different parts of the city -- walking, sipping coffee, eating a Danish polse for lunch, taking an ice cream break. Doug wanted to see one more Danish architectural wonder, but instead, we chose to meander, a day of rest, if you will.

Two famous Danes were on our route today. Hans Christian Anderson and Soren Kierkegaard. One, a lonely writer of fairy tales and the other, a depressed philosopher.

H.C. Anderson who wrote, among other tales, The Ugly Duckling and The Little Mermaid. He was a lonely man who often wrote about his own experience (like in The Ugly Duckling.). His statue has him facing Tivoli Gardens, an amusement park that opened in 1843, and which was a place he loved and where he got some of his inspiration.

We didn't go to Tivoli Gardens, but it was important to us. Its tallest ride was our landmark to find our way back to our hotel. We were close enough to the park, that at night, we could hear the screams of thrill-seeking riders.

Soren Kierkegaard was a lonely and depressed philosopher. One quote from him:
"Marry and you will regret it. Don't marry, and you will regret it. Become a beloved Danish philosopher, and you will regret it. Don't become a beloved Danish philosopher, and you will regret it."

Doug tried to turn that philosophy to his advantage in his disappointment of not seeing all he wanted to see. "Don't see Copenhill (the architecture he missed) and I will regret it. But if I saw it, I might also regret it."

So much to love about Copenhagen. We couldn't get it all, but we got a taste. I think of Jill's daughter, Noelle,  who loved studying here. Thanks to her, we put this place on our list, and I'm not sorry.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Political Graffiti and Other Random Shots

Image
Another travel day, this time from Dusseldorf to Strasbourg, France to meet another friend, Roland S. For today, I'll just drop a random batch of pics from all the places where we've been. Everyone together resisting fascism (Dusseldorf) Sea rescues are not crimes! Stop the deaths in the Mediterranean Sea (Dusseldorf) Bochum Nazi-free (Bochum) (Dusseldorf) We should all help the world and take better care of it and be kind to each other. (Dusseldorf) Morally backwards (Dusseldorf). Refugees Welcome (Dusseldorf) No justice (Ingelheim am Rhein) Window (Ingelheim am Rhein) Bicycle by a church (Verden, Germany)  Verden (Germany) church Window in Margret and Michael's home (Syke) Inside the water tower in Luneberg Detail from the Carnival Fountain (Mainz) In Mainz, the walk character is the Mainz man, from a local cartoon figure. Église St. Augustine (Mainz) Facsimile of a page from the Guttenburg Bible in t...
Read more

Notre Dame, the Left Bank, Another Really Old Tree, and Choux Buns!

Image
We were part of the sea of tourists at Notre Dame this morning. It was worth fighting the crowds to view the interior of the post-fire Cathedral. The beautiful rose window  St. Joan of Arc had a special place in the south transept of the cathedral. She led Paris in ousting the English invaders, then was killed as a "witch." With the benefit of hindsight they decided she wasn't a witch after all and beatified her. On the left side of the entrance is another sighting of Saint Denis holding his head. ______________ After a midmorning snack of crepes and coffee (with a marvelous view of Notre Dame), we wandered around the Latin Quarter where all the famous writers hung out in the 1920s -- Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, James Baldwin, and many more . ______________ We passed by the oldest tree in Paris. It was planted in 1602 by Jean Robin, the gardener of King Henry IV. Most trees in Paris live only about 80 to 100 years because of pollution, little water, and city life. But this...
Read more

Searching for Carravagio

We weren't able to get tickets to the Borghese, nor to the temporary Caravaggio exhibit at the Palazzo Barberini. We tried months ago, but it was too late. So today, with a bit of research, we bought a 24-hour transit pass and spliced together our own Caravaggio tour. The best three paintings were in a church and free. It was a fun way to get to different parts of Rome. And around every turn is another 2000-year old ruin. And in the hunt, I found a new favorite artist, one I had never heard of before: Maestro Jacomo. His paintings are of figures in candlelight: a young boy singing, a woman wth lantern, a boy holding a bat. Then we did the goofy touristy thing and stuck our hands in the Mouth of Truth (Bocca della Verità). It didn't bite our hands off, so we must be relatively truthful. ( Carravagio's A Penitent Mary Magdalene, Rest on the Way to Egypt, and John the Baptist.) (All three of these Carravagio paintings are of St. Matthew.) ( Maestro Jacomo, Boy Singing) ( Maest...
Read more