Copenhagen September 24, 2018 7:50 PM

We are here. I don’t need to describe the flight other than to say I am so grateful that my fear of flying did not keep me from this trip. We left Chicago at 10 PM and arrived in Copenhagen at 1 PM. There’s a seven-hour time difference.

 

OH, I AM happy to be here. My eyes teared up when I handed my passport to the Border Agent.  She looked at it, then looked up at me, and said: “This is your first stamp.” And I nodded. (I’ve been to other countries—Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean – but never one requiring a passport stamp.)

There are millions of bicycle riders and they have their own bike lanes and their own traffic signals. This requires caution on the part of pedestrians unused to such traffic volumes. Extreme caution required.

It started raining, then it started sleeting. We were only a few blocks from the hotel, so Bob went back to the hotel in search of the umbrella. And I sheltered next to a tall building. Hundreds of bicycles were parked outside. I was still waiting outside the building for Bob and the needed umbrella at 5 o’clock – quitting time. Women and men poured from the entrance, and most of them headed to the rows of bicycles, grabbed one, and peddled off. Fast and ferocious.

“These people are beautiful people,” I thought. I was impressed with their athleticism. Lots of black clothing–black leather pants and black mini skirts and layers of blouses and sweaters and scarves. A bit of gray for contrast, but mostly layers of black. I was impressed–they looked strong and fit. And happy. And courageously crazy for biking in this traffic!

Suddenly I want to take up bicycling and wear all black!

We didn’t know how to order coffee! It was sleeting and we were walking down the street just getting our bearings and suddenly the sleet changed to hurling ice pellets and we needed shelter – fast. We ducked into a place called ROAST Coffee. There were so many options on the chalkboard, and we got tongue-tied. We were nervous. Yes. Nervous ordering coffee. Finally, we ordered “an Americano.” It seemed safe! (It was also the last Americano we ordered for the duration as we quickly discovered how to speak the coffee language in Scandinavia. Mostly I went for cappuccino. Because, yummy!)

More walking. Actually, there was more gaping than walking. The tiny shops, the cobblestone sidewalks, the bicycles. Then it was time to eat. Again. Google maps gave us lots of options, but either we couldn’t find the places or once we looked in the windows we decided it wasn’t quite right. We ended up at Andersen Bakery. Delicious choice!  We had sandwiches, but I can’t tell you what was inside my sandwich. I was too over-the-moon happy with the bread. We also bought 6 filled pastry squares to eat once back to the hotel. Yum. 5 stars!

The evening light was lovely, and so we walked along the harbor and I took a hundred photos of the sky and the harbor and the buildings across the water. I guess the earlier rain was worth it, for the clouds were beautiful.

My “big” camera jammed in the first half hour of shooting. Maybe it’s a blessing, for it is surely easier to manage an iPhone vs. a camera bag with lenses, etc. Still…not exactly what I had hoped for.

Last we searched for a bar so Bob could sample his first beer on European soil. We found the Café Langebro near the Langebro Bridge and the Copenhagen Harbor. It was a good choice. Mostly locals and a cozy place and dozens of beers from which to choose.

Now to eat the pastries and sleep the sleep of the jet-lagged.