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It has always been a dream of mine to see Copenhagen, or as they call it in Denmark, København. Maybe it's the colorful buildings that drew me in, maybe it's the charming Christmas markets. Whatever it is, the city didn't disappoint! Something that made this trip even cooler was getting to go to Sweden for a few hours. It's not every day that I get to do that!
København
Our AirBnb was in Amager East, so we weren't too far from downtown. Saturday morning we had an early-ish start (though we had to shake the bed to get Michaela up) and actually found some great coffee. Espresso House is like the Danish version of Starbucks, and though it's a bit expensive, it's totally worth it! Once the caffeine had woken us up a bit, we got on the metro to Kongens Nytorv, which is right by the famous Nyhavn harbour. The weather was a bit dreary, but it actually allowed for some great photo ops. We were also pleasantly surprised to find a Christmas market right along the water!
The beautiful Nyhavn!
After Nyhavn we decided to hit the Design Museum on the way up towards the Little Mermaid statue. The Danish Museum of Art and Design, filled with retro chairs and fashion, is one of the most unique museums I've ever been in. I highly recommend it! We also walked into Frederik's Church to get a break from the pouring rain and were impressed with its beauty! Right before we got to the statue, we stumbled across 17th-century star fortress called Kastellet. Finally we ended up at the gem of Copenhagen, The Little Mermaid statue, based on the famous story by Hans Christian Anderson. Up until then it had been pouring rain, but it cleared up just enough to get a great picture of her!
Frederik's Church
The Museum of Art and Design
Barracks at Kastellet
The famous Little Mermaid statue
After getting drenched and walking miles with soaked feet we decided to wait out the rain and warm up at a little coffee shop. When it finally cleared up we only had a couple hours of sunlight left (sunset was at 3:58 there) so we sauntered over to the Botanical Gardens and Rosenborg Castle. Sadly, the indoor gardens were closed, but we were still able to enjoy the park. Finally we made our way over to the Hans Christian Anderson Christmas market, which we had been looking forward to for weeks. Unfortunately it was not as exciting as we had anticipated, but it was still fun nonetheless! We also ran into another Christmas market (our third for the day) in a big shopping area near Kongens Nytorv. This one became our favorite! We bought ornaments with the Danish flag on them and indulged in some incredible hot chocolate.
Rosenborg Castle
The Botanical Gardens-- wish we could have gone inside!
The Hans Christian Anderson Christmas Market
PC: Alyssa Graham
Malmö
Day two consisted of even more exciting adventures, including leaving the country! Like I mentioned earlier, it was a real treat to get to visit Sweden, even for such a short time. The trip was so incredibly short and relatively inexpensive, so it was totally worth it! From København Central Station to Malmö C it was about 40 minutes and only cost around $17, so I highly recommend this if you just want to add a new country to your list. Malmö is a cute city, but to be honest, if I had more time I would have gone to Stockholm instead. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed my few hours in Malmö and don't regret going.
Our first impression of Sweden was a cute little cafe near the station. We were amazed at how much cheaper food and coffee were than in Denmark! On top of that, the exchange rate was much better there. Next, we decided to hit up the Malmö Art Museum. We were surprised to find that the museum not only had modern art, but also an aquarium and other animals. This was by far the most interesting museum I've found in Europe so far! After this we didn't have much to do besides walk around and eat Subway sandwiches, so we decided to head back to Copenhagen and get our fill of the Christmas markets.
The Malmö Art Museum
After saying our goodbyes to the Christmas markets, we headed back to the AirBnb to relax, play Uno, and head to bed early since we had to be up around 4 the next morning. Somehow we made it to the airport on time and later, back to Binfield. Though we were incredibly exhausted, we arrived at school feeling satisfied and filled with the Christmas spirit.
Honestly, my favorite part of Copenhagen was its abundance of Christmas markets and holiday spirit. After visiting three markets, we concluded that the people of Copenhagen sure know how to do Christmas right! I will most definitely be going back!
Also, check out this video of our trip made by our very own Alyssa Graham!
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