My bike is better than your bike

Thursday we got up relatively early and rented the city bikes called Bycyklen, which was really fun.  While I’ve been in several cities that have the city bikes, I’ve never actually rented one before.  And the ones in Copenhagen are really nice because they’re motor assisted.  So you pedal like normal and the motor will kick in to help you so you don’t have to pedal as hard.  It’s amazing, especially for going over hills and when you’re biking against the wind.  It makes biking a breeze and I totally want one now. 

 

 

The bikes have touch screens with navigation, which is great if you’re unsure of where you’re going or not good with maps.  You can also look up where the other bike racks are and whether or not there are any spots available for return, which is cool. Copenhagen has a GREAT bike culture.  In addition to the city bikes, there are also lots of shops that rent bikes for a few hours or even a few days.  There are designated bike lanes going in both directions and they even have their own traffic lights.  SO many people are on their bikes. The best were the ones that had a wooden box attached to the front of their bikes to transport their stuff….including their kids, friends and significant others!  It was really fun to see!

 

 

 

First we biked to Tivoli Gardens, which is the second oldest operating amusement park in the world!  We returned our bikes there and then walked over to the Meatpacking District and had lunch at WarPigs, a really cool brewpub, which means it has a brewery on-site.  If you’re in the mood for Texas BBQ, check it out.  

 

 

 

Then we walked back to Tivoli Gardens, got our tickets and walked around.  There are different tickets you can buy to see the gardens, the basic one allowing entrance to the park, with another offering entrance and unlimited rides.  You can also buy tickets for just a single ride, but it’s pretty expensive, so if you plan on doing 2 rides or more, you’re better off getting the unlimited pass.  Melody was only sort-of interested in one ride, so we just got the basic entrance. It’s also worth visiting the gardens at night when everything is lit up, so if you want, you can get an add-on to come back later that day (which is a lot cheaper than buying another ticket). Just make sure that after you buy the add-on you get it stamped by one of the staff members at the entrance. 

 

 

The gardens are really pretty and surprisingly big, so it takes a while to walk around and see everything. We spent quite a bit of time visiting all the different areas.  Bonus: If you visit, make sure you check out the bathrooms, they’re super fun.  They also present theater, dance and music performances in the concert hall and glass hall theatre, so if you’re planning a trip, it’s worth checking the website in case there is something you’d like to see.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Afterwards we rented city bikes again and rode along the canal and through Nyhavn until we reached the statue of The Little Mermaid, which has become a symbol of the city.  Hans Christian Anderson, the author of The Little Mermaid (among many other fairy tales), was Danish.  It was super crowded with a tour bus having just arrived, but we managed to check it out up close and personal and get our pictures.  From there we walked through Kastellet, which is a star-shaped military fortress. It’s still in use by the military today, but mostly it is a public park, and it’s a beautiful place to walk around.  There are also two small museums, but they weren’t open when we were there, so we just walked through.  Then it was back to the city bikes again and this time biking along the canal, which was incredibly beautiful, especially as the sun was setting.

 

 

 

 

 

We ended up eating at a restaurant facing the canal, and had a lovely dinner outside, people watching.  It was quite chilly, but not a problem, as all the restaurants have blankets you can use to keep warm, which is so nice!  Then it was back to Tivoli Gardens, this time for the nighttime experience.  We ended up checking out the kids area, which has all kinds of structures to climb on and explore and we had so much fun!  There were rope tunnels and slides and a pirate ship to climb, it was pretty awesome!  Then we just walked around checking out all the different areas and lights, before finally heading back to the air b&b. 

Friday we took the metro to the airport, then boarded a train to visit Malmo, Sweden for the day!  From Copenhagen airport it’s only about a 20-30 min train ride away, so it was a nice little day trip, plus we got to visit a new country!  Just don’t forget to bring your passport with you, they check it before they let you on the train.  We spent the day walking around the town, checking out the shops, having lunch at a great little local restaurant called Bullen-Två Krögare, and then we went to do a tour of Malmöhus Castle.  The castle is Scandinavia’s oldest surviving renaissance castle.  It actually has a pretty interesting history, as well as housing permanent exhibits about history and technology, among others. They also have temporary exhibits featuring art, photography and fashion, which was cool.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We headed back to Copenhagen late afternoon, so we could check out the Lego store in the city centre.  It’s a flagship store, which means it’s bigger than most of the other stores and carries sets that are more exclusive or are harder to find.  It was actually pretty cool, we had fun looking at all the sets, building and playing with the products and checking out the Pick-A-Brick wall.

 

 

 

Afterwards we went for dinner at an Italian place, then went for drinks at a nearby lounge.  Then it was back to the hostel, and we ended up finishing How to Be Single, which overall I didn’t really enjoy. Too bad, because I like so many of the actors in it.