Hi all!
Wow - what a day! You should all feel very special. Today we walked for 6.5 hours in the heat and then went to Tivoli for 8 hours, and here I am at 12.30am typing and posting this!!
Today we set off about 8.30am after an amazing hotel buffet breakfast. We went for a wander before our 11am walking tour. Had a look all down the Strøget which was the stark opposite of last night - empty and quiet! Much better and easier to walk down haha. We then had a look at Nyhavn/New harbour which has all the beautiful coloured buildings as well as the house HCA lived in here!
Then we walked through Amalienborg Palace (hi princess Mary!!) to the Little Mermaid. I'd been told by many (including topdeckers and my guidebook) that this is the most disappointing and least interesting attraction in Copenhagen. So I went in with little expectation for the statue. Half the population of the world had decided to also see den Lille Havfrue (little mermaid) as well as it turned out. It was stressful, manic and crazy. I hate tourist attractions like that. You can't actually take anything in as people swarm around you armed with cameras. But nevertheless I managed to push through about five Asian tour groups for a photo. Turns out having good shoes is a great advantage as I could climb the surrounding rocks easily!!
We got out of there as quickly as we could and walked back to town hall square (walking tour starting point) a different way via Rosenborg Palace. We will be seeing all these palaces tmro.
Our walking tour began and god was it hot. 25 degrees and completely sunny not a cloud in the sky today. Mightn't sound that hot but in a city with no air conditioning and walking around all day - it's quite hot! We walked a very similar route to what we had in the morning but learned about the city and some history along the way. We also saw the theatre HCA performed in. Enjoyed an ice cream on our 15 minute break! Then we went back to Nyhavn and it was CHOCCERS (we had it to ourselves in the morning).
We have quickly realised that 1 million people in Copenhagen ride bikes. And get in their way and they will mow you down without hesitation!! We also learned the Strøget is 1.5km long, Copenhagen became the capital in 1443, and throughout it's history a number of bad fires have burned down many of Copenhagen's buildings. My favourite thing we learned was how down to earth queen Margrethe II is. She enjoys painting and creating sets and costumes for Tivoli theme park, and she even translated the entire 'Lord of the Rings' series into Danish as well as illustrating some of it!! What a cool queen!!
When the tour ended we walked home and had a well deserved one hour break. We were exhausted! But we had to reenergise quickly as Tivoli awaited. Chocolate helped!
Tivoli is the second oldest theme park in the world. Opened in 1843 it has been running ever since! We spent eight hours in total (such a big day!!). Bought an unlimited ride ticket. I felt like my 12 year old self at Disneyland all over again - it was AWESOME !!!! We went on heaps of rides including the 100 year old roller coaster, one like the dumbo ride, the giant drop (which mum went on under duress haha and had an incredible view until we plummeted 60m), a chairoplane 80m in the sky (mum did not go on, Ian you would have hated it!!). On this one I sat next to a Danish girl who kept saying how it was too hot to work in this heat. Had a bit of a chuckle in my head - little does she know what home is like!! But I guess no air con makes it worse. We also went on a mine ride, the Ferris wheel and an HCA ride that was a lot like 'It's a Small World' at Disneyland. My favourite was a roller coaster called 'the Demon' which mum hated but went on with me three times. I laughed my head off the whole time! Bit different to pre-Disneyland Claire who used to cry in roller coaster queues haha. Apart from the rides, we enjoyed the Tivoli Boy's Brigade band, two pantomimes and the beautiful gardens. We also watched a light and sound show on the lake at 10.45pm and a fireworks show at 11.45pm. Both were really impressive!! They featured lasers and great music.
What a fab day!
Now - BED!
Love to all
Claire
Xoxox
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