Friday, 25 July 2006
The train departed from the Munich Central Station at 19:00. In the twilight (around 21:50), we passed through Nürnberg, and an hour later, Würzburg. The train became increasingly crowded along the way.
Saturday, 26 July 2006
The train passed by Hamburg and Neumünster, sliding in the early morning fog into Denmark. Finally, it arrived at the Copenhagen train station at about 10:30--half an hour late. Having briefly walked around the Skt. Jørgens Sø and the Planetarium, I started to look for lunch. The guidebook recommended a nearby Centrum Smøorrebrød. By the way, Smørrebrød is a common Danish lunch fare--bread with different things, such as tomatoes, meat, etc. piled on top. The essential thing is that the food should be cold. Fortunately, the person managing Centrum Smøorrebrød was an Asian who spoke Chinese--and that made ordering and finding out what was in each flavour much more easier. Cheap too.
Walking east, I came to the Rådhus and the plaza in front of it. A narrow way--the Strøget, opened from the plaza, winding through small squares, led the way past the Hellingånds Church to the Kongens Nytorv, a large square bordered by the Royal Theatre and a canal (though before all those I made a small detour to see the Vor Frue Church).
From here, the Bredgade ran north to the Frederikskirchen (another church), across from which was the Slots Plads--a large, circular, and guarded plaza surrounded symmetrically by the royal residence. Immediately to the east was the Amaliehaven, offering a pleasant view over the Inder Havnen at the Opera House on the other side of the shore.
Continuing north (and taking frequent rests--my left ankle was still recovering from a sprain), I came across the Gefion Fountain, featuring the goddess and her four sons whom she turned into oxen. From here, the fortress Kastellet was nearby.
Unlike the conventional castle in Germany, the Kastellet was built primarily using the soil with dykes, not using stone with walls. The defense, at first sight, looked feeble, but it became evident that the people inside the Kastellet would have every geographical advantage over the incoming enemies.
A main street ran through the heart of the Kastellet, and I emerged from the other side not far away from the Little Mermaid sculpture.
Walking along the seashore, and passing through a wonderful garden, I doubled back to the Gefion Fountain, and thence continued west to Nyboder--an interesting neighbourhood consisted of regiments of houses of yellow walls and red roofs.
I hopped on the S-train (very efficient) at Østerport Station and got off at Nørreport Station to see the Rosenborg Slot and its enormous garden. Along the way, I also had a peek inside the Botanical Garden.
The next stop was Christianshavn, with the Vor Frelsers Church being the main draw (unfortunately, the tower was already closed when I got there). But I had a chance to explore the Christiania area. It is difficult to describe the neighbourhood--it was built in the hyppies style, with wierd people walking around, and wierd people selling wierd things, ranging from the conventional food and souvenirs to the exotic, including drugs.
Crossing the Inder Havnen, I came to the Christiansborg, mainly occupied by a series of gardens and monumental buildings not unlike the Viennese Hofburg. It was very pleasant to take a brief rest in the garden in front of the library.
By about 18:00, I had enough of Copenhagen. I proceeded from Christiansborg back to the train station, passing by the Tivoli Gardens, an amusement park filled with screams.