Welcome to Denmark

We got up at 5.00am this morning in preparation for our trip to Copenhagen. I like the feeling of going somewhere new, experiencing a different culture learning more about people, and this trip is no different. I know some people were a bit perplexed by our choice of destination, but I wanted to experience some of what Scandinavia has to offer. And, as such, we also intend to take a trip to Malmo in Sweden to get a bit more of a flavour of what this part of Europe has to offer.

The journey itself was unusually uneventful. I say unusually as previous trips abroad have included:

* Waiting for a battery (!!!) to be flown from Madrid (battery failed just before take off - scary!!),

* Being re-directed to another airport due to a crash on the runway, and

* My wife's luggage going missing with all the in-laws Christmas presents

So far this trip was turning out to be a pleasant change from the norm!! Even more surprising given that we were changing flights at Amsterdam (does that mean I can include Holland on my list of countries??).

Upon our arrival at Copenhagen Train Station we were greeted by....a pneumatic drill and construction works right outside the exit! Welcome to Denmark! I have to say, I was rather disappointed with the railway station. It was more than a little dirty and scummy, not at all what I expected from the Danes. Still, things were about to become decidedly more iffy!!

As we made our way over to the hotel (Absalon Hotel) we became slightly concerned. There was a veritable feast of porno shops and strip joints. Now this may sound great (indeed, in my youth I would have been salivating at the prospect!), but you forget, I was with my wife. So much as a glance through the doorway of 'Bunny Girls' resulted in a serious reprimand ( I did spot one place that I thought was called 'Erotic Casino' which sounded an interesting idea, then I discovered it was actually called 'Erotic Corner' - although I didn't see anything erotic about the corner!).

As it turns out, the hotel isn't too bad (a 3* affair). The staff seem really friendly and helpful and the room, although small, was clean and comfortable. Goes to show, you should never accept first impressions! In the evening we went to Tivoli Gardens (see photo right). The gardens contain a variety of (very expensive) restaurants, music, rides etc. We spent the evening meandering amongst the sounds of Big Band musicians, fountains and screams from the rides dotted around the place. If you have ever been to the Feria in Seville, this is similar but on a much smaller scale.

As is always the case on first nights, we could not be bothered to seek out traditional Danish food, so we ate at the Hard Rock Cafe in the Gardens. Once inside we met some people from Valencia (cue embarrassed silence from me, while they conversed with my wife). Luckily for me, we also managed to catch the first half of the Spain v Tunisia game! Although my wife, and the Valencian group we met, were less than enthused as they went 1-0 down!!

After dinner, we went back outside to the Gardens and caught the Hans Christian Anderson show. Essentially, this was a parade of all the major characters in Hans Christian Anderson's fairy tales set to music. The children certainly seemed to enjoy it (even though it was 11pm and way past their bed-time!) and, I have to admit, the child in us rather enjoyed it too! The show closed with a spectacular fireworks display. Suddenly, we started to feel that we were in wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen.