Highlights of Copenhagen

The New Opera House
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Today, April 9th, is another day of rest that is much needed after the Nordic Pinse.  Most of us needed the extra rest after the late night.  The day started with the sun shining...the city looked and felt beautiful.  We all set out in different directions to explore the city.  Several of us decided it looked like beautiful day to walk around the city.

We first went to Christiania and saw a completely different side of the world.  In 1971, the free-state of Christiania was proclaimed. It seems to have started as a social experiment of a community with its own business, social services, environmental services, and laws. Christiania is a self-governing, ecology-oriented, and tolerant community which made it a magnet for run-aways and junkies. The people of Christiania live in various accomodations ranging from deserted buildings, tree-houses, and make-shift homes.  It is a rent free and tax free society and many Danes resent this fact.  Next we stopped in an Apotek (the Danish word for pharmacy) and talked to a customer.  She had studied abroad for a year in Baltimore, Maryland.  She thought that the pharmacies in the States are very different from the ones here in Denmark.  She mentioned that she liked it better not having so many different products (groceries, etc) in the pharmacy.  Danish pharmacies carry health care products such as vitamins, dental care, eye care, and much more. The retail pharmacies here in Copenhagen look very similar because they all carry the same products.  Because we are in busy city all of the pharmacies have been very busy.  When you walk in the door you must enter a queue (you take a number and wait until that number is called before being helped).

This was our free day in Copenhagen, which we saw the sun, rain and even snow.

The little mermaid
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Our next stop was the Amalienbory Slot (or Palace).  This is the current residence of Queen Margrethe II.  The architecture is very different from back home in South Dakota.  After the Palace we decided it was high time that we saw the Little Mermaid.  Along the way and across the harbor the new Opera House can be seen.  The final building of this structure was completed in 2005.  It is a gift to the Danish people paid for by a Danish firm at the cost of 2.4 billion kroner (roughly 500 million dollars).  Because it was along the way, we went into the Statens Museum for Kunst (Royal Museum for Fine Art).  It contains a collection of Danish and European Art, with some dating back to the 13th century.  Currently, the museum had on display the Royal Cast Collection.  Now back to the Little Mermaid which is is a famous statue that sits in the water.  Of course, we all had to take a few pictures.

We then walked to Kastellet, a fortification.  It was built in the 1600's to protect the city from outside siege.  This rampate, shaped as a ring, is the only one left in the city.  Unfortunately, at this point the sun had gone away and it had started to sprinkle outside.

Last stop:  Amber museum. Amber is the national birthstone of Denmark and it is flammable, can float in saline, and is soft.  The museum contained a showcase of bugs that have been found in amber, such as flies, mosquitoes, beetles, and much more.  Because we were a group of females we could not leave without buying a piece of jewelry.  As we were paying for our purchases we noticed it was snowing outside!!!

This was our free day in Copenhagen, which we saw the sun, rain and even snow.

Melissa Lapic