The Copenhagen Post

This sandwich was only £8! Result


So Copenhagen. Denmark isn't a country I knew much about (we've only just started watching The Killing) but I had reasonable expectations of the capital being slightly Scandinavian cool and a bit edgy, seeing as it's barely half an hour away from Sweden by train. Alas, from what we saw, Copenhagen had a few interesting sights, a very extensive (and free, hurrah!) National Museum, but not a huuuge amount to do and see. We did a lot of mooching around, saw Christiania- the huge "free town" in the middle of Copenhagen, home to arty types, free spirits, entrepreneurs, drug addicts, a successful social experiment in sum. The buying and selling of weed and skunk happens quite openly, though taking photos isn't allowed as the practice is now forbidden by the authorities. We sat for a while and contemplated this little world, however watching scary looking men and too-young-looking kids puffing away on huge spliffs wasn't hugely appealing, and we didn't stay long.

We visited the main cemetery, home to Hans Christian Anderson, Kierkegaard and other less prominent Danes. We ate some great sandwiches (the Danes certainly know how to make sandwiches) and had a gorgeous brunch at the Laundromat Cafe (housed in an old laundromat, washing machines still intact). We found the city relatively empty, and even the trendy Meatpacking district had tumbleweed rolling through of an evening. I know it's out of season and cold, but having visited Sweden in October and Berlin twice in winter, things were a lot more buzzing there.

Equally on the whole the priceyness of the city was a turn off. £3 for a 500ml bottle of water, £20 for a sandwich in Cafe Europa (supposedly serving Copenhagen's best coffee, and also the worst waiters- thanks for chucking a sugar sachet down on the table with more disdain than I've ever been able to muster) and £40 return for the 30 minute ride to Malmo, Sweden. Youch. Incidentally we preferred Malmo (free modern art museum, friendly service, a cool windmill, cute ducks- photos to follow in another post).

I wouldn't dissuade anyone from visiting Copenhagen, but I would say 48 hours is enough to cover the basics, take in the canals, Christiania, see the Little Mermaid statue... but no more. I don't think it quite had the appeal, the intriguing history or beauty of some of the other European cities I've visited (Prague, Berlin, Budapest, Krakow...), or the aching cool of equally pricey Stockholm. But that's just my view!