Copenhagen

Over Easter break I went to visit my friend, Alice, in Copenhagen. In short, I am overwhelmed by all things Danish. Absolutely beautiful people (both externally and internally speaking) and architecture. Here are some selected pictures from my trip.



This is the incredible Alice. She never stops being positive and upbeat. I've never heard Alice say no to an idea. She could show you a good time in a desert, so you can imagine the weekend we had in a culturally rich city like Copenhagen.



Mr. Jonny Weir made the trip up to Denmark with me too. Jonny (who I visited in spain) and I met up in London a few days before going to Copenhagen. We share a love of London, and now, Copenhagen.



The Copenhagen Metro is in a league of its own. First of all, the Metro is entirely automated and computerized, so the trains run in a perfect frequency. Secondly, it takes less than 20 minutes to get from a gate at the airport to center city. How's that for efficiency?

















I assumed that Copenhagen was a city of contemporary design, however I was surprised to find that most of the architecture is in classic Danish style. With that said, you could still find bits of modern Scandinavian design within the center city. Unfortunately, most of the design/furniture shops were closed for the holiday weekend.




As you go further out from the center of the city, you'll find more modern architecture. Interestingly, Tim, who I met through Alice, lives in an amazingly contemporary dorm. The dorm was designed by BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group / www.big.dk), which is one of the most innovative and highly regarded architectural firms in the world. The building was fantastic.







Alice's apartment wasn't too shabby either. Located in a converted porcelain factory, her apartment had all that you needed and more. Not to mention the fact that the pictures below were from essentially her back yard (which has a zoo).




The major downside to Copenhagen was the cost. Below is a picture from a lunch that I had with Jonny (not pictured), Logan, Brooke, Alice and Tim. I had a medium sized eggplant sandwich ... $22 for that one... and this place was cheap! You know its expensive, when going back to life in London seems like a bargain.



This tower is at the southwest corner of Christiania. To a degree, Christiania has been an autonomous state within Copenhagen, but we arent talking about the Vatican City here. Think of the opposite. Raggae is the holy hymn,"Shanty Town" styled buildings, and prayer takes its form in smoking weed. Unfortunately you cannot take pictures (due to the possible incrimination), but believe me, it was mind blowing. Quite the juxtaposition to the rest of Copenhagen that lies on the other side of the wall. Google or wikipedia "Christiania" ... some interesting pictures and stories.





Enough about architecture and the surroundings. The real shining feature of Copenhagen are the Danish people, particularly the young people. I've never met such intelligent, articulate (every young person speaks perfect english) and happy people. Not to mention they are stunningly beautiful. Both guys and girls were incredibly friendly and personable. Their contentedness is inspiring! I cannot wait to go back and meet more wonderful people.



Next stop, Nice, France.

Off to Espana

This past week I ventured off to Spain to meet up with my friend Jonny, who is currently studying in Madrid. Jonny and I have been close friends since freshman year when we were randomly assigned to the same team for one of our business classes. He’s a top-notch person so naturally I was excited to see and spend the next five days with him.

After flying into the Madrid airport, I met up with Jonny near my hostel in the center of the city (The hostel was definitely on par with its $15 a night value). Similar to Boston, Madrid is a walking city, a mix of old and new, connected by short, spontaneous roads. However different than Boston (as well as London and Paris), Madrid’s sales pitch isn’t its monuments, architecture, or shopping. Instead it’s the culture of Madrid that defines your impression. That’s not to say that other cities solely rely on their trademarks, but the Madrid experience is more subversive, hidden in tight tapas bars and pastry shops. Furthermore, English is not as widely spoken there as you might think, so a lot of visitors become intimidated, go to what they’re comfortable with (museums, sites, and starbucks) and then leave after a day. Fortunately I had Jonny to show me around (and do most of the translating), so I was able to get a real, Spanish experience.

Jonny brought me by the Palace in Madrid. Gorgeous building, gorgeous location, and gorgeous day.

The Retiro is the main park in Madrid. Above you can see that part of the park is incredibly manicured, but turn around and you’ll find a much freer landscape. The differences in design themes and layout made for a nice walk.

At the foot of the Retiro, you can find the botanical garden (terrible picture, but you get the idea), which is laid out across four tiers. Although it wasn’t in season, just the landscape and layout of the garden was incredible.

After two nights in Madrid, it was off to Barcelona. Both Jonny and I had no pretenses or expectations for Barcelona. Lets just say that we were both amazed. We couldn’t believe how international, and “un-spanish” it is. The city is incredibly modern in design and layout. Unlike Madrid, the mixed up culture of Barcelona is apparent on every street. It felt great to be in the sun and on the water (the Mediterranean isn’t bad, right?). Other than the food, Madrid and Barcelona could not be more different.

The food! Oh what can I say about the food? Well, it defined the trip. In Paris it was about what you ate, where as in Spain it was about how you ate, where you ate, and at what frequency you ate.

Jonny and I had enough pork, potatoes, eggs, and coffee to last a life-time. The meal above was from a counter at an outdoor market off of La Ramba (a touristy street in Barcelona).

It seemed as though whenever we were hungry we would wonder back to the market and just peruse its offerings. All the time we spent eating was really refreshing. In London, food is treated as just an obligation of a living being, meant to be fast, convenient, and in most cases, mediocre in quality. Where as in Spain, you stop what you are doing, sit down and eat for enjoyment.

In the same sense Madrid is defined by its authenticity, Barcelona is characterized by its spontaneity. The architecture, public spaces, art installations are all so out of the ordinary. When you’re walking you’ll find yourself interacting with spaces that are unconventional and surprising. Just walking around Barcelona is exciting. The monument above is in the back of a small park, but it looks like it’s out of Disney World. Jonny and I kept saying to each other that we felt like we were in Disney.

The art installation and big head store above epitomize the creativity, and out-of-the-box way of life you find in Barcelona.

Perhaps my favorite part of the trip was when we went to Park Guell, which was designed by Antoni Gaudi. Barcelona is filled with Gaudi’s buildings, but to me the park was the most impressive.

Naturally the park was jammed with tourists. However, as we continued further up the hill, the paths became less crowded and we were able to find some spectacular views.

When we reached the highest point of the park (see above), we decided to go off the trail, scale a few rock faces, and climb up a hill to get a better perspective. Not a bad decision (see below).

From atop this hill we had a 360 degree view of the city. It was just one of those moments…

Overall, Spain was incredible. The culture, food, geography, architecture, and people are distinct and unforgettable.