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.
