Day three: getting to know Copenhagen

Yesterday we sketched out a plan to make the most of our time in Copenhagen. Top of the list was a visit to one of the Hart Bakery shops. Our other top destination was the Design Museum. We married the two together by taking the train and metro to Marmorkirken, the nearest station to both.

Inside Hart Bageri

The bakery is bang opposite the metro so not hard to find. The coffee and pastry were both great but pretty costly - around £10. I’d bought a coffee and pastry at our local Harts Bakery in Bristol which came to £6.50 so a fair difference. The shop is a take away so we stood in the sun by the impressive baroque Frederik’s church. In the sun, it was warm but as soon as we were in the shade it felt really chilly with temperatures around 13C.

Delicious spandaeur pastry

Frederik’s baroque church

The Design Museum was close by and cost 140 kroner (£16.20) entrance fee. Unusually, you go through the gift shop before the exhibition space. We spent quite a bit of time oohing and aahing over some rather lovely stuff.

Japanese designed posters

Japanese designed posters

The museum is a fascinating place with a vast amount of exhibits including a special exhibition of posters by Japanese artists/designers. There is a whole room of chairs that are arranged in their own cubicles. The designer, Hans Wegner, known as the Master of Chairs is considered to be the most groundbreaking designer of the 20th century, designing close to 500 chairs, some of which are on display.

Whisky cabinet

Chess set

Lots and lots of Chairs

There is an abundance of interesting exhibits, too numerous to list here but I particularly liked the section on textiles and use of pattern which was interesting. I would highly recommend a visit for anyone who is interested in design.

Next stop was the one of the biggest tourist attractions, the Little Mermaid. We felt that we couldn’t come to Copenhagen and not see it. It was a short stroll from the Design Museum and close to the edge of Kastellet, a pentagon shaped fortress. As we predicted, it was very crowded around the statue with people vying to take a selfie.

The Little Mermaid

Lots of people around the Little Mermaid

A lesser known statue called the swimmer is close by so we a took at that too. No-one else seemed to be that interested - we were the only ones showing it a bit of love.

The swimmer

Our next destination was the Round Tower in the old town. Copenhagen is such a walkable city that there is no need to use public transport within the central areas if you are physically able. Copenhagen is famous for being ranked as the world’s best capital city for cycling. Apparently about 62% of people commute to work and school by bike. Even the trains have special carriages with bike racks creating a more integrated system. The bike is definitely king here and they are the vehicles you have to really pay attention to as a pedestrian.

En route we discovered rows of historic looking orange coloured buildings that reminded us of almshouses. We found out later that they were built in the 17th century for families of navy workers. The street name signs are in Danish but when translated are unexpected names like Hedgehog and Crocodile Strait.

Houses for navy workers

As we walked we looked out for somewhere to eat and found Studio x Kitchen swhich had a brunch type menu using freshly baked bread and fresh ingredients. I had a ciabatta sandwich which was very good. The cafe was heaving when we arrived but by the time we finished eating it was nearly empty as they stop serving food after 2:30pm.

Studio x Kitchen

We located the Round Tower which was built to house an observatory for the University’s astronomy department in the 17th century. It’s interesting because the cobbled ramp that spirals upwards is wide enough to fit a horse and carriage.

The exterior of the Round Tower

At the top you then have to go up a spiral staircase leading to an observation platform. A group of people, mostly young, ran pell mell up the path carrying pints of beers and a hymn book and if they had the puff to do it - singing. Apparently it is an old tradition relating to being newly confirmed. The view from the top was amazing with a panoramic view of the city. We could just make out the bridge that links Denmark and Sweden, in the distance.

Runners going up the Round Tower ramp

Once we were down again, our final tourist destination of the day was Nyhavn, the waterfront area with the brightly coloured houses. Although it’s a very pretty area it felt a bit too dominated by all the rowdy drinkers sitting outside the ‘watering holes’ that line the street. If that isn’t your scene I would recommend walking over the bridge to the opposite area where there is a street food and really good cafes and bars.

Nyhavn

We had a drink at a nice place by the water called Nærvær on Strandgade before going to Riz Raz on Store Kannikestræde, a restaurant with a vegetarian mezze buffet which was the perfect choice for our hunger levels. It’s a popular place with a huge amount of staff working there.

Aperol Spritz at Nærvær

Although we are staying in the suburbs, it’s very easy to get to Hellerup from the centre. The station has several train lines running through which link up with buses, metro and other lines. The city is well served by public transport which is great for us.