January 30, 2016

Copenhagen, Denmark - Part II

Our first day in Copenhagen was a bit of a whirlwind. 
After circling around the city center and seeing some of the major touristy sites,
we opted to be a bit more concentrated on the second day.
We kicked our adventure off with a visit to the Carlsberg brewery,
one of Denmark's most famous companies. 
We took a tour, saw a collection of over 22k unopened beer bottles, played with the horses,
and of course, tasted some beer. 
A well spent couple of hours, I'd say. 
How cute is my mom? Life goals.
His name was Marko.. and I fell in love.
The Swastika is an ancient symbol of prosperity and goodness in Sanskrit.
In 1881 Carl Jacobsen made it the symbol of the beer produced in his brewery 'Ny Carlsberg' which was a competitor to his father's 'Old Carlsberg' brewery.
Carl had a profound interest in ancient Greece and Rome where the symbol was also often used.
In 1940 Carlsberg stopped using the swastika symbol for good.
 The symbol can still be seen on the four life-sized stone elephants that stand as the foundation of Carlsberg's iconic Elephant Gates built in 1902.
From there we stopped by our hotel for a quick lunch at Sticks'n'Sushi,
before heading out for some more sightseeing around town. 
The sushi was alright.. (I'm a bit of a snob, having access to some of the freshest fish in San Diego),
but the museum and the botanical garden that we checked out was spectacular! 

The Rundetårn is a 17th century tower filled with a variety of exhibitions.
We happened to stumble upon the history of tattoo artistry, 
which was, to say the least, very eye opening. 

The Botanical Garden is located in the centre of Copenhagen and spans an area of 10 hectares.
It is particularly noted for its extensive complex of historical glasshouses dating from 1874,
and is the perfect place to get lost and/or take a nap.
The views from the top of the RundetÃ¥rn are stunning! Definitely worth the trip up. 

natasha

January 23, 2016

Copenhagen, Denmark - Part I

There she is!
Am I referring to the little mermaid or to myself?
Both I suppose..
The signature statue to kick off my overdue post about my visit to Copenhagen last year,
and myself since I haven't posted anything on this blog in several months.
Guess life just got in the way. 

Let's talk about Denmark though.
This country has been on my wanderlist since I realized just how many incredible culinary endeavors are available. 
Ever heard of Nomanomics?
This article is an oldie but goodie, and is definitely worth a read if you've never heard of Noma.

Food aside, (I'll get back to this important topic in my next post),
Denmark has always intrigued me.
The country has been ranked at the top of nearly every quality of life survey taken over the past decade.
What is it about this place that makes everyone so happy?
After spending a few days there I could definitely see why everyone loves it.
Copenhagen is straight out of a fairy tale written by Hans Christian Andersen. 

natasha