There. Yesterday's blog is now up to date.
I woke up at 4:00 a.m. this morning, because the sun was shining. I turned around and tossed and turned until I finally fell asleep again. When I awoke, it was 9:30! I was the first to get up, so I showered, got dressed and got ready for my day. I made my way on foot to the city centre, probably about an half hour walk. Along the way, I had a banana, a bottle of water and a couple of croissants. I was able to take the hop-on-hop-off bus at about 11:45. It was actually a combination ticket, combining the bus tour, and the boat tour. The bus portion was really interesting. We saw the world famous sculpture of Hans Kristian Andersen's "The Little Mermaid" in the harbour. We also saw some royal castles. And I was genuinely surprised to learn that the museum which told the story of the Nazi occupation of Denmark from 1940 to 1945 burned down to the ground about 2 weeks ago, just as I was starting my trip! And on my bus tour, I learned that Danish people are among the heaviest smokers in the world: about 25% of the population smokes, more than in many, many countries. And interestingly enough, I also learned that if we include the Danish-owned autonomous regions of the Faroe islands and Greenland, Denmark is the second largest country in the world.
I got off the bus around 1:30, and I figured it was time for lunch. I remembered that all of the guide books on Denmark insist that a particularly traditional delicacy in Denmark is... a hotdog. So, I went to a small restaurant, and had their traditional Danish gourmet hotdog. I also got a Carlsberg beer to go with it. And for dessert, I thought: since I'm in Denmark, I have to have a Danish danish. So that's what I had, although here they call them viennebrød. I chose the raspberry one and it was delicious.
After lunch, I stopped off at the tourist information centre, and got some information on various sites I would like to see. I do not want to generalize, but it seems to me that my few contacts with Danish people have tended to bring out their rudeness. Of the various cultures I have met with on my travels so far, the Danes seem to be the rudest, but it just may be that I picked the wrong people to chat with. Fortunately, Emil and Tinna are an adorable couple. He is from Denmark, she is from Iceland, and they have a genuine joie de vivre.
After my visit to the information office, I hopped onto the bus again, in the hopes of reaching the point of departure for the hop-on-hop-off boat. This is where things got really frustrating for me. The first bus driver told us that if we wanted to catch the boat, we would have to switch over to the shuttle bus, which is what I did. I actually double checked with him and asked explicitly for the hop-on-hop-off boat. Instead, after about a 10-minute drive, I realize I have boarded the shuttle bus to a cruise ship. The driver apologized and said he could drive me back downtown. When I got there, I had to wait for the next hop-on-hop-off bus to come. About 20 minutes later, it arrives. I explain that I want to go to the location where the hop-on-hop-off boat departs for the canal cruise. So, when we get to the harbour, he says that that is where I should go. I make my way to the harbourfront, and there is no indication that there is even a pier here. I look at my map, and sure enough, this place isn't a designated embarkation point. So I make my way on foot to a place that is marked as a point of departure. The posted sign says that the next boat will come by at 4:40 p.m. I wait for close to 30 minutes, until about 4:55, when I realize there is no boat coming. So I speak with the next bus driver about this, and this one, who is really friendly (and it turns out that he is a Swede who lives just across the strait in Malmö, Sweden), says that he can't believe I was directed to this harbour front, where the boats seldom stop. So, he tells me to hop onboard his bus, and he will take me to Nyhav, where the boats depart. At this point, I was concerned that I might be too late for the last boat of the day. But he reassured me that there was still time. So finally, after all of this irritating running around, I got onboard the boat, and the gentle, rocking motion of the sea calmed my nerves, and I was able to enjoy the 90-minute tour of the harbour. It was very cold on the water, just like when I was in Helsinki, and I was glad I had my jacket. They were forecasting a high of only 13C today, so I never expected in a million years that I would get a slight sun burn on my face and scalp. Nothing too bad, but a little worse than a tan. Oh well, live and learn.
After the boat trip, I started to hunt for a place for dinner. The unfriendly tourist information attendant told me earlier that if I wanted to have authentic Danish food, I should have it in the area I happened to be in just then, near the new harbour. So, I set out along the quay, looking at the overpriced menus for tourists. Now I figured that since I have been getting by on croissants and hotdogs or pastries, I could splurge a little tonight, which is what I did. I stopped at a restaurant and ordered Aalborg Dild Akvavit (a dill-flavoured aquavit-type shooter), a Tuborg lager and the smørrebrøds tallerken (Danish open-faced sandwiches). There were three on my plate: the Lun fiskefilet (Fried fish), the Roast beef, and the Æg med rejar (egg and shrimps). This meal was absolutely exquisite. The egg and shimps was garnished with black caviar. I think I am developing a very expensive habit...
For dessert, I had home-made gelato in a cone (one scoop strawberry, one scoop chocolat banana). I then made my way on foot to the bus stop where I caught the bus to Emil and Tinna's place last night. They were able to lend me their computer, so I have now managed to bring my blog up-to-date. Now, I think I will read a little before going to bed. Good night, everyone!
No comments:
Post a Comment