Copenhagen around Christmas

In My Humble Opinion
1

Looks like I’m going to Copenhagen next month…probably around Dec 18th for 3-7 days for work related things.

What should I expect as far as weather? (I’m used to Wisconsin USA weather)
How tough is the language barrier going to be (I went to Amsterdam a couple of years ago, with very little problem)(feel free to laugh at me here)
What places should I visit if I have time? (I prefer museums, historical, and nature oriented stuff to nightclubs, bars and parties)
What food or restaurants should I sample?

Always wanting to bring stuff; any suggestions on what my hosts would appreciate me bringing over as gifts?
Not so panicky as my last overseas trip…yet

2

I was in Cooemhagen a few years ago. I was with some family that dominated the choice of stops, but I’ll offer what I can remember.

No problem with the language barrier. Not everyone speaks English, but enough do. The tiny amusement park had English overdubbing on their narrated rides. And most of the stuff we needed didn’t really require heavy language skills.
“Icecream, large.” + hand signals.

Beware: Super salty black licorice comes on everything. It’s like they invented it or something.

Going to see the famous mermaid statue was neat, mostly because there is a corresponding Prince statue that the mermaid that never gets mentioned. The mermaid is looking at him from the ocean.

The Hans Christian Anderson theme park was a waste of time (was not my idea to go there in the first place!!)

There is a high street where all the main shops are. Very nice shopping.

And, when we eventually carried on with the rest of our European tour, the train we took was carried part way on a giant ferry. Awesome.

3

Weather: cold and wintery, but perfectly survivable and not necessarily unpleasant.

Language: barely an issue. Almost everyone will speak and understand at least enough English for you to be able to get by.

Places to visit: you should definitely go to Tivoli. It’s a medium-large theme park and funfair, and around Christmas is the best time to go because it has a strong, traditionally festive feel to it. Even if you don’t go on any of the rides, it’s still a great place to stroll around, with plenty to see and enjoy, lots of food and drink and a really enjoyable feel. It’s also easy to get to (right opposite the main train station). A really good idea is to time it so that half your visit takes place while it is still daylight, and half takes place after dark, when the whole place is lit up like a Christmas tree.

Food and restaurants: there’s no shortage of great places… just wander around the main square and main shopping street(s) and see whatever you think looks good. If you go down near the harbour you can find some very quaint, small, quiet places that will make you feel very welcome.

4

Days will be short - Copenhagen is at almost 56 degrees north. Expect sunrise around 8:30 and sunset around 3:30.

5

Since this is mostly asking for opinions, I think IMHO is more appropriate.

Colibri
General Questions Moderator

6

Pølser, you must try pølser, A danish hot dog with a yummy little bun. Sold by vendors on the street. But the ketchup is a bit unusual.

Medisterpoelse , umm, more sausage, all nice and crispy brown, again yummy!

The pancakes are good.

There will be loads of holiday foods, try everything! Except blood pudding. Unless you like eating congealed pig blood and fat. Fried.

7

If you like modern art, the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art has an excellent collection. It’s about 35km outside of Copenhagen and is accesible by train.

I know that it has changed quite a bit since I was there in 2001, but the settlement of Christiania in central Copenhagen was very interesting. It was a squatter town founded by hippies taking over a military base back in the 70’s. The main drag used to be called Pusher Street and thre were stands selling hashish and psychedelic mushrooms. There are bars, restaurants and shops. Back in 2004, the residents tore down the drug selling stands in anticipation of a police raid, so Pusher Street is no longer. I have no idea what it’s like these days, but it was one of the more interesting spots in Copenhagen when I was there.

8

Blood pudding is delicious with fried egg.

IIRC Copenhagen is particularly famous for gloves.

9

Oh yeah, you have to have a rød pølse off the street, oh I miss them.

It will indeed be dark most of the time. Enjoy all the Christmas lights! My advice is to buy yourself some of the very beautiful star lamps people put in their windows.

When I was in København as a teenager, no one ever took me to Vor Frue domkirke. I really, really wish I’d gotten to see that. It’s full of statues by the great sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen.

Oh, oh, Rundetårnet is neat. It’s the Round Tower, you might remember it from the H. C. Andersen story about the tinderbox.

Here are some other famous Copenhagen sites–Rosenborg is very much worth seeing, it has a museum inside, and Amalienborg is nice, if you like watching soldiers change the guard.

10

The Danish open-faced sandwiches are good for lunch and you will have no trouble finding them. But they won’t warm you up much. I would have something warm to drink every chance I got.

Be sure to wear something on your legs like boots or long pants or tights. (I remember getting scolded when I came back to my hosts’ house with bare red legs.) And always wear something warm on your head and around your neck. You may be used to this where you live. I wasn’t.

I think there is still a street that is just for pedestrian shopping. Maybe it is called something like Vesterbrogade. (It has been 35 years since I was there for Christmas!)

The Danes that I knew liked traditional “Western” items like tooled leather and American Indian turquoise jewelry. Ebay has the jewelry.

Their word for “Hi” is pronounced the same way. “Thanks” is pronounced almost like “Tock” but it is spelled T-A-K. “Yes” is usually “yeh-yeh.” “No” is “Nye” – pronounced like “nigh.”

Don’t let a Viking call you “min skat.” DANGER!

Skol, Sigene!

11

Oh, you are so lucky… I wish I were going home soon…

And the language will probably not be a problem at all. The vast majority of danes speak excellent English, especially in Copenhagen. You will probably hardly notice it except for the accent, which is very mellow.
I will echo the calls for Tivoli during the evening, where you should sample both Gløgg and Æbleskiver. The former is a hot drink similar to mulled, spice wine but even stronger. IIRC, they have varying levels of “strength” you can choose from. The latter are small, round pancake-like doughballs which you dip into jam and powdered sugar. Heaven!
On a related vein, the christmas beer brewed by Tubor is a national institution*. it’s called “Julebryg”, and has a cute little label with snow on a blue background. Its a dark ale with some spices I think.
If you want to go to a quintessentially danish restaurant, I’d recomment Det Lille Apotek-the little apothecary (http://www.det-lille-apotek.dk/) which is the oldest restaurant in Copen, and marvelously cosy.
However, the amount of amazing ethnic cuisine is stunning, and in my experience it’s pretty hard to have a bad meal. A great sushi place is on Herluf Trolle’s Gade, right off Kongens Nytorv. I can’t for the life of me remember the name, but they have a great grilled lunch-menu which is relatively cheap.

I’d highly recommend Rosenborg, since it’s the perfect little fairytale castle, with a permanent display of the crown jewels which is very pretty.
Also, a stroll along the pedestians-only central shopping street colloquially (and now semi-formally) called Strøget is great. Start at Rådhuspladsen (the town square, near Tivoli and the central trainstation) and work your way to Kongen’s Nytorv. If you like design, stop at Amagertorvet, colloquially known as Storkespringvandet or stork’s fountain due to the fountain in the middle and check out Georg Jensen for beautiful silverwear and jewellery.
The Danish National Museum is excellent and informative, though I’m not sure how thoroughly the exibits are signposted in English. They probably are, but I just can’t conjure up a mental image.
If you want to check out the new Operahouse on the other side of the water, don’t shell out for a tourist-boat (though those can be fun for the rides along the canals), but take a “harbour-bus” instead. they leave from the tip of Nyhavn, and make a circle of about four stops around the harbour, also passing the stunning new public library, called the “black diamond”.
Someone upthread mentioned Christiania, which is very fun, but since the police cracked down on Pusher Street etc, the place in general has become a little quieter, and perhaps just a tad less tourist-friendly. It’s still very much worth the trip, but don’t expect a sixties-ish love-in anymore.
The Little Mermaid is a classic stop, but to be honest, don’t expect that much. She’s considerably smaller than one thinks, and there’s a distinctly anticlimatic feel to the area. There is, however, a modern version of the statue about half-a mile north which is interesting. It’s situated in the area called Langelinie.

If you prefer to take a load off your feet for the night, the London Toast Theatre http://www.londontoast.dk/ is a cabaret that plays in Tivoli, which is an absolute riot. They’re an english company, and the full show is in english, but with a perennial danish character and lots of jokes/jabs at Denmark. It’s basically a classic british pantomime complete with cross-dressing jokes and audience participation, but the wit is of the highest/lowest calibre and you’ll leave with your sides aching. I’d recommend booking ahead as it’s very popular and sells out relatively fast.

The Tourist Ministry has a website http://www.visitcopenhagen.com/ which operates under the name Wonderful Copenhagen, and publishes a booklet ever month with interesting tidbits etc… Look out for it in cafes etc.

I really hope you have an amazing time! Copenhagen’s a wonderful city, you’ll see.

*They actually have a special day where they “release” it ever year, called J-dag.

12

I think you should stick with Skoal all year round.

13

I’ll second Darryl Lict’s mention of Louisiana - it is a world-class museum of modern art. Christiania is worth visiting, too - in December you can go to their christmas market, which is waay more fun than Tivoli’s IMO. In fact, Tivoli leaves me quite meh (even though most others would consider it a must-see), and the Little Mermaid especially so. I have seen it mentioned here on the board as the most disappointing “sight” in the world. Vor Frue Kirke is nice, and if you like what you see, you can go to Thorvaldsen’s Museum (which is free IIRC) for more. Since you are a museum person, I strongly recommend Glyptoteket, a museum owned by the Carlsberg Foundation. They have a very nice collection of Greek, Roman and Egyptian art. A few 19th century pieces also. If you are interested in the history of Danish Jews, you should go to the Jewish Museum, situated under the Royal Library (which is a nice building as well). The interior of the museum was designed by Daniel Liebeskind who also made the new Holocaust Museum in Berlin. The national art museum Statens museum for kunst is also worth seeing. It is not as good as Louisiana, but the historical exhibit has some nice 19th century Danish pieces.

As is the case with most cities, Copenhagen is a lot more fun to see if you can find some locals who can guide you to their favorite spots. As others have mentioned language is no barrier, and you could do worse than find a bar, have a few of the local christmas beers and get acquainted with some of the patrons. Feel free to send me an email, and I’ll try to see if anything you might find interesting is going on when you are here.

Never heard such a thing :confused: Where did you hear this?

14

Definately Tivoli. It can’t be beat, as far as christmas cheer goes. I’ve chosen two insane flights this year on my way to Norway, just to be able to spend a day in Tivoli. They have hot coal braziers everywhere, mulled spicy wine (gløgg), fireworks at closing time, beer and bacon in huge portions, a mini brewery (yes, they brew right there, and have a gazzilion different strange beers and ales), restaurants, lovely fountains, a musical stage (the show this year is “Oliver!” I think), the best, hugest ice-cream you’ll ever see, spanish canes (cinnamon pastry), æbleskiver (round fried pastry with sugar and stawberry). And of course, rides, stalls, booths and all sorts of fun stuff. You can take a little boat onto the lake, or shoot little bears and elefants, all that stuff. It’s one of the more special places on earth.

As for weather, expect light snow, blustery sour cold winds and maybe some rain. However, if you’re lucky, there will be light, bright new snow and clear skies. Dress warm, and wind-proof (not the same thing!). A thick woolen sweater, woolen knee-lenght socks, high boots and a warm coat are must.

Language barrier should be no problem, most people speak usable english. If stuck, find a teenager, they should be near fluent.

As for art, I second Louisiana, and maybe see if there is something you might be interrested in at Den Frie Utstillingsbygning.

I’ll also second Glyptoteket. They have these amazing sculptures, you can wander around lost for hours. When I was there, they had mummies in the basement, but I’m not sure if that’s part of the permanent exhibit.

If you have time, and would like a break, I’ll suggest taking the buss out to Dragør, and just wandering around. There are all these little picture-postcard houses that everyone expects to not be real. Little winding streets, white cottage-like houses with red tile roofs and flower pots and all that jazz. But people live there. And they have an old military fort on the shore.

15

A great Christmas place I’d imagine - it seemed festive when I went sometime in November I think.

Tuborg (sp?) was a very quaffable local beer, and what slight Nordic frostiness I found in the locals melted away through participating in the raucous karaoke to be found there.

16

At least make it a nice wint-o-green, or potpurri, or fruitcake flavored chaw. :smiley:

17

Having visited Denmark at Christmas and lived in Wisconsin I can say the weather and day light will be similar to a northern Wisconsin winter, especially if you’ve lived by the Lake.
In my experience wine was nearly always welcome as a gift in Scandinavia. If you go that route bring something out of the ordinary like a good California or Washington State wine.
I spent my time enjoying the architecture and the wonderfully understated Christmas atmosphere. I thought it was much less commercial and much more of a storybook feel. Get out for as many walks as you can.

18

I love Skoal, actually I like Skål much better! It’s pronounced similarly and in Danish it means “cheers” as you’d say when drinking a drink. But it’s weird, this danish connection with snuff. You can get something similar in DK called snus, but it’s funny because Sweden is country you think of when it comes to oral tobacco use.

As far as Copenhagen is concerned? I don’t know. I lived there for a year, but I was always involved in local stuff, not tourist stuff!

If you can somehow manage it, get yourself invited to a Julefrokost. That’s the most Danish thing you can do in December. It literally rules their lives from November to Christmas. Unlike Germany, there’s little Christmas stuff going on in the city. There’s no Christmas stands or whatever, but the real excitement goes on in their private homes. That is the danish way, really.

Food? I don’t really care for the contents of the pølsevogn (any sausage in general). I guess I was spoiled by living in germany around all the bratwurst and such. The danish Smørbrod is kind of lackluster if you ask me. It’s just some bread with stuff on top. It’s a sandwich really.

Drinking? Well… That’s another story! The danes love their booze! I will second the salty licorice stuff. The danes are big candy eaters to begin with. But the amount of licorice they’ll eat is amazing. Anything that’s dark in color IS licorice. You’ll get asked to try snaps. They think it is really rough, but it’s essentially flavorless schnapps, if you’ve had that.

Fisherman (aka Fish, aka Fiskfjaes, ak anything fish-related) This is a shot that tastes like Fisherman’s Friend. I think it’s okay.

Next you have Gajol. This is licorice. Don’t drink it if you don’t like it. It took me 1.5 years to be able to drink it.

Language barrier? Practically none. Anyone in any remotely-tourist oriented place will almost invariably speak very good english. I’ve taken loads of taxis in CPH and very rarely have I been in one where they don’t speak English well. Once I was in a cab, and once I told him where I was from, he pulled out this cowboy drawl and told me of the stories of him and his friends in kansas or wherever… It was hilarious.

19

I agree with Merkwürdigliebe - get yourself an invitation to a Julefrokost if you want to see how the Danes celebrate christmas. Stay away from the drinks he mentions, though. IMO both Fisherman and Gajol are horrible. Go for a “Bitter” instead; basically it is snaps flavoured with different spices - some are not unlike the Italian Fernet Branca. The most popular ones are Gammel Dansk, Dr. Nielsens, and Arnbitter. The last of these ranks amongst the top strong alcoholic beverages in the world in my opinion - right up there with the fine whiskeys etc. Snaps is great in itself, too, though I suspect many people wouldn’t like the strong black cumin or dill flavour. YMMV.

20

Go to Tivoli for the hot chocolate – Valrohna hot chocolate. Mmmmm.

Bonzer and I went there a couple of years ago and we loved it. The Rundetarn’s good to go up for spectacular views of Copenhagen, and has the added bonus (IMO) that it used to be an observatory, but then Bonzer and I were the people that upon thinking “Oooh, Copenhagen for a holiday” immediately made plans to go to Hven. :wink: