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| The Little Mermaid, Copenhagen |
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| Opera House, Copehagen |
Lloyd and I had a wonderful visit to Copen-hagen a long time ago. The city is a jewel, with its busy old port, wonderful shopping and the Tivoli Gardens. But this time, I took a walking tour starting at the Little Mermaid and then along the waterfront, where several old sailing ships were busy plying their tourist trade, past the Gefion Fountain to the Amalienborg Palace, the winter residence of the Queen. Across the inlet from the palace stands the beautiful Opera House (not Sydney, but stunning nonetheless).
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Windmill and Military Baracks in Copenhagen's
Citadel |
But in many ways, the most interesting part of the tour was the walk through the citadel, which I had not visited before. Built in the early 17th century following the design of Louis XIV's famous military engineer, Vauban, it is shaped like a 5-pointed star. Back then, it could hold just about all of the residents of the area in case of attack. Although Denmark was a formidable military power for many years, the Swedes were equally so. Thus, the threat of armed conflict was always present. The two countries fought 22 wars until they wore each other out. The citadel is still in use as a military barracks and continues to guard Copenhagen's harbor. The buildings inside, including the last windmill in the city, represent everything I love about Scandinavian architecture -- so simple, yet so elegant.
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| Entering Aaborg |
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| Jens Bang's House |
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| Aalborg Church |
Rough seas prevented our scheduled visit to Skagen, which is on the northern tip of Denmark, so we called at the city of Aalborg further down the coast. This city of 250,000 was founded in the late 900s by the Vikings in a gorgeous setting on the Limfjord. It is renowned for aquavit as well as for its Renaissance architecture, particularly Jens Bang's house, built in 1624.
It comes with a funny story because Jens, a prosperous merchant, was not invited to join the City Council. So, right across from City Hall, he built a magnificent home, caricatures of the faces of the men who had turned him down adorning the pediments of the building. Aalborg was a monastic center in the middle ages and has a number of beautiful churches. The church in the town center is simple with a white interior, like all Lutheran houses of worship, and I learned that the sailing ship that hangs in the church nave is common throughout this country of seafarers
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| Fortifications, Fredericia |
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| Danish Soldier, Fredericia |
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| Old Quarter, Fredericia |
Our next port of call, Fredericia, is a much smaller garrison town (25,000 population) built further south on the Jutland peninsula. Its earthen battlements unfortunately failed to repel the Swedes, with whom Denmark was constantly at war, until finally, in 1849, the Swedes were successfully outmaneuvered by the Danes. A statue of an ordinary soldier that celebrates the victory depicts him eerily garbed like a Confederate Soldier during the Civil War, right down to the rifle he carries. But my favorite part of this town was the old quarter where brightly painted tiny cottages lean against each other down narrow streets. It is here also that I visited one of the most beautiful graveyards I've ever seen. Each family plot was a small garden unto itself, surrounded by a low hedge and full of flowering shrubs and flowers. It's said the the Danes love to garden and this cemetery is a real testament to their skill.
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| Painting of Koldinghus in its Prime |
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| Koldinghus Today |
My last excursions in Denmark were to Royal Koldinghus and Christiansfeld, a Moravian village. Koldinghus was a great castle that was nearly destroyed by fire. Impossible to rebuild, it remained a ruin for a very long time. Finally, someone came up with the clever idea of covering the ruins with a roof/shed resting on specially designed columns, closing in the walls where needed to make the building tight against the weather, and then installing various exhibition spaces where possible. So, today, no longer whitewashed, and with the clever architecture that salvaged the structure in evidence for all to see, it is well worth visiting. We were especially lucky
because it currently houses an exhibit of royal jewelry in honor of the 700th year of the ruling house of Denmark, including these two gorgeous tiaras.
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| Christiansfeld |
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| Christiansfel Meeting House |
Christiansfeld is a Moravian community of long standing. In this land of simple elegance, it is probably the most unadorned. The buildings are all clad in a brownish brick. The church looks like a Quaker meeting house, but the simple chandeliers are gorgeous. The people here live the strict life demanded by their religion. The single/widowed women living together in the Sister House and the unmarried men doing the same in their own dwelling.
I've enjoyed this visit to Denmark. I'd have liked to spend more time in Copenhagen, which is one of my favorite cities, but I've also been exposed to communities large and small that I otherwise never would have visited.
because it currently houses an exhibit of royal jewelry in honor of the 700th year of the ruling house of Denmark, including these two gorgeous tiaras.
