This is going to sound weird but hear me out. If you were to find the perfect minimalist Pinterest board, filled with girls wearing their half in half-buns and front-button-down denim skirts and impossibly white Adidas sneakers, pins of colorful old apartment buildings, romantic snapshots of old and young alike riding bikes along cobblestone streets, and instagram-worthy latte art and pastries, that would be the reality that is Copenhagen. I kept thinking everyone and everything I saw was something that I had pinned over the past year or so as inspiration, and every building or cafe or outfit was a familiar photo I had sworn I had seen before, but it was real life, happening at that moment. Is this too weird?
The point is, Copenhagen was a beautiful, charming city, with fashionable (and beautiful) people, brightly painted buildings with large windows to let in a lot of sunlight, a new cafe or bakery on every street corner, and bikes, everywhere! Seriously I cannot emphasize how many people ride bikes everywhere, carrying their groceries, shopping bags, a toddler or two, or a bag filled with fresh bread. It was all scenes from a movie.
We rented bikes and rode around the city, popping in to different cafes or getting out to explore a side street. One day we just sat in a park and dozed, while everyone around us was having a picnic with booze. (There are no laws against open containers of alcohol there!) We didn't cram too much into our three-day stay there, but did everything we wanted to do. This includes seeing The Little Mermaid statue!!! Did I ever mention I was a mermaid in a past life?
If you go, I recommend staying in this Airbnb. It was stunning (some photos within this post) and had pretty much my dream kitchen, hardwood floors, tons of large windows, and a pretty cool loft where we slept each night, that made me feel like a kid in the top bunk of a bunkbed. The only downside (besides Kyle getting really sick while there, but he persevered throughout the trip!) was that it was very bright out most of the time and made sleeping difficult (the sun only set from around midnight to 3:30am). We were usually so tired it wasn't too much of a big deal. It was located in Norrebro, which is a great central location that was close to a bunch of different restaurants.
I love visiting European cities, especially after having lived in NYC. I always come with a new appreciation and understanding of city life, and usually leave feeling completely inspired (and broke)! Copenhagen, I hope to see you again someday.
Most of what we saw and ate and did!
Mirabelle - We went here for breakfast twice and dinner once. It was a few blocks from the Airbnb we were renting and it was adorable! Make sure to get a croissant as well as a slice of sourdough with jam and butter.
The Round Tower - Like everything in Copenhagen, it was a very visually stunning interior with amazing light. There are no stairs, so you walk up the ramp to the top. Once you are there, you get amazing views of Copenhagen!
The Little Mermaid statue - Oh my goodness! All my little girl Disney princess dreams came true when I saw this! It was given to the city of Copenhagen by a brewer who was inspired by a play (or ballet?) of the little mermaid.
NyHavn - Probably the most famous strip in Copenhagen, it is lined with the most colorful apartments and tons of cafes, tourist shops, and street entertainment. We loved riding our bikes here, seeing the boats on the canal, and getting ice cream at Vaffelbageren!
Atelier September - A really unique and pretty café, mostly famous for their avocado toast and gorgeous interior. I had seen it on Instagram before and we happened to bike past it on our way to NyHavn. I waved down Kyle to turn around so we could pop in!
Moffee - This coffee shop was very spacious, and on this particularly hot day we needed to duck out of the sun for a bit and figure out dinner plans. Thankfully they had wifi! We also had a great conversation with the barista (who was from California!) and another local for suggestions for things to do. This is where we found out about the Round Tower. The carrot cake was also quite good!
Torvehallerne KBH - An indoor/outdoor market with tons of different food vendors, little shops, and a farmer's market. We had smorrebrod here and strawberry gelato!
Lagkagehuset - A delicious bakery that was nearby the apartment we stayed in. We loved the chocolate-cinnamon roll pastries and coffee!
