Day 1 - Toronto to Copenhagen (June 30th - July 1st)

It was a madhouse at Pearson Airport and Toronto was experiencing a heat wave. We thought we'd escaped the miserable heat as we boarded our Thomas Cook flight to Manchester but we were told otherwise by the pilot who explained that the plane was experiencing an air conditioning problem. Our 3 hour layover in Manchester turned into 6 hours so Janet took the opportunity to catch up on some sleep (< pic left) while I hung out at the newsstand reading the British tabloids with nary a pound sterling in my pocket.

Our SAS flight to Copenhagen was uneventful and the airport on arrival was modern and only 15 minutes by train to Copenhagen Central. Perfect weather: the kind where it's cool in the shade and warm in the sun, not like Toronto where it's sweltering no matter where you stand. It was a short walk to the Marriott Copenhagen where we were given a large room (even by North American standards) which boasted a gigantic pillowtop mattress and heated washroom tiles. As we had captured our 4 star hotel room for a fraction of the usual cost by placing a $100US bid on Priceline.com, we were pleased that we were treated so well by the front desk. The big plus was being assigned a room with a fantastic river view! (pic right >)

The Stroget (pic below) is the main shopping promenade of Copenhagen and on this particular day the street was packed with people, hot dog stands and venues for the ongoing Copenhagen Jazz Festival (pic right). Nyhavn (pic bottom of page), a district along one of the canals with pricey sidewalk cafes and picturesque sailing boats was a short walk from the end of the Stroget. It appeared to be another opportunity for a Jazz Festival Venue as people enjoyed the scene by either patronizing one of the cafes or seating themselves on the cobble stoned street along the canal with their own treats and six-packs of beer. Janet asked some young locals where they purchased their six-packs as she wasn't prepared to pay 40 kronor (8CDN dollars) for a cup of beer. The corner store, one block away offerred prices at a fraction of the cost found at the beer tents so we participated. When in Copenhagen, do as the...?

It was a short subway ride to Christiania, the walled city within Copenhagen where inhabitants live without rule. It was frightening but at the same time fascinating that drug use would be treated so casually and used so openly. Dreaded warning signs declaring no photos to be taken were everywhere and I expected a brawl to pan out at any minute. Maybe this was what Montmartre in Paris was like at one time but minus the art or culture. Hunger was hitting us but we weren't about to take the risk and feast on the suspicious fare of Christiania so we made our way out and down to the canal to search for a cafe.

It was pre-sunset at 10PM and locals were picnicking along the sides of the canal with wine, beer and traditional open-faced sandwiches. "Forget the café!", I thought. Finding a vacant spot along the canal with some similar supermarket bought fare allowed us a free Copenhagen dinner show of fishing boats and canal side dramas. It felt like a true Danish experience that couldn't be offered in one of Copenhagen's fine eateries. As the sun disappeared around 11PM, so did the warm temperatures. A half hour walk along the main canal back to our hotel coupled with jet lag ensured us of a perfect night's sleep.