Copenhagen, 7 April 2012

Let's begin with a weather report. Our heavy coats which seemed superfluous - even ridiculous - in Singapore, turned out to be an absolute blessing today. When we left the hotel, after a lovely breakfast, it was exactly zero degrees celsius with a faint drifting of snow. As the morning wore on the snow increased but the temperature remained constant. We took one of the hop-on, hop-off buses and while the hopping on was easy and very warming, the hopping off was not. Nonetheless we did get off long enough to see the little mermaid.  She must have been cold, sitting out there on her rock in the snow!

The Little Mermaid

There is an interesting weather indicator in Copenhagen. High in a tower, when the weather is clear, a girl appears on a bicycle. When it is rainy, she sheds her bicycle and appears carrying an umbrella. Oddly enough, although it snowed heavily today, she remained on her bike.

Clear Weather

It must be raining

Copenhagen is a remarkably clean and attractive city. It is a city of bicycles because it is so flat. If you run any risk of being hit by a moving object it is less likely to be a car than one of the two-wheeled menaces racing along. Because so many people ride bicycles they have been adapted to fulfil a wide range of tasks.  Some have large boxes on wheels in front, others have attachments which are dragged along at the back to carry children.  The mind boggles at the inventiveness which is displayed in these "extensions" to the ordinary two-wheeled bicycle.

There are designated bicycle paths, but the riders seem to have expanded these, in many cases, to include the sidewalks. Despite the ever-increasing snow, we took a long walk through the city's main thoroughfare. This is a great shopping mall with all of the international shops one sees in any big city these days. Even so, there were some delightful nooks and crannies with smaller shops and restaurants.

A nice little "nook"

By early afternoon the snow had stopped, the sun had emerged, and the temperature had struggled up to 2 degrees. You have to wonder about the hardy Danes when you see girls wearing shorts in this weather! The afternoon took us to Nyhavn, a wonderful stretch of old houses along a canal where there are hundreds of eating and drinking places. We were amazed at the number of people sitting outside and having meals or something to drink. In the summer, apparently, it is referred to as the longest bar in Denmark. And, might we add, undoubtedly one of the prettiest anywhere.

Along the Canal

 One of the things that might make it easier for people to sit outside is the habit of providing blankets for diners.  Yes, those red things you see in the picture below are blankets to keep the diners warm.

It would take more than a blanket at 2 degrees!!