Day four - Copenhagen

Copenhagen has so much to offer and today was spent wandering around some of the areas we had seen by bus and finding some new sights. My highlights of the day - and possibly the entire trip - we’re the view from the top of the spire at Our Saviours Church and the calligraphy exhibition in the David Collection.

A snail made from waste that can’t be recycled 

Christiania is the most bohemian, anarchic area of Copenhagen and it’s well worth a visit. They have an innovative recycling scheme and are developing the area, but as a collective and it seems to be taking some time. Somehow, visiting is something of an intrusion into the way of life going back decades, where people have lived communally and a little off-grid  it’s somewhere you would either love to live or a place of insecurity and anarchy. I think I’d enjoy it for a while, but would gradually crave my creature comforts.

The second visit of the day was to Church of Our Saviour, which has a stunning tower, but also a remarkable interior. The tower took half an hour to ascend and descend and, despite the ensuing knee discomfort, was worth every step. The views from the top were stunning.

 

Once back at ground level, the interior of the church is as breathtaking as the exterior and the views: an ornate organ and amazing altar.

 

The altar at the Church of Our Saviour

 

A brief lunch at the street food market and we were off to the Carlsberg Art Gallery for some artistic inspiration and more views of the city front the roof terrace.

Returning to the David Collection was, once more, a special couple of hours: although the top two floors had been full of Islamic art and historical artefacts, the first and second floors were much more sparsely furnished. There was no less of interest, but it’s a museum of two halves, with a fascinating examination of calligraphy that really gave me room for thought. Some Danish furniture that had been originally collected by the museum’s founder offered glimpses of the Scandinavian design aesthetic that is more than Lego and IKEA.

Having bought and paid for a boat trip, we had been back to Nyhavn several times and always the queue was off-putting, but by early evening there were fewer tourists and we joined a few others on board one of the flat cruisers to see the city via its canals. Well worth the wait and a great way to finish another day of sightseeing.