Wish We Were Here: Copenhagen
When I first visited Copenhagen, I confess, I wanted to be somewhere very different.
Istanbul had been my planned year abroad destination, but the option was swiftly removed by my university following a series of terror attacks in the city just before I was set to go. So, I arrived in Copenhagen, feeling wistful about a missed opportunity to be wandering around Istanbul’s chaotic Grand Bazaar, revelling in the market’s noisiness and overpowering smells and colours. I wondered if the slick, orderly nature of this Scandi utopia land might feel a little characterless in comparison.
I soon discovered I was wrong. Strolling around the airy, modern, all-glass Torvehallerne market may not be an assault on the senses in quite the same way, but the Danes’ propensity for minimalism doesn’t equate to soullessness. On the contrary, cosiness is core to the Danish identity. Indeed, “hygge” – their famed term to describe it- is about the only word from their complicated language that everybody seems to remember. The cultural imperative to make spaces cosy manifests in a number of little touches. Every bar and café in Copenhagen is brimming with candles – and blankets are left on the back of chairs for anyone sat outdoors.
On one of my first weeks there, I remember biking through a trendy part of town in the West of the city and thinking I’d stumbled across some sort of religious cult, sat together in their colourful capes. As I got closer, I realised it was just a bunch of hipsters wrapped up in red rugs courtesy of the coffee shop they were perched outside. Stumbling across such things on my bike was a frequent occurrence during my time spent in Copenhagen. Many of the roads give cyclists twice the amount of space they do to cars- it’s a city that feels designed to be explored on a bike.
Things to do:
Visit the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
Louisiana is located just north of Copenhagen, but it makes for a very nice day trip. It exhibits mostly modern art from the mid-twentieth century to the present. Permanent collections range from Picasso, to Louise Bourgeois and a dark, disorientating room filled with mirrors and lights created by the Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. It’s worth visiting for the architecture alone. The gallery’s long, glass corridors look directly out onto the blue seashores of Øresund. The name of the museum derives from the first owner of the property – who named the building after his wives Louise (all three of them…)
Take in the horizon at Amager Beach Park
Many people are surprised to learn Copenhagen has beaches – perhaps because the cold weather means they are wasted for much of the year. But it does have some attractive beaches – white, sandy and, generally, pretty empty. At Amager beach, you can gaze out at the horizon and spot Sweden. For Scandi-noir fans, there’s a landmark in sight: the Oresund bridge, which connects Copenhagen and Malmo.
Eat at Noma
Noma’s owner René Redzepi’s is arguably the most well-known forager on the planet. His vision has inspired a whole Nordic food movement, guided by the philosophy of hyper-localism and the importance of wild food. Voted the world’s best restaurant four-times, Noma uses seasonal ingredients from the Scandinavian region, foraged from nearby coastline and woodland. Expect culinary treats ranging from samphire, pea shoots and beach mustard to dried moss, ants and mould. It’s tastier than it sounds.
If your trip to Copenhagen is a last-minute getaway, however, then sadly Noma is a no-go. People queue up for their chance to eat a plate of fungi months in advance. Securing a table is akin to buying a festival ticket. Noma releases reservations three times a year, and there’s a guaranteed line of people waiting on the site to make their booking.
Find out more about Noma here.