28 May 2018, Monday
After just one night in Hamburg, it was time to move north to Copenhagen, the Scandinavian city and capital of Denmark. I had a light breakfast of croissant and coffee (€3.50 / S$5.70) at Generator hostel before checking out just before 9am. I then strolled over to Hamburg Hbf, which was just across the road.
My EC 33 train ride to Copenhagen cost €39.90 (S$66.47). It was a very short train with only three carriages. Normally, the entire train would be put onto the ferry for the sea crossing from Puttgarden in Germany to Rødby in Denmark. However, there were rail works ongoing at the Denmark side so we couldn’t complete the entire journey by train.
Instead, we had to disembark the train at Puttgarden, hop on the ferry, and continue the remaining journey from Rødby to Copenhagen by bus. I was actually very curious to see how they would disengage the entire train, put it on the ferry and then back onto the railway tracks at Rødby but sadly, I didn’t have the chance to experience it this time round.
After departing Hamburg right on schedule at 9:28am, the EC 33 arrived Puttgarden at 11:00am. We transferred to the Prinsesse Benedikte ship for the 18km sea journey to Rødby. There was a café onboard where we could buy food and drinks. I chose a seat right beside the window and had a nice view of the sea.
At 11:15, we departed Puttgarden and arrived Rødby at 12:03pm. Upon arriving in Denmark, the officials checked my passport but did not stamp on it. We then transferred to a coach bus for the final leg to Copenhagen, departing Rødby at 12:25pm. I was lucky I managed to get on the bus as there were not enough seats for everyone, so the remaining people had to wait for the next bus.
(There is no time difference between Hamburg and Copenhagen)
(Exchange rate: 1 Danish Krone DKK = S$0.22)
For the entire journey from Hamburg to Copenhagen, I sat beside an elderly Swedish lady named Lisbeth. She had taken an overnight train from France to Hamburg, and then immediately caught the train with me from Hamburg to Copenhagen. After reaching Copenhagen, she would be continuing to her hometown in Sweden, so it was a super long journey for her. She was travelling with her cat in a basket and I saw her struggling with her heavy suitcase, so I helped her carry her suitcase up and down the many flights of stairs during the transfers. She was so sweet she saved me a seat on the bus.
During the bus ride, Lisbeth tried very hard to make her cat drink some water because it was a hot day and the interior of the bus was stiflingly warm. The poor cat was so tired from the long journey that it refused to drink and was getting dehydrated. I helped to fan to keep the cat cool while Lisbeth gently coaxed it to drink some water.
During the train, ferry and bus ride, I had a great conversation with Lisbeth and the entire 5-hour journey from Hamburg to Copenhagen passed by much more quickly. This is one of the things I enjoy most when I travel – meeting random people and striking up friendships in the most unlikely of circumstances. Even though it was a one-off meeting with Lisbeth, it added to my collective memory and experience, and brings a smile to my face whenever I look back on it.
At 2:16pm, we arrived at Copenhagen Central Station. It had been a long journey by train, ship and bus. I bade farewell to Lisbeth and wished her a safe journey to Sweden. I then made my way to my hostel. For my three-night stay here, I had booked Danhostel Copenhagen City, about a 10-minute walk from Copenhagen Central Station.
It was a massive hostel occupying an entire building, and it was run professionally like a hotel rather than a hostel. After the somewhat negative experience at Generator Hamburg, I was a little wary about another mega hostel, but thankfully, Danhostel was ok. The hostel is also part of the Hostelling International (HI) network. I didn’t manage to take any photos of the dorm room because there were a few other ladies sharing the room with me and they seemed to be in the room all the time, so I couldn’t find a convenient opportunity to snap pics.
Danhostel Copenhagen City
Address: H.C. Andersens Boulevard 50
Price S$49.08/night for a Co-ed/Mixed dorm with shared shower
Website: https://www.hihostels.com/hostels/danhostel-copenhagen-city
At 3:40pm, I ventured out of the hostel to explore. The first thing I noticed was that there were many people cycling in Copenhagen. They were not wearing helmets, and I even saw a pregnant lady on a bicycle! The cycling culture in Copenhagen is really strong and it helps that there are dedicated bicycle lanes on the road, making it safer for cyclists.
Through a stroke of luck, I found out two days ago that my schoolmate, D, was also in Copenhagen, so we arranged to meet up at 5pm at a bar called Taphouse, before she would fly off to Barcelona later tonight. As I was still early for our appointment, I walked around the main shopping street of Strøget to soak in the vibes of Copenhagen.
Like most other European cities, the main shopping street here is pedestrianised and it really makes the area more vibrant and comfortable. I like it because you don’t have to worry about vehicles when crossing the road or breathing in exhaust fumes from the cars. Strøget stretches 1.1km from City Hall Square to Kongens Nytorv (King’s New Square), making it one of the longest pedestrian streets in Europe.
I turned back without venturing too far ahead and headed back to Taphouse to meet D. It was so nice to see a fellow Singaporean at the other end of the world. Even though we had not met for a long time after leaving school, it felt like no time had passed.
D’s work required her to travel to Sweden quite frequently and she had made several trips to Copenhagen on her own before so she was familiar with the area. She liked Taphouse (click here) because it offered Europe’s largest selection of draft beer, with 61 beer taps. I ordered a large glass of lemongrass pale ale (44 Kr / S$9.68) and it was really good.
After an hour of catching up on lost time over drinks, we said goodbye to each other at 6pm as D had a flight to catch. It’s weird how we don’t meet up when we’re both in Singapore but yet we can meet when we’re so far away from home! Nevertheless, it was a short but meaningful meet-up.
After that, I walked through Strøget to Kongens Nytorv and reached Nyhavn, a commercial port built in the 17th century. The area used to be packed with sailors, prostitutes and pubs but it is now a lively entertainment district with hip restaurants offering waterfront dining. The colourful buildings have become the default postcard image of Copenhagen. The famed Danish author Hans Christian Andersen also lived at Nyhavn for many years.
From Nyhavn, I then walked 1.7km to see another iconic postcard image of Copenhagen – The Little Mermaid. Based on the fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen, the petite 1.25m tall bronze statue was unveiled in 1913 and quickly became a major tourist attraction. Before coming here, I had heard from many others (and from D as well) that the sculpture was underwhelming and overrated. I was quite apprehensive about taking a long walk there and my expectations were very low.
When the Mermaid first came into view, my first reaction was – “like that only lor”. In Singlish speak, it means “nothing fantastic”. It seemed like everything that everyone said about it was true. It didn’t help that the statue was located was so far out that many who walked here inevitably ended up being disappointed with the end product as it was quite tiny. But maybe that’s being unfairly harsh, because on second and third viewing, the Mermaid does look quite pretty, perched gracefully upon a rock in the sea.
There was a crowd gathered around to take photos with the Mermaid. I initially didn’t want to wait but I thought I should since I had already walked all the way here. While waiting for my turn, I saw the poor Mermaid being groped by several cheeky men, while she continued to sit there serenely. I won’t be surprised if the authorities decide to erect a fence around the Mermaid in the future to protect her from being subjected to such outrages of modesty.
At about 7:45pm, I left The Little Mermaid and walked back towards my hostel. Along the way, I passed by Gefion Fountain, Amalienborg, Frederik’s Church and Magasin Du Nord. As it was my first day in Copenhagen, I was just getting a taste of what to expect for the next two days so I didn’t linger to explore further.
It was about 8:50pm by the time I reached the end of Strøget near City Hall and I decided to buy Chinese takeaway for dinner. Scandinavia is known for being very expensive so the most value-for-money dining option is still Chinese food. I bought a Medium box for 50 Kr (S$11) and I could pick four dishes, including rice or noodles. It was still expensive, but at least it was tasty and filling.
When I finally reached the hostel at 9:25pm, the sun had still not fully set yet. It was crazy to experience such long days in summer, when the sun rises at about 4:35am and sets at about 9:40pm. That’s 17 hours of daylight, which is great for me because it means I have more daylight hours to explore! Ok, end of quite a long and tiring day. More to come tomorrow!
