Jack and Joe Come to Denmark!

November 23rd - November 29th, 2019

Copenhagen, Denmark

Two weeks ago, I had some VERY special visitors! I welcomed the regulars, Mom, Dad and Bird (old pros at this point), and together, we welcomed my Uncle Jer, Aunt Renee, and first-time European travels, Jack and Joe! And we got up to some major shenanigans. 

Everyone arrived in one piece, and while all the "adults" checked into the hotel, the kiddos went exploring. Joe joe and I found some cow statues. 

And we went on a walk, out by the canal, and found some playground equipment to climb on. 

Hanging on for dear life. 

And then to stay away, we all went on a walk over to the Little Mermaid to keep everyone awake. We walked through the "Kastellet", which is Danish for Citadel. It's a fortress constructed in the shape of a pentagon. There were a lot of hills to climb and military structures to explore. 

We found the Little Mermaid AND another playground! Thank goodness. 

That night, we met up for dinner with our Danish cousins, Frida, and her mom Tinne. We went to a very "hygge" little cafe, and I ate my fill of some amazing truffle pasta. And lucky for all of us, Joey was able to find some plain pasta with cheese, and there was a big enough hamburger on the menu to fill up Jack. Now hangry boys on this trip! 

Are those not the most hygge lights you've ever seen? 

A few of us went out after to the brewery and restaurant, Warpigs. Were folks sleepy? Maybe. But Uncle Jer can always wake up for a beer, and anyway, it's not every day you get to hang out with your Danish cousins. It had been a while since we'd all seen Tinne. 

The next day, we woke up not so early to go see the changing of the royal guard at Amalienborg Palace. The guard walks from Rosenborg Castle at 11:30 to arrive at Amalienborg at 12:00 o'clock sharp! They then spend the next oh, 30-45-60 min, marching to each guard station and switching them out formally one by one. It was worth seeing, but I don't really need to go every day, you know? There were police there to corral the tourists, but they were very friendly and eager to let everyone see, as long as you were orderly. Classic Danes. 

Haha in front of the guards

When you go, make sure to do a little research to know what you're going to see, because the number of guards changes depending on the season and who is in residence. Apparently when the Queen's home, the royal band plays during the changing of the guard! (We did not see this). 

We spent the rest of our Sunday in Sweden of all places. Jack was eager to make it to another new country on this trip! So we went back to Ales' Stones, where there was a lot of room to run and play tag. 

We ended our day in Sweden with dinner in Malmo. Frida and her friends recommended a circus-themed app restaurant, called Pinchos Nation. It's "app" as in, all appetizers and small plates (4-6 per person) and as in "application". You order all on your phone. If I'm being honest, it was a little chaotic, trying to all order on two phones (one per family), but the food was yummy and interesting. And Joey was able to try some new foods, like fish and chips! 

Candy-flavored cocktails

Our little app plates

We took so many selfies

I ended the night with a wild pillow fight with my little dudes while the parents went for a night out. It was "the best night ever". ;)

The next day, I went to class while everyone else explored Rosenberg Castle. But afterward, we all walked around the Christmas markets. And let me tell you, the Chrismas markets are beautiful. Lights, decorations, mulled wine... SO much fun. We all pick up a few sweets and some Christmas gifts. We started at the H.C. Andersen Christmas Market and walked all the way down to Nyhavn. The boys and I may or may not have gotten triple scoops of ice cream... We plead the 5th. 

Joe found Santa

Mom and Dad found some smooching time *bleh*

And I found some gløgg

The Christmas Markets in Cope are MAGICAL, especially after dark. And you can walk through three of them by starting at the H.C. Andersen Christmas Market at Gammeltorv, and then walk down the car-free shopping street, Strøget, all the way to Kongens Nytorv and Nyhavn. It's about a 15min walk (but trust me, you'll draw it out looking at all the big stores and little stalls!)

The next day was one of my favorites! While I was in class, the fambam headed to the National Museum of Denmark, one of my favorite museums. I caught up to them at the end, and checked out the children's part of the museum, where Joe, Grady and I tried our hand at being Vikings! 

The children's museum is off in a separate wing of the museum, but part of the same admission price, and is really well done. It's a bunch of castle rooms, and little stores, and boats, and kitchens to play in, with props and costumes. I would totally recommend for any kids visiting. Not only is it fun, but it's about Danish history too. 

We also walked through the toy museum and the modern Danish history exhibit on the 4th floor. I love all the dollhouses that line the walls, and I think we all got quite a kick out of the costumes!

Oh yes.

After the museum, we went over to spend the afternoon at Tivoli! Now, this was my third time there, after summer Tivoli, Halloween Tivoli, and now, Christmas Tivoli! It was a winter wonderland! We all kind of split off. Jack, Joe, Grady and I all went on rides. We invested in the unlimited ride pass and it was awesome. Joe even tried his first upside-down roller coaster... IN THE RAIN! Which, let me tell you. Rides in the cold rain are not AS fun as rides in say, sunny Florida, but the lines are certainly shorter. 

We're at Tivoli!

Riding the Roller Coaster

Trying an upside-down ride!

The Christmas markets were all set up in Tivoli, so the moms ducked out to do a little exploring, shopping, and probably having some MUCH deserved gløgg. The dads trailed behind us kids, stopping every so often to check out a beer garden or interesting beverage kiosk. We ended the night with Grady and I splitting off to go see the Crazy Christmas Cabaret with my Danish class. (My professor was able to get Grady an extra ticket!) 

The boys on some bumper cars

The Crazy Christmas Cabaret is a Christmas tradition in Tivoli, and it's quite common for people to go every year. It's put on my a British theater troop, London Toast Theater, and is the project of star, director, and writer, Vivienne McKee. In the words of one reviewer, "'The Crazy Christmas Cabaret must be the only show in the world where the inspiration springs from Monty Python, Shakespeare, the Marx Brothers, and Jerry Lee Lewis! The style of the show demands the audience’s active involvement, but this is never a problem because, the Crazy Christmas Cabaret, throughout its existence on the Danish Theatre scene, has obviously acquired an enthusiastic and loyal audience of fans who have mastered all the necessary responses from "booing" the villain, to cheering the hero...'  Berlingske Tidende". This year's cabaret was called "The Three Brexiteers!" and was funny, but about 45min too long for Grady and I, who thought we were in for an hour performance... It was a full three-hour production with intermission. But it really was fun. 

We met up with cousin Frida again that night, and just to remind us how very Danish she is, she spent the evening snacking on a giant bag of æbleskiver she had stashed in her purse. Oh Frida. We love you so much.

Frida and her snack

On their final day in Cope, we ventured over to Carlsberg Brewery. While the museum and tour was closed for an undetermined amount of time for renovation (it apparently is quite tricky to navigate the rules around restoring renovating historical buildings in Copenhagen), the brand store (with a free beer tasting!) and the stables were still open. So yes, that means WE GOT TO PET HORSES! And Uncle Jer could try some more beer! It was a win-win. Until I learned that Tuborg and Carlsberg are part of the SAME company, and that killed my vibe just a little bit. Here I thought they were vicious rivals, but in TRUE Danish fashion, nope, they are actually bed-mates.

Famous elephant gates

HORSE

After Carlsberg, we went over to Copenhagen Contemporary in Refshaleoen. This was my second visit to this museum dedicated to interactive, rather than passive, art. We climbed inside giant dice, sat on carnival rides, ran around, wandered through a ribbon forest, and threw darts. In terms of how you engage with art, this is one of my favorite galleries. I only wish it was bigger!

We ended the evening with a beautiful Thanksgiving dinner at Broaden & Build with my host family! It was really really exciting for me to have my family meet my host family! They have been such an important piece of my life here. I had so so much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving. And always.

All the kiddos (minus Christian who couldn't make it RIP)

Me and my moms!

Minecraft is apparently a universal language

Thank you all for coming to visit. I loved having you here and showing you around! Love you lots and see you in... A FEW DAYS!!!
Cristiana