We were amused to note that the Danish word for table is ‘bord’ just like it is in Irish. When I told my friends that Tim and I were heading to Denmark and Sweden for our holiday, the general response was why? Well, why not?

We’ve been to southern Europe many times but never to northern parts. Long story short, we flew Ryanair from Dublin to Copenhagen. We stayed in the Sydhavnen (South Port) area overlooking the harbour. It is a distinct part of the city where the modern architecture of tall, shiny buildings stretch one way, while the old city can be found in the opposite direction. We were adjacent to the harbour which has been developed on both sides with extensive curling and undulating boardwalks interspersed with pedestrian and bicycle bridges crossing the harbour. It encompasses swimming areas and is dotted with bars and restaurants.

City ethos

The ethos of the city has been to develop the waterfront and so encourage the visibility of Danish culture. There were crowds of people every day sunbathing and enjoying the lovely weather. The people are lovely and everybody has good English. Transport is sophisticated with a good metro system, trains, buses, taxis and Ubers. Everyone has a bike, so traffic is lighter resulting in a quieter city.

We visited Torvehallerne food market with its many stalls and eateries of sophisticated ingredients and finger-licking food. When you’re abroad, you always learn something new when you chat to locals and we sat on a bench with a Danish couple who described daily life as being made up of polar opposite behaviours. On fine days, Danes are out enjoying the sun, swimming and socialising. On wet days, they stay in and are melancholic. Yet, Denmark only gets half of the Irish rainfall.

We visited Torvehallerne food market with its many stalls and eateries of sophisticated ingredients and finger-licking food

It didn’t take long to realise that food and drink is very expensive. Fisketorvet shopping centre was only 10 minutes walk from us. The Danish krone is the currency and we were dividing by seven.

I left Tim one morning for a bit of retail therapy. The shops were beautiful but the price tags soon turned my excursion into a window shopping experience. I spotted a vibrant child’s school bag with a shimmering dinosaur on it. It would be an ideal present for Ricky. It was a whopping €123. That was the end of that idea.

The highlight of my trip to Denmark was definitely a boat trip around the harbour and canals. The waterways are an integral part of Copenhagen. We used Stromma Canal Tours and sailed out into the harbour passing the Royal residence of King Frederick X and Queen Mary, the Opera House, the Black Diamond (the new royal library), government buildings and the underwhelming statue of the Little Mermaid.

We meandered through the canals of the Nyhavn area packed tightly with boats as in a parking lot, some residential, some old and new, big and small. We bowed our heads for the many low bridges and really enjoyed the colourful surroundings of the residential area of the old city.

Exploring the countryside

We picked up a rental car for two days and drove across the massive bridge, Storebaeltsbroen, from Zealand to the island of Funen and onward to Lego House in Billund, the town where the Lego magic began.

It was a three-hour journey. The creations on display were life-size and impressive but tickets were very expensive for the interactive areas. We’d want grandchildren with us for that. Still, there was plenty for this Lego enthusiast.

The countryside was surprisingly boring. Lots of grain growing and not much going on. It was untidy with very few country dwellers, while the urban areas were well developed. Next stop, Sweden.