the swedish coast // gothenburg to copenhagen

Hello Copenhagen!

A day road tripping along Sweden's western coast, from Gothenburg to a penthouse apartment in Copenhagen, Denmark. Small towns lured us in for coffee and a treat, but the call of Copenhagen kept us trucking right along.

christiania // copenhagen, denmark

A self-proclaimed autonomous neighborhood in Copenhagen, Christiania, or Freetown Christiania, has been a source of controversy since established in 1971. The main drag, Pusher Street, was famous for it sales of hash and skunk weed until 2004.

Rules of the Green Light District:

1. Have fun
2. Don't run, it causes panic
3. No photos - buying and selling hash is still illegal

nyhavn harbour // copenhagen, denmark

The Little Mermaid

Notorious for beer, sailors and prostitution, Nyhavn Harbour in Copenhagen was a must see destination on our family road trip last May-June. Nothing says quality family time like sailors and prostitution, amiright? The harbour was built between 1670-1673 by King Christian V - not actually by the King of course, the Swedish prisoners from the Dano-Swedish war did all the dirty work.

The Little Mermaid was commissioned in 1909 by Carl Jacobsen and is based on the fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. It sits in the harbour (a long, but beautiful walk from Nyhavn Harbour - made enjoyable by stopping for a few beers at one of many beer carts), and has been a tourist attraction since 1913.

For a delicious bite to eat, stop at Holberg no. 19, a great neighborhood cafe just a few blocks away from the hustle of the harbour. Owned by an American ex-pat, this was a great find (thanks Rick Steves) for a fresh lunch - something that is often hard to find while on holiday.

stockholm & copenhagen day four:: copenhagen

After a crappy night in the roach hotel, we were up and out of there like there was no tomorrow.

Too bad, I am sure Gothenburg had more to offer, but we were anxious to get on our way to Copenhagen.






A quick walk down the block to the grocery store, and we were headed south.

 

The only plan was to get to Copenhagen, with a few stops in coastal towns. "The Hamptons of Sweden" as one of Maddie's friend described them.





We enjoyed a Mother's Day fikka at a bakery...

(Fun note - Mom got to spend Mother's Day in the US with Ike, and Mother's Day in Sweden with Maddie and me.)





I divereted just a bit from my vegan ways to enjoy a mini biskvi. It wasn't what I thought, but inspired me to make a mini cookie similar to it (a graham cracker/shortbread base, chocolate truffle middle, coated in chocolate).















Our navigators for the day mapped out our next stop...



...but when you are treated to a view like this on your way, you have to stop.



We saw the spectacular view from the car, noted a bunch of cars parked along the road and decided to hit up this beach for a picnic lunch.







And then, we high-tailed it for Copenhagen.

A 10 mile bridge + tunnel took us from Malmo, Sweden, into Copenhagen, Denmark.





Where were arrived at our stunning penthouse apartment in the heart of Copenhagen (after getting ridiculously lost due to a ton of road construction).



Maddie, Nic and I ended the night with a stroll around town.









From our first few hours in Copenhagen, we knew we would have a jam packed two days of fun.