| Copenhagen, Denmark |  |
| April 28 to May 01, 2005 |
Copenhagen - the capital of Denmark and Scandinavia's largest city - got its name from the word køben-havn, which means "merchants' harbor".
Copenhagen has no glittering skylines, few killer views, and only a handful of meager skyscrapers but it's a city with much charm, as reflected in its canals, narrow streets, and old houses. Copenhagen is definitely a cozy city. Its most famous resident was Hans Christian Andersen, whose memory still lives on. This year - 2005 - the city is celebrating his 200th birthday with various H.C. Andersen festivals, exhibitions, etc.
Copenhagen still retains some of the characteristics of a village. It is small and so easy to get around with nearly all the main attractions less than a half hour's walk from Christiansborg Castle, at the center of downtown. It's almost as if the city was designed for strolling, as reflected by its Strøget, the longest and oldest pedestrians-only street in Europe. However, if walking isn't your thing, you just grab one of the numerous free-to-use bicycles and cycle 'round the city.
Copenhagen is also a city of contrasts - the medieval quarter of the city is just a stone's throw away from the experimental 'free city' of Christiania. Parks and green spaces rub shoulders with the long neglected harbor waterfront now being transformed into a modern quarter. Modern architecture is shooting up from the harbormouth area near the Little Mermaid statue all the way down the harbor inlet to the west with an array of modern glass blocks, a shopping mall, new recreation areas and the new opera.
Copenhagen is doubtlessly a serious candidate for Europe's best-kept secret. Surprise is the bonus that comes with a city that is not presented in tourist cellophane.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
