Freetown Christiania - Day Two!

Due to only being in Copenhagen for a short time, we decided to rent bikes so we could see more of the city. After waking up early and indulging in some Danish baked goodies for breakfast (we were on holiday ok!), we grabbed our bikes and started to explore.

Now, not many of you may know this, but Copenhagen has been voted best city for cycling two years running by US sustainability experts Treehugger. I was surprised that it wasn't Amsterdam, as it seems to be more known for it's cycling, although I've actually never been there! Copenhagen has invested huge amounts of money in making this city 'cycle safe' and because of this it is now covered by 350km of cycle paths and lanes. 

We began to explore the south of the city and crossed Knippelsbro bridge into Christianshavn. We decided that we wanted to spend the day exploring the south due to it's markets, canals and most importantly Freetown Christiania!

Christiania is a self-governing 'free town', established in 1971 on the site of a military barracks. After the military moved out, vast amounts of homeless people started to move into the abandoned buildings. It currently has 900 residents and covers 84 acres. Christiania has it's own flag (a red background with three yellow circles) and also it's own currency, Lon - even though Danish crowns are still accepted here.  Walking through this town and seeing the wonderful coloured buildings and residents, it's fantastic to see that this place has not lost its community feel - even though Christiania is visited by people from all over the world! As you hit Pusher Street, the feel of town changes. Pusher Street, locally known as the 'Green Light District' is a street made up of huts selling hash. Now, Marijuana is still illegal in Denmark. Therefore, Pusher Street has strict rules for anyone wishing to pass through. The rules are:

1. Don't run! It's causes panic (speaks for itself due to the nature of the street)

2. No cameras! As I said, the distribution of Marijuana is still illegal.

3. Have Fun!

As we started to pass through the street, the feel of the town changes. The street, as I said, is made up of small huts selling Marijuana. The idea around Christiania distribution of hash is to stop the use of 'Hard Drugs'. The 'No Hard Drugs' policy was first established in the town in 1972 and remains in effect today, although evidence on the ground suggests that this isn't always abided by...The dealers are dressed in army camouflage, with balaclavas over their heads to hide their identity. Although the appearance of the dealers are very intimidating, they're running a business at the end of the day, so when it comes to the sale of hash to tourist or locals, their general persona changes..again, as this street is where the majority of the income for the town is made. 

Once you pass through Pusher Street, you hit the lake which takes up about half of the 84 acres in Freetown Christiania. Here, you will find most of the residents and their unique houses. It's amazing to think that this place is in the centre of a bustling city, because walking round this tranquil part of this town really makes you forget that. Christiania is one of the most unique places I've ever been, the sense of community in this place is second to known, the town has been allowed to grow and change due to the amount of tourists that pass through. The centre of the town is now a food market and has regular events hosted on the stage - there really is more to this place than just...drugs!

As you approach the exit towards the north of the city, you are reminded that "You are now entering the EU", a statement or promise that the residents of Christiania still fight on a daily basis for their self-governed, free lives here.

Regards, Dan.

Copenhagen - Day One!

Anybody who knows me well will confirm that I am not a morning person. I will make every excuse possible to avoid waking up before the sun does. Fortunately, or should I say unfortunately, the world of work has forced me to become better at dealing with this. But, I'd warn you to approach with caution before 7am! That being said, the morning of the 2nd of June was a morning I had no problem waking up for. We had an early morning flight from Luton to Copenhagen to catch, so a 5am alarm was imperative!

We left dull and rainy England and were welcomed by glorious sun in Copenhagen. Passport control was a breeze and with no bags to collect, we made our way to the metro.

Now, normally, when you're in foreign country or infact anywhere for the first time, navigation can be a daunting task, even with the ever-growing number of navigation apps you can get for your mobile phone. Copenhagen is one of the few cities I've been to where navigation was not an issue. We managed to find a wonderful apartment on Pilestaede, 0.5km walk from Kongens Nytorv metro station. We found our Airbnb apartment with ease, ditched the bags and began exploring!

They say first impressions are key, so as we started to explore the city I was blown away by the cleanliness of the streets and it really showed a pride in the city that I feel our cities lack at home. London, for all it's glory, really lacks this and it was really refreshing to be somewhere where the people respected their city. "Happy People, Happy City!"

We decided to experience traditional Scandinavian food when we ate out on the first night. Aamanns Deli, located in the north of the city, was our choice. After studying the menu for sometime, We chose to have the Whole Lemon Sole, served with artichokes, new carrots, marjoram and beurre blanc, and a selection of three Smorrebrod (Scandinavian open sandwiches), the selection for that day were Potato Salad, Chicken Salad and Salmon. The food was artistically presented and made with extreme care and thought, it really made you appreciate the fantastic taste knowing how much time went into preparing these dishes, I could not recommend this restaurant enough!


Once we'd finished our meal, we decided to have a stroll around the north of the city. I've always been fascinated by Scandinavian architecture and it's simplistic form. Even though we were still technically in the "city centre", we came across a small neighbourhood of beautifully designed town houses. What made us fall in love with this city was the real sense of community that again, most of our cities at home lack. For example, we started to walk down the street to find communal picnic tables and sandpits for residents to use at their convenience. These communal facilities did not impede the road, you could tell that these streets were built to provide a sense of community to the residents. I was also surprised at how peaceful this part of the city was, these streets provided a blissful getaway from the bustling city centre. Taking in the sights of this part of the city was a perfect way to end a great first day in Copenhagen.

I have a few posts lined up about our trip to Copenhagen including, Freetown Christiania, Food Markets and the Louisiana Museum, so please stay tuned for those!

Regards, Dan.

Australia

Last November, I took a trip to visit my brother in Australia. It was the first time since he moved there that I could afford to fly out to stay with him. I was there for a month and can say that this trip really impacted my life. I took a lot of amazing trips while in Australia, but I'm going to focus on The Great Ocean Road, and the Twelve Apostles to be more specific!

The Great Ocean Road has to be one of the most amazing places I've been. Mile after mile of gorgeous rolling meadows, beautiful beaches and mesmerising waves - if the Australian coastline was a cake, this would certainly be the cherry on top! I was lucky enough to travel from Port Campbell seeing well over half of this fantastic coastline.

As we made our way down the what seemed like an endless road of perfect scenery, we hit the world famous Twelve Apostles. It's extremely hard to imagine when you're there that once upon a time, these monuments were connected to the mainland. A combination of waves and wind erode these limestone 45m tall structures at a rate of two centimeters a year, and because of this twelve have now become eight! (You can see the remains in the pictures above!)

As you can imagine, The GOR and Twelve Apostles attracts millions of tourists each year (7.2 million to be exact!) so I can say without a doubt, that there weren't just waves in the sea! Waves and waves of people were huddled up at each lookout trying to catch a glimpse of structures like London Bridge, Loch Ard Gorge and The Grotto, some of which I managed to get pictures of that day!
Every bend of this beautiful road reveals another photo opportunity, I would love to share every picture I took that day. But, to be honest, I spent most of the day with my phone in my pocket and my camera in the bag. It's places like this that make you appreciate how beautiful nature is. I'm a small town guy who was looking/experiencing a place that was not the norm and for that reason I wanted to live in the moment, and not look at it through a phone/camera screen.

I feel very mixed emotions about this place. I am extremely blessed to have experienced this place with my brother (as it was his first time too!) and for that I will always be happy. But, I also feel sad knowing that this beautiful place will continue to be taken by the very thing that made it, nature.

Regards, Dan.