Summary: By this point of our 15-day Northern Europe trip, we were ready for a more leisurely day of learning about Denmark's history. After flying in from Stockholm, we dropped our bags and made just two stops to see Christiansborg Palace and then the National Museum of Denmark. These stops were a nice introduction to the history of Denmark, the final country on our Northern Europe trip.
[This blog is part of a 3-days in Copenhagen, Denmark series, which is part of our 15-days in Northern Europe trip].
Feeling a little goofy. On this 12th day of our 15-day trip, we were starting to feel the fatigue of travel. This meant adjusting our planned itinerary a bit to make our first day in Copenhagen more chill, with just two main stops in central Copenhagen, namely a visit to Christiansborg Palace and then the National Museum of Denmark.
Christiansborg Palace. Our first stop in Copenhagen was at this early 20th Century palace. It is the home of the Danish Supreme Court, Parliament, and the Prime Minister's seat. Damaged by fire over the years, the building is the third palace constructed on this site, with the first dating back to the 12th Century. Not pictured in our blog are the ruins this original castle, Absalon's castle, which may be viewed by visitors.
Our favorite part of the self-guided tour was a stop at the Royal Stables exhibit. [disclaimer: this writer was a horse gal in her childhood years]. The Frederiksborg horse is the oldest pedigree domestic animal. King Frederick II (1534-1588) operated a royal stud farm which continued until 1871. Today, this central part of Danish culture carries on through private farms in Denmark. The Frederiksborg Horse Association has over 400 members, with 40 registered stallions used for breeding each year. The exhibit contains artifacts from the breeding program and stables, including an actual stuffed Frederiksborg horse from 1684, along with its interesting story (see photo below).
Other portions of the palace tour include, among other things, the Great Hall. This space is adorned with 40 tapestries by Danish artist, Bjørn Nørgaard.
National Museum of Denmark. Next, we walked over to this expansive National Museum and spent the next few hours winding our way through Denmark's history. Exhibits also include collections of national treasures received, gifted, or otherwise, over the years. The Museum is especially kid-friendly with interactive exhibits and a natural history section. One could easily spend an entire day here.
Rest. To recharge for the balance of our trip, we went back to hang out in our lovely AirBnB apartment. We highly recommend this place if traveling with a family. It was perfect in that it has a large living room, three bedrooms, a helpful host, and is also conveniently located near a subway station that will get you quickly to central Copenhagen.
ความคิดเห็น