5 days in Copenhagen

During maternity leave, I found it quite difficult second time around as I did not have the same network of new mothers as I did as a first time mum. I spend a lot of my time either at home or at baby events, where it was hard to make new friends. To be fair, both my children were very manageable babies, thanks to Gina Ford’s routine (If you are a new mum, buy her book or get it from the library), but I found my days were slow and monotonous. I decided to travel into Europe with my little one to break the monotony and as a tribute to the impending Brexit.

The first place that I decided on was Copenhagen. I had always wanted to go there ever since I saw the most picturesque views of the canal on the internet a few years ago. I packed light with only a backpack containing mostly baby stuff, such as milk, baby bottles and nappies and after 2 and a half hours on a flight, my baby and I arrived. We arrived at Copenhagen’s international airport which had easy links into the city centre for a mum with a push chair. There are buses, taxis and a metro. The metro is the most cost efficient and easiest method into the city and only 15 minutes away. Just before you descend down the escalators to the metro, there is always someone available for tourists to ask questions and find out how to pay. There are machines situated nearby where you can buy a ticket for the metro and buses for 24 hours, 36 hours or 72 hours. They take visa and MasterCard so do not worry if you have not had time to exchange your currency.

We were staying at Manon Les Suites, which is a spa-like boutique hotel. Not only was the courtyard pool a highlight where my baby girl and I dipped every morning, but I also liked that they use sustainable materials, which is what you would expect from a Scandinavian hotel. It is the first hotel that I had been to that offered toothbrushes made out of bamboo instead of plastic. The hotel is located right in the centre of the city, but in a quiet location. I walked to a shop in the night at 7pm and there was nobody else around. It was eerily quiet but also felt safe.

The hotel is near bus stops taking you to the famous canal to the north west part of the city. It is also near Tivoli amusement park, which is ideal if you are visiting with children. I visited the amusement park and my little one had a few rides. Near this park, I spotted an interesting building that I wanted to photograph. Little did I know that I would later found out that Copenhagen is full of striking architecture.

The following day, on my way to the canal, I discovered so many colourful houses. Had I been more organised, I would have gone on a city tour of colourful houses because the houses seem to have a lot of history and most are painted in a burnt orange colour. I am interested to know how the neighbourhoods organised which house gets what colour.

After walking for a while discovering so many houses, we arrived at Nyhavn where we stopped for a late lunch. The houses along the canal are colourful on both sides. It is all picturesque. I wish I could have stopped to take a selfie with my daughter but she was cold and grumpy, and the sun was shining in her eyes. Frustratingly I bought a hat for her which she kept taking off and eventually lost.

If you continue to the other side of the canal bridge, you will find more colourful houses in Christianshavn. I was warned by locals that the area is dubious and to be cautious so I did not walk very far into the area as I was with my baby. As I was tired from walking almost 18,000 steps with a push chair, I decided to give in and get a taxi. I asked the taxi driver to show me his favourite architectural spot before taking us back to the hotel. We drove onto a highway to the most incredible tunnel.

on my final days in Copenhagen, I decided to focus on new architecture after getting a taste from the tunnel on the previous evening. I started in the north western district of Norrebro to see the new Superkilen play park. I had heard about it through architectural magazines and was curious. A lot of articles has discussed how the park caters to the entire community from skateboarders with its steep hill, a lot of seating for the elderly and playground equipment for younger kids. It also has cherry blossom trees all lined up for instagram bloggers.

Another place worth visiting is the national library where you enter for free to take photos. I also visited Experimentarium, which is a science museum. It is worth visiting if you are travelling with kids but also to capture the most gorgeous copper spiral staircase.

Copenhagen left me so inspired and surprised. I expected old architecture but I was not prepared for the new architecture. I highly recommend visiting.

Let me know what you guys think of the new architecture that I have highlighted and whether you would like to see more of what I photographed. I feel like I could dedicate an entire blog post to more of what I saw and where to locate the best buildings.