(Copenhagen, Denmark)

Tivoli Gardens was founded in 1843 and is the second oldest amusement park in the world:  the oldest is nearby in the Danish town of Klampenborg. However, Tivoli (main entrance shown above) is probably the most famous  and apparently served as the inspiration for Disneyland.

I visited Tivoli Gardens on the evening of November 22.  Yes, the days are very short at this time of year (it gets dark around 4:00 p.m.) and it is rather cool, but the park is open anyway.  It closes in September but then reopens for a couple of weeks before Hallowe’en and then again for several weeks before Christmas.

The place is lit up “like a Christmas tree”.  In addition to festive music and what must be hundreds of thousands of lights, there are many stalls devoted to seasonal treats and Christmas gifts.  They say that you must have a heart of stone if you visit Tivoli at Christmas and don’t feel at least a little bit of Christmas spirit.

Some people visit Tivoli and don’t go on any rides at all.  That’s fine – the atmosphere is fun anyway and the cost structure certainly doesn’t support dabbling in the rides.  It’s best to either ride nothing or to get an unlimited ride pass, as the cost for individual rides is almost criminal.  Still, it didn’t seem right to travel all the way to Denmark and not go on a single ride at Tivoli.

However, while I enjoy the thrill of downhill skiing, I am not really into deliberately scaring myself.  This ruled out some of the crazier rides at Tivoli.  As I wanted to try at least one ride, I opted for the sedate Ballongyngen Ferris wheel.  It goes back to 1943…but that was still one hundred years after the park first opened!

Particularly given the price, the ride was over quickly and I only had time for a couple of photographs of the park.  Then again, I was the only person on the Ferris wheel.  Needless to say, I’ve never been on a Ferris wheel by myself on a dark late November evening with hundreds of thousands of Christmas lights twinkling below.

Keen observers will have noticed that, other than the awesome Hunter’s Pot at the street food market, I really haven’t said that much about Danish food.  That all changed at Tivoli.  I began with a combo of Gløgg and æbleskiver.  Gløgg is basically glühwein (mulled wine), but it was nicely enhanced by raisins and roasted almonds.  It was an excellent choice on a chilly night.

As for æbleskiver…don’t be put off by the rough-looking name.  These are delicious miniature warm doughnuts, dusted with powdered sugar and served with fruit jam for dipping.  It was a mess and (like the Ferris wheel) it was over far too soon, but I will never hesitate to accept æbleskiver if they are ever offered to me again.

After those sweets, I needed something substantial and savoury.  I found it in the form of a frikadelle sandwich.  This consists of a toasted bun with Danish pork meatballs topped by a mustardy remoulade and pickled red cabbage.  Pickled red cabbage is awesome by itself and I really enjoyed having it on this (once again messy) sandwich.

Stay tuned for more on Copenhagen…including my collaboration with a world-famous artist!

(Copenhagen, Denmark)

Food is very expensive in Denmark. In addition to the 25% value added tax that is included in every price in the country, a charge for service is theoretically also included in the cost of restaurant meals. This allows restaurant servers to earn a better guaranteed wage. However, for those of us with weak foreign currency, it makes eating out quite pricey.

The first and most obvious tip is to eat a sizable breakfast, which is often included in the cost of your hotel. You should not feel the need to have a large sit-down lunch. The second tip is especially relevant to Copenhagen: eat street food.

Street food does not have to consist of hot dogs of questionable provenance. Right now, for at least another year, there is a great experiment unfolding on Papirøen (“Paper Island”), in one of the former industrial areas newly accessible from downtown by the Inderhavnsbroen pedestrian and bicycle bridge.  It’s called simply “Copenhagen Street Food” and consists of about 40 food stalls selling the kinds of things you would find in food trucks all over the world.  The emphasis is on local and sustainable food sources; many of the stalls in the cavernous warehouse are organic.

How good is it?  I went there 5 times over the course of 4 days!  Getting to the place was a little scary the first time, as it involved walking down an unmarked industrial alley that felt unsafe in the November darkness.  But there were many others making the same trip and I was soon rewarded for my daring.  I felt like a real “insider” when I returned the next four times…it was like attending a special club that most people don’t know about.  The seating is at communal picnic tables but somehow that makes it more fun. 

I bought my Hokkaido pumpkin soup from this stall

The first time, I had jap’chae – sweet potato noodles from the Korean food stall.  I then had a platter of vegetarian food from Colombia.  Due to fighting off a cold, my next two visits were for soup:  a Thai coconut shrimp soup and a spicy “Hokkaido Pumpkin” soup from Japan.  Of these, I would have to say that the Colombian food was the most visually appealing.

I saved the best for last.  As I have mentioned many times on this blog, I am really not a red meat eater and often choose vegetarian options.  But I do have a weakness for goulash and savoury beef bourguignon…and this made me try the *Hunter’s Pot’ at a stall apparently called “Toast”.

The Hunter’s Pot (see picture at the top of this post) consists of tender red deer meat in a ragout with mushrooms, root vegetables and both port and red wine.  It was generously garnished with sour red berries (red currants, perhaps?) and was even better than beef bourguignon.  The fruit flavours were intense and tart.  With some toast and a pumpkin seed/red cabbage salad on the side, it was an extremely satisfying meal.

I had never eaten red deer before…and even considered changing my travel plans to allow myself one more meal at the street food market. I wanted to eat the Hunter’s Pot stew again!  If you’re intrigued, but not sure about the red deer part, they were offering free samples when I was there.

Hopefully, this idea gains traction in some other places too.   If you’re not near the street food market, bakeries are usually a good budget choice too:  most have focaccia or something similar if you’re in danger of overdosing on the delicious Danish pastries.  Coming up soon:  more castles!