København

Not once did I imagine I'd visit this beautiful city but I'm here! When I arrived on Thursday, I wasn't sure what to expect but I was excited. Before we landed, I passed over a bridge...to nowhere. I was so confused and fascinated! Where is this bridge coming from and where is it going?? The bridge's landing was on an island... But the island was bare. I mean, it was literally a small piece of land and that was IT. Where were the cars going? How were the cars simply disappearing into the ocean/island like that?? So many questions...

I disembarked and noticed how clean and modern the airport looked. I made my way through the baggage claim, out the exit doors and did not see my name on a sign! No one was there to pick me up. Did they forget I was coming a day early? Was the weekend trip cancelled and I didn't get the memo? I had so many questions. 

After searching through all of my email accounts only to not find any correspondences, I found a phone number in an email signature and called for someone to assist me. They informed me that I "should have  been told that no one was picking me up because I came a day earlier than the rest." 

Though quite unhappy, I decided to inquire about other transportation options. I took a cab to the very swanky Imperial Hotel that I was staying at, in the centre of "København" or Copenhagen, as we call it. When I walked into the lobby, two people staring at me suspiciously said, "Monique?" 

"Yes! That's me!" I exclaimed happily. 

They were my tour directors. They were reminded... Ahem, I mean notified, of my arrival. So, they were in the lobby to greet me and assist with getting me checked in. 

"I will need your card to put a $1,000 hold on it for incidentals", the hotel's receptionist requested of me. 

"Umm... I only have my debit card with me and I don't have that kind of money on it!" I shrieked. 

"Well... I'm sorry but I'm going to need something Madame."

I immediately shot a look at my tour directors as if to say, what are you going to do about this?? You didn't even pick me up at the airport due to your lack of communication and now they want $1,000 from me!? Do something people!!

I was not happy. 

One of the tour directors stepped in before the daggers shot from my eyes and placed his card down for me before joking, "don't go crazy with the mini bar."

My time in the city was a fun one. Over the next 24 hours, people began trickling in from different parts of the USA to partake in this Teacher Appreciation Weekend. We went on many walks through town, visited (& ascended) the Round Tower, went on boat tours, bike tours and I finally saw the little Mermaid statue that I've been dyyyyying to see! Spoiler alert:  She's a lot smaller than you might have imagined. 

I made friends and surprisingly the tour directors, guides and the tour itself ended up being a lot more casual than I envisioned! We even went out to experience the nightlife. We had an amazing time! 

Another amazing thing that happened was that I was able to meet up with a family friend. She's a Dane who lived in Jamaica with my family as an exchange student back in the 90s. We've kept in touch thanks to social media but nothing beats one-on-one interaction! We were merely kids when we last saw each other, so to meet again now was truly wonderful. 

Overall, a splendid vacation. I enjoyed it so much! Copenhagen is a beautiful city that I would visit again!

PS-- on one of the tours, I discovered that the bridge I saw from the plane on my way to Copenhagen,  was the bridge & tunnel to Sweden! From Denmark, there is an underwater tunnel that then emerges above the Sound (water where the Baltic & North seas meet). The bridge then continues into Sweden!

OXOX,

M

A stop during the bike tour:

View from the back of our boat:

Kronberg castle:

Dinner with my dear friend:

The Little Mermaid:

Famous street where Hans Christian Anderson lived: