We were up and out the door by 8:45 Thursday morning because we had a brunch date with Rikke in the Norrebro district and I was too cheap to buy bus tickets so we needed to get walking. I relented only long enough for us to get hot chocolates along the way and then it was back on track. We just made it in time for our 9:30 appointment. I filled up on danish pancakes and scrambled eggs from the breakfast buffet and then it was time to hit the road.
Rikke was nice enough to drive us out to her home town of Hillerod where her dad and step-mother live and which also just happens to be the location of the grandest castle in all of Scandinavia, Frederiksborg Castle, and often called "Denmark's Versailles". It was only a half hour or so away from Copenhagen and to pass the time as we drove I read aloud from Rick Steves' book regarding the castle, which was entertaining and contained a few tidbits even Rikke wasn't aware of. She was pleased to hear that Rick had nice things to say about the souvenir and sweater shop across from the castle that she used to work at years ago and is still there today. As we drew nearer Rikke grew ever more nostalgic as she pointed out things to us and told stories about growing up there.
We arrived around 11am and found a pay parking lot close to the castle. I fed the meter 20 kroner to give us 2 hours inside which I thought would be more than enough time the way we fly through museums. As we approached the castle on foot I was struck by its grandeur. It was absolutely dripping with regal pomposity. I knew it was going to be difficult to try to capture its impressiveness with my little point-and-shoot Canon.
Like most things in the off-season here there wasn't any crowd to speak of so we walked right in and got our tickets. They came with what turned out to be an excellent audio guide and the tour was really very well laid out, flowing naturally from one room to the next. It quickly became apparent however that the audio guide couldn't possibly cover everything on display, neither could our guidebook, and that we'd be hard pressed to make it through in 2 hours even skipping some rooms. There was just so much on display and so much to see and all of it was oozing history. Portraits and coats of arms covered every available surface, statues and urns filled every nook and cranny, fine furnishings lined every wall and window bay. It would be hard to pick something that stood above the rest, but I think for me the intricate clockwork Copernican heliocentric model was my favorite object on display.
We could have spent much more time there but unfortunately we needed to get back to the car to feed the meter and we had other things we wanted to do before it got too late. I added an hour to the meter and we spent it wandering the sumptuous gardens. They looked beautiful with just a touch of snow and ice from the previous evening. It was still cold, but the sun was out and melting the snow in patches. Our walk took us by the small garden house next to the lake and then back around to the car.
Rikke had set up lunch for us with her parents at 2:30pm and we were there right on time. Her folks were very welcoming and sat us down for a nice refreshing drink before serving up a huge spread of homemade Danish treats for lunch including fresh made rye bread, purple cabbage, broccoli and bacon quiche, meatballs, salmon, and various meats, cheeses, fruits, and veggies. Her dad shared a couple delicious beers with us as well. Everything was tasty and I had to try everything so I was stuffed at the end. After lunch we chatted and they showed us their wall of family photos and we talked about traveling in general. They had made a trip to the United States some years back and had driven across a good chunk of it from what it sounded like.
We thanked Rikke's parents for their warm hospitality and took our leave. Rikke had one more destination for us before we could head back to Copenhagen. She took us another 15 minutes or so out to Fredensborg Palace, a royal family residence. The palace is not open to visitors but much of the extensive park and grounds surrounding the palace is open to all. We spent the next hour or so leisurely strolling the park taking in the scenery including a fine selection of statues, obelisks, and views of the placid lake Esrum.
Soon it was time to go and we drove back to town. We said goodbye to Rikke and she gave us a good recommendation for a nearby beer hall. We stopped by Mikkeller & Friends and tried their flight of 5 locally brewed beers which were all tasty. It was fun to find out that almost all the hops they use come from our Northwest. When we asked for a recommendation for dinner they pointed us to a place just down the street called Manfred's which was supposed to be vegetarian friendly but mostly known for their steak tartare.
Manferd's was amazing. It was tiny but we got in without a reservation. We sat close enough to the kitchen to feel the heat of the ovens, which I think Kat liked quite a bit since she was beginning to freeze ever since the sun went down. We ordered the Chef's Choice which was supposed to consist of 7 small plates and when we specified vegetarian they were more than willing to work with us on that. I was fascinated watching them prepare dishes and the main chef would finish each one off and then send them out. He even brought a few of our dishes to our table and explained each one. There were only supposed to be 7 different dishes, but I lost count around 10. They even added a few fish items for me. It was all so good, but we were both stuffed by the end. Kat was most impressed with the bathroom which she described as the most romantic toilet she's ever been in. From her description it sounded amazing, with comfy chairs and lit by candles in empty wine bottles on mirrored shelves. I tried to find it, but I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere because all I found was a closet-like toilet with a broken mirror and graffiti and stickers on the walls. I think it must be like one of the magic wardrobes that doesn't lead to the same place for everyone, or maybe it's more like that soup place in Reykjavik that doesn't actually exist.
On the way back to our room I decided to spoil us and take the bus. While waiting for our bus we noticed a couple with their rolling luggage trying to figure out where they were going. It turned out they were headed to the train station as well so we told them to just follow us and we made sure they got off at the right stop. It felt good to be able to help.
Kat got us all checked-in to our flights tomorrow, but we did not get an upgrade this time. We also got email alerts that there is a weather warning in Iceland at the moment, although nothing is canceled or delayed yet. Here's hoping we get home on time. It's been a great trip, but we are excited to get home now.
Update: the weather warning grew to a full blown storm and all flights into Iceland have been delayed. Our flight has been delayed for 6 hours which just so happens to eat up all our layover time. If everything works out we'll still make it to our final flight from Seattle to Eugene. Here's hoping.
No comments:
Post a Comment