Denmark
My mom's side of the family is Danish. My Grandpa was born there before he moved to Canada. I have never been until the fall of 2019. I was already going on the Amsterdam trip but my mom decided to be a chaperon and then we would continue on to Denmark. We had such an amazing time and I wouldn't trade it for anything. We made so many memories and finally had a chance to connect with our Danish relatives. To begin our trip, we flew from Amsterdam to Aalborg. This is a northern city in Denmark. We stayed with family and lived like locals. We went on walks and to the beach and parks. It was a lot of fun and really relaxing after a busy week in the bustling city of Amsterdam.
From Aalborg we continued on to Billund. Here we indulged in LEGO. LEGOLAND, LEGO House, and more. We had so much fun building crazy inventions and creating amazing memories.
Copenhagen was next on our list. We took a train from Billund to the big city. I remember trying
to focus on homework while we were flying through a wonderful landscape. I was attempting to
analyze the greatest love story in history while swaying back and forth on a crowded train. I hated it at the time, but it created a very vivid memory for me. Copenhagen was exactly as I expected. We met up with my cousin and she brought us around the city and shared some of her local secrets. The first night, after we got off the train, My mom and I walked along the cobblestone streets to our hotel. We started on a good foot by heading in the wrong direction. It wasn't long before we figured everything out but still. Once we got settled in our spaceship hotel, we explored the city. We just wandered. I was determined to look at the map before we left and then not have to use it. You blend in more with the locals if you don't have your eyes glued to your phone. We wandered around trying to find a little restaurant for dinner. (Our not reliable, but fun trick while traveling on a budget, was that the restaurants that had an open fire in their patio were too expensive for us.) Eventually, we found a little restaurant, without fire but still nice, for dinner. By the time dinner was done, it was dark out and all the street lamps were piercing the dusk. While finding our way back to the hotel it started to drizzle. The water on the streets reflected the warm street lights; it was picture perfect. I didn't even care how wet we were getting, it was all part of the experience.
We spent the next couple of days wandering the streets and trying to find souvenirs for our family. My personal favourite location was Nyhavn. it was exactly as I'd dreamed for so many years before.
Denmark is often called the 'happiest place on earth' and I don't disagree. I have learned about this country through many school projects and family members. I always knew I would come here one day, and I am certainly going back again.
