July 8. Copenhagen

After being up for so long, it was good to get a decent night's rest. We ate breakfast at our hotel and then waited for Lorna's friend, Helga, and her husband, Peter, to arrive at our hotel. Helga was an exchange student Lorna was good friends with back in her high school days in Luverne, MN. While we waited, Luke and I checked out the mall close to our hotel in the eternal search for soccer jerseys. We did not find one in his size, but Luke did not lose hope...

Helga and Peter arrived around 11:00 and we headed off to Tivoli Gardens. Tivoli is an amusement park that has been around since 1843. It had rides, music, games, animals, and flowers. We walked around the park, had a good lunch of traditional Danish food, and even got in a roller coaster ride.

After Tivoli we walked along the main pedestrian street, the Stroget, to the Rosenborg Castle. Luke and I took a detour as he found a store that had soccer jerseys (the kid does not give up!).

The Rosenborg Castle was Danish King Christian 4's summer residence. It is an opulent, baroque palace that houses the Danish Crown jewels. We enjoyed walking around and checking out the paintings and other knick knacks. The highlight for me was the throne made of narwhal tusks. At the time the throne was made it was said to be made of unicorn horns.

After exploring the central city a bit more, we ate dinner a bookshop/cafe that Ellie quite enjoyed. Our final stop this evening was The Little Mermaid statue. It was a little ways away from central Copenhagen, so we had to take city buses there and back. The statue is bit underwhelming, but if you are in Copenhagen you have to see it. While Disney made the Little Mermaid's story famous with a happy ending, Hans Christian Anderson's version is quite dark and sad. It is no surprise she looks so unhappy.

After a walk along the water and a bus ride home we called it a night. Tomorrow is a travel day (and Luke's birthday) to the island of Gotland where we will meet up with my parents.