Monday morning we watched the first flakes of snow fall over Copenhagen as we ate breakfast. After layering up, I headed out into the flurry for a run along the canals, while Tim caught the train out to the airport to pick up our rental car.
An hour and a half later we met up again and hit the road, heading north along the coast towards Helsingor. The drive was very scenic, with sweet little thatched cottages and the beaches well and truly frozen over. Neither of us had ever seen the sea frozen before, so it was weird to see the way water had frozen almost in waves. Just across the sea the coast of Sweden was clearly visible, it seemed it would almost be possible to walk across the sea to the other side! This part of the coast is apparently a popularsummer holiday spot for hoards of people from Copenhagen, hard to imagine really!
Eventually we arrived in Helsingor, a busy port town with ferries continually shuttling across the straight to and from Sweden. Our main reason for visiting was to see Kronborg Slot, made famous as the Elsinore Castle of Shakespeare's Hamlet. Unfortunately we had not realised that the castle was closed that day though, which was a shame. However we were able to cross the moat and walk around the courtyard and walls of the castle. Standing next to the cannons facing Sweden, it was obvious what a key strategic military and naval choke point the castle was - acting mainly as a grandiose tollhouse taking taxes from the ships passing through the narrow sound. However, we didn't last long before the cold sea wind go the better of us. It was time to head into the township to a cute little pub for a bite of lunch; smorrebrod - Danish open sanwiches topped with fish.
Back in the car with the fabulous seat and steering wheel heaters on full bore, we headed inland and south towards Roskilde, where we planned to spend the night. Roskilde was a thriving trading port throughout the middle ages, but nowadays it is pretty sleepy. By the time we arrived and found a ridiculously expensive hostel to stay for the night, everything seemed to be closing up. Our options were pretty limited but we managed to find a cafe with a view over the beautiful cathedral where we spent the rest of the evening.
An hour and a half later we met up again and hit the road, heading north along the coast towards Helsingor. The drive was very scenic, with sweet little thatched cottages and the beaches well and truly frozen over. Neither of us had ever seen the sea frozen before, so it was weird to see the way water had frozen almost in waves. Just across the sea the coast of Sweden was clearly visible, it seemed it would almost be possible to walk across the sea to the other side! This part of the coast is apparently a popularsummer holiday spot for hoards of people from Copenhagen, hard to imagine really!
Eventually we arrived in Helsingor, a busy port town with ferries continually shuttling across the straight to and from Sweden. Our main reason for visiting was to see Kronborg Slot, made famous as the Elsinore Castle of Shakespeare's Hamlet. Unfortunately we had not realised that the castle was closed that day though, which was a shame. However we were able to cross the moat and walk around the courtyard and walls of the castle. Standing next to the cannons facing Sweden, it was obvious what a key strategic military and naval choke point the castle was - acting mainly as a grandiose tollhouse taking taxes from the ships passing through the narrow sound. However, we didn't last long before the cold sea wind go the better of us. It was time to head into the township to a cute little pub for a bite of lunch; smorrebrod - Danish open sanwiches topped with fish.Back in the car with the fabulous seat and steering wheel heaters on full bore, we headed inland and south towards Roskilde, where we planned to spend the night. Roskilde was a thriving trading port throughout the middle ages, but nowadays it is pretty sleepy. By the time we arrived and found a ridiculously expensive hostel to stay for the night, everything seemed to be closing up. Our options were pretty limited but we managed to find a cafe with a view over the beautiful cathedral where we spent the rest of the evening.
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