Sensory Observations and Favorites
Copenhagen edition
My neighborhood - a magic corner of Copenhagen called Christianhavn made me ponder on how I got so lucky when choosing my apartment in a city I had never been to before.
The gold yellows - the brick reds - the hunter greens of the houses. Stone facades and glowing lanterns with real candles everywhere. My house is a gold yellow with a narrow white door. Out the back door is a shared courtyard, with trees and plants and a long table for sitting in the late autumn sun. With my windows flung open, my little house is where I can faintly hear the lapping of water when a boat makes its way down the canal.
The heartbeat of my life is walking.
As I walk the narrow cobblestoned streets near my row house the sounds include birds. Birds such as seagulls faintly crying out, handsome crows clicking, the raspy call of the magpies (two for luck), and tiny finches twittering. They are all unique and express themselves to show their quirky personalities. The large hooded crows are quite handsome, with two-tones of gray and black feathers. So stately and stoic with lots of style and plenty of street smarts.
I love the sound of the water hitting the sides of the docks, the boats, and homes (houseboats abound here) - it is gentle and mesmerizing at once. Watching the water dance with light feels like warmth - it has been a very sunny late autumn since I arrived and I feel blessed to enjoy the golden fall.
I taste the salt of the ocean - like a crisp oyster shell - rain, moss: sharp and warm at the same time. The air is clean and makes me want to take in huge gulps as I walk for miles and wander through brightly colored row houses, palaces, and parks. Copenhagen is a city best enjoyed on foot. Or….
By bike. The clicking and clattering of bikes are synonymous with Copenhagen. It seems everyone has a bike (or multiple bikes) here! The city is so well laid out and safe for bikers - a wonderful way to see the sites as there is a looped path around the city - through lots of green spaces and lakes.
Coffee flavored with chocolate-covered cherries and orange rind tones - rich and syrupy……making a big French press in my kitchen, pouring my milk from brown-toned bottles sold at the local coffee shops and bakeries, while mapping out my day.
Sounds of different accents make me tilt my head and try to guess where they are from…a regret I have is not learning a second language as a child. Sharp and biting or lilting, soft and musical, they are all so much more appealing to me than my own “American” accent.
Baby prams everywhere - people letting their babies sleep outside in their prams, parked next to the big windows, while their parents enjoy their meals inside (this is a REAL thing!).
The jingle of leashes of dogs big and small - everywhere! Including curled under the tables, set with glowing candles, accompanying their people to meals at restaurants - one of my very favorite things. I have never experienced a dog misbehaving in a restaurant during my travels. Just like people, problematic dogs in public seem to be a universally “untied states” issue (or so I like to think).
YES CHEF - the incredible, impressive, delicious wonder of the food scene here is cutting edge and yet just like everything else: warm and approachable. I have my mind blown multiple times and the only thing that exceeds the wonder of my taste buds is the generosity and enthusiasm of the staff.
Finally, the cozy feel in the spaces I visit and spend time in - like a favorite blanket, wraps around me and breathes contentment.
COPENHAGEN