Copenhagen Take Two

Sitting in the lovely courtyard at the hotel. We're under a pergola in chairs with thick, fuzzy blankets folded over them. The heaters on the ceiling of the pergola are going. Church bells are ringing AND the sun is shining. It is a beautiful evening. This is only one of the cafes to provide blankets for guests. Brilliant.

(The bells are still chiming. It is noon in New York, so we're wondering if it is in commemoration of September 11.)

We spent less time exploring today than we planned. We accidentally slept until 10:10 a.m. With showering and figuring out our itinerary, we didn't leave the hotel until noon. We went to the palace that holds parliament and the supreme court. Currently in its sixth incarnation -- having been torn down and rebuilt by subsequent kings, destroyed in war, and ravaged by two fires -- ruins of earlier buildings remain.

They're basically in the basement of the current palace. The first are from about 1200 a.d. You can see the fortress wall curving around, foundations and part of living spaces from different eras. It was really neat.

We wandered around the grounds, Hart took photos and I had coffee at the Royal Library. The library has a new addition that's in a contemporary design. It is stunning and was fun to wander around in.

After that we planned to wander around Christianshavn, a funky relaxed neighborhood that houses Christiana, the "alternative" (aka hippie) community of Copenhagen. We only made it to the Danish Center of Design. It's basically a bookstore of all things design. We loved it.

I started to feel woozy and headachy, so we headed back to our hotel instead of seeing Christianshavn. With the wonderful weather and cozy courtyard, we're perfectly happy sitting around.

Trying to decide what to do for dinner. The hotel has a buffet with everything made from organic ingredients. It smells and looks wonderful, but I don't know if we're hungry enough. We may go to the Korean barbecue place next door.