A small guide to Copenhagen

When you are in love with the city you live in, you cannot help wanting to spread that excitement to other people. Hence, this is a small list of some of the things that makes Copenhagen special - and makes it worth visiting (in my humble opinion).

Lets start with the basic facts. Copenhagen is the capital of Denmark and has about 1,3 million inhabitents (including the wider urban area of Copenhagen) and is also the most populous city in the country.

The food

The gastronomic scene of Copenhagen has become famouos during the last decade - and with good reason. Copenhagen welcomes kitchens from all over the world including both small, local and value for your money-places together with expensive, high end Michelin restaurants. Most famous perhaps is NOMA, founded in 2003. NOMA focuses on the nordic cuisine and was awarded the best restaurant in the world in 2010 by the Michelin Guide (and was rewarded in 2011, 2012 and 2014). Other than NOMA, Copenhagen has a bunch of other Michelin restaurants - 13 restaurants in total, that shares 20 stars.

However, if you do not want to get poor while visiting Copenhagen, there are plenty of other options, which include much more wallet friendly places. If you want to try some food that is very typical in Copenhagen, you will want to try the nordic cuisine. You will find this in many restaurants - often served through several small dishes. A great way to share food as well.

It is the fantasy that sets the boundaries, since Copenhagen has basically all of the world's kitchens represented. Chinese, Libanese, Japanese, Greech etc. If you are visiting the city more permanently, for example combined with a work, you might want to invest in a company lunch in Copenhagen - here the quality is also on point.

The atmosphere

An atmosphere is sometimes what constitutes a city. Put in other words; a great atmosphere can make a city worth visiting. And there is just something about the atmosphere in Copenhagen, that both locals and turists seem to love. It it hard to describe, but if you have been visiting the city during summer, you will know. There is no doubt that you know if the weather is good in Copenhagen. How will you know? Because everyone is out and about doing their thing. This involves having a social dinner, drinking a beer after work, hanging out by the waterfront or just enjoying themselves in whatever park og green area around. And event hough people might look a bit reserved, they are really happy to help and answer whatever question you might have. If I were to describe the Copenhagen people with just one word, I would say "cool".

The architecture

When you think of Copenhagen, one of the first things popping up in your head might just be the iconic architecture of Nyhavn. Nyhavn is one of the places that you will find on most postcards. It is a small area in the centre of Copenhagen parallel with the water and characterized by the various colorful buldings. The architecture - not only in Nyhavn, but in all of Copenhagen - is very old and therefore very rich in details.

What you will notice when walking around in the centre of Copenhagen is probably the narrow streets, the colors, the beams - and then you will not be able to miss the cyclists all over the city, which almost blend into the architecture.

I maybe influenced by the fact that I am living in Copenhagen. But if we put that aside, I would recommend visiting Copenhagen any day. There you go.