Jun 3. Copenhagen

 Jun 3 - Copenhagen

This morning we woke up in the capital of Denmark, Copenhagen.

We set out with our very informative guide in a comfortable motorcoach for a city drive.  Copenhagen is an interesting city; much like other European cities it has a mix of architectural styles.  We were told that it is a very prosperous city as seen in all the building going on.  One of the sources of revenue is the production of Insulin and Ozempic.

Everywhere you look there are bicycles!  Individual riders, ‘cargo’ bicycles delivering groceries, babies in prams!  Electric bicycles are very popular.  Only every second household has a car.

Denmark’s head of state is King Frederik X who is a direct descendent of a Viking King.  He became King in 2024 when his mother,  Queen Margarethe, abdicated. The King is head of the church and church taxes are paid to the king.  

Denmark is said to be the happiest country in the world.  Workers are well paid; offices close at 3 PM on Fridays when the boss invites the workers to join him in beer and cake!  Workers get six weeks of paid holidays per year.

There is free education from kindergarten to university, fully paid maternity leave, free medical coverage, and a government pension of $2000 per month upon retirement.  There are very high taxes in Denmark - 35 % income tax, 25 % Sales tax, Car tax 100%!!!  This could be the reason so many people have bicycles!  Plus gas is $7 gal!

We drove by Tivoli Gardens which has been Copenhagen’s famous amusement park for 200 years.  

There is huge support for Ukraine.

The country exists in three main parts - Denmark proper, Greenland who wants independence, and the Faroe Islands.  We also learned about Hans Island, a little known island in the Arctic which is divided between Denmark and Canada! 

Among other bits of trivia, Denmark has the world’s smallest navy

After the city tour we went on a  canal boat to see the city from the water.  

Houseboats…

And the Royal Yacht…

We got back to the ship, had a quick bite of lunch, and then a nap!

Dinner time again! Split pea soup, Caesar salad, and for the mains - Mary had roasted chicken and Dorothy had the huge pork chop!  Dessert was warm fudge brownie with ice cream and chocolate sauce for Mary and vanilla ice cream with strawberry sauce for Dorothy.  We enjoyed Carmeniere wine for the second night!

Now we are at the theater for tonight’s show - Cameo Rascale!

On to Warnemunde!

Until tomorrow….

😃😃