I was totally unprepared for the fact that the Danes really dress up for New Years Eve. Once you start living in The Netherlands you stop caring about dress codes altogether because any ordinary pair of jeans will ( always) do. However, the Danes rewoke my sense of style up, and her, who is always in search of an excuse to put on a special attire, found an alternative glasses + beanie solution for the occasion. It seemed to have made people around me happy but, yet again, it could have also been the champagne.

Very unfortunately, I don’t have a sharable picture of the full outfit. Anyway, it didn’t matter because I spent the evening strolling the streets, with a bottle in hand, watching fireworks (do as the locals do). And winter circumstances didn’t really allow me to get rid of layers. By the way, thank you person who, so sensibly, lost left these glasses on the street, for me. The beanie is from PRAG ( Nørrebro).

Once I resuscitated from NYE, I started Copen-diving. And it’s my intention here to share a few highlights of that activity. For instance:

Climbing to the top of edifices:

Cafe hopping & restauranting

SO. I spent half of the time in Copenhagen searching for specialty coffee places. Only when I was there I realized how addicted I am, and how picky I have become when it comes to my daily coffee. Half of the cafes where closed for beginning-the-year-holiday but I managed to catch the Coffee Collective open. And not only their coffee is great, but they issue a magazine on this theme as well, and I was extremely inspired by their philosophy – Direct Trade. You can read a little bit more about it here.

Tip: right in front of the Coffee Collective in Nørrebro there is a small little bakery. They sell wonderful cinnamon buns. No picture to illustrate, sorry. It all happened so fast.

Vegan restaurant simpleRAW, in the city center, was one of a kind. Featuring divine hot ramen-miso soup, poke bowl (raw veggies, fruit & tofu) & herbal tea. This is exactly the food I want to eat all the time. Fresh, diverse, simple, and nourishing. And they also serve vegan burgers. And the best lime and chocolate tart EVER. No picture of dessert, sorry. It all happened so fast.

Museum visiting:

The charm of Copenhagen lies in the details. The use of color on the buildings. The coziness of cafes. The attention to design, be it urban or interior. The elegance of people. And there were two specific things that really made an impression on me. First: how friendly these modern-day Vikings are. People are generally very kind, and prone to helping. A waiter or a shop assistant will easily make small talk with you. Second thing: the quality of the food. I was not expecting such fresh ingredients, such flavor, or diversity in the offer. Learning this is a movement which officially started a mere 13 years ago with the New Nordic Food Manifesto only added up to the amazement.

Strolling around:

Copenhagen is a real-city. By this I mean that it is a city which, above all, intends to serve its residents, and where you can actually breathe and enjoy life – quality of life. There, you don’t feel typical city-problems such as extreme car traffic or a permanent strain of mass tourism. This, for me, was rejuvenating. Living Copenhagen. That would be a good title for a blog, don’t you think? 😉

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