March 4- Copenhagen by Bike, Part II

Rosenborg Slot

When I went out again it was raining hard, but I tried to ignore it.  I rode first to Rosenborg Slot (Castle) which was built in 1624. The garden is quite spectacular, and again there are many statues, including this one of Hans Christian Andersen. 

I wandered around the garden until I got too cold, and then went to the castle. 

I decided not to go inside, but did go into the gift shop to warm up.

I talked with one of the soldiers about his job. He said that the guards are regular soldiers who receive 4 months of special training before becoming guards. They work at this palace and at Amalienborg, where the Royal Family still lives. He said he is almost finished his commitment and will go to university (“to read”) afterwards. His name was Al-Khadry, so I asked if he is a Muslim. He said yes, his parents came from Morocco, Somehow it seems ironic that he is in the Danish army after some of the things that have gone on here. He seemed like a really nice kid.

Then I rode to the Botanical Garden and went into the observatory. It is a pretty nice building, with spiral staircases leading up to a kind of balcony that circles all around the top. I stayed in there a while, enjoying the plants and getting warmed up, and then set out again.

This time I wanted to find the Ankara Restaurant that Javed and Andrea had told us about it. I rode to the Latin Quarter, a very old (medieval) part of the city, where I found the restaurant in time to have a late lunch, i.e. 49 DKK instead of 89. The food was okay, but that’s about it. It reminded me of the food they offered at the self-servis restaurants in Turkey. The salad selection was really good, so I enjoyed that, but the rest of the stuff was pretty greasy and overcooked. 

When I left there I checked out a few more churches in the area -- Saint Peter’s, Trinity and Vor Frue. Interestingly, the Ankara Restaurant is right next door to a synagogue -- the synagogue. I didn't realize what it was, but saw scads of flowers and armed military police outside the building, so I asked one of the police officers and he told me.

synagogue

Right about this time, the rain stopped and became hail. That lasted about 15 minutes.

After this, I rode to the National Museum. This is a free museum and is absolutely huge. It closes at five, and  got there at about 3:45, so I didn't have a lot of time, but I managed to visit the galleries for Danish pre-history, Viking history, and Medieval and Renaissance history (really interesting.) When you go to a museum like that one, you realize just how old civilization is here and how recent it is in North America.  Of course, we have the native peoples in North American, but they were so much less “advanced” than Europeans at the same date. Anyway, it is a pretty interesting museum. I had some trouble finding my way out and since it was almost closing time, I wondered whether it would be possible to save money on travel and stay in museums overnight. Maybe not, because they probably have motion detectors.

Right across from the museum is Slotsholmen, home to the Danish Parliament. I got a glimpse of it today and plan to go back there tomorrow. I also plan to go to Amalienburg. I was so cold by this point (even after an hour in the museum) that I stopped in H & M and bought a big warm scarf and some mittens.

I really enjoyed cycling. and plan to rent a bike again tomorrow. After all, it’s not every day I get to ride a bike in Copenhagen; I have to make the most of it. And it’s so cheap -- about $20 for 24 hours.