Strolling and Shopping

Goddag

My day started with housekeeping—literally.  Since I'm in an apartment with no housekeeping services it's up to me to do dishes and sweep and wipe up. Then I had errands like obtaining cash, getting groceries, seeking out a post office and getting stamps.  Usually at the ticket and post offices one takes a number and waits to be called. So far everyone speaks excellent English.  I greet them first in English, so they know I need it and can be prepared for any idiocy I display.

I saw my first beggar today.  Now I had the idea that Denmark didn’t have beggars.  I saw some old men I thought were the worse for drink, but they were just walking along.  This guy was sitting in front of the grocery store shaking a cup and asking for coins.  The passing Danes just laughed at him.  He looked like he was trying to get beer money.

Copenhagen is the drinkingest city I have ever come across.  I don’t know if it is the Danes—they do have that reputation—or the foreigners come to participate.  Each morning when I go out to do errands or start my touristing I find the evidence.  Along the sidewalks are empty and half filled bottles, cans, and, glasses of beer and wine.  Jagermeister appears to be the hard liquor of choice apparently.  It all gets cleaned up eventually—until that night’s drinking starts again.

Because the weather was iffy I stayed in town and strolled down Stroget where I succumbed to the lure of Sephora.  I tried Gucci Flora—smells nice, but I wasn’t that excited. I licked windows and poked around stores.  Naturally Stroget attracts us tourists so it also abounds in street performers and various stands selling water or fruit.  You can find Polsger Wagons, too.

I stopped at a stand selling Brannde Mander or something like that.  On impulse I stopped and bought some guessing that these were toasted almonds.  Yes, they were with sugar, too, and mighty tasty!

When it wasn’t actually raining I walked across town to the Botanical Gardens to enjoy some green and quiet.  I strolled along the trails, inhaling the planty smell.  I walked around the lake watching the ducks.  There were patches of woodland, rock gardens, and herb beds.  Flowers bloomed in scarlet, yellow and purple.  Just lovely!

On my way home I stopped by the new covered market.  As you know I can happily spend hours poking around a market.  This was a nice one, but I felt considerable disappointment at the lack of many traditional Danish offerings.  Fish stands seemed the most characteristically Dansk, but sushi is as popular here as it is in the rest of Europe.  The fish didn’t smell and the stands did a good business.  Mostly there were coffee places and stands selling Italian food and kebabs.  There was a Tapas bar, too, doing a brisk business.

So I had pasta for dinner.

Farvel