In order to accomplish the rest of the things I wanted to see in Copenhagen I had to get up pretty early. I packed up my stuff and quickly had it in storage and was on my way out. I was headed to a little town called Hillerod with the biggest castle in Denmark called Frederisburg.
While I was walking around the lake towards the impressive structure I met a Canadian woman. I don't remember her name, she might have never given it. This woman talked more than I do, it was pretty amazing. I couldn't get a word in edgewise. Normally this would have really annoyed me, but I was glad to have some else there for a bit.
The initial plan had been to get an audio guide and learn loads about the castle. I decided to skip it and listen to the Canadian instead. I could still take picture of everything and enjoy the splendor of the castle. What I can tell you about the castle is that one of the beds there belonged to the son of a king who had 25 confirmed children. No one is really sure how many more might be out there. The castle was pretty amazing. I don't think that I have ever seen so much stuff. Usually castles are pretty empty, objects had been lost through time, this one was full of stuff. It was pretty cool.
After heading back to Copenhagen we parted ways and I headed to the Copenhagen History Museum. I hesitated at the price here, not because it was expensive, it wasn't, but because I was running out of Danish kroners and I wanted to make sure I had enough for a bus later. On seeing my hesitation the guy working there let me in for free. Thanks!
Copenhagen was settled as a port town with a natural harbor. After 1167 the town grew quickly. The city was situated perfectly to become a trading power in the Hansiatic League. This connection brought a large German influence to Denmark. This would explain why people don't cross the street until the light says its ok, even if there aren't any cars coming.
During the 17th century the Scandinavian states were at war, vying for control. This is when Christain IV came along. He transformed Copenhagen into a capital city and laid the street foundations that it has today. He also won power for the country.
I sort of lost interest when the more modern stuff came up. There was some big event going on and I couldn't seem to get away from the commentary. I also had one more stop and wanted to make sure I got there.
After walking for quite some time and taking pictures of random monuments (one had a black cloth on its head) I found her, the little mermaid. Her easy access location has lead some devious people to decapitating and dearming her. She's always repaired afterwards and looks no worse the wear. Now she was getting felt up by Asian teenagers. Luckily I managed to get a shot without anyone else in it.
I was getting really hungry at this point, but I only had enough kroners left for the bus ride to the station. It was too far for me to walk with all of my stuff. I decided to leave early for my night train. The train actually left from Malmo in Sweden. I figured that I would get dinner there. I was really upset to see that not only was it raining in Sweden, but that the only place to eat at the station was Burger King. I had no choice, but I did have Swedish money, so BK it was.
The night train was a bit disappointing. I had somehow once again ended up in a compartment full of men. Still, I fell asleep quickly as the train pushed forward.
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