Driving in Fælledparken

Today, we went to the "Traffic Playground" at Fælledparken, which is the largest park in Copenhagen. The park is located next to the National Stadium, and it's a large park with a wide open space perfect for picnic. At the traffic playground, there was a miniature road course with lanes, traffic lights, signs, gas station and even a bike lane. And there were many karts which you pedal to move (like a tricycle).

Several weeks ago when we went to the mall, Mio had the opportunity to ride one of those go-karts where you step on the accelerate button to start the car. Well, Mio got on by herself, and when the car started moving, she immediately started screaming because the speed totally scared her, and because she was screaming and not steering, the car kept moving and she crashed into the wall and she screamed even harder. It was a terrifying experience for her... But today, she was in control. The cars were meant to be for kids aged over 5, so it was a little bit hard for her and I had to push her most of the time, but she had a good time trying something new.

After the park, we met up with Jonathan for our almost "daily" ice cream. We were back in the city center, and we decided to go into Illum Bolighus. According to my travel guide, this might well be the store to go "if you only have time for one store in Copenhagen". The book was right. They had top-notch contemporary interior design, beautiful house ware items, furniture, clothes, jewelry, etc... There were too many things I wanted to get. I LOVE this rug pictured below (click the photo to enlarge). It is a rug with these small colorful felted balls strung together. I've seen these at Louisiana Museum and a few other places. It's a "happy" rug that makes you smile... :)

A Dip in the Harbor

One thing we wanted to do while we are here, was to go swimming in the harbor. There is a public swimming facility called the harbor bath right on the water in the area called Islands Brygge. Since it opened in 2002, it has become a very popular spot for Copenhageners to come to relax in the summer.

We haven't been able to go because of the poor weather, but today, it was sunny and warm, and we actually felt like taking a dip in the water. When we got there around three in the afternoon, it was packed with sun bathers. There are five pools of which two are for children, and of course that's where we went.

The pool was, as you can see in the pictures, green. That's because of the algae growing, and the steps (ladder?) to go into the pool, and the bottom of the pool were a bit slimy and slippery. But everybody knows the water is clean, and nobody seemed to mind. The water was very cold, but once you get used to it, it was fine (I still didn't want to get wet above my shoulders though...).

Yuto enjoyed his first swimming pool, and kept wanting to go back even though his lips started to shiver. And Mio? She was really excited before we got here (she got ready very quickly), but once she saw the water and felt how cold it was, she did not want to go in. Oh well, this may be our only visit then. But at least we came and enjoyed the summer day like the Copenhageners do.

Danish, I mean Vienna bread

I'm in Denmark, so I'd better write about the Danish (pastry). Actually, I didn't know until I came here that danish here is not called "danish" but it is called wienerbrød ("Vienna bread"). Long long time ago, Danish bakers had to hire foreign bakers due to a strike they were having, and among them were some Austrians. The pastries they were making became very popular in Denmark, and over the years evolved into what the wienerbrød is today (more fat added).

The above are the wienerbrød from one of the best bakeries in Copenhagen, Lagkagehuset. The short one is called Tebirke, my favorite, and the long one is called Frøsnapper, Jonathan's favorite (they got a little beat up...). They both have poppy seeds, on top, but nothing inside, just simple, mildly sweet pastries. The danishes here are the flakiest I have ever had. They are so good! Of course it's not for every morning (calories...), but for weekend breakfasts, or for a little morning snack, it is perfect. I have to make sure I have a few more of those before I leave.

Today, the weather was nice, and I was back on the bike again after almost a 3 week break with the rain and with my mom's visit. The kids seem to be happy to get on the trailer again as well. We went to a playground nearby. I like that most parks here have some sort of statues of animals or other things, and they are usually made of real wood. I think that's very nice.

After the park, we had lunch at a funky cafe near the park, which had a very "Brooklyn" feel if you know what I mean... I had a goat cheese salad, and I ordered the kids brunch menu for the kids. The brunch was a typical brunch menu you see here - a couple of tiny pancakes, some fruit, yogurt with berry sauce and oats, a couple slices of salami and scrambled egg with bacon. But the eggs were way too much. I bet there were about six eggs in that scrambled egg. I didn't get that... Eating out with the two kids just by myself can be stressful, but we were sitting outside, and the place was very relaxed, and the weather was gorgeous, and I had a very enjoyable lunch.