chr.havn canal

the christianshavn (abbreviated chr.havn on the boats that dock here) canal is one of the only remaining canals in copenhagen…it makes the neighborhood feel kind of amsterdam-y. the harbour tours pass through regularly to see the cute old buildings bordering the canal, as well as the boats (some houseboats, i think) moored along its edge.

jægersborg water tower

this is a really fun conversion project by my favorite danish architecture firm, dorte mandrup arkitekter. it’s out in gentofte (a northern suburb of copenhagen), a former water tower nestled among two freeways and a rail line. the firm won a competition to turn the tower into low-cost housing for vocational students. there are apartment units all around the perimeter of the tower, and the firm added the crystal-shaped bays for better views from the units, and also so that it would be easier for the residents to furnish what would have otherwise been very oddly-shaped rooms.  i would definitely live here.

looking up at the water tower

it is right next to the train platform…

the lower levels house a youth center…and i really like the rooster topper : )

kronborg slot

last weekend, i went with some friends to helsingør (about 45 minutes north of copenhagen by train, and maybe better known to some as shakespeare’s “elsinore”) to see kronborg slot, the castle featured in “hamlet.” this is yet another unesco world heritage site – i feel like i’ve been to lots lately. or maybe it’s just because i’ve been researching unesco policy for thesis. anyway, i digress. let’s see more castle:

the entrance to the castle – clearly, if we were danes, we would have had our bikes, too.

what many people don’t know about kronborg slot is that it is fiercely guarded by swans (with nasty, sharp, pointy…beaks)

entrance to the interior ramparts/the inner courtyard of the castle, where summer performances of hamlet are staged outdoors – that would be fun to see!

some architectural details from the courtyard – kronborg slot is, according to its homepage, “both an elegant renaissance castle and a monumental military fortress surrounded by major fortifications with bastions and ravelins“

a display on the castle interior about the history of hamlet – the character of the danish prince is fictional and was created by shakespeare, but was loosely based on amled of norse legend

interior of one of the “royal compartments”/one of the king’s tapestries

ceiling painting detail

a (plastic) meal fit for a king!/a royal-table-canopy

there was even some authentic(?) fencing going on in the ballroom…i’m sure that’s what it was used for between parties…

definitely the highlight of the castle interior was the children’s room with its giant bin of legos. check out the scan|design fellows immersing themselves in the danish cultural tradition of lego building (yes, legos are danish!)

we also visited the castle’s chapel

beautiful carved chapel details

ok, back to the exterior. the castle has an impressive moat and some beefy battlements. click here for a pdf map of the grounds with some cool info about the site.

view of the castle from the helsingør side/view from the beach side

view across the castle wall and the øresund to helsingborg, in sweden, on the other side. helsingør is the closest point in denmark to sweden (see ferry in the distance), but i think there’s no bridge here because it’s a really busy shipping lane. anyway, that’s all for our lovely day in helsingør! vi ses!!