There was so much to see in Denmark that I'll have to go back. I ended up sticking with the sites on Zealand, with one major exception. Everything was accessible by easy train connections.
First up was Roskilde, home to the Viking ship museum. It's actually the second Viking ship museum that I've be been to. I went to Oslo's last year. Oslo definitely wins when it comes to impressive artifacts. Their complete ships can't be beat. But Roskilde had something just as impressive, which was a full experiential history museum. You could learn to make rope and ribbon, and learn to the knots. You could watch as historians and carpenters recreated actual Viking ships with historic tools. Some people even got to try carving. I did a tour of the boatyard and learned all about how Viking ships were created. They are learning a lot from these recreations. For instance, a ship probably only lasted about 30 years, because after that the iron nails couldn't be replaced any more.
But the very best part of the day was that I got to ride on a Viking Ship replica! We had to row out of the harbor and then put up the sail for a glorious ride, then row back in. Rowing was hard! If you weren't in perfect sync with the others in the boat your oars got crossed. It wasn't like a modern paddle, just a skinny board reinforced where it rested on the side of the boat. It was about eight feet long. Such a cool experience.
In Roskilde I also saw the cathedral, a great example of bricked northern gothic style. Many kings of Denmark are buried there.
The second trip was a quick succession of castle-castle-museum. I started at Fredericksborg Slot, one of the royal palaces. This looked like something right out of Disney, from its still, reflective moat to the dancing fountain in the front courtyard. The palace is full of portrait paintings of rulers past and decorated with historic furnishings. My favorite was the room where a chair pictured in an 18th century painting was still there! It was heavenly to walk through these grandios rooms with a fantastic free audio guide. It even played triumphal music when you walked into the ball room, as if you were arriving royalty. I truly loved visiting here.
Second stop of the day was Kronberg Slot. I stepped off the train ready to walk the 15 minutes to the castle when I saw a bustling festival spread along the way. It was some kind of historic maritime festival, with people in old fashioned clothing, a massive tall ship, and many food and craft stands. You could cook over an open fire in a long handled cast iron skillet or listen to a group sing folk tunes. It as so fun I decided to skip going into the castle to spend more time in the square.
Finally, though, I had to move on. The Louisiana art museum is regarded as the best modern art museum in Scandinavia. I don't like modern art. I don't like that it doesn't tell you much about the civilization it comes from. I wonder what historians will make of it in the future. But I had to go. So I did. It was not my favorite, as my very polite little cousins would say. But I saw it.
Lastly, I couldn't resist the call of Sweden. Malmo was only a half hour away over a bridge, North Sea on one side, Baltic on the other. I've put off gong to Sweden because I feel like there's so much there that I would want to see. My mother's family came from there about 120 years ago. My mother has been twice, my uncle a few times. I have always wanted to go but hesitated. So this was a perfect induction. Honestly, it's just like any other cute Scandinavian city, but with meatballs and dahla horses. Both of which I had. Someday, I'll do Sweden right - rent a car, see the old family farm that is still there auth a different family. But for now, Malmo was a great taste.
