Round Trip #1 Langebro - Christianshavn - Holmen

Tuesday 26 January 2021

7 am. There are mornings like this. Wake early, courtesy of my nuclear alert alarm tone, girlfriend snoring through (she once slept through an earthquake). The alarm tone to rouse Tina from her corpse-like slumber has not been invented. Pee, walk into kitchen, bash elbow on door frame, step in cat puke. George (female cat), is looking sheepish. Ringo (cat with dementia, not the ex-fab) - is conspicuous by his absence. It can only get better.

LATER

So, puke cleaned up, cats fed and watered, mug of tea drunk and bacon sandwich scoffed, off I go. A new year and a brand new project with which to fill it (future lockdowns, plagues of locusts, armageddon excepted). In ROUND TRIP I'll be exploring the outer limits of the Copenhagen municipality. The borders and coastal areas. The extremities.

Starting off from the south eastern end of Langebro - one of only a pair of road bridges that cross the harbour (we’ll get to the other one later, when Brits will have the opportunity to snigger in time honoured schoolboy fashion). Emerging from under the bridge I'm immediately met by a steaming pile of something that can only have escaped from a very large canine. Probably a Great Dane. Said hound having narrowly missed the person sleeping off last night's excess. Though lord knows where he managed to excess himself as most of the town is closed off to fun. Within touching distance of Langebro is one of the new cycle bridges that cross the harbour: Lille Langebro. Curving its way over the water, it's unclear to me why it exists, other than to satisfy Copenhagen's insatiable desire to portray itself as the greatest cycling city in the known Universe.

Traversing a canal or two we arrive at Knippels Bro (Nipple Bridge. Come on boys!) I won't bore you with the details. They're boring. And then yet another cycling bridge - Inderhavnsbroen (Inner Harbour Bridge). This one would be quite useful if it actually went to the right place. It starts on the wrong side of Nyhavn and ends on the wrong island in Christianshavn. But never mind, at least the two ends met in the middle when it was built, eh? Erm... delayed by a year due to a 17cm. gap.

Leaving Inderhavnsbroen and crossing the Butterfly Bridge brings us to the rather magnificent sight of the Copenhagen Opera House. Or Copenhagen UFO Landing Strip as I call it. Built precisely opposite the Royal Palace of Amalienborg, so the Queen can wave at Plácido from her balcony. And on to Holmen, which is closed because... military.

And that's the end of today's trip. Onwards to the delights of Refshaleøen, and hopefully better coffee. And no cycling bridges. Less people. Colder probably. Damn!

Weather: Very Danish

Reflections: Need to get out more

Coffee: Hart Brød+Bar - Flat White 2/10 Small cup. Very small cup. 35kr

Distance: 5.32km