Smorrebrod

Day 2 in Copenhagen included a lunch of smorrebrod, Denmark's 300-year-old tradition of open-faced sandwiches.  We had our smorrebord at Cafe Norden at Amagertorv Square (by the "stork" fountain which are actually three herons).

We were in the middle of our guide book's walking tour of Copenhagen when we stubbled upon this cafe and could not resist. And it was about lunchtime so we were totally justified to make this stop.

We headed upstairs where there was a nice view of the square below.

The Danish traditional Smorresbrod consist of three open-faced sandwich courses served on rye bread of herring first, then meat, then cheese, eaten in that order.  Today, we splurged and it wasn't exactly the traditional version.  Our herring version was instead smoked salmon tartar with potatoes, Jerusalem artichoke mayo, and rye bread crisp - heavenly.

It was unbelievably delicious!  The rye bread crisp on top were so delightful; a salty, crisp version of rye bread.  The combination of all the flavors were so perfect with the Jeruselam artichoke mayo. The meat version of our smorrebrod was pork loin with cucumber salad and homemade remoulade.

I could have easily picked off the individual items and eaten them but again, the combination of the flavors together was just of burst of wonderment in your mouth!  The pork loin and the apple together was superb.  (Isn't that why we love pork chops with applesauce?) This one was also exceptional.  Our last open-faced sandwich was homemade egg salad with cress mayo served with shrimp. 

I always love a good egg salad, anyway, so turning the traditional smorrebrod into this is a good move, in my opinion. My taste buds agreed.  The shrimp with the egg salad was perfect.  All three of these open-faced sandwiches were served on rye bread but I hardly ate any of the bread portion of these masterpieces.  After my organic breakfast, I wasn't really that hungry but I don't regret trying out the Danish traditional smorrebrod. (or non-traditional, in this case)

After this totally fulfilling lunch, we just could not continue with our walking tour. We were too relaxed, too gastronomically satisfied so we decided to leisurely stroll back to our hotel and pick-up our luggage where we had left it after checking out. Then, we'd catch the 35 minute train ride to Lund, Sweden and continue with the next portion of our trip.  We were comforted knowing that we still had 2 more days in Copenhagen when we return from Bruce's business trip in Sweden.  We'd actually done a lot more in Copenhagen than we'd anticipated when we first planned this trip.  We thought we'd just spend the night here and then head-off to Sweden. (we thought jet lag would destroy us)  But we both felt refreshed on Day 2 and with a town like Copenhagen so full of charm, how could we not go out and enjoy every minute we had?  So, we left the hotel after breakfast and headed out.

Some of the things we discovered on our walking tour were the golden weather girls perched on top of a building across from the main train station.

These two golden statues tell the weather to locals below:  on a bike (fair weather) or with an umbrella (foul).

There is also an ancient thermometer on the side of the building. (in celsius, of course) 

We started our walk along the Stroget again, the Copenhagen grand pedestrian boulevard, only this time we took a few "off the beaten path" side-streets.  We saw the colorful university district, formally the old brothel neighborhood and then later the heart of Copenhagen's hippie community in the 1960's.  Today, it is a string of artsy shops and cafes

and lots of Danish again...

Copengagen University is here, home of 30,000 students.  It was founded by the king in the 15th century.  Busts outside honor great minds from the faculty, including Niels Bohr, a professor who won the 1922 Nobel Prize for theoretical physics.  He avoided the clutches of the Nazi science labs by fleeing to American in 1943, where he helped develop the atomic bomb.

We passed the 17th century Sankt Peders Church-the old German community church which still holds services in German

and we also passed the Cathedral of Our Lady, Denmark's first Lutheran church.

The entrance is flanked by King David

and Moses.

Inside is lined with the 12 apostles, clad in their classical robes - masterpieces by the great Danish sculpture Bertel Thorvaldsen.  Each strikes a mediative pose

carrying his identifying symbol.

They lead to the statue of the Risen Christ in the front of the church.

After leaving the church, we came upon one of my favorite squares in Copenhagen called Gammeltorv or "Old Square". This is the old town center with the Fountain of Charity that provided drinking water to locals since the early 1600's.

The figure of Charity on the top is that of a pregnant woman squirting water from her breasts next to a boy urinating. Lots of squirting going on in this fountain!

Next to Gammeltorv, is Nytorv or "New Square".  Here is the former City Hall and courthouse. 

Across from the entrance of the old City Hall is a raised area

with a plaque that reads

"Here stood the town's Kag (whipping post) until 1780"

Today, there is a lovely outdoor cafe right across from the whipping post.  "Let's have lunch while we watch some whipping going on".  I told you that Copenhagen is a place full of charm.