It’s time for another vacation adventure! The origin story for this one is from The France-y Pants party where Jyotsna and I decided we should go to Paris together. Truthfully, I do not remember this exact conversation/version of events but at some point, we signed up for a 20 km race in Paris. And, of course, we need to make a vacation out of it and now the time has come!
During our planning, Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) had a better price than my usual airline (United), which turned into the decision to spend an extended layover in Copenhagen. I thought we’d have a really nice time exploring another city on this trip, albeit for a very short time.
When to be at the gate: Earlier than we thought
First, we had to board the plane in SFO. Um, we almost learned the very hard way that international flights do not abide by the doors closing 15 minutes prior rule. Apparently, that is domestic-only. So, while we thought we were responsible in showing up 25 minutes early, we were wrong. We were the last people on the plane after sprinting through SFO while I was on the phone pleading with the gate agent not to close the door. They called me, which is how we learned this very valuable lesson.
So, slightly sweaty and very out-of-breath, I started my trip. But you know what the only thing that mattered was that we were on the plane. Allons-y!
Copenhagen Passport Control
The flight was uneventful and we landed in Copenhagen 20 minutes early, no thanks to us.
We went through Passport control, which took about 20-25 minutes. The EU biometrics collection did not seem to cause too much of a delay. It’s just passport control for non-EU passengers seems to be a bit slow in my experience.
4-ish hours in Copenhagen: A walking tour
We followed the signs to the metro. Our plan was to take line 2 to the picturesque Nyhavn. Right before the metro platform on floor 1, we stashed our carry-on shoulder bags in a locker. Lockers at airports and train stations are one of my favorite things in international travel. It is truly a delight to stash belongings securely and explore with a literal weight off the shoulders.
We exited the metro station to the most beautiful Saturday morning. It was quite crowded, but it wasn’t too difficult to walk past the beautiful, colorful houses.
Next, we walked along the water past the opera house. We cut in to see the Amalienborg palace.
Then we walked towards the Storget. We stopped in a few shops, passed the Round Tower, and ended up at Torvehallerne. It was time for a power snack!
But first, champagne! It helped us through the (short) line to pick up delicious smørrebrød. We had three: two salmon and one herring. They were all so good. As I type this, I realize I am currently very hungry. Later in the airport, we saw a small branch of the same store but the sandwiches at the airport looked old and sad. But the ones at Torvehallerne were delicious and fresh!
I wanted to walk through the Oates Anlæg park towards my parents’ old apartment on Stockholmsgade. It was so nice to have a deja vu-type walk.
My memory was not so good when trying to remember what number they lived in. I texted Mom and she didn’t know either. So, I think it’s 53 but to be on the safe, I took a picture in front of 51 too. It was one of them!
Then, in an effort to avoid a repeat of our SFO experience, we went to the airport in a timely, responsible fashion. We were pretty tired at this point, but we pushed on. We grabbed a drink and a snack in a lounge before our flight.
Paris
Then…Paris. On y’a arrivé! We took a cab into the city after the driver did an awesome job fitting our luggage into the trunk. We did not pack light for this trip. He was an excellent driver meaning he was pretty aggressive but in a chill, non-terrifying way. So, that was good!
We checked into our hotel. Our room is a decent size and the beds are made up into two twins. After brushing my teeth and showering, I collapsed into bed. What followed were the best 10 hours of sleep I’ve had in months. It was amazing and I wished I slept that well regularly!