Review of Visits to Norway/Iceland/Greenland on Fall 2018 Cruise.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Wonderful reports.

 

For one of our cruises we also spent a few days in Copenhagen.  Spent one day just in Tivoli Gardens -- even had lunch there.

[GeorgeCharlie]

9 minutes ago, Krazy Kruizers said:

Wonderful reports.

 

For one of our cruises we also spent a few days in Copenhagen.  Spent one day just in Tivoli Gardens -- even had lunch there.

We didn't get into Tivoli Gardens, as it was very crowded both times we went by. Understand it's a very nice experience - maybe next time.

[GeorgeCharlie]

The boat tour took us out into the main harbour area, mainly to see the Little Mermaid.

 

From the boat you get the back view and as you can see the crowds being brought out by the tour busses were already building up.

 

 

By the time we walked over to see it later in the day, the crowds were much larger  and even worse people were crawling all over the statue. Fortunately, Lynne managed to get a picture without having someone hanging of the statue!

 

 

 

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

While at the Little Mermaid I noticed the Oceania Nautica was docked fairly close by. I guess the small ships can dock at the Langelinie Quay, which is much closer to the downtown area then the Ocean Quay where the larger ships (like the Zuiderdam) have to dock.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

The Little Mermaid is located beside the Kastellet, so we had a look around it while we were in the area.

 

The Kastellet (or Citadel in English) is one of the best preserved fortresses in Northern Europe. It is still an active military facility and I understand it is used by the Chief of Staff, the Danish Home Guard, Military Intelligence, and the Judge Advocate Corps.

 

In spite of the military presence, it also functions as a public park and is a popular place to go for a walk on a sunny day.

 

By the way - as you can see from our pictures - we enjoyed nice sunny weather while we were in Copenhagen.

 

The south gate (King's Gate) which is the main entry from the city.

 

Interior view of the gate.

 

Commander's House. It is now the official residence for the Danish Chief of Defence.

 

Closer view of the gable emblem.

 

The Rows (or barracks) for the soldiers.

 

 

 

 

Edited November 1, 2018 by GeorgeCharlie

[GeorgeCharlie]

Also noticed the way they mow the steep ramparts.

 

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

The Christiansborg Palace is actually located on a tiny island (islet) in central Copenhagen. It is both a palace and a government building. 

 

 

The palace is the seat of the Danish Parliament, the Danish Prime Minister's Office, and the Supreme Court of Denmark. Thus the palace is home to the three supreme powers: the executive power, the legislative power, and the judicial power. It is the only building in the world that houses all three of a country's branches of government.

 

In addition, parts of the palace are used by the Royal Family for various and events. Including where the Queen receives foreign ambassadors and where Danish monarchs are proclaimed.

 

Plus, the palace grounds contain the Royal Stables and a riding courtyard.

 

As we were mainly interested in seeing where the most important decisions were made - we visited the Royal Stables.

 

 

Even the horses get the best of comfort while travelling. None of the horse trailers around this area looks like this.

 

 

 

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

One of the days we went to the Amalienborg Palace hoping to see the changing of the guards. The palace is the home of the Danish royal family.

 

Although we got there in plenty of time, we were not sure where on the grounds it would take place and by the time we found out, a large crowd had built up. As such, we didn't get to see much. Maybe another time!

 

Somewhere over there on the other side of where the people are lined up 10 deep, is where it was happening.

 

We did get to hear the music from Royal Guards marching band as they accompanied the guards from their barracks. I guess the band only does this when members of the royal family is in residence.

 

While waiting we took some pictures of the guards on duty.

 

Every once and a while they would get some exercise by marching down to the end of the building and back.

 

There were always some people who would try to talk to them, or try to stand beside them for a picture. The guards are not suppose to speak and when their tolerance was reached, they would rap the butt of their rifle on the ground.

 

 

 

Edited November 1, 2018 by GeorgeCharlie

[kftw]

Really enjoying your review.

[idiebabe]

Looking forward to reading the rest of your review!  😀  We had a wonderful time and really enjoyed the Ports and the Zuidy!   It was definitely a Cruise with some unusual happenings!    

[GeorgeCharlie]

1 hour ago, idiebabe said:

Looking forward to reading the rest of your review!  😀  We had a wonderful time and really enjoyed the Ports and the Zuidy!   It was definitely a Cruise with some unusual happenings!    

Hi Eileen (and Mike),

 

Yes, it was a great cruise and I'm looking forward to reviewing some of those "unusual happenings".

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

1 hour ago, kftw said:

Really enjoying your review.

Thanks for you interest.

[GeorgeCharlie]

Downtown Copenhagen is primarily a tourist area with lots of souvenir shops, street vendors, pubs and restaurants. Lot of the streets are closed down to regular vehicle traffic, so walking around is easy to do. 

Getting a free sample Viking grog.

Street Vendor.

One of the walking streets.

The main square by city hall, with the Scandic Hotel in the background. One of the hotels HAL uses.

The Hans Christian Andersen statue by city hall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

The Marble Church is one of the most impressive churches of the city, especially with its copper dome. It was originally planned to be built almost entirely from marble, but due to financial considerations it was done in limestone.

 

 

It has the largest church dome in Scandinavia with a span of 31m.

 

 

 

[GeorgeCharlie]

The Round Tower was built as an astronomical observatory and one of the things it is most noted for is its equestrian staircase, a 7.5 turn spiral ramp leading to the top. In 1716 the Czar Peter the Great ascended the staircase on horseback, with his wife, Catherine I, reportedly behind him in a carriage.

 

 

Nowadays the spiral ramp makes a great running track for kids and is about 200 metres long and you are climbing 3.74 metres per turn.

 

Still has it's old privy.

 

The observation deck is about 115 feet above street level and gives you excellent views of the old part of Copenhagen.

 

 

The tower contains the oldest functioning observatory in Europe, although these days it is used by amateur astronomers.

 

 

 

[Marigold252]

Thank you for this wonderful review and the great pictures.  Brings back memories of our previous trip, and starts the anticipation for our cruise next July with a similar itinerary. When we were in Copenhagen we walked a lot and also used the HoHo canal boat. Love the city! Looking forward to the rest of your review. 

[Krazy Kruizers]

Wonderful reports and pictures.

 

It is too bad that you didn't get to see Tivoli Gardens.

 

One of the times we were in Copenhagen, we were sailing on the Maasdam and did get to dock at the Langeline Quay and were able to walk over to the Little Mermaid.

[Crusin-Suzan]

6 hours ago, Marigold252 said:

Thank you for this wonderful review and the great pictures.  Brings back memories of our previous trip, and starts the anticipation for our cruise next July with a similar itinerary. When we were in Copenhagen we walked a lot and also used the HoHo canal boat. Love the city! Looking forward to the rest of your review. 

We will be on that cruise with you!!!!   So looking forward to it!!!!   Love this review too!!!

[idiebabe]

12 hours ago, GeorgeCharlie said:

Hi Eileen (and Mike),

 

Yes, it was a great cruise and I'm looking forward to reviewing some of those "unusual happenings".

 

Can't wait, Bill! 😄 Really enjoying your pics, too!  

[GeorgeCharlie]

Going to try and see if I can get a video clip to post.

 

The video clip is showing us passing under one of the low bridges over a canal. There was some bridges where head clearance was a concern and even though the guide issued advanced warning prior to getting to the bridge - we always had one guy she had to yell at to sit down.

 

 

Edited November 2, 2018 by GeorgeCharlie

[GeorgeCharlie]

🙂Yeah - it worked (after a couple of tries!!).

 

I have several clips which I believe will make the review more interesting. Hopefully I can also get them to work.

 

[sandyss]

Enjoying this thread very much.  We take a similar cruise next summer, and this adds to the anticipation.  Thank you.

[GeorgeCharlie]

21 minutes ago, sandyss said:

Enjoying this thread very much.  We take a similar cruise next summer, and this adds to the anticipation.  Thank you.

 

Hi Sandy,

 

Thanks.

 

Hopefully you will find your visits to these ports to be as enjoyable as we found them to be. Some of the places in Iceland and Greenland are still fairly new as cruise ship destinations - which means tourist infrastructure can be quite basic (or nonexistent) , but we like it that way🙂.

 

Bill

Edited November 2, 2018 by GeorgeCharlie

[Krazy Kruizers]

Enjoyed your video.

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

The day before our cruise was to depart, we joined several other Zuiderdam passengers on a full day tour by Hamlet Tours.

The tour visited four sites outside of Copenhagen. The sites visited were the Roskilde Cathedral, Viking Ship Museum, Frederiksborg Palace, and Kronborg Castle.

Roskilde was a former capital of Demark and is about 30k from Copenhagen. The Roskilde Cathedral has been the main burial site for Danish monarchs since the 15th century. I understand it now contains about 40 tombs, making it a world record holder in regards to royal church burials. The Cathedral was put on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995.

The day we were there they were shooting a movie outside, which meant we had to park some distance away and access to the exterior was limited.

Some of the tombs.

Some we placed within what they called sepulchral monuments.

 

Noticed this one was wooden.

 

 

Edited November 2, 2018 by GeorgeCharlie