A new day had arrived, and with it was the start of a new adventure. I’d pre-booked us an UberX for 09:45 to take us to Heathrow Terminal 5 in plenty of time for our flight to Copenhagen - the first destination for this trip. Having arrived in London a couple of days ago, it meant I wasn’t starting this trip off with the pain of getting stuck in traffic on the way down like I had for Vienna. It felt more relaxed.

Once we’d dropped off our checked bags using their self-service, we headed through security, and then needed to find somewhere to get some lunch to take with us on the 12:30 flight. After checking through the available options, we decided on a Boots meal deal, and ate this early whilst sitting at a random gate. We didn’t know where ours would be, and this was at least somewhere with seating. As we waited, I predicted our actual gate would be on the opposite side of the airport, and sure enough it was. This has happened so often, I’ve lost count.

The flight takes around two hours, so was a similar journey to what we’d had for Vienna. The immigration there was pretty quick, possibly due to how long it took us to get off the plane being amongst the last to reach security. By the time we were through, the baggage collection was then quick and easy.

As you leave the airport there’s a large area for getting DSB tickets for the trains and metro, and also a couple of machines specifically to buy tickets for trains to Sweden. To save time, we used the DOT application on our mobile phones to get a ticket each to Østerport station for 30 DKK (around £5.66 plus any bank fees for the conversion). This was a short wait on the platform and then around twenty minutes on the train. We knew our stop was the last one for this train, so had no issues finding the right stop.

When we left the station there were so many bikes locked up outside - a reminder of how popular cycling is here. Dragging our suitcases behind us, we made our way to the AirBNB, but had a short rest on the way along the quayside as the cobblestones on the pavement were making it hard work for our suitcases at times.

Although the check-in time was listed as being from 17:00, a couple of days previous the host had messaged to see when we’d be arriving, and told us we couldn’t get in before 18:00. We were ahead of time, and there was a Netto supermarket opposite the building we’d be staying in, so decided this would be a good time to find some food for meals. At under 200 DKK we got everything we needed for tomorrow’s evening meal, and some lunches. We didn’t get anything for breakfast though, so would need to go back out later.

I’d got some Danish Kroner only a few days before leaving due to problems getting it in Leicester. I’d eventually ordered some from the eurochange website and had it delivered. I also used their buyback guarantee so at most 30% of the original amount could be sold back at the price I’d bought it for.

We waited outside for a while, and noted how quiet it was here. As it reached 18:00 I messaged the host to find out how we check-in, and was told to ring the buzzer. We guessed which one to use based on the name, and then from the postboxes inside figured out he must be on floor 5. As we got there the door was open with him standing there to welcome us in.

We quickly realised he must live in this apartment himself normally, and is a runner. It had everything we needed for a few days staying there. At least we thought it did. What we didn’t realise at this time was that despite the booking being for two people, and it saying towels are provided. That towel was singular, and actually a hand towel. The pillows here, just as we’d later find out elsewhere in Denmark later, were very flat as well, with no extras to raise them a little.

Once settled, we headed back out and walked towards The Little Mermaid statue, and found a few things to photograph along the way, such as the entrance to the Kastellet. Looking round there would be something for another day. The statue represents the titular character from Hans Christian Andersen’s story of the same name. This along with the fountain we’d soon come across, were commissioned by the Danish brewer: Carlsberg.

There were large ships around the waters edge, and what I assumed would be a maritime museum on the other side as I could see the Sælen submarine in a dry dock there. We continued walking a little farther and found the Gefion Fountain depicting the Norse goddess Gefjon creating the island of Zealand. Alongside this fountain from the start of the 20th century, is the 19th century St. Albans Church. This one was built for the English population In Copenhagen.

We passed the Museum of Danish Resistance on our way to a supermarket, but found that the food options there were not great. There was a Spar nearby, so that was our next stop, and we spent quite some time looking around there, trying to decide what we could make. We decided on gnocchi, red pesto, and some bit of ham for our evening meal. We also got some sliced bread and peanut butter to use for breakfasts across the week. This would be another big saving in a country where eating out can easily be at least 300 DKK per person for a main meal.

The last of the daylight left the sky on our way back to the apartment, but at last we could finally eat. I cooked the food, and we ate this whilst watching Taskmaster AU, and then some YouTube.