Retake : Day 1 (with more style this time)

So I realize I have been slightly enigmatic and incoherent in my posts. I made the decision to only bring my iPhone on the trip, since my laptop's weight-to-usefulness ratio is steadily declining. Thus I have been typing away on my touchscreen (since we're too lazy to find an Internet cafe). This (and the hotel's slightly weak wi-fi) can also explain the lack of pictures.

So, in an effort to make this more coherent, I'll start back at yesterday. We left our hotel at 4:30 after our nap (and it was still sunny as ever... Gotta love those Northern latitudes) and started along a wonderfully long pedestrian route. We stopped for some crepes with banana and Nutella, before continuing on through the small bunches of well-dressed, mostly blonde, tall, and skinny Danes (and the under-dressed, bag-toting, photographing tourists like ourselves).

It was particularly noticeable how much we stood out when a young woman walking by asked us (in English) where we were from.

We were both hesitant to answer, since she was peddling tea rose bags, but she was more interested in being our friends than selling us tea roses (thankfully). After a bit, we exchanged email addresses, and continued down the Stroget.

The rest of our afternoon/evening consisted of strolling, as we went by the Nyhavn ("new canal") to find public alcohol consumption everywhere. We went through the Amaliehaven and Amalienborg Slotsplads (a garden and a castle plaza). We deviated through Churchill Park, built in a pentagon around Kastellet (a fort complex). We went back out by the canal, and posed by the Little Mermaid (singing songs from the little known Hans Christian Anderson musical the whole way).

On our way back (at slightly dusky 10pm), we found a restaurant slightly within our budget range (less than $20 per entree) and raised a glass (outdoors, by a heater, on Stroget) to our tired feet.

One thing I love about travel is the reminisce travel experiences it brings up. Alisa talked about Italy, and the crazy number of people with dogs. I talked about Turkey and the crazy number of stray dogs.

 After we had finished the meal (but not before we finished the wine), two gentlemen asked about the heater. I invited them to have a drink and a chat, and our Minnesota friends began conversing away about their printing business and our travels.

So that is a clearer, more coherent version of what happened yesterday.