Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen. Opened in 1843, it is the second oldest theme park in the world!
Today was an embarkation day on the Silver Whisper. This meant that half of my free time was spent doing a task like greeting guests as they arrive on the curb, checking them in and handing them their room keys, or directing them towards reception on deck five. So even though we were pressed for time, we decided to hop on the red Hop On Hop Off bus, and take a trip to Tivoli Gardens.
Copenhagen salutes Tim Curry
About 100 feet or so from the entrance is this elevated bust. I think it's in dedication to the founder. So, for us Disney freaks, this is their Walt statue. You know, about Walt. It's said that he got much of his inspiration for Disneyland from his visit to Tivoli Gardens. And after having been myself, I can see it too.
I rike, you rike?
Originally, the theme park had many attractions that gave off the feeling of a mystical orient. Though the themes of the park are ever evolving, the theme of the mystical orient of the past still remains strong.
Oh, hello! Instead of face characters or furries, Tivoli proudly uses animal labor. Here Marcy is greeted by a peacock!
No union. Works for peanuts.
I feel pretty.
Oh, so pretty.
Sadly, the peacock senses it's time for its break, so it packs up its feathers and heads off.
Perfect Palatial Camouflage
Marcy's dog matches the peacock.
So, how about some rides, eh? Unlike the Disneyland we know and love today, rides cost tickets. This worked out to our advantage because we only had about three hours in the first place, and the general admission is low. So, we ended up saving money.
I got a golden ticket!
But which ride do you go on when there are so many to choose from and you only have time for one?
The up and down?
The Vomit Sticks?
The round and round?
We dig dig dig dig dig dig dig dig...?
Yes! An E-Ticket Ride!
Photo of our photo
And then we found this gem. It's a carousel playing "I just can't wait to be king," from Disney's The Lion King in Danish (Walt, we've come full circle). Too bad we just spent all of our tickets on the Dæmonen.
Having checked off our ride, we explore the rest of the park. And what do we find? More birds.
Inside Birds
Outside Birds
And "Don't Feed the" birds.
Oh, and more cool themed buildings! Oh, wait. That's just regular Copenhagen behind the walls of the park.
Silly American. That's normal Copenhagen.
With Tivoli Gardens crossed off our list, there's only one more thing left to do in the city before boarding the ship, and that is the little mermaid statue. Fortunately for us, the statue is on the water, and it's right next to the ship, which is why we left it for our last thing. Here it is, the giant little mermaid statue!
Look at this stuff, isn't it neat?
Actually, it's the little little mermaid statue.
Betcha on land, they understand, bet they don't reprimand their daughters.
So what's all the hubub about the little mermaid statue? Why is its picture on every brochure of the city when the city has hundreds of other statues?
Well, it's a few things actually. First of all Hans Christian Andersen is their local hero of an author and this is one of his stories. Secondly, it's one of the only statues in the entire world to be erected on a rock in the water. And lastly, it's less than a five minute walk from your ship.
And that's it for now from Copenhagen, Denmark! What do you think?
Today was an example of what the weather is usually like up here. Up until now, we were blessed with perfect weather, which was awesome for Geiranger. Bergen is a bigger city however, so to have had the one rainy day end up on the day we were in Bergen is okay with me. I think buildings and rain go well together.
Be that as it may, I took a bus tour of the city and around the city, and most of our stops were outside the city, so we'll start with the one picture inside the city I took, and it's of the Concert Hall. First of all, everything musical in Norway is dedicated to their musical hero Edvard Grieg. So, here is Grieg Hall. You can learn more about Grieg Hall here: History page of the Grieg Hall website.
Grieghallen
After driving by Grieghallen, we got off our busses by a thick cluster of trees and walked deep inside to find a replica of a stave church. Bergen has burnt down and been rebuilt several times. This particular stave church survived every fire, until a few years ago when some crazy guy decided he would light in on fire. So, here you go, a replica of a stave church in Bergen. No doubt the Norwegians are a little ticked off at that guy.
A Stave Church amongst the trees
Cool architecture.
The Norwegian King Olaf brought Christianity to Norway, and henceforth has been known as St. Olaf. Christianity was easily picked up and embraced partly because they adopted images from Norse mythology and used them for Christian purposes.
Close up of a dragon protecting a stave church
One example of this is the dragon, normally thought of as a reference to the devil. In this case the early Norwegians took the image of the dragon and used it to be more of a guardian. Here we have a close up one of the dragons that protects the stave churches from demons. Most Stave churches will have dragons somewhere in their architecture.
Just outside the church
Getting around Norway: The place is so mountainous that tunnels are everywhere. Here's one of them:
One of the many tunnels of Norway
Now we move on to the waterfall! If you've been reading my blog, you know that Norway is no stranger to waterfalls. In fact everyone who visits Norway in the summer ends up taking a picture of every waterfall they see until they get exhausted. So, what makes this one special? Well, this one is pretty powerful. It also has a railed walk behind. But most importantly, it has a parking lot for the busses, and a cafe and souvenir shop that's partnered with the shore excursion company.
Ooooooooh!
The pretty flowers that grow everywhere.
Found these flowers next to the waterfall. Thought I'd grab a picture. They can be found all over the country. Lucky me because I love purple!
The backside of water!
By now it's lunch time, and everyone's hungry. The only problem is...we're in Norway. Food is expensive! Two friends of mine went out for a pizza and soft drinks and got stuck with a bill that when converted into dollars ended up being about $100. So, here are the two things that I recommend so that you avoid this problem: 1) If you're on a cruise, EAT ON THE SHIP! Or 2) Buy a shore excursion that includes lunch. Thankfully, this excursion included lunch. We went to a local hotel that had an incredible spread!
Fish Feast!
Incredible spread that is...if you like fish. (Yes, I regretted eating all of the content of this plate)
Ice Cream and Mousse!
For the non fish eaters, may I suggest to you four different flavors of mousse and three different Ice Creams? (No regrets about this plate whatesoever)
Full of fish and ice cream, I had to go for a walk. We had an hour break so I walked over the the fjord and stepped in it because, how often is that an option for you? "Oh, I think I'll go over to the fjord."
Me in the fjord. Because I can.
Right, so I went to the fjord, touched it, got my pictures, and then
went back to the hotel and set some records on Mario Kart 3DS while
waiting for everyone to be ready. No matter what the degree of awesome you are surrounded by, the boredom can always find you when you're waiting for people! I recommend that you always be prepared to combat the boredom. Here was my solution on that day:
People are finally back on the bus, so we head on out to the next photostop:
Suprise! It's the fjord again.
We finish our trip with a ferry across the fjord to a road that takes us back to Bergen. But just as we emerge out of a tunnel, our driver stops by some huge rocks! Our guide tells us how these huge rocks fell from the cliffs above and just barely missed the people and the huts below. My thought of course is, "So why are we stopped next to them?!"
One of the "lucky" rocks.
Like I said, we end our tour with a ferry ride. But I have to show you how cool this ferry was! The front of it opened up like a giant mouth, and then it swallowed all the cars. Then it crosses the water, opens up and spews us out on the other side!
When people ask me about the highlights of my trip, I have to mention Geiranger. After sailing all morning up a fjord, we finally rounded a corner and emerged in an incredible valley. It was like the Norwegian Shangri La.
Geiranger, the village tucked away at the end of the fjord.
Norway loves its trolls.
After being greeted ashore by a couple of trolls, I hopped onto a tour bus bound for a hiking trail. Today, we were going to go for a hike in the hills above the village.
Looking down on the road up from Geiranger
The bus took that windy road and dropped us off way up here.
We turned up the road and saw THIS. We're already high up and then this mountain rises up in front of us. It is so big in person that it gives you the overwhelming feeling of being knocked back.
Huge Mountain in the distance
About half an hour of hiking goes by and then...waterfall!
Getting closer!
We hiked over to that waterfall where I looked up and took this next picture:
Overwhelming
Hiking down to the waterfall
Viewing the backside of water.
After the hike...waffles!
I think Norway claims to have invented the waffle.
I had mine with strawberry jam and cream.
So, we're on our way back to the ship, and our tour guide points out to us the sod roofs. Apparently, dirt and grass is a very good insulator. Therefore, roof. And how do you maintain your sod roof? Throw your goat up there.
