We had flown from Minneapolis to Rekjavik, and we were continuing on to Copenhagen after two days in Iceland. The story of this day in Copenhagen is riddled with bad luck and mistakes, and mistake number one was staying up too late after too much brennivín (unsweetened schnapps/the worst thing you will ever taste), Icelandic beer, and adventure. Iceland is tricky in the summer - the sun is out almost all night, which will make your dumb brain decide that you should not go to sleep. So we maybe slept for a couple of hours, if at all, before it was time to get on our very early flight to Copenhagen.
The flight to Copenhagen was about three hours, but it felt like an entire lifetime. We were smushed in the middle of this ridiculously huge five or six-seat row of a monstrous plane. With all those bodies on the plane, you can also imagine how hot it was. I am a notoriously bad plane sleeper, so I spent much of my time staring straight ahead and wishing for the sweet relief of death.
Upon our blessed release into the airport, the first thing we did in our sleep-deprived haze was find food. Airport food is rarely a good choice, but when you're starving and don't know when or how you'll locate your next meal, you just eat it. Kim and I got røde pølser, which are these bright red Danish sausages. They were totally ok (we would have truly glorious røde pølser later on from a street vendor), but the Coke I had was the best thing I'd ever tasted.
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| This was the GOOD stuff. |
We hauled ourselves onto the first train, which was stuffed to capacity. When it came time to get off at our stop, we shoved through the throngs of people towards to door. Kim and Amanda made it to the platform, and as I was about to step off, the door slammed shut. Kim and Amanda looked at me, wide-eyed, from the platform. I looked back at them, equally wide-eyed, and held one hand up as the train sped away.
Had we been in the US, this would have been no big deal. I would have called them and told them where I was. We would have figured it out from there. However, as we were in Europe and did not have cell service, it was not that simple. But no big deal, I thought. I will just get off at the next stop and take the train going the opposite direction.
But there was no train going the opposite direction.
Ok, I'll just walk back to the other platform. It wasn't that far.
Except the train was elevated, and there was no walking back. In between the platforms was just grass.
The platform where I got off was two levels, so I descended a level and tried to find a train heading the direction I wanted. However, there was a red line and a green line, and of course I hadn't paid any attention to the colour of the line from whence I had come. I got on a train I thought would work, but it ended up taking me even further in the opposite direction. I was SO lost... and did I mention I have a poor sense of direction to begin with?
By absolute and pure luck, I eventually got on a train that dropped me at the platform where Amanda was standing. Alone. I got off, only to be told Kim had just gone to look for me. Luckily, Kim returned shortly (as she is not directionally challenged like yours truly), and we resumed our journey to the Airbnb.
I honestly have very spotty recollection as to how we eventually got to the Airbnb, but Kim and Amanda were kind enough to fill in some of the blanks for me. After the train, we got on a bus we thought was taking us the right way. (We had gotten directions from Google Maps before we left the airport, which is how we had any semblance of which way to go.) There was no signage telling us which bus stops we were approaching, so we had no way to gather where we were. The announcements were made only in Danish. Every street sign we read started with the same word as the stop we were looking for, so we really thought we were going the right way. We started to relax and even spotted a very grumpy-looking pug-like dog, who had the same face as we'd had all day.
Until we reached the end of the line, and the driver turned the bus OFF. We shared a look of panic, and the bus driver (who spoke little English, but we were in Denmark, so that's how it goes sometimes) told us we needed to ride the bus back and find another bus that went the other direction. So we'd been on the right bus line all along, but it was the wrong direction. This added another hour or so to our already painfully lengthy trip to the Airbnb.
Ah, the Airbnb. When we finally got there, we were flooded with relief. We retrieved the key by having to fit our adult-sized bodies into a tiny playhouse in the yard, in which a safe was hidden away. We wearily climbed the stairs to the apartment, wanting nothing more than to drop into a soft bed. As we reached the top of the stairs, the door was opened by a woman with a baby. "Uh... is this the Airbnb?" said Amanda. The woman confirmed that yes, it was, and we could come in.
Confused, we traipsed in and set down our luggage. We were now at least two hours past the check-in time, so we were naturally surprised to find someone there. The woman told us she was just packing up a few things and would be gone shortly.
An hour passed, and she was still there.
The three of us holed up in one of the bedrooms and talked in hushed tones about how badly we wanted that lady to leave. Our plans for the evening were to meet up with two of our cohort friends for dinner. They would be continuing onto Serbia, the other class offered through our graduate program, and we had decided to all meet in Copenhagen. However, none of us were in any shape to socialize, and we were all in desperate need of naps before attempting to conquer the streets of Copenhagen.
Finally, FINALLY, the woman left. We each staked out a nap spot, eager to regain a little sanity through sleep. I had just barely dozed off when the door opened. The woman was back. She spent another 45 minutes or so getting some more things and proceeded to use the bathroom before she left. The fact that she used the bathroom, the bathroom we had paid to rent, was SO WEIRD to me.
Oh, and I did I mention the bathroom was TINY with the shower located BEHIND THE DOOR?
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| This is the picture they put on Airbnb. Imagine trying to shower behind that door. It sucked. |
We decided to try a taxi service again, as we were short on time. It turns out that in order to get a taxi in Copenhagen, you need an app. No problem. We had wifi at the Airbnb and could download apps. However, it ALSO turns out you need to verify the app with a code you get from the taxi service calling or texting you. Guess what? We couldn't call or text. So a taxi was out.
Ok, we'll take a bus. The bus was cash only, and we had spent what Danish krone we had on the first incredibly long bus ride. So off to find cash. We first stopped at a gas station, where we found no ATM and were denied cash back on any purchases. It took ages to find an ATM, and the one we finally found (just by walking until we saw one). The ATM we found was next to an abandoned building and was surrounded by Danish teenagers skateboarding. It was actually pretty scary.
Finally, we had cash. But then? No buses. The bus schedule was a little wacky, and we couldn't seem to find one to take us back into the heart of the city. We waited and waited and walked from bus stop to bus stop, but nothing was going to work. By this time, it was dark and restaurants were beginning to close. We finally decided we would have to call it: we'd meet our friends the following day after a good night's sleep.
However, we needed to eat something. After our sub-par airport lunch hours ago, we were getting desperate for food. We found a nearby Vietnamese restaurant and headed inside. As we sat down, our waiter spoke to us in Vietnamese. Then, receiving no response from us, he tried Danish. Nothing. He handed us menus, which were written in Vietnamese and Danish. No pictures. Once again, we were screwed. Our poor waiter did his best to communicate with us as we tried to figure out what meat was what. It was late, and we were about the last people left in this restaurant. We were about to take our chances with whatever we happened to point at on the menu when the KINDEST SOUL overheard our struggles from another part of the restaurant. He approached us and asked if we needed some help, which about brought us to tears. This man listened to what we wanted, then told the waiter in Danish. I will never forget that beautiful soul.
Our day finally ended with us getting on a late bus into downtown Copenhagen for goat milk ice cream. It was delicious, and our spirits were on the mend. We decided just to collectively forget that day ever happened and start fresh in the morning.
(Obviously, none of us could forget that ridiculous day if we tried.)
Our next two days in Copenhagen were incredible. We finally found our friends, toured the Round Tower, took a river cruise, went to Tivoli Gardens, saw the Little Mermaid, had some amazing food and drinks (notably: our first Aperol spritzes at the oldest gay bar in the world!), explored Nyhaven, and more.
