Day 1 - Saturday: Arrival

I flew Richmond to Copenhagen via Newark without a problem. As luck would have it, my classmate Chris and his wife were seated next to me so I had someone to talk to when we weren't sleeping or watching the movie. Unfortunately, the in-flight movie was Bandidas, which will make the most seasoned traveller reach for the Sky Mall magazine. 11 hours and 4 Tylenol PMs after takeoff, we were on the ground in Copenhagen, collecting our bags and looking for a taxi.

Chris and his wife went to the Marriott but I opted for the Ascot Hotel, which was closer to the center of town and had a lot of local flavor. Too early to check in, I dropped off my bags and went out to explore the city.

The first thing that caught my attention was how cars, bikes, and pedestrians all moved together without incident. Each had their own stoplights and each followed them explicitly. Cars stayed in their lanes, bikers (and there were hundreds of them) stayed in theirs, and pedestrians crossed at the crosswalks and didn't jaywalk. Ever.

Thanks to my girlfriend, Elizabeth, who thought ahead and surprised me with 500 Krone before I left, I was able to pay cash for lunch. An American Dollar will get you about 5.6 Krone, so doing accurate conversion in your head with a waiter standing over your shoulder is practically impossible. It was to be a recurring problem throughout the trip.

Since we landed at 8am local time, I'd vowed to stay awake the entire day to get acclimated to the new time zone. There were people everywhere, walking, biking, shopping, and I wanted to take it all in. At this time it should be pointed out that Copenhagen is home to Carlsberg brewery and drinking at lunch is totally acceptable. The nap came shortly after check-in.

That night we were shameful Americans and ate at the Hard Rock Cafe, which is around the corner from the Ascot. After dinner Chas, Vance, and I split off from the group and wandered around a few bars until we were ready to call it a night. Sunday the entire group was to take a bus tour of the city and have a reception with our local hosts, so we wanted to be ready.

Tomorrow's post: Copenhagen in Flames!