The Other Faces of Denmark
By
Photo: Copenhagen Cycle Chic
Or so I thought. Because it occurred to me during Bønnerup Havnefest that there is another type of Dane. A type that seems, to me at least, far closer to the Dane’s marauding Viking roots than the stylish cosmopolitans you see gliding around Copenhagen.
The chance of catching so many Danes in one place was too good to pass up, so I whipped out my camera and took a few photos. In many ways, the people I saw reminded me of the British, which is hardly a surprise since we had such a close relationship 1,000 years ago. See what you think.
(I should point out that since I did not speak to any of these people, it’s possible that there are a few Germans or Norwegians mixed in. But judging by Denmark’s lackluster tourism industry, it’s a safe bet that the majority are Danes.)
6 Comments
July 31st, 2009 at 1:40 am
Copenhagen is, indeed, vastly different than the provinces in many ways.
Although ‘lacklustre’ tourism industry is bit odd to read. Sure, it’s a small country but there are 4.7 million tourists each year, most of them in Copenhagen. And this is mostly hotel stays. There are tens of thousands of Germans and Norwegians who rent summer cottages in Jutland each summer and Copenhagen is the world’s third largest cruise ship port.
July 31st, 2009 at 6:32 am
“PDB explodes Stereotype shocker!”
The pub near my office has a Danish landlady and she is indeed a wholesome, pristine beauty. but they are like porcelain dolls and i’m reminded of that line by flaubert about the gilding rubbing off if you touch them. Returning to your expose though my friend empirically speaking it’s a wash out as you are comparing young foxy twenty somethings to 50 plus pensioners. When my landlady is 64 she probably will not be launching half as many ships as she does now.
July 31st, 2009 at 8:54 am
By the way, did you make any attempt to hide your camera? It looks like you were spotted by most of the blokes you snapped when you were infront of the billboard. What would you have said if challenged (they don’t look very happy with you)?
“well you see I’m simply trying to proove that not ALL Danes are good looking”
July 31st, 2009 at 9:41 am
Hi Mikael
I agree that Copenhagen is a very successful destination. But my feeling on this trip was that the rest of the country is not living up to its potential.
Jutland was quite empty while I was there this year, during peak season. And most of those who were there seemed to be Danes (with the exception of a number of boats flying Swedish and Norwegian flags).
Denmark is a very expensive country to begin with. So when you also come up against shoddy accommodation and poor service in restaurants, as we did, it tends to be a letdown.
Then, when you look around at the beautiful countryside and coastline, the incredible food, and the hundreds of miles of bike paths you start to wonder what Denmark could be, if it just pulled its finger out.
July 31st, 2009 at 9:45 am
Beau “incognito”
I remarked to a mutual friend the other day that, as I had not had the pleasure of your acerbic wit for some time, I was becoming concerned for your wellbeing.
I am glad to see you are, alas, alive and well.
July 31st, 2009 at 10:55 am
Could it not be that I was attempting to mask my identity for a valid reason Paul?! How many Danish Pub Landladies can there possibly be in London.
I’m glad you are OK too Paul. My poor heart was warmed considerably when I read the bit where you said a country with the third largest cruise terminal in the world had a “lacklustre” tourism industry.