Christiania Freetown was established in 1971 by  under the ownership of the freethinking individuals who reclaimed the land for public use in 1986. Today the  self governing community has a population of roughly 900 inhabitants, with visitors arriving daily to bear witness and explore within this ongoing social experiment.

Until 2004, one of the main attractions in Christiania was a series of hash stands on the main thoroughfare, aptly named Pusher Street. While hard drugs have always been banned by community law, the hash trade was very much at home in Chritiania, until the Danish government finally cracked down and the community was forced to refocus its business ventures. Today, a series of small businesses including shops, cafes and restaurants lure visitors to contribute to the local economy.

Christianians has  defended themselves through peaceful means and remains autonomous. Cars are banned from use within the community borders, where community members reside in abodes as typical as houses and as non-traditional as tree-houses. Chritiania is certainly an important destination for dreamers, explorers and hippies.

Christiania is located within the parameters of Copenhagen’s city bike network, we recommend you hop on one of those free access bikes and cross the river to check out a truly one-of-a-kind community.

Tycho Brahe Planetarium, is hard to miss. A statement to everything galactic, the Planetarium is where you go if you have an interest in space rocks, interstellar light beams and the planetary rings of Saturn. With one word Tycho Brahe Planetarium is Denmark’s most advanced centre for popularizing astronomy and space research and promoting knowledge on natural science.

All day round they present the spectacular IMAX films – the largest film format in the world and digital 3D films – that show you nature’s magnificence, whether they take you below the surface of the sea, out in space or into the jungle. The films are displayed on 1000 m2 dome-shaped screen which gives you the impression of being part of the on-screen action. Each film starts with a brief description of the actual night sky. Seated in the comfortable flight seats you can look forward to an hour with no time or space limitations.

The current stellar constellations are shown on the screen, which prove to be a good come down, as they also own a star projector that is able to project more than 4000 stars, complete with the different planets of our solar system.

In their permanent exhibition, The Active Universe, you’ll find the answers to some of the mysteries of space. Most of the shows are narrated in Danish. If you would like to hear the English narration, headphones are available e for DKK 20. If you are interested in our planet, in the universe or in the twinkling stars, the exhibition on natural science, astronomy and space travel is a must.

It sounds little weird, however one of the best place for relax in the centre of Copenhagen is cemetery -park Assistens Kirkegard. Initially the ground was intended for the poor to be buried. During the years passing by became a trendy resting place for the wealthy and famous, like physician Niels Bohr and world-renowned writers H.C. Andersen, M. A. Nexo and Soren Kierkegaard.

I would say that the cemetery is a local advantage these days. Locals using it as a picturesque park; in warm weather, expect to see people sunbathing and students studying nestled in between the rare trees and the graves. So bring a carpet, newspaper, boombox, and lay out in the verdant surroundings. Fittingly, the place never gets overcrowded.

If you’re holidat trip is time-limited, you can explore the cemetery as a shortcut to outer Norrebro by strolling through the dazzling mainway Poppel Alle. And don’t be scared if you suddenly find yourself far away from the main entrance—Assistens has several exits.

The Pearl of Oresund is a tiny dot in the spirit between Sweden and Denmark, 8 km off the Danish coast and just 4.3 km from Sweden. It is only 7.5 sq km, a shelf that slopes downward south to north from its highest point at 45 m just 5 m above sea level. The island is incredibly fertile farmland with rich clay topsoil on layers of shifting sand and clay. Photo by: bjaglin

When you go ashore from the ferry at Backviken, the grassy slopes of the celebrated Backfall cliffs rise straight out of the sea 40 m high, giving amazing views over the Oresund to the Danish and Swedish coasts. Kyrkbacken, the oldest and largest harbour with yachting marina, is a pretty village with a fish smokery. There are sand beaches near both harbours. Photo by: joningic

Ven is lovely island for camping and cycling holidays. Paths cut through the fields and copses so that you can wander freely everywhere. Coastal walks take you along some hair-raising cliff tops where you will see dramatic landslips and down to curious rocky shores full of marine life. Artists and craftmen have been attracted there by the inspiring anture and peaceful atmosphere. The bucolic surroundings, sea views, lively harbours, and sense of history make it an ideal palce for anyone seeking a relaxing island break. Photo by: WanderingJapanese

When to go: May to September. Population: 371. How to get there: Ferry from Landskrona on the Swidish mainland several times a day, and from Helsingborg and Copenhagen in the summer only. You should know: Bikes can be hired on the island, so there is no need to travel with one. Photo by: michal_kozlowski

Copenhagen is one of the world’s least pretensions, least capital. It’s among the easiest capital to explore, thanks to its manageble size and pedestrian – and bicycle -friendliness. Most of the Copenhagen ancient structures were lost to fires in the 18th century, but its historic center somehow was saved.

Today Copenhagen is intimate rather than monumental and what impresses more are the vernacular buildings that give the multiple quarters variety and distinction. The tiny student apartments have been combined into c0-ops, latterias and boutiques have supplanted the sex shops and street life is unmistakably boho-chic.

Denmark and Sweden decided to build the Oresund bridge between Copenhagen and Malmö. Before, Denmark had been in the corner of Europe, and Sweden was not physically connected at all. When the bridge made the connection between [mainland] Europe and Sweden in 2000,  made Ørestad, which is near to where the bridge meets the city, a very attractive place for development, whereas before, it was a nature preserve and an area for military exercises.

Copenhagen is a good living city, where you have easy access to work and can send your children to play in the garden. Not a lot of cities have that quality, and that’s why a lot of families want to live in Copenhagen.

A good city needs more than good architecture. It needs a policy for city life. So the new urban areas are being developed in dialogue with those who will use them, and people other than architects and planners. Almost every competition about Copenhagen now has a panel including anthropologists, sociologists, communication and cultural people—–that’s very typical.

Copenhagen, though it’s certainly cosmopolitan, has a villagelike quality. For sure the city is not a spot where you find the most interesting theater, compared [with] London. But if you’re an artist, maybe Berlin will be more fascinating place to experience. But I think the reason to go to Copenhagen, as I said before, is that it’s a good living city. Like Amsterdam, it’s very cozy and relaxed to be in. That’s one of our best quali-ties, and something London, Berlin, or Paris don’t have in the same way.

Today the Copenhagen Harbour is in the middle of a transformation from an industrial port and traffic junction to being the cultural and social centre of the city. During your stroll in the Copenhagen Harbour you will come across the Harbour Bath, which extends the adjacent park over the water by incorporating the practical needs and demands for accessibility, safety and programmatic flexibility.

The Harbour Bath also offers an urban harbour landscape with dry-docks, piers, boat ramps, cliffs, playgrounds and pontoons. As a terraced landscape, the Harbour Bath completes the transition from land to water, making it possible for the citizens of Copenhagen to go for a swim in the middle of the city.

But if you want to enjoy the whole harbour you may get a better view from the water. Why not go on board one of the yellow harbour buses or on a sightseeing boat through the canals? On land the City Bikes are free of charge and a fine way to get about the city and discover interesting places and things off the beaten track – but only within the city ramparts.

There are several possibilities for eating with water below the hull. Visitors can find a few ideas of where to go, but do also look around the canal areas of Christianshavn and Holmen.

The Elephant House is a currently finishing project at the Copenhagen Zoo for a group of Indian elephants. The Elephant house is covered with lightweight glazed domes that enclosure spaces with a strong visual connection with the sky and changing patterns of daylight.

 

Board public viewing terraces run around the domes externally, while a ramped leads down into an educational space.

 

Barriers between the animals and the visitors are discreet, such as elongated pool of water so that the approaching visitor encounters the elephants as another surprise in the Romantic landscape of the park.

 

The main herd enclosure give the chance elephants in captivity to sleep together as they would in the wild, while the floors are heated to keep them dry...

 

 Other key aspects of the design are the result of research into the elephants natural habitat. The paddocks recreate a section of dry riverbed as found at the edge of the rainforest a favourite haunt of Asian elephants.

Copenhagen is a lively city, up-to-the-minute metropolis brimming with creative energy and youthful optimism.

 

 In Vesterbro, which is a funky electric neighborhood in Copenhagen visitors can find designers shows and pita shops.

 

Time travel does seem possible in the Deer Park, behind the beach. This si Denmark’s most popular green spot. The trees are unusually tall.

 

The Royal Library’s sleek Black Diamond wing built of marble from Zimbabwe.

 

Five years ago dining out in Copenhagen, Denmark was an ordinary experience even thought a little weary. But in the last years there is a sea change in Copenhagen kitchens. Young Danish chefs are scouting out distinctive regional ingredients and serving them up in creative dishes.

An amazing view from Alberto K on the 20th floor of the Radisson SAS Royal Denmark hotel. This restaurant has fused Scandinavian with Italian. The result: some dishes are flashier and more successful than others.

This photograph depicts a creation with king crab at Alberto K, where many of the dishes are subtle and delicate.

The Orestad College is the latest upper secondary school in Copenhagen built in the industrial area of the city. So today in Denmark has a remarkable growth of the 16-19 year group, so the country need more study places. This bring the decision to build this superb college in Orestad City which is the new city center for the entire Ørestad.

Orestad College offers science, social science and human science. The purpose of the college is to prepare the students better for university and to enhance the science aspect. This college has chosen a profile of media, communication and culture, and with wireless internet all over the school and with laptops for all students – hence the knick-name the Virtual College.

The university was constructed without terms for rooms, and left much to the architects’ interpretation. The proposal was therefore not so much a response to a specifically defined task as an element in the necessary development of the idea of a Danish college.

Inside the college there’re four boomerang shaped storey decks rotate in relation to each other like the shutter of a camera. They form the superstructure; the overall framework of the college, and provide space for the college’s four study zones. Each zone is on one level, providing organizational flexibility, with the option of micro adjustment to create different spaces, learning environments and group sizes. The rotation of the story decks projects a part of each deck into the high central hall. This part is the so called X-zone; a spatial expression of the colleges’ ambition to promote interdisciplinary expertise between study zones with physical and visual links.

This lovely design hotel is located downtown Copenhagen, next to the City Hall Square, Norreport Metro and S-train Station. The S-train Station is only five minutes walk from the hotel and it’s a connection to Copenhagen International Airport in just 12 minutes.

Inside the hotel consist 268-rooms, which are with top modern Scandinavian furniture. There’s also excellent fully equipped business centre which operates one large room with 250 seats and 13 further smaller rooms. The converence rooms are perfect for any creative, open and communicative meetings.

The restaurant is very pompose and offer very delicious cuisine (Western, primarly Danish, Asian-food and a healthy cuisine). You can find in Skt Petri Hotel also Bar Rouge. One of the most famous cocktail bars in Copenhagen, offering a very funky atmosphere and disco music, especially during the weekend.

Each room has two-line phones, broadband internet access, air-con, safety box, B&O TV and stereo in selected suites, business centre, daily maid & turndown service, valet parking, concierge service, butler service on request, laundry, 24-hour in-room dining.

Enjoy..!

2. The Madonna Inn, San Luis Obispo, California, USA
Garish but great fun, The Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo is the mother of all themed hotels. It boasts 109 rooms, every one of them individually decorated. Try the Caveman Room, all rock and animal prints, or the Bridal Falls, which features a huge stained glass window and a massive waterfall shower. There is a room with a stuffed buffalo head hanging above the bed, and one with a miniature mill structure. The Madonna Suite is another extravagant option, although newly-weds might prefer the aptly named Just Heaven or Cloud Nine rooms. For those not staying, dinner in the completely over-the-top bright pink Steakhouse is the next best thing. Some of it is a bit dated now (the hotel opened over 45 years ago), and it’s not exactly what you would call good taste, but there is no doubt the designers had a ball working on this one. (website: www.madonnainn.com)

3. Hydropolis, Dubai, UAE
Think of hotels in the UAE and quite a few superlatives will spring to mind. This tiny Gulf country is home to some of the world’s most spectacular hotels: there is the Burj al Arab, the only 7-star hotel in the world; The Emirates Palace, the most expensive hotel ever built; and (currently under construction) the Burj Dubai, which will be, when completed, the tallest skyscraper on earth. Hydropolis, the world’s first underwater resort, however, promises to be in a class of its own. Inspired by Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, it is a huge engineering achievement, and the ultimate underwater fantasy for the 21st century. (website: www.crescent-hydropolis.com)

4. The Witchery, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
Located in a historic building at the gates of Edinburgh Castle, The Witchery (so named because of the many hundred who burned as witches on the Castlehill in the 16th and 17th centuries) is the perfect place for a romantic weekend away. ‘Theatrical’, ‘gothic’, ‘decadent’, ‘sexy’, ‘magical’… There is no shortage of adjectives to describe this atmospheric hotel, which has won a host of awards. The rooms are all lavishly decorated, with warm oaks and rich velvets featuring prominently, and each houses unique antique pieces. The bathrooms too have to be seen to be believed: the one in the Old Rectory boasts gothic ceilings, marble floors and a bathtub for two. Be warned though: there are only seven suites and they get booked up months in advance. (website: www.thewitchery.com/accom.html)

5. The Asakusa Capsule Hotel, Tokyo, Japan
Unique to Japan, capsule hotels offer businessmen who have missed their last train home a place to crash for a few hours before going back to work. They are not for the claustrophobic – you sleep in a capsule averaging 1m by 1m by 2m (3ft by 3ft by 6ft) alongside another 20 or 30 people, whom you will hear cough, snore or shout in their sleep. The capsules are surprisingly comfy though. Just remember to switch your mobile off and leave your smelly trainers in your locker. The Asakusa Capsule Hotel in Tokyo is one of only a handful that accept women. (website: www.asakusa-capsule.jp/english/)

6. Fur’n'Feathers, Queensland, Australia
Stay in a tree house for a few days. Located on the Atherton Tableland in Northern Queensland, only 90 minutes from Cairns, Fur’n'Feathers is a 100-acre private eco wildlife sanctuary hidden in the middle of the rainforest. Lush vegetation and a fantastic array of Australian animals draw wildlife enthusiasts, who come here to spot the weird looking platypus and the elusive cassowary, as well as possums, tree frogs, tree kangaroos, bandicoots, parrots and more. (website: www.rainforesttreehouses.com.au)

7. Gamirasu Hotel, Cappadocia, Turkey
It can get hot in Cappadocia in summer, and bitterly cold in winter. The answer to these extremes of temperature? Go under. The locals have been living in cave houses for centuries: insulated by volcanic rock, the rooms, carved in the cliffs, are a pleasant 17-20°C (62-68°F) year round. The Gamirasu Hotel near Urgup is an exquisitely restored 18-room cave house located in a former Byzantine monastic retreat (part of the hotel was used by Christian monks until recently): just make sure you don’t get lost in this underground warren if you’ve had a few drinks with your meal. (website: www.gamirasu.com)
8. The Shady Dell, Bisbee, Arizona, USA
Fancy a step back in time? Rewind back to the 1950s at the Shady Dell in Bisbee, Arizona. This trailer park opened in 1927 to cater for travellers of Highway 80, which stretched from San Diego to Savannah. And 80 years on, the same old retro trailers are still there, shiny chrome and all, for the delight of vintage fans. Some even have original black-and-white TV sets and phonographs with a selection of vintage records, and there is also a 1957 Valentine 10-stool diner on site. (website: www.theshadydell.com)

9. The Fox Hotel, Copenhagen, Denmark
Trendy types on a budget will love the Fox Hotel in Copenhagen. Staying here is a bit like being locked in an art gallery after hours. Decorated by a group of 21 young artists who were pretty much given carte blanche, the hotel’s rooms have been furnished in different ways and with different styles – there is one inspired by a 1960s thriller, for example, while another has been decorated in the Japanese Manga style. (website: www.hotelfox.dk)

10. Celica Hostel, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Celica might be a hostel, but is fast becoming one of the most popular bedding options in Ljubljana. The former military barracks, built during the reign of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, were occupied by various military forces for over a century before being demilitarised after Slovenia’s independence in 1992. A group of local artists then took over and did the place up. The 20 prison cells do have bars on the windows and doors, although the staff are a lot friendlier than the warders of yore, and you are free to escape any time to check out the sights of the picture-perfect Slovene capital. (website: www.souhostel.si)

Place to see at Paphos:

* Aphrodite’s Sanctuary – The Greeks agreed that Aphrodite had landed at the site of Paphos when she rose from the sea. According to Pausanias (i. 14), her worship was introduced at Paphos from Syria; but it is much more probable that it was of Phoenician origin. Before archaeology commenced it was understood that the cult of Aphrodite had been established before the time of Homer (ca 700 BC), as the grove and altar of Aphrodite at Paphos are mentioned in Odyssey (viii. 362). Archaeology has established that Cypriots venerated a fertility goddess before the arrival of the Greeks, in cult that combined Aegean with Eastern mainland aspects. Female figurines and charms found in the immediate vicinity date as far back as the early third millennium. The temenos was well established before the first structures were erected in the Late Bronze Age: “There was unbroken continuity of cult from that time until 391 AD when the Roman Emperor Theodosius I outlawed all pagan religions and the sanctuary fell into the ruins in which we find it today.”

Here the worship of the goddess centred, not for Cyprus alone, but for the whole Aegean world. The Cinyradae, or descendants of Cinyras, Greek by name, but of Phoenician origin, were the chief priests. Their power and authority were very great; but it may be inferred from certain inscriptions that they were controlled by a senate and an assembly of the people. There was also an oracle here. Few cities have ever been so much sung and glorified by the poets. The remains of the vast temple of Aphrodite are still discernible, its circumference being marked by huge foundation walls. After its overthrow by an earthquake, it was rebuilt by Vespasian, on whose coins it is represented, as well as on earlier and later ones, and especially in the style on those of Septimius Severus. (Engel, vol. i. p. 130.) From these representations, and from the existing remains, Hetsch, an architect of Copenhagen, has attempted to restore the building.

* Byzantine Museum of Arsinoe – The Byzantine Museum of Paphos is housed in a building owned by the Bishopric of Paphos next to the Bishopric itself and to the Church of Saint Theodoros. It was founded on the initiative of Bishop Chrysostomos II of Paphos in 1983, with the aim of preserving, protecting and projecting treasures of Byzantine art of the Paphos diocese. The greatest part of the exhibition space is taken up by representative icons from the entire diocese, dating from the 12th to the 19th centuries. Two double-panelled icons stand out, one of the Virgin Theoskepasti and Saint James Perse from the end of the 12th century, and the other of Saint Marina and Saint George from Filousa Kelokedaron, dating from 13th century. In the Museum there are also on exhibit detached wall frescoes from the Church of St. Theodoros in Choulou from the beginnings of the 12th century, sacred heirlooms, sacerdotal vestments, manuscripts and old printed books.

* Catacombs – The city contains many catacomb sites dating back to the early Christian period. The most famous is Saint Solomoni Church, originally a Christian catacomb retaining some of its twelfth century frescoes. A sacred tree at the entrance is believed to cure the ailments of those who hang a personal offering on its branches.

* Church of St. Paul’s Pillar (Hrysopolitissa) – This extensive site, which is still being excavated, was home to one of Pafos’ largest religious structures. What’s left are the foundations of a Christian basilica (built in AD 4), which demonstrate the size and magnificence of the original church. Green-marble columns lie scattered around the site and mosaics are still visible. The overall area is loosely roped off, so you can’t get a total picture of the remains.

* Nea Paphos Archaeological Site – The remains of villas, palaces, theatres, fortresses and tombs give the site its exceptional architectural and historic value. The mosaics of Nea Paphos are among the most beautiful in the world.

* Tombs of the Kings – The Tombs of the Kings is a large necropolis lying a little over a mile (two kilometres) north-west of Paphos harbour in Cyprus. The underground tombs, many of which date back to the 4th century BCE, are carved out of the solid rock, and are thought to have been the burial sites of Paphitic aristocrats and high officials up to 3 CE (the name comes from the magnificence of the tombs; no kings were in fact buried here). Some of the tombs feature Doric columns and frescoed walls. Archaeological excavations are still being carried out at the site. The tombs are cut into the native rock, and at times imitated the houses of the living.

* Agios Neophytos Monastery Palea – North-east of Paphos lies Ayios Neophytos Monastery, famous for its `Encleistra’, Enclosure, carved out of the mountain by the hermit himself, which boasts some of the finest Byzantine frescoes of the 12th and 15th centuries. Near by too is the painted village church of Emba (Empa).