Kronborg Slot

The real reason I wanted to go to Helsingor (anglicized as Elsinor) was for Kronborg Slot, the castle at which Hamlet is set. Although there were a few signs making reference to Hamlet, the castle is also just important to Danish history, and most of what we learned there was about that. Because the castle is situated at the Northernmost point of Zealand (the main part of Denmark) at the point where the Oresund Strait is narrowest (only 2.5 miles wide), it is strategically very important. A fortification was built on this site in the 1100s. It was replaced by a castle (built by King Eric VII) in the 1400s from which he could collect a toll from any ships passing through the strait. The castle was updated into a Renaissance castle by King Frederick II in 1585 as a wedding gift for his new wife. Much of the castle was destroyed by fire in the early 1600s, but restored by King Frederick's son, King Christian IV shortly after:

It was, as predicted, a very rainy morning. Here is a pic of us walking over to the castle, which you can see in the background

The castle is a UNESCO site and has extensive grounds. We did not explore much beyond the castle itself because of the weather.

All around, you can see parts of the original castle that did not burn

The FS monogram is for Frederick and Sophia (of Mecklenburg). He loved her so much, he wanted her included in his monogram instead of his regnal number

We started off with an intro tour of the castle and then a self-guided tour through most of the main rooms:

This was the king's bed chamber

The Great Hall

The Chapel (which did not burn and is still original to 1585)

I really liked the windows with the different colored panes set into them

We finished with the main rooms just a few minutes before the "secrets of Kronborg" tour was starting, so we decided to join that, as we were told it was entirely different areas of the castle, and ones that are not otherwise accessible:

We started in the beer cellar, where the original well for the fortress (the reason they chose this location) is still open

Next stop was the attic, where you can see where workers numbered the beams to help with the construction

The white rope shows the trajectory of a cannonball fired by the Swedes during one of their sieges. Several beams are still damaged.

The host invited us to lift the cannonball

She also opened this window which was for hoisting things into the attics (and has no screen, railings, etc.)

After the attics, we climbed to the gun tower for the views. It was very, very windy

After the tour, we went back down under the castle to explore the catacombs:

Statue of Holgar, the Sleeping Dane, who will wake to defend the nation

Lastly, we walked out onto the ramparts to get a closer took at the Oresund Strait and a better view of the outside of the castle:

By the time we finished it was late afternoon and we were ready to eat. We headed to the nearby Elsinore Street Food Hall and enjoyed several snacks before boarding a train back to Copenhagen.

Louisiana Art Museum and an afternoon in Sweden

We got up Saturday and hit the ground running. Kevin and I followed Benji's meticulous instructions on which train to board, and the kids met us further down the line so we could all travel together to the Louisiana Art Museum. This museum of modern art was high on Abby's "to see" list and also on the way to Helsingor, where we were staying the night:

Abby and Benji sent us a selfie from their train station before we met up

This was the first exhibit we came across in the museum, but it was a little underwhelming

Lot of similar artists to what we saw at MOMA last summer

But then there was this whole exhibit on interconnected ecosystems and natural fiber work and reproducing organic compounds in plastic (it was visually interesting but the science was a lot)

I just liked this little guy

This section of the museum was very pretty

And had a giant spider (representing the artist's mother)

The best part of the museum (for me, at least) was the outdoor sculpture garden:

The museum was right on the ocean

Funny to see a Calder all the way out here

This picture was taken about noon -- look how low the sun is already!

We finished the museum around lunchtime and got on a bus to head north to Helsingor. The weather was beautiful, and a quick look at the forecast told us it would rain all day Sunday. Kevin suggested we mix up our plans and head to Sweden for the afternoon, because it would be a lot more fun to explore there in the sun. That sounded right, so we went right from the bus station to the ferry terminal and hopped on a boat. Sweden is only 20 minutes by boat (across the Oresund Strait) from Denmark at this point (it is the spot where they are closest together) and ferries go back and forth every 15 minutes. It was a really nice boat -- a full bar, fancy restaurant, duty free shopping -- all for a 20 minute trip! Stepping off the boat in a new country was surreal - no fanfare or process at all (since they are both in the Schengen Zone of the EU, you don't even need a passport to travel between them):

Only sign we were in Sweden was the Swedish flags (city hall in the background)

Kevin had a hard time remembering the name of this town because it was so close to Helsingor across the strait. Turns out the reason is because all of this used to be part of Denmark, too

I had a loose list of sites to explore in Helsingborg, and top of the list was the old Keep:

Halfway up

This center tower is all that is left of the original medieval castle, and even it was largely reconstructed in the 18th century

View from the top

From the keep, we walked down a different set of steps that led us to St. Maria Church, which was a delightful surprise. This gothic church was started at the beginning of the 14th century and completed in 1410. It was largely made with blocks of sandstone from an earlier 12th century church that had been on the same site. The stepped gable tower was added in the 16th century:

Ships are common in coastal churches. This one was designed and donated in 1739.

The pulpit is of renaissance craftsmanship and dates from 1615

This fresco is medieval and probably dates to the original church. It was uncovered in a recent renovation.

The altar screen dates from 1450 Germany

This chandelier dates from 1653 and still uses real candles

Door to the pulpit

By the time we finished at the church, we were ready for a snack and decided to observe the Swedish custom of fika (essentially a coffee break, with pastries, taken mid-afternoon).  It is clear that this is a serious custom, as the coffee house was packed with people speaking Swedish and having drinks and food with their friends (the pastries were all excellent):

When we left the coffee house a little before 4, it was already getting dark and businesses were closing (most closed at 4), but we strolled down the main shopping area and took in the lights and store windows:

City Hall again, this time all lit up

We were ready to head back to Denmark before dinner, so we jumped back on the ferry and ended our day in Helsingor: