For our last full day in Denmark, Josh, M, my brother and I ventured out early for a day trip to the nearby town of Roskilde. The real attraction here was the Viking Ship Museum which housed five recovered Viking ships from the 11th and 12th centuries discovered in the nearby waters.
The museum hosts regular events sponsored by a Viking Guild (think Civil War reenactment folks - but with Vikings). Every few years they build - in the traditional manner, with axes and hand tools etc. . . - a real Viking ship and take it sailing, often for weeks at a time. There were actually a few guys working on the next ship while we were there. Part of the museum's exhibits showed photos from previous expeditions. M and I were excited to see women participating in the Viking adventures, as well!
After a quick sword battle in the kid's play area we had lunch at the museum's cafe. Our "Viking Platter" was served on a wooden plank and featured some delicious smoked halibut, rye bread and berry jam among other treats. M wasn't as into the halibut as she was to yesterday's herring, but she devoured the jam.
The town of Roskilde is a small and quaint harbor town that predates Copenhagen. There is one huge cathedral in the middle of town. It's actually the mother church of Denmark, built in the 12th century when the area was barely more than a Viking settlement. The cathedral here serves as the internment site for many former kings and queens of Denmark.
We, unfortunately, didn't get to view the interior of the cathedral due to a service occurring when we arrived. But the missed opportunity gave us some additional time to try out one of Denmark's most classic sweet treats: Flodeboller.
Flodeboller, as we learned from a kind and informative bakery owner, is a chocolate-covered marshmallow puff. They come in all shapes, sizes and flavors but the traditional one is a plain white marshamallow with a dark chocolate coating and maybe a little sprinkle of coconut on top for good measure. We opted for a classic and one with pistachio topping. Both were incredibly delicious. The marshmallow was more creamy than fluffy and there was a surprise thin layer of cookie holding the whole thing together at the bottom. M happened to be napping in her stroller during this side-quest, so we even got by without having to share!
In the afternoon we met back up with my parents and went on a guided canal cruise. Nothing remarkable there, but the ride was relaxing (well as relaxing as anything with a two-year-old can be). Afterward, we spent our last night in Copenhagen visiting the famous Tivoli Gardens Amsement Park.
The set-up was similar to a fair, pay a small admission fee and then pay per ride once inside. It worked out really nicely for us as we arrived so late in the day and there were only a few rides that M could enjoy. Her favorite ones were a coin-operated Peppa Pig trolley ride (like the ones you see outside shopping malls for $.25) and this creepy French-style clown who starred in several silent comedy shows on the main stage during our visit. No clue what sparked her interest in this one. But, Josh and I did watch a lot of Baskets with Zach Galifianakis while I was pregnant, so, maybe that?
Comments