It has almost been a month of travelling and I think I'm getting the hang of it. Turns out the big, bad world isn't all that big or bad. I've had a few bumps along the way. Such as arriving in to København and having my debit card swallowed by an ATM. My advice for you is - do everything you can for this not to happen. If you want to get your card out of the machine you have to ensure you only use ATMs that are attached to a bank or a branch otherwise your card is destroyed - how helpful. As long as you have a backup card this won't be the most disastrous thing. To get a new card (instead of contacting your bank from home to ship a card) you can call your card provider (e.g. Visa or Mastercard) and have them send you a card. This was an inconvenient process so avoid it at all costs. The Danes have been the friendliest and most helpful so far; of all places, at least I lost my card here.
I arrived in København at night, had my card mishap, and found my way to my Couchsurfing Host's home. Karim was a very easygoing host who invited me to go with him to a salsa event that he's a regular at. Within minutes we were out the door and bound for the city. We quickly arrived at a club-turned-latin-street. I watched in amazement as people twirled and smoothly floated around the dance floor. Incredibly, there weren't any major collisions despite how crowded the dance space was. After an hour the salsa stopped and the club regained its life. Karim and I took a stroll through the streets, which was surprisingly filled with people around 11:30pm. I was happy to get in to bed to refresh for the next day.
The next day was beautifully sunny. I decided to go out and become an honorary local obtaining a rented bike. Even without a helmet, I felt incredibly safe cycling around the city. The bike system was smooth and orderly, it's easy to slot in to this well functioning society. I picked up bike etiquette quickly; since I'd already seen one biker tell off a car for being in the wrong I knew that I didn't want to be the next one scolded. I biked around with no set agenda. I stumbled upon parks and historical sights, ensuring that I'd miss the tourist trap of the little mermaid statue. The safe haven that I found, away from the crowds of tourist groups, was in the state of Christiania - also known as the green light district. I spent a few hours walking around the markets and enjoying the lakeside views. What I most enjoyed about Christiania was talking to the locals who happily divulged information about the place. That it was an old army base and when it cleared out the hippies took over. It held on to its relaxed nature, excluding the tension between the locals and the police. A local vender, Jan, was sharing his knowledge. He also passed on his wisdom that "people should treat others as they want to be treated and, at the same time, young people need to fight for their rights". After this uplifting talk with Jan, I had an easy afternoon exploring more parks and catching an early sleep.
My final full day in København consisted of life admin in my attempts to find a solution for my card. After a gruelling morning trying to ring the Visa emergency card office, I went out to Amager to soak in the sun at the beach. Later, I cycled around to make sure I'd seen all the sights possible. The most touristy thing I managed to do on my trip was to watch the changing of the guard at the Amalienborg Palace - the place you take a photo of tourists taking photos. Before going back to the house to rest, I brought a ticket for the next day and felt ready to say goodbye to København.
Next Stop --> Aarhus, Denmark
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