"Fairytale or not?" a Denmark Travel Page by Sjalen

When I grew up in Göteborg, we went to northern Denmark a lot and similarly we made trips to the Copenhagen area from my granny's cottage in the south of Sweden but I always felt that I would have stronger connections one day and yes, since 2002 I work in Copenhagen, even though I still commute back to Sweden in the evenings.

Denmark is a country bringing mixed emotions to a Swede. It is where we've always gone to buy cheap booze and beer and there are still harbour towns where Swedes are loathed due to bad behaviour when drunk. These days, alcohol is cheaper in Sweden but you still see people with wheels full of Danish beer crates crossing the border as it is cheaper to buy a lot in Denmark.

Denmark is also seen as a more cheerful and relaxed place than Sweden to us and the Danes themselves call us the "strict big brother" whilst Denmark is the "loud little brother" which is actually not far off the truth. Danes are very direct, sometimes bordering on rude, which is probably why my Yorkshire husband feels very at home :-))) At the same time, this "loudness" make them very relaxed and much, much fun can be had in the company of Danes!

So where should you go? Well, I have tried to put together some of my own favourites and "musts" in Denmark. As a country based around a huge peninsula and several islands of various size, travelling can be intersting. These days, impressive bridges have been built between the main islands, making the very Danish experience of ferry crossings less common. However, there are still plenty of small islands served by boat.

In my and many others' opinion, parts of mid and northern Jutland, Funen and Bornholm are the most scenic parts of the country if that is what you are after. Copenhagen and Aarhus the most lively. Travelling around Denmark is interesting in that you notice how great a part of the population actually live in the capital region compared to other European countries. In some parts, it feels very quiet in the evenings and yet you are much closer to densly populated continental Europe than in similar sized Swedish towns.