[Air-L] Copenhagen

[Christian Nelson]

I second the Glyptotek recommendation. Worth visiting even if stripped  
of all the art. Grand architecture that is, as Charlie says, still  
somehow warm and intimate. My wife and mother tell me that the cafe is  
also a fabulous place to have a delicious and wonderfully civilized  
lunch. (I wouldn't know; I had to leave early for the Experamentarium  
because the kids' fascination with the Glyptotek, while real, didn't  
last as long as ours did.) I'd just add the suggestion that if you  
have the time, and are kidless, you should start on the bottom level  
and then work your way upward. That way, you can  follow the  
chronology of the collection, which goes from Egyptian and Greek to  
Etruscan and Roman, and then from 19th through 20th century European.

If you can only visit two art museums, I'd recommend Louisiana,  
particularly if you're into modern and cutting-edge contemporary art  
from around the world. Once again, the collection and exhibits are  
located in an absolutely gorgeous setting. The grounds are beautiful,  
with fascinating modern sculpture sprinkled throughout, and the cafe  
(with its spacious patio) looks out over the sound. Its outside  
Copenhagen to the north (nearly to Helsingor and its great castle),  
but its an easy train trip. And there's an art room for the kids.

BTW, if you're doing heavy duty touring in North Zeeland (including  
Copenhagen, Roskilde, and Helsingor) after the conference you might  
want to think about getting a CPH card (24 hour and 72 hour  
varieties)--it gets you into lots of North Zeeland attractions for  
free (though not the Viking Ship Museum, Elsinore castle or the  
Experimentarium) and covers all bus, Metro and train travel in  
Northern Zeeland, which should get you darn near everywhere you're  
going. See the VisitCopenhagen.com site re: this.

--Christian Nelson

On Oct 8, 2008, at 8:31 AM, Charlie Breindahl wrote:

> While in Copenhagen, try not to miss Glyptoteket, a kind of Louvre on
> a human scale. Built by beer magnate Carl Jakobsen, the founder of
> Carlsberg, and named Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek in honor of his successful
> product, Glyptoteket is a wonder of late nineteenth century cosiness
> and world-class art - from ancient Egypt to modern Danish.