Yesterday was the day to hop on the big red bus for a 6 hour trip to the three royal castles about an hour from Copenhagen. I'll leave "the issues" for my review on TripAdvisor. Suffice to say that fabulous Robert and Claudia from our Academy tour were very much missed!
Leaving the hotel in wind and drizzle didn't look promising but, as the bus departed with 25 passengers from all corners of the planet, the weather cleared. We saw another side to Copenhagen travelling out of the city through the very swank housing along "the Riviera road" with views of Øresund Strait and the Swedish coast beyond.
Our first stop was Kronborg Castle which stands on the north western tip of Zealand - the island Copenhagen is situated on. It's one of northern Europe's best preserved Renaissance castles. It's listed as an UNESCO World Heritage site. Immortalised as Elsinore in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. There's no evidence that he ever visited the castle but the connection is very present with actors doing scenes from the play and the castle used in many films.
As we left the bus, I realised what we were in for during our visits as we scampered to the castle and then up and down stone spiral stairs hearing little of the guide's commentary. My scampering days are a distant memory and you need far more than 45 minutes to visit these places. So I broke from the group, where possible, and snapped away for later research...surprised at how well they turned out!
Entering the main courtyard, we were into a scene from Hamlet. But no time to stop, there were spiral stairs to be climbed! Where were all the grand staircases I kept thinking?
The interior rooms we visited were light with white washed walls. Paintings were the major adornment. The depth of the walls was obvious in the window openings. We came across another Hamlet scene in the Grand Ballroom...but no time to linger although all died as we were ushered out of the room!
We were encouraged to preorder a roll and drink for lunch which was handed out as we returned to the bus for consumption between castles! Our next stop was the Royal family's summer residence, Fredensborg Palace. This was advertised as a "photo stop" but, with 30 minutes allocated for a photo, ice creams were recommended! So we sat down enjoying our ice cream looking up at "our Mary's" summer residence. Quite bizarre given we'd raced through Hamlet's castle...
Our third castle was Frederiksborg. The big red bus's promotional material reads-
"Frederiksborg Castle is where you will risk losing your breath by the castle's splendor. It is as fantastic on the inside as on the outside with its stunning and beautiful interior and remarkable gardens. The unrivalled Renaissance castle was built by the legendary Danish King Christian IV and incorporates the best of Renaissance architecture and craftsmanship."
Well, we risked losing our breath by our guide's whirlwind speed through the castle. The "Long Walk" from the bus to the castle took about the same time as the tour! Again, no grand staircases as we were up and down stone spiral staircases. An American lady asked if she could visit the gift shop for 5 minute..."no time for shopping" was the reply as we were herded towards the big red bus for our return to Copenhagen.
iPhone photography came into its own here as I just pointed and snapped as we scampered along!
The Hunting Lodge in the Long Walk if the Chinese whispers between the passengers on the big red bus were reliable!
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| Neptune Fountain |
Our group scamper into the entrance hall of the castle with a bystander watching on...
What a contrast to our first castle! Here I was taken by the plaster work. Here in the Rose Room, Chapel and Great Hall...I picked up a brochure. And what about those gorgeous putti!
Great statues but no time to work out who they were....
So we were over the drawbridge and onto the big red bus back to Copenhagen but not via the "Riviera road" this time...we saw the industrial side of the city! And the final sting...the guide can't take payment for our lunch. We'll stop at the ticket office, join the queue of people purchasing tickets for the "hop-on-hop-off" bus and canal tours and then be returned to the tour's start point....another 20 minutes to bring our 6 hour castle odyssey to a close!
Our reward at dinner was a bottle of delicious rose at Scandinavian prices but, believe me, it's never tasted so good!