55N 40'34"

• The latitude of Copenhagen is about 15 degrees north of our latitude here in Philadelphia.  This puts it at approximately the same latitude as Moscow, Glasgow and Edinburgh. There are few major cities at this latitude outside Europe.
• "The oldest medieval settlement in Copenhagen, called Hafn or Købmannahafn (Merchants’
  Harbour), was enclosed by a horseshoe-shaped bank and ditch in the area south-west of Pilestræde (Fig. 1.1). In the 12th century it was open to the sea and functioned as a small fishing hamlet, no larger than a football pitch. The King of Denmark, Valdemar the Great, saw the potential of the area, which lay in its advantageous position in relation to the herring shoals in the Øresund, and to Roskilde and Lund, which were then major Danish towns and bishoprics. In c.1165 he passed responsibility for the town to Bishop Absalon; in the following generation, and throughout the 13th century, the town underwent considerable expansion. A new and larger enclosure, defended by a town wall, came to form the boundary around
  the area known nowadays as inner Copenhagen"
  
  Anderson, Vivi Len and Annine Moltsen. "The dyer and the cook: finds from 8 Pilestræde, Copenhagen, Denmark." Post-Medieval Archaeology. Vol 41, Issue 2. 2007. 242-263.
• The opening of Tivoli Gardens in 1843 is considered a major turning point in the city's transition to Modernity and what we would consider recognizable urbanism.  In 1844, an editor for Tivoli's newsletter wrote this about the Danes:It is not easy to imagine a more cheerless and surly people than we Danes. We dare not laugh nor cry, walk nor stand, ride on horseback nor in a carriage, unless we first most carefully consider whether this or that is quite appropriate, whether it will really do.  Natural feeling, our own inclination, has only a very small power over us, everything must be squeezed into the corset of convention, the most innocent pleasure or diversion will have to be measured with calipers and weighed on the most sensitive gold scales.  
  
  The transition took some adjusting to for many of Copenhagen's more reserved residents:
  "The pleasure-seeking of the people was criticized and countermeasures were proposed, for instance that a police-force should attend balls in order to prevent the lack of restraint of the young couples who were dancing the new dance in fashion: the waltz."
  
  Zerlang, Martin. "Orientalism and modernity: Tivoli in Copenhagen." Nineteenth-Century Contexts: An Interdisciplinary Journal. University of Copenhagen. 2008.

Did you know Copenhagen is also a brand of chewing tobacco

1. Danish furniture design is heavily influenced by the Bauhaus movement in Germany. Danish design focused on functionality through modern minimalism. Some of the most culturally significant pieces produced are the egg chair, by architect and designer Arne Jacobsen, and the PH-Lamp. The PH-Lamp, designed by Poul Henningsen, was designed to block direct glare from eyesight using semi transparent materials to reflect the light around.

Egg Chair- Arne Jacobsen 1958

2. Denmark has one of the lowest income inequalities between the rich and poor in the world. This is partially due to the fact that it has the highest income tax for people making over $55,000 a year. At 60.2% it is the highest than any other country.

3. A movie by Danish director, Mads Brugger, entitled "The Red Chapel" won Best Documentary during the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. This film focused on the exploration of North Korea by comedians and a theater troop, taking a comical approach to examining the hardships and controversy surrounding North Korea. The Danes seem to appreciate comedy as a way to soften up somewhat taboo issues. For example, one famous Danish documentary looking at mentally disabled people is simply called, "The Idiots". 

Pris en skön dag om aftenen.

 - Vindauga - The English word "Window" originates from the Old Norse word "Vindauga" (Quite literally meaning wind-door) which stems from "Vindr-wind" and "Auga-Eye" (meaning Wind Eye). The modern Danish language has developed over centuries from Old Norse, specifically Old East Norse - a Northern Germanic Language stemming from the Viking age around 1300. Old East Norse traces can still be found throughout Norway, Denmark, and Sweden.

- Wind Turbines - The Wind Turbine (electricity producing structure) was developed around 1890 using technology adapted from the Windmill (non electricity producing structure, i.e. milling grain) by Paul la Cour, a Danish scientist and inventor. In 2012-2013 wind-generated energy accounted for around 30% of the electricity consumed by Denmark, with apparently up to 40% of the wind-generated energy being exported. The wind turbine industry in Denmark is currently the worlds largest and Danish companies account for nearly 40% of the world turbine market, the largest companies being Vestas and Siemens Wind Power. In recent news it has been claimed that offshore wind turbine farms in the USA could help lessen the magnitude of hurricanes, causing disasters such as Katrina to be much less devastating.  (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/02/140226075019.htm)

- Kraken - First described by the Danish writer and biologist, Erik Pontoppidan, the Kraken was said to take the form of a giant crab the size of an island. In modern times the creature is commonly portrayed as a giant squid which drags large ships to the bottom of the sea. The first sightings were most likely of literal giant squid which can grow up to 15 meters long. The Kraken is said to live in the cold Norwegian sea where it is often mistaken for land, Pontoppidan claims that the real danger the Kraken presents is in the whirlpool left in its wake.

- JSC

Three Interesting facts about Denmark

1.     Noma- the three-time number one restaurant in the world- is located right along the Holmen canal.  On average, reservations must be made three months in advance.  At one point, reservations had to be made a year in advance.  Anyway, the chef's of this restaurant participate in ‘Saturday- night projects’- a night of creativity and beer drinking, you know, for “team spirit.”  Probably the happiest back-of-house chef's you’ve ever seen!

2.     Frederiksborg Castle, located just north of Copenhagen, is the oldest palace in Scandinavia.  Dating back to the early 17^th century, it houses the Museum of Natural History.  Remarkably decorated and stunningly impressive, the Danish King Christian IV seemed like quite the practical man.  The basement of the castle housed all of his riches. But, instead of struggling down the stairs with his money, he had a coin slide built into the wall.  This way, he could insert his coins from the ground level into the wall, which would travel down to the basement level, shoot out of the wall and into his basement treasury. 

3.     I’m sure we’re all familiar with the Tivoli gardens- the amusement park that may have inspired Walt Disney’s Disney World.  However, some of Tivoli’s rides are designed to regenerate energy.  For example, “The Vertigo” uses the power of its movement when it decelerates.  All the power that slows it down is stored and reused.  And so, about 25% of the electricity that  “The Vertigo” uses is regenerated.  

Denmark

-The Danes pride themselves on having a healthy work-life balance. They can often choose when to start and end their work day, as well as having the flexibility of working from home. There is a minimum 5 weeks paid vacation for all wage workers.

-Oysters from the cold waters of North Jutland are considered some of the best in the world. Specifically called the Limfjord oysters, they live in cold waters which slows growth but strengthens the meatiness of the oysters. Also the low salt content of the water produces a clean finish. I would imagine it being somewhere in the middle of an East Coast and a West Coast oyster here in the states, meaty and slightly briny up front from the salty Atlantic water, yet a refined semi-sweet finish.

-As Copenhagen is known as the most bike friendly city in the entire world, renting a bike is just as cheap and easy as navigating the roads. A typical bike rental in Copenhagen is 80.00 DKK- 140.00 DKK. That's 15-25 USD for a whole day of rental. For comparison, a typical daily rental here in Philadelphia starts at 35 USD and can get as high as 80 USD.

3 Interesting Facts About Denmark

1. History and Culture- Denmark is the homeland of the Germanic ethnicity and culture. The Franks, Burgundians, Jutes, and the Norses (Vikings) all trace their origin back to Denmark.  It has been inhabited since about 12,500 B.C. In fact, the Danish royal family is the oldest uninterrupted European monarchy. It traces back it's roots to legendary kings of antiquity. Gorm the Old, the first of the "official line", ruled in 934 C.E.

2. Political System- The political system of Denmark is that of a multi-party structure, where several parties can be represented in Parliament at any one time. Danish governments are often characterized by minority administrators, aided with the help of one or more supporting parties. This means that Danish politics is based on consensus politics. Since 1909, no single party has had the majority in Parliament. As of February 3, 2014, the government has consisted of two main parties: 'Socialdemokraterne' (The Social Democrats) and 'Radikale Venstre' (the Danish Social-Liberal Party) Helle Thorning-Schmidt, the Prime Minister is from the Social Democrats. 

3.  Danish Sports- The Danes like sports as participants, spectators and in front of the television. Almost two million activity participate in sports as members of an association. Almost 2/3 of all children and young people are engaged in organized sports in their free time. The most popular sports are football, golf, aquatics (swimming) and handball. 

Three Interesting Facts

 
 

1. Tivoli Gardens is second oldest amusement park in the world. Located in Copenhagen. The park opened on August 15th, 1843. In 2012, 4.033 million people visited the amusement park making it the second most popular seasonal theme park in the world. 

 



2. B & W Loppemarked is a flea market, a few blocks north of our site (Refshaleoen), in the old B & W shipyard that is only open on Saturdays and Sundays. It's known for it's 50 -   60 century furniture and gadgets.

 

 

 

 

 

3. Blocs & Walls is a new built climbing center in the B & W buildings making it the largest and most modern climbing facility in Denmark.