Visiting Beautiful Copenhagen

With Denmark being reported as one of the happiest country in the world, it’s no wonder one must take at least one trip, to this wonderful land of happiness. As Copenhagen is my home town, i always go back to visit families and this city never fails to take my breath away.  And my visit back home last Christmas was no exception. If you are ever planning to visit Copenhagen, here are a list of my top things to do so you can make the most out of your trip.

One of my favorite things to do in Copenhagen is to walk by foot as it’s a relatively small city, and just admire the history and architect that this historical Nordic city has to offer. Museums and galleries are always in my agenda when i go traveling, and i feel it’s a fun way to understand more about a country. Amalienborg is the winter residence of the Danish royal family and definitely a must see. Take a walk along Amalienborg Palace, which consists of the four rococo palaces, and take photos of their majestic and historical  buildings.

If you are at the Amalienborg Palace during noon time, you will even be able to experience the change of guards in the court yard, where the Royal Life Guards are dressed in their distinctive black and blue uniform. However, you can also witness their vibrant red and blue uniform during special occasions or ceremonies, such as birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, and etc, within the royal family.

You can also visit the Amalienborg Museum  if time permits, and understand the history about the Danish royal family. You are allowed to take photos inside the museum but you will need to pay for this. The dining room was one of the rooms that impressed me the most, which was where Christian X and Queen Alexandrine used at the time. The white detailing of the dining table, chairs, and cabinets, along with the golden wall gives it a very royal look. The lovely plates hung on the golden wall were actually wedding gifts for Christian X and Queen Alexandrine in 1898.

And if you want a little souvenir, you can check out their shop where they sell post cards and books relating to the royal family, and some other cute Danish souvenirs. One of my most common souvenir purchases are magnets and postcards and this shop was like heaven for me. In fact, i’m a collector of magnets and postcards for every country or city i visit.

You can also do a quick stop over at the Marble Church (Frederiks Kirke), which is located on the west of Amalienborg Palace, and is only a mere 10 – 15 minutes walk away. Admiring this beauty from a far or close up is just as exquisite. The dome of the Marble church is also known to be the largest church dome in Scandinavia (according to wikipedia). If the exterior of this church is not enough to impress you, then take a walk into the church itself and experience a magical moment, where you will walk into a space of serenity. The dark and quiet ambiance along with with candles lit up, against these tall concrete walls and a beautiful  ceiling of the dome, was enough to take my breath away.

After a long day of walking and if you want to take a break but not go too far, then look no further then visiting the Mormors Cafe (Grandmother’s cafe in English translation), which is also near Amalienborg Palace, located on Bredgade 45, Copenhagen 1260. You can find more details on their website here. My friend and i happened to stumble upon this local cafe by accident, as it started to rain, and we were tired and hungry. The cafe has a very traditional homey ambiance to it, with the floral wallpaper, wooden chairs and table, and old white cabinets to display their goodies. It’s almost sort of a moment you experience when you’re visiting your grandmother in her old cottage house.

I’m not sure if this cafe is a popular spot in Copenhagen but it definitely is a cosy and quiet place to chill with friends. I ordered a cappuccino and their home made apple crumble cake with cream, and was more than happy to stay out of the cold. It was just the perfect way to end our night.

Photo source: all photos by me

A look back into 2013…

Time awaits for nobody and with that, 2 months passed by me in the blink of an eye since my last blog post. As we enter the second month of 2014, i thought it was about time to get back into blogging before my laziness got the best of me.

Looking back, 2013 was indeed a great year, filled with both good and bad times, a balance much needed in order to appreciate even the simplest of things in life. Great adventures took place such as discovering new eateries in the city, spending quality time with loved ones over family gatherings, catching up with friends over coffee by day, and cocktail by night, and spending some alone time by myself to do things i enjoy. Celebrations were in full swing with Chinese New Year, Mid Autumn festival, birthdays, and friends from across the globe coming to visit. Of course, a trip back home to Denmark to see my friends and family over Christmas and New Year, was the best and perfect way to end the year.

I am grateful for every moment shared with my nearest and dearest, as well as every single new friend i befriended, and new experiences that i encountered over the year. Here’s a quick glimpse into my 2013.

My first experience of indulging in a box of macarons from Laduree in Hong Kong, as my BFF knew my love for these gems and gave them to me as a surprise. Trying on my new American Apparel nail polishes and kicking the new year in style with some glitter. As every year, there were gorgeous flower decorated at home to welcome the Chinese New Year. It was also another year of festive Chinese decorations and flowers seen everywhere in the city, and firecrackers could be heard from a distant in our village back in Shenzhen, China. A free heart shaped cookie gifted to me from a staff at Pret A Manger, upon my routine morning coffee run there, really touched my heart and it’s such small gestures that really gets to me. The perks of living in a small city like Hong Kong, are discovering new bars, such as the recent Lily & Bloom, in Lan Kwai Fong, which serves absolutely divine cocktails. The bartender was ever as friendly and surprised me with a cocktail that wasn’t on the menu, when i asked for what cocktails to recommend. My all time fave Japanese Pop singer, Namie Amuro, who i have adored since high school, was finally coming to Hong Kong for her ever first concert, for her 20th anniversary Asia Tour 2013. I was standing and dancing, and singing all the night long to her good old 90s songs, such as Body Feels Exit, Can you celebrate, Dont wanna cry, and many more.

Audrey Hepburn fever in full swing after watching her movie, Sabrina, and spontaneously bought her book “How to be lovely”. The book  is an easy read and great way to look into the life of this stunning and iconic lady during her time. Furniture and home decor shopping is one of my fave past times and i was beyond excited when i spotted these wooden alphabets in the home section of Cotton On. I am still deciding what alphabet to get and in what color. One of my good old friend from Canada was in town, which offered the perfect opportunity to take her around the city, which we both grew up in. A visit to the Man Mo temple seemed like the ideal thing to do after brunch’ing in the area. It was truly fun to rediscover Hong Kong and explore around like a proper tourist. Mothers day was celebrated over steak for dinner and some lovely flowers to surprise her. Topshop had finally come to Hong Kong, where i received their goodie bag with a lipgloss, leaflet, and a magazine. Getting all dressed up in my LBD (little black dress) with cute ruffles and a red clutch, to meet some friends to try out this new Italian restaurant on a Saturday night.

Getting into healthy mode and enjoying my morning hikes again, where my surroundings consist of  lovely flowers and a beautiful scenic view of Hong Kong. That very moment of reaching the top, and breathing in all the fresh air and having the sun beam on my face is priceless. One random trip to Starbucks for my cold lemonade and i met a complete stranger, whom i disguise as Mr. A here, happened to be from my home town, Denmark, and the rest was history. I arranged for a trip up to the peak with Mr. A, upon his request,  and it was an experience that was absolutely unforgettable and worthwhile. We had some delicious steak over red wine, where the night ended with this breath taking night view of Hong Kong, with all the sky scrapers lit up in unison from afar. Celebration for my birthday with close friends over a nice meal and great company, and a surprise of two mini birthday cakes, which just completed this special day of mine. One of my good friend from high school, being as thoughtful as she always is, got me a Tiffany jewelry bowl for my belated birthday. It’s a perfect storage space for my precious Tiffany necklace and bracelet. During the mid September month, along with the moon being fully rounded in shape, it was blatant that Mid Autumn festival was upon us. With my sister and her boyfriend in town, we decided to visit the local Mid Autumn Festival market in Causeway Bay. A market packed with people taking photos everywhere, we patiently savored the moment and enjoyed the sight  of beautiful lanterns designed in all sorts of form, such as dim sum, lotus flowers, Chinese goddesses, and etc. A weekend getaway from the busy city to Lamma island. The peaceful and scenic view of this island, which is only an hour away by boat, never fails to refresh my mind and soul.

Stashing up on my fashion magazines to stay updated on the current fashion trends. Enjoying a quiet weekend on my own over brunch at this new restaurant i discovered, with my fave eggs benedicts and a cup of cappuccino.  I always think that “me time” are very vital and precious, and it’s a good time to reflect on myself. Lying in on a lazy weekend and catching up on my fave old American series, Sex and the City, is the best way to combat the cold winter season. Doing research at home for my up coming Europe trip with a friend, to London and my home town, Copenhagen. Started my health morning breakie at work again, where i have oatmeal topped with a lot of fruits and sunflower seeds. At the Christmas market in Tivoli in Copenhagen, where i was in awe by the sight of this tree filled with hearts and this Christmas tree behind it.

May this year bring everyone even more happy memories and fulfilling experiences to live by. Happy New Year and welcome to 2014!!!

Photo credits: all photos by me

The Starbucks story

The clock struck 1pm at work, signaling lunch time, and off i dashed out of my office building and into the hot and humid weather outside, that awaited me merciless. My sudden thirst for an ice cold drink  came out of nowhere that day, and just like that,  i went to the nearest Starbucks for my ice shaken lemonade green tea.

With each foot step getting closer to Starbucks, small droplets of rain started to slowly fall down onto the pavement. As the rain gradually got stronger, I started to pick up my pace while holding tightly onto my brolly, and quickly ran into Starbucks for shelter. The cafe was bustling with men in business suits, ladies in corporate attires, and laid back tourists, where small chit chats filled the room. It was a typical busy lunch hour where staffs were working away like no tomorrow. I ordered my ice shaken lemonade green tea and within 10 minutes, i had my drink in hand and ready to go back to the office to dig into my lunch box.

To my surprise, not only did the rain not stop but it started pouring down real bad, as if a typhoon was on its way. There were no empty seats in sight and as i busily skimmed through the crowd, i spotted this one empty chair that was situated opposite a sofa, where a guy was sitting, whom i shall name Mr. A. I politely asked “Is anyone sitting here?” and he responded with a brief “No”. I was in my own world, in a blur of random thoughts as I was fiddling with my iphone, and slowly tasted the icy and sourness of my lemonade green tea as it touched my lips. It was also at this moment out of nowhere that Mr. A asked me “So where are you from?” and he had the friendliest and biggest smile on his face. To say i was i caught off guard, was an understatement, because this has honestly never happened to me. I still remember debating whether or not i should make things easier and reply “Hong Kong”, with me being Chinese and all, or should i make things more complicated yet interesting and stir his attention, by saying “Denmark”. Within 2 seconds, Denmark came out of my mouth and i will never forget the response i heard next, where he still had his smile and said “me too”. My face looked like I was in disbelief, which I also confirmed with him later on.

Mr. A gave me his business card and we talked for about 30 minutes, and all along i kept thinking how surreal the entire experience was. I’ve never been the type who just chat with strangers in cafes and yet there i was, doing just exactly that, and it was an enjoyable experience. It’s an unexplainable feeling of feeling “home”. Our share of similar backgrounds, in terms of our childhood memories, such as food we loved and TV shows or music that we enjoyed, was quite unbelievable. And just like that, and after an exchange of a few emails that afternoon, we decided to meet up for dinner.

The night did not disappoint, where there was an endless flow of talk and lots of laughters, followed by delicious Italian food and red wine. The silence apart from our cheerful voices, filled the room, and we soon realized we were the last customers and the staffs looked desperate to close. We quickly got the bill and i remember thinking how i didn’t want the night to end yet, and that was when i suggested to go to a bar for one more drink. To my delight, his face looked more than happy by the sounds of that idea. I decided to take him to Al Pasha, a middle eastern theme bar. The setting was dark yet cosy, with friendly staffs, and Mr. A was beyond impressed as we got escorted to the patio outside. There were rows of green bushes decorated with sparkling lights on them, and these lovely wooden tables with candle lights shining from a far. It was the perfect ending to a perfect night. I found out later that night that Mr. A was in town for a business trip and had to renew his work visa. And up to this day, a month later, we are still in touch.

What are the odds of two people from Denmark to meet in a Starbucks, in Hong Kong? We both agreed on this and are very grateful that we met, especially under the circumstances that we did. Such encounters do not happen everyday and this really shows that you just never know what is around the corner. As for Starbucks, i will always see this place in a very different and positive way now:)

Photo source: weheartit

My sweet 30th!!!

It has been a while since i last blogged but i just thought i would drop by and let you all know that i’m back from Europe and that i had a lovely trip, where i got to celebrate my big 30th birthday with all my families back home in Denmark!!!

It was truly a memorable and joyous day filled with laughter, joy, delicious food, which included our must have traditional Danish birthday cake that was decorated with tons of Danish flags, and most importantly, all my lovely families that were there to spend this special day with me. I’m already missing everyone so dearly, especially my 3 little cutie pies, my nephew and nieces!!!

Anyhow, just a quick update but i will be back very soon to update you all on my lovely adventures!!! Take care for now and have a happy mid autumn festival for those that celebrate this festive Asian celebration:)

Photo accredited to me

Europe, here i come!!!

This is just a quick post to tell ya all that i will be jetting off on a plane in exactly 2.5 hours to Europe!!! Yes, this will be a much needed 2 weeks vacation where i am going back home to Denmark and then off to London, and a brief weekend getaway to the city of love, PARIS!!!! I am going with my parents as well, and it will be their first time to Paris, so i surely will be anticipating nothing but the best for this trip.

Photo source: weheartit

I am already beyond excited and i cannot wait to see all my families and friends. In the mean time, you will have to excuse my absence but i will be back before you know it, and I look forward in sharing my adventures with you all soon!!!

Traveller’s Guide to Beijing – Capital M

It was my second day in Beijing where i was awoken by the sun shining brightly into the room and I could hear the distant small chit chats between my 2 BFFs as we all lazed around in her comfy king size bed.  It’s not everyday that i get to wake up to such a warm and loving morning with 2 of my closes friends in the world and though i was tempted to snooze for a bit longer,  i knew the big city was calling our names. And with that, we all got up and dressed up to go out and explore Beijing.

We had booked a table at the prestigious Capital M for lunch and i could barely hide my excitement after my friend told me that they served our home made Danish food, Smørrebrød. For those that are not familar, Smørrebrød is buttered rye bread, a very dark brown colored bread with different toppings added to give it flavor, such as meat, fish, egg, cheese, cucumbers, herbs, and etc.

We got seated by the window seats with a breathtaking view of the city center of Beijing, where it leads up to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.  The western design influence of the black and white patterned floor and mirror ceilings against the Asian infused detailing of red cushioned chairs and flowers, was an excellent way to mix and match.

The restaurant was surrounded by vibrant paintings which reminded me of Van Gough’s art work,  and it bought all the pieces together in the restaurant just perfectly along with a relaxing ambiance.

As expected, i ordered my good old home town Danish Smørrebrød and it did not disappoint. My fave was the fish fillet (fiskefillet in Danish) with a squeeze of lemon juice on top, and the crispiness was just right. The salmon, shrimp, beef, and cheese were typically like what it would taste like so nothing too exciting there.  The egg was excellent along with the dill herbs and for some reason, the flavor of dill reminds me of Denmark. Strange, i know. I suppose the only disappointing thing was that the bread served was not the normal Danish dark brown rye bread you find for Smørrebrød.

What better way to end our meal then enjoying a cuppa latte whilst indulging the complimentary chocolates, biscuits, and jelly candy. The honey comb chocolate was my favorite and its sweetness blended in just right with my latte. The freshly made beetroot juice that my friend had was also delicious and it was beyond fresh, as if i was eating right out of a beetroot!

And if the weather permits, why not enjoy a lovely weekend lunch outside their terrace whilst admiring the scenic view that will not fail to amaze you.  I am sure i will be back to Capital M and just like that, it was time to say good bye and we made our way to the next destination on our “to go” list, Forbidden City.

What fun adventures would you love to try if you were in Beijing?

Traveller’s Guide to Beijing

It has been a month and a half since i’ve returned from my Easter vacation in Beijing, and it only seems  like yesterday that i was still enjoying  my crispy Peking duck and the buzzing non stop night life in China.

Upon arriving to Beijing with my other traveling buddy Ms. S, little did we know that our BFF was waiting for us at the arrivals hall with a cab and ready to whisk us off to some delicious dim sum place.

I have to say, Beijing is a big city and not everything is within walking distant so we cabbed it to most places and the prices are relative cheap as well. As we got into the city, we were surrounded by tall sky scrapers along with numerous  people walking or driving in their cars and mini scooters, in all sorts of direction.  By this point, we were already starving and we could already hear the dim sum calling our names!

We ordered a lot of the well know dim sum dishes like the pork buns, the shrimp dumplings, turnip pastries, fried rice, and one of my fave Chinese egg tart desserts!

Now one would expect to experience more local things when they are in China but we did just so the opposite. My friend works in the Danish embassy so she took us a quick tour around the office and i have to say, the modern white walls mingling in with the earthy toned wooden chairs really reminded me of back home. I actually felt like we were back in Denmark and it was truly a nice feeling.

After not long, we decided to take a break at the nearby “Royal Smushi House” cafe for a coffee and cake fix, and to my surprise, they serve Danish food too! This was definitely not my typical China experience but i was actually kinda liking the whole East meets West culture.

Once you walk into the lobby, you are greeted with this vibrant yellow wall contrasting against a white wall, and there’s this stylish black staircase that leads up to the restaurant. I really like how they have this contemporary Scandinavian design to the place with a twist of Japanese culture infused into it, at least that’s what they say. I ordered Jasmine tea and it came in this lovely pot that was designed with butterflies and nature. It sure helps  to feel more relaxed and posh when you are being served in beautifully nature inspired tea pots and cups, don’t you think?

When you are in Beijing, one of the “must do”  tourist attractions is without a doubt, the Forbidden City and eating their infamous “Peking duck”. The Forbidden city was actually the Chinese imperial palace throughout the Ming Dynasty until the end of the Qing Dynasty. It was also the place that served as home for the emperors.

This magical City is huge and there are many buildings and rooms to explore so be prepared to use up at least half a day to fully experience this historical place. What really captivated me about the Forbidden City was the vibrant colors, design, and detailing of the buildings. I actually felt like i went on a time machine and was back in the Qing Dynasty.

After a long day of walking we decided to cure our hunger with some delicious local Peking duck at this well known restaurant called “DaDong”.  The duck skin was thinly sliced and there was not too much fat on the meat, which is just how i like it. There were different types of sauces and toppings such as the gingers and cumbers,  for the Peking duck to add more flavor to it. I really can’t express enough how spoiled it is of us to be able to experience both the East and West in Beijing, especially when it comes to food.

And with that said, we ended the night at the Mesh Bar inside the “the Opposite House”  hotel, where i enjoyed my Lychee and Passion fruit martini with my girls. And yes,  that completed my night!

The Danish exploration continues…

And so the great exploration of the Danish heritage continued for the next following 4 days, and that was clearly not enough time for us.  But we did make use of each and every minute where alot of walking was involved. We passed by the City Hall Square (Rådhuspladsen) quite a few times as it links to the beginning of Strøget, apparently one of Europe’s longest pedestrian shopping area, where we did some shopping and eating. On the top of my list to show BF was Amalienborg, which is where the Danish royal family resides during the winter season. If you’re lucky, you get to see the soldiers marching and we were just that lucky that day!!!

We made use of time that day and passed by the famous waterfront Nyhavn and took some photos. I wanted to go into one of the local cafes for food but we were just too short of time, sucha bummer considering i’ve never had a meal at Nyhavn before! It’s a place worth going if you are in Copenhagen during the summer and you’ll find the place buzzing with people and  cafes, where you can grab a bite or enjoy a cool beer.

Rådhuspladsen

Soldiers marching at Amalienborg

Nyhavn

As the day came to an end, we decided to go to the famous amusement park Tivoli to get it over and done with, lol. Don’t get me wrong, this place is absolutely worth going, where there are fun rides to try and where the night turns into a romantic fairytale with colorful lights illuminating up the place, and last but not least, they do an amazing show with the fireworks to end the  night.  With that said,  i would personally recommend couples to visit Tivoli during the evening.

Later on, BF got hungry and so we headed to a nearby steak house that i go visit everytime i’m back. It’s called Jensens Bøfhus and they’ve got loads of chains across the country so you’ll find one without a problem. I had my usual steak and baked potatoe with my all time fav Bernaise sauce! I think the sauce originated from France but as a kid, i always thought it was a Danish sauce, lol. BF tried the steak with whisky sauce and i wasn’t too fond of it. Oh, and i tried this really nice raspberry (hindbær in Danish) drink and i highly recommend you to try it. BF tried it and he said it was good too.

The next day we went to visit my brother in Næstved, the Southern part of Copenhagen, and it takes around one hour to get there by train. That day was a particularly special day as it was a joint birthday party for my nephew and nieces, and i haven’t seen them for 3 years!!! Gosh, i miss them heaps. They had a gigantic cake i tell ya, and you may think WOW! But all birthday cakes looks relatively like that to some extent, apart from the sizes, i guess. They also love sticking  all those Danish flags on the cake and i find that really sweet. It’s kinda like the nationalism for your country? hehe

Finally it was back to the big city the next day and our trip was pretty much coming to an end, as much as i didn’t want it to. We decided to stay at the Wake Up Copenhagen hotel on our last night so we could spend some quality time together. It was only 550  kroner so not too bad a deal. It’s also a very comfortable hotel to stay at and i just love it’s Scandinavian design with simplicity and style in mind.  It’s situated right in the city center and close to the airport too, so it’s a winner for sure:)

Lobby/Waiting Area

Bar Lounge

We ended our final night at Hard Rock Cafe for dinner with my family and it was a cosy and lovely night. We called it an early night as we had to catch a 8am flight the next day and with that, it was time for my next stop Dublin, Ireland. Yahooo, i finally get to see BF’s home town and what’s more is that i’ve never ever been to Ireland before!:)

A visit to my home town – Wonderful Copenhagen:)

The continuation of my Europe trip exploration is finally back!!!  The next stop was to my home town, Copenhagen, Denmark. It’s been 3 years since the last time i went back, and it was super thrilling to be able to share my precious childhood memories with my boyfriend.

The minute we arrived to the city and put our lugguages down, we were welcomed by a yummilicious home made BBQ meal prepared by my sister in law’s brother. There were ribs, sausages, chicken skewers, , shrimps, and alot of Danish Tuborg beer to dive into!!! It was a satisfying start to a great night with all that food, booze, and wine, hehe.

As expected, i had to show my wonderfuly boyfriend the usual tourist attractions, and i gotta say,  it was actually quite enjoyable since i don’t normally do this when i go home for family visits.I especially enjoy walking along the famous long pedestrian street, Strøget. Whether you’re in for some high end or cheap shopping, or getting fresh fruit produces, to listening to live music bands on the streets, and chilling at a cafe while enjoying their local Danish pastries, wienerbrød, the list of things to do is endless.  Oh, and I really like checking out this kitchenware shop called Bodum and they’ve got it across the globe, so that means getting my hands on their stuff in Hong Kong is easy peasy,hehe.

 As with all my trips back to good old Denmark, i never leave without trying my childhood favorite Vanilla soft Ice (Ice Cream), and they are absolutely the best soft ice cream in the world!!! Mind you, if you do go to Denmark and try their Soft Ice, please do remember to add that chocolate topping called “Drys”! It’s just simply heaven when you mixed it with the vanilla Soft Ice, hehe.