American's First Time in Denmark (People, Food, Aesthetic, Bakken, Copenhagen) Pt 1

[@birchleaf]

The traffic signs you see outside of the USA are basically international, so it is pretty much the same everywhere. But much like the metric system, the US refuses to use it.

[@aphextwin5712]

There is a nice short video about this: Why US Signs Look Different Than The Rest Of The World’s In short, the 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals created a standardised and systematic system of signs used in most of the world. It is overwhelmingly based on image based signs which can be identical everywhere, can be understood by foreigners not knowing the local language, and generally are faster to “read” than text based ones. Some general principles are that upward white triangles with a red border are used for all kind of warnings and circular signs with a red border indicate things that are forbidden. Combine the latter with the fact that blue is associated with with parking and you get close to the actual no parking/no stopping sign.

[@HailHeidi]

We are so silly. Lol

[@jandamskier6510]

@@HailHeidi to say the least

[@Dan340000]

The reason why the US dont use the metric system is that they all have a foot fetish 😀

[@gabrielgomescunha]

@@HailHeidi there's someone pretending to be you

[@andersthomsen3409]

Glad you liked it, Heidi. The bathrooms used to be closets... that's why they're so small. When the buildings were built, everyone went to the outhouse down in the back yard of the building. Buildings that are built later, tend to have a larger bathroom. The place where I live, has a strange extension of the hallway that has been converted into a bathroom.

[@markoitmard]

I lived a week in Helsinki where one closet was a toilet and the other one was shower. To be able to sit on the toilet I had to back into it:)

[@BenjaminVestergaard]

Apartments from back then often have the back-stairs staircase repurposed as bathrooms... as that was often the path down to the outhouse anyway. But yeah, those old buildings were not built with a bathroom in mind.

[@Cloudberry84]

Yeah, there's a reason that it's called WC (water closet )😊

[@snudder.s.m.l.5026]

Fun to hear how people from other countries do see our country and way of living. Big hugs from Denmark ( Sjælland) 💝🌹🥰

[@ernalise]

Actually in the old Copenhagen apartments, the toilets were put into the old chimneys, that were large because people were cooking on wood or coal stoves. You know the old black things with the rings. The toilets used to be in the backyard. It was like a row of sheds and you sat on a board with a hole in it and under you were a deep hole full of you know what. I have tried one of these - they were still in use in the seventies. Scary places. Bathrooms were not common way into the eighties. In Copenhagen we used to have these large communal bathhouses. They were really nice, with steam bath, saunas, big showerheads, ice pool and access to swimmingpool. It was very cheap, so twice a week you would make a trip to the bathhouse and enjoy lots of warm water etc. I would often spend three hours just enjoying getting a good wash. Now people have their own bathrooms and the wonderful excursion to take a baths is history.

[@thorstenzahn6394]

Denmark is awesome! I love the People! I`m german and go for vacation to Denmark every Year!

[@TainDK]

Wir hat euch auch lieb, mindestens als wir was anderen Sprache lehrnen als/auser English =)

[@PhilipZeplinDK]

Great. I had plans today. But as a Dane, I'm now legally obligated to watch this video. Thank you very much, Heidi! edit: why did the replies have to make this weird >:[

[@HailHeidi]

LOL

[@Galantus1964]

same lol

[@TheKIMANO]

Legally obligated to see it? 🙃Who told you that? Trump? 😬But - we have been waiting for Hail Heidi's experience of Denmark.

[@spyro257]

@@TheKIMANO did u just ask a Dane, if Trump told him something? a man we make fun of, all the time... 🤣

[@akyhne]

You have talked about Denmark so little in your previous videos, that I though you hated our beautiful country, or just maybe spend very little time here.

[@finnwolffkaysfeld7000]

I am impressed by your Danish pronunciation. Better than many Americans even after living years in Denmark.

[@Prokrastina]

I noticed that too - well done!

[@molly9518]

Especially the "Stegt flæsk med persillesovs", it was perfect with a hint of accent - very well done!!

[@Christian-el2bz]

The smerberd though 😂😂😂

[@4455thor]

Heidi we love to have nice guests visit our country. FYI we also have quite a few Anerican expats LIVING here. 2 families are very active here on KZbin: Travelling Youngs and Robe Trotting, they explain both politics, taxes, prices, places to visit and how "to fit in".

[@papaquonis]

Bakken opened in 1583, not 1853. The third oldest amusement park in the World - Tivoli - is also in Copenhagen. That opened in 1843 and Walt Disney used it as one of the main inspirations for Disneyland. Bakken has always had a more raw and unpolished feel to it compared to Tivoli and most other theme parks.

[@SaturnusDK]

Well, yes and no, Dyrehavsbakken opened to the public in 1756. Before that it was strictly a royal hunting grounds. No permanent structures were allowed before 1844, one year after Tivoli opened. At the beginning there were no rides and most entertainment was shows and cabarets. EDIT: likewise Wurstelprater in Austria which by some is regarded as the second oldest amusement park was strictly a recreational park with seasonal carvinals. The first permanent ride there was the Ferris Wheel built in 1897.

[@HailHeidi]

Oh my god, you're right, I said the wrong date!! Whoops! Oh no, not the dyslexic moment. Lol thank you so much for the correction! 💜

[@mikeyb2932]

@@SaturnusDK Well, yes, because it (Dyrehavsbakken) was open to the public from opening in 1583 until some time in 1669-1671. It was then made open to the public *Again,* in 1756. The animal park was set up by King Frederik III, in 1669 and his successor Christian V, apparently expanded that animal park to several times its original size and in 1671 named it 'Jægersborg Dyrehave'. Whether 'Bakken' was closed to the public from the beginning of that animal park being created, or if it was during the expansion that it got closed off, I do not know, but before then, it was open to the public.

[@SaturnusDK]

@@mikeyb2932 Again yes and no, the area around what is now called Dyrehavsbakken were in briefer or longer periods of time open to the public. Starting in 1583. It was not an amusement park by any sense of the word more than any other public park were before the early 19th century were travelling carvinals and circusses would make stops there. However, they'd do that in most large public parks in Copenhagen proper as well, so hardly an amusement park by any stretch of the imagination. That's the thing with both Bakken and Wurstelprater. They both existed and were open to the public before Tivoli opened but neither of them were amusement parks by any modern definition before Tivoli opened. So counting them as older amusement parks than Tivoli is just silly.

[@SaturnusDK]

@@HailHeidi Not a big deal. Only 270 years wrong. It's just the difference between if it was pre-civil war, or pre-pilgrim settlers.

[@Edgecrusherdk]

Stegt flæsk med persillesovs "iam gonna butcher it" pronounces it nearly perfectly....

[@TonnyBredsgaard]

Heidi got the word 'hygge' very, very well?! Nice! Salt is not good for you, remember? You die a lot sooner in USA.

[@lbernau]

The old buildings and the bank you saw at Bakken, was probably the "Korsbæk At Bakken". There's an old danish tv-series called Matador about the life in a small danish town called Korsbæk. This Tv-series is a stable in Danish culture and sort of iconic. Bakken built some years ago replica's of some of the more famous buldings from the series, and that is what you saw.

[@Lorentari]

interesting thing about "Old Copenhagen" bathrooms is that they are often retrofit broom closets (literally), from back when plumbing and running water in the homes was a novelty. So instead of going to the backyard to go to the outhouse or get water for washing. toilets were literally shoved into the broomcloset, sometimes so tight that you'd barely have space to close the door - and sometimes a shower was placed over the toilet

[@charisma-hornum-fries]

Exactly. I showeted in the basement before my broom closet was converted 😂

[@oliverlanz781]

Godt nytår, Heidi! Thank you for sharing your experiences 👍 I have been living in DK for like 20 years now. I also noticed the absence of salt compared to my country. When you get used to it you start discovering the natural flavors of the other ingredients instead. Quite lovely. I think too much salt hides the other flavors.

[@Garbox80]

Yeah, salt is something you can easily get used to and then food tastes like "nothing" with less salt. Luckily it's quite easy to switch back too. And while our bodies need salt, I don't think anyone living in the western countries (at least) is going to have problems with having too LOW salt intake.

[@tonys1636]

Also far too much sugar in US foods, a US loaf has twice the added sugar and salt than a European one. it is surprising how much salt and sugars occur naturally in foods.

[@Ixefar88]

As a Dane i can safely say that we were glad to have you guys here 😊 i am looking forward to the next part

[@risputte]

I'm also looking forward to the next part, as a Dane living in the forbidden country in the east. (Sweden)

[@kaspernielsen9149]

wholegrain is normally a sign of quality in bread everywhere outside of the US. :)

[@DoctorrMetal]

Fun fact: the pictures of stegt flæsk you showed was in fact what is called flæskesteg (and is not the same thing, it's actually what we have for xmas) You got a very classic diner type version and you can also get it as a flæskestegssandwich (flæskesteg sandwich / burger). And yes salt is often added after even if the food contains a little salt.

[@Summer_and_Rain]

flæskesteg is so much better

[@shades2.183]

It is the national dish.

[@Summer_and_Rain]

@@shades2.183 yeah, "stægt flæsk", not "flæskesteg", even if the other one taste so much better. I have never had good "stægt flæsk".

[@shades2.183]

@@Summer_and_Rain ""he edited his post, he said that stegt flæsk is "almost" national dish. However, it is not "almost", it is ThE national dish. Been for many many years, sinch i was a child and before that probably. National by sales and public surveys. I don't agree. Stegt is superior, but flæske is not to be underestimated for sure. For most people though flæske is more a seasonal dish where stegt can and is being eaten all year round. Yes, you can get ribbene sandwish, sure, but it is not the same. When people speak about flæske it is with potatos and sauce. Flæske is heavy food, sure, stegt is kinda heavy too but not as much, we as in Danes usually eat the heavy stuff in fall and winter. However, for some reason stegt does not suffer the same faith. I am a licened butcher and worked in the food industry for 17 years, been in the armed forces 6 years after i finished my apprenticship and now days a mason, in my experience stegt is always sold out. Restaurants, company kanteens, the messe hall on the base, well, everywhere it is served it is usually sold out year round. It is the national dish after all. My mother though, 80yrs old, kinda have same opinion as you, that flæske is better, however, sales speak another tale. I love it myself but i prefere "ribbenesteg" over "kamsteg", i want fat as it more tastefull and less dry or harder to make "dry". I will not eat one bite of it if it's dry, i will literally throw it out. My cat wont touch it if it's dry either. Have a good night.

[@_-martin-_]

You love Denmark. I got news for you little lady. Denmark loves you! :D

[@TonnyBredsgaard]

Yup, true!

[@antoniskalakonas1876]

In Greece we have a saying (translated here): Undersalted food - you add salt. Oversalted food - you throw to the garbage can. So it is not uncommon, especially with recipes we are not sure about the amound of salt that will make people happy, to slightly undersalt food. Also - we use a lot of cheese, and our cheese is usually salty, so we do take that into account.

[@CrazyhorseDK]

can sometimes be saved by adding sugar if too salty regarding sauce etc

[@Summer_and_Rain]

@@CrazyhorseDK true, brown sauce made from duck fat, often get a bit better with a small amount of sugar

[@CrazyhorseDK]

yea :)@@Summer_and_Rain

[@akyhne]

Putting salt of food, will make it taste of food plus salt. The right seasoning from the get go, is a far better choice, than not to season properly, or pouring it over the food.

[@saxoragnhildssn5443]

I have been waiting for this one. Thanks Heidi : )

[@sebastiangrif]

Hi there! I'm really glad you liked it here.

[@KimBenzonKnudsen]

Thank you so much for this video. Wonderful that you had a good time in Denmark. I see that other commentators have already adjusted or explained the few inaccuracies. So just: thanks a lot. Looking forward to part II (and III). Come again another time. Maybe if you find an appartement just a little bigger 😅. Greetings from DK.

[@charlescorbee9498]

As a teener in the Netherlands (12 - 16 years) we had the possibility to take the train through the hole country for a week and go anywhere. With friends, we left in the morning, go to criss cross. To Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Texel, Maastricht, or any place we want to see! Going home in the evening and out again the next day. It is called: TeenerTour

[@eddiec1961]

Thanks for sharing your experience it sounds like you had fun, take care.

[@vrenak]

The "old buildings" at Bakken you saw, like the bank, are a recreation of the fictional town of Korsbæk from the TV-series Matador. It's popular on a scale where no US station would ever dream of drawing in that many viewers for a premiere, much less a 10th rerun. It has been sold and shown to almost every country in Europe and as far away as to Australia. It's a period piece set between 1929 and 1947 detailing the life and times of the people in the town focusing on 2 main families.

[@tribalbear84]

I came here to say this! It's not meant to show the original Bakken, and it's still relatively new (they opened the area in 2015), and is considered just another part of the entertainment. 🙂

[@tomashorne]

There are over 30 languages and 3 alphabets in Europe, which is why we do not use road signs with text. And "Old Copenhagen" is the medieval city. The part of the city which 150 years ago was within the city walls. Happy New Year and thanks for sharing your travel experiences.

[@tompettersson3814]

As a swede i have travelled on buses and trains alone since i was 7 years old. It is just the way it is :)

[@kimmogensen4888]

I teach my children to cycle to school from the age of 10, but Bornholm is also a safe place to cycle max 40 km in the city and only moderate traffic, many cycle to school and to work. but I also know several people who lived far from the school who drove the bus from the age of 7, as long as you drive with them a few times, they can do it themselves. luckily it's a safe community, if you lose your wallet, it's taken to the police or the trains, the times I've tried it, they read the address that was in the wallet and nothing was missing 🤗

[@DeadlockDK]

As a Dane ive been looking forward to hearing what you think about Denmark, guess ill have some more episodes to look forward to ;) Glad to hear you enjoyed your time in Denmark and i can say that some Copenhagen toilets can be really small, ive been places where you more or less had to back up into as they arent big enough to turn around in :D

[@lbergen001]

You really have a big talent for story telling👍👍 I am always fascinated by the way you tell your experiences. I am happy for you having a great time in Denmark. 😄

[@HailHeidi]

Oh wow, thank you very much! 💜

[@brithanii]

Hi, Heidi! Just another Dane here (32 y.o.), one who grew up on Vesterbro in 1990's - 2000's Copenhagen. I too have followed the unspoken law of the Danes, and I HAD to watch your video 😉 I just wanted to let you know what I think your host meant by "Old Copenhagen", when talking about any kind of housing in Copenhagen: Copenhagen used to be a worker's city, so most people had a very low income there, and it just began to slowly change when I grew up there. That meant very small apartments and community toilets on street level at first. Later on, when living standards rose in Denmark, people wanted toilets inside their apartments and had to find any space they could to fit one in. In the 90's I lived in a 1100 sqft. apartment in a housing cooperative, so it was a lot nicer than some of my friens' apartments and a lot less nice than others', but what almost all of us still had in common was a very small bathroom. Such a funny thing. And actually, many older buildings in Copenhagen have had a conservatorship put on it, so sometimes people are forced to get creative with their construction solutions in order to follow the rules. My best friend of 25 years still have parents who live in her childhood apartment. It HAD to get renovated as it was not in good condition in the 90's, and it was in straight up tragic conditions years later, but the city had put a conservatorship on some of the parts of the building and they had to find ways to abide by it when renovating the entire building. And i am very proud of your pronunciation of Stegt Flæsk med Persillesovs - good job, Heidi! 🤩

[@danieldaugaard403]

Yay finally the Denmark episode I’ve been looking and waiting for it as a Dane also you pronounced the words quite well. Especially stegt flæsk med persillesovs. And hygge. Bravo i loved it

[@Drescher1984]

Old Copenhagen, depending on what class it was build for, use to have toilets in the courtyard and you took baths/showers at bathhouses. So some of the tiny bathrooms, use to be closets.

[@traver1965]

Your best video ever. Yes I am Danish haha. I like you are so openminded and always positive. The open sandwiches you bought are the cheapest and "normal" ones. They can be eaten with one hand. They are often used in lunchbags or just a quick meal. The one tourists gets are "Highly plated open sandwiches". They are huge and expensive and you need a fork and knife to eat them. Stegt flæsk med persillesovs. You pronounced that very well. Fun thing is that the "e" in the first word and the "æ" in the second word are pronounced in the same way. It is like the sound you make pronouncing the first letter in "eggs". I am looking forward seing the next videos from you (also the none Danish ones) :)

[@casperdanielsen1568]

The reason the Old Copenhagen toilets are so small is that the apartments where not build with toilets or showers. This was shared at ground level. So they tried to fit them after the fact hence very little space

[@sifrasmussen2315]

From Denmark here. I think the Salt thing is, that in Denmark there is always salt and pepper on the table at restaurants, and then you can add more your self. Loved the video and looking forward to see the rest.

[@emilrogengellschwaner3555]

Fun fact about Copenhagen, most apartment buildings where build before bathrooms in individual apartments was a thing. People took baths in the kitchen and went to the bathroom in the courtyards. Thsts why bathrooms are so small

[@MissSkjoth]

The paté you had om the open sandwiches could be what we in Denmark call “Leverpostej”. It is a simple but delicious spread made of pork liver, not duck liver. The pâté you get here in Denmark is also pork liver, but a finer version with pork and or veal meat.

[@kristianmidjord]

The salt thing, is on purpose. A few years ago, restaurants, kanteens etc. started to use less salt in the food, for health reasons, and instead let people add more if they want to.

[@kimmogensen4888]

and I got used to not using extra salt it was just a bad habit

[@Joliie]

The Pate (Leverposteg) are made from Pig levers. Just fyi, most of don't like or prefer all the Smørrebrød options, the bread is as different as white breads, but the more kernels if often seen as a better bread, the key is they help fill you up :)

[@moladiver6817]

I've had leverposteg from a can once and it's basically the same stuff that we have in Holland. It has practically the same name too. We call it leverpastei. I ate it a lot as a kid. Our version is slightly more pink but from what I remember the taste is pretty much the same. The French version of this is actually called mouse the canard which has a very similar flavor and texture exxcept it's usually not in a can. Actual pate has a courser structure as in there are chunks in it so it's not smooth which makes it a bit harder to spread and it tastes a little meatier too.

[@GeneralSaltykov]

For an eastern / north-eastern European, for me it was, at the beginning, unusual to have another loaf of bread ON the sandwich. We always had (and still have, unless you go to chain-places) open-top sandwiches. Yum!

[@scipioafricanus5871]

2024 is gonna be a fantastic year! Only a couple of hours in and I see HailHeidi finally decided to drop her episode on my country. I am sure it was worth the wait!

[@allanjensen31]

The Little Shop and the bank and that part is old TV series Call Matador It's about a little town called Korsbæk and it Story is about the life in a little Danish Town between 1929 and 1947

[@martinhemmingsen8813]

I'm from Denmark, and I just watched your video. I just wanna say, that the way you said "stegt flæsk med persillesovs" was actually quite close to how we say it. Loved the video.

[@svendemadsen8275]

85% of people living in Denmark is of Danish origin, hence the amount of blond hair/blue eyes. About the naked lady on the rollercoaster, in Denmark nudity is not sexualized like in America, nudity is a natural thing, we were all born nude, besides that we can laugh at stuff, using irony & sarcasm. In other words don't take things too seriously or get easily offended like some do. See that a lot already commented on food, numbers, living facility etc. So all in all greetings from Denmark, glad you liked it here, patiently waiting on part 2 & 3. Happy New Year!! as well.

[@MichaelHedegaardJensen]

Fun fact about the wooden rollercoaster.. Its just standing on the groud... Its not secured by bolts or anything to the ground. The size and weight keeps it in place and have done that since it was build.. So if you wanted, you could actually get some helicopters and fly away with it.... even though I think there would be some problems with them size.

[@lassej5653]

Old Copenhagen apartments were build before indoor water flushed toilets was a thing. People back then went to an outhouse usually shared between a group of apartments. And would take showers in either public bathing facilities. So the bathrooms there are all retrofitted and therefore they are squeezed in a small rooms (or even closets) to not take away too much space from the living area.

[@24jh42]

Properties in Denmark are by default permanent. It takes more paperwork and time to get a permission to demolish something, than a permission to build. Building code is also different than in the USA. It is perfectly legal with one staircase, which allows for narrow buildings on smaller lots. The place you describe may have had two steep staircases in the past. The one from the street still existing, but the back one sacrificed in order to install indoor plumbing sometime in the 1970's. On the plus side you did not have to scramble down 7 floors to find an outhouse in the back yard.

[@PSimonsen]

If it's and old apartment in Cph, 7 floors are pretty rare.

[@donkfail1]

Did go to Sweden during your travels? The summers here are even worse if you can't sleep when the sun is shining. Even though the sun sets for a couple of hours, it's never low behind the horizon, so it never gets really dark out. The night sky is always some shade of blue during clear summer nights. Now it's only bright outside for a few hours per day, and the constant cloudiness and snowfall lately makes even those few hours gloomy. We just have to eat a lot of vitamin D and prepare for the annual winter depression that is normal to suffer from every early spring here. (It's easier to cope with when everyone else has it too.) Or you can do it hard core and go north of the arctic circle, where you'll have constant sun for weeks in the summer or darkness for weeks in the winter. "Daytime" is when you can see some brightness over the horizon in the south for a couple of hours, that is if it wasn't so cloudy all the time... If you had visited Gothenburg 40 years ago you could have tried a really old wooden rollercoaster that wasn't smooth. They tore it down in 1987 (at age 65, I think), but it was great. It creaked and rattled, making you sure it would fall apart any minute. It also had a tunnel, but no naked lady... :( Now they have a wooden one from 2003 (recently renovated, since it was rotting).

[@Guillaumelapomme]

Your shower segment, yeah that's what travelling's amazing for, you'll be in those situations that are mundane on the great scheme of things but memorable to you!

[@birterasmussen8133]

Old houses in Copenhagen originally didn’t have toilets or baths inside the apartment. So the small bathroom that you experienced was build in. That’s why bathrooms in oldhouses can be very small.

[@St_Yerbouti]

I'm Danish from Copenhagen, and I really like your take on Denmark. Hope you had a good frikadelle! And, don't forget that the hamburger is a Danish invention.

[@KHValby]

Hi Heidi! Greatings from CPH DK🇩🇰 ! The blue and red sign with one line across means NO parking (anything more than 3 minutes is considered as parking). The other one with two lines (an X) means NO stopping (at any time). Bakken is from 1583 (not 1853 😊 ). Tivoli is from 1843, just a reference. Bakken: You apparently went to the copy of "Korsbeak". A movie set from a very popular tv show back in the 80´s. Not part of the original park.

[@HailHeidi]

OH yes, beautiful. Thank you so much for the correction!

[@Gazer75]

@7:50 America, north and south, and Australia is mostly based on the US MUTCD standard, but most other countries uses the Vienna convention road signs. South American countries do use a mix of MUTCD and Vienna signs though. Having a lot of text based signs wouldn't work well if they were in native languages in Europe. Symbols can be more universal.

[@thomasjensby608]

The bit with how salty our food is boils down to the simple rule of "it's easier to let people add salt for themself, than it is to take salt out of the dish."

[@akyhne]

Putting salt of food, will make it taste of food plus salt. The right seasoning from the get go, is a far better choice, than not to season properly, or pouring it over the food.

[@tim10243]

Danish homes seems to have a little bit different division of the space. We realized this in all the danish holliday homes we visited over the years: very very small sleeping rooms and spacious living room. If you think about it it makes sense if you want to stay all together and don't want to seperate. A similar idea could stand behind the tiny bath room. How long do you stay there? Is it worth to spend (or waste) more space for it? We liked that idea so much that the house we built came from danmark and it follows the same idea: small bedrooms - big living room and kitchen.

[@akyhne]

If you're talking about the tenth of thousands of summer homes along the Danish coasts, then yeah, the children's bedrooms are tiny. But they are not meant as a place to play. Summer guests want to be outside. If we're talking about homes pre 1980, then children's bedrooms were not big, like 8-9 m². In modern Danish homes, they are 12-16 m², which, because of the space the bed is taking up, means almost twice the playground, in the room. Danes live in the biggest apartments and houses, in all of Europe, when you look at the average square meter per family. Where are you from?

[@tim10243]

@@akyhne we are from tyskland. Since we found the same concept of rooms in the danish house we built, I thought that this was in common in danmark and I must confess we liked the idea. Sorry if i was wrong about it - but even so we like it ;-)

[@akyhne]

@@tim10243 As long as you like it 😊

[@Krydolph]

The small bathroom is because she was in a building from before you had toilets inside. So at some point they had to fit that in, and then later, add a shower too. But you are right, how much space do you really need in your bedroom? Enough for your bed, and so you can get dressed next to it. Better to have a big living room so you can spend time there and have company over, or so the children have floorspace to play on. But also, the "holiday homes", that I assume is what we call "sommerhuse" is often a thing of its own, with its own culture and norms. Though they are also getting more and more luxurious and spacious.

[@MrKimJoJo]

Bakken opened in 1583.. not the 1800, that’s Tivoli Gardens 😊 And the hotel you stayed at, must have been one of the cheapest in Copenhagen.. Cabinn..? The bread we are very proud of.. much more healthy than most bread you have in the US.. You should try out our yoghurt next time.. It’s World class.. 🙂

[@pannumon]

Hah! In Finland the parking zone is often marked with no parking sign, with several additional signs telling when you can (not) park. It's as complex and entertaining as the number system in Denmark.

[@carstenf279]

Bakken is fun. I was there as a kid around 50 years ago and saw my first bar brawl with grown men throwing punches. I loved that - even more than the roller coaster.

[@mumimor]

Thank you so much for your visit and your thoughts. It is so nice when people like Denmark. 20-something years ago, a Canadian colleague called me to ask me to help one of her friends. He was part of an official delegation to Denmark and he was totally stressed out because everyone was so tall and blond, it seemed to him like being in the Truman Show or something. Anyways, he came to my home and neighborhood and relaxed and felt at home. There are areas in Copenhagen that are completely diverse, where people from all over the world co-exist, but the city center is not one of them, and neither is the north of the city, where Bakken is. The origin of Bakken is that there is a spring with sweet water, where people gathered to take the water. Eventually all sorts of food and entertainment stalls grew up around the spring. The stalls were called tents, and to this day, someone who runs a place at Bakken is called a tent-holder, even if the "tent" is a roller-coaster or a theatre. Many people here in the comments have mentioned that the old Copenhagen apartments didn't have bathrooms. That again depends on the area. But the city council of Copenhagen was very reluctant to establish sewers for far too long. So specially Indre By (the city centre) and Vesterbro has a lot of buildings that were built without bathrooms before 1900. And the apartments weren't renovated until the 1990s, so older people (like me) can tell about having to go all the way down the stairs to go to the bathroom. Next time you come, you should really visit a more fancy smørrebrøds-restaurant. There, one just eats two or three pieces and they are beautifully composed. I don't mind having the simpler pieces like you had, but for international guests, I feel you need to have the best, in order to understand what the fuss is all about. It doesn't have to be over-the-top fancy places trying to impress you, just a serious restaurant with good smørrebrød made with the best produce. What a rant! I'm sorry about that, take it as a response to a really charming video.

[@Paramart]

Denmark is great and the food and beer is always good, one of my favorites is Stjerneskudd; fried fish with lots of shrimp yum.

[@zymelin21]

washed down with Aalborg aquavit (the red Aalborg) 45% alcohol or "White lightning" danish style!!

[@Christian_Bagger]

Oh… just outside of Copenhagen in the Nordsjælland region, there’s a lot of sightseeing. There’s a lot of little passages that leads to beautiful sceneries. It’s like you’re walking into a fairytale, when everything is blossoming.

[@SusseBo]

In the flats of the old Copenhagen there was no bathrooms at all and no toilets. The toilets were in the backyard and shared. Toilet buckets were emptied during the night. Then things evolved and toilets were installed on each floor on the back stairs and shared with the neighbours. There are still flats where this is in used, but flushing toilets. Then people wanted inside bathrooms became the modern thing. First as a shower and then later included a toilet. I the old center the houses only have max 6 floors. It is code. Salt in food is reduced because of high BP. When you fry your pork belly then leave the skin on. Before you fry it score the skin in thin slices in the size of the slices you want to cut the slices. Then rub the skin with sea salt and into the cuts. Lots of it. Then you can cook it on a grill. When you are almost done the take the dripping out and grill the skin til it is crunchy. Yum. I am a Dane and have been taught the old fashioned way.

[@vladimirmihnev9702]

Well there's Salt on the table and it is easy to add salt if you want more but there's no way to take away salt if it is too much for your taste! Also I think that historically lots of stuff had tons of salt in it before fridges were a thing, so that the recipe doesn't ask for more salt and again you almost always can ad more. And as far as my local Bulgarian food is concerned probably 80% of the traditional things we used to eat in winter are pickled or something similar that includes a lot of sodium.

[@Pensionisten]

Hej Heidi, people might have told you this already but just incase not, it is very normal to have very little salt in the food due to children not being used to salty things, as someone from greece mentioned its hard to take salt away but easy to add, but this is normal in restaurants and at bigger family dinners/parties, but if you go home to someone private to eat there is usually more salt in the food, especially if you find a grandma to make the food, it is very rich in taste and decently salted. Glad you like Denmark 🇩🇰 we love visitors, so feel free to come as often as you like 😂. Nice job on the pronunciation 😊 Looking forward to seeing the next parts. Thank you for a nice channel 👍🏽

[@jeffafa3096]

I didn't really see a comment about the parking signs, so this is what I know about them. Throughout Europe there was a need to understand the traffic signs everywhere, so they kind of came up with a system that doesn't use language in the signs. The one with one stripe means that you can stop your car there, but you need to stay near it. So things like loading or unloading are allowed. The one with the cross means that you aren't allowed to even stop your car there, unless it's broken down...

[@TimoJeppesen]

Many apartments in Copenhagen, were built before it was common to have a bathroom in your house. There were outhouses in the courtyard. So when plumbing became a common thing, then you had to squish in a toilet/bathroom. Converting a small store room or cutting off a bit of another room, building a wall, so you can have a small toilet. That is why many bathrooms in Copenhagen is so small.

[@henriklarsen8258]

Hello, Dane here. That is a wery nice presentation of our sorroundings. I am wery happy that you had a good time in Denmark. If you ever come to the city of Aalborg, in northern jutland, i would love to show you two around :)

[@lainightwalker5495]

old copenhagen is used for housing thats from 1900s or earlier. mostly toilets and baths where added later. its not unusual to have the shower accually be over the toilet

[@hans-dieternichau5467]

Yes Denmark is a wonderful country to live in! Even more so If you Love water,it offers the opportunity to practice all kinds of water Sports! Or Just for swimming on the beach ,either in the Baltic Sea or the North Sea ! It is a cozy country with friendly residents! Greetings from Hamburg 🤗

[@hans-dieternichau5467]

Hello Heidi what can ido for you? I'm an old man and don't speak English 🙈🙈I have to translate everything! But that's Not a problem ,it Just takes some time😅😅

[@akyhne]

​@@hans-dieternichau5467You probably saw a comment, from a spammer account. It's not Heidi.

[@chrdysted]

The reason why the bathroom is so small, is because it wasn't installed when they built the apartment a 150 years ago. You had to go to the yard to get to the privy and to the a public bath to get washed. Toilets were, later on, retrofitted into a closet or a spare room

[@TricksyDK]

The small city in Bakken is Korsbæk from an old TV serie, made in 1978 Matador starts from 1929 -1947 under the 2nd worldwar

[@madsmatras5691]

the reason for the bathroom being super small, is because at the time the building was build they didn't put bathroom in the apartments (you would have to go down to the buildings shared toilet in the yard). the tiny bathroom was put in afterwards to make the apartment more attractive.

[@puzzlegamessolutions573]

It's fun to hear what people outside Denmark think of our country. It sounds like a bad hotel, with no elevator and a tiny tiny bathroom. I hope you'll get something better next time. "Bakken" is Danish for "The Hill". In there they have recreated an old town from a TV series called "Matador" which shows how Danes were living about 100 years ago. The swan ride is mostly for children and their parents who don't like the fast rollercoaster. "Open sandwiches" are "Smørrebrød" in Danish. Yours were quite plain, and you're right: Some are good, some not. "Stegt flæsk med persillesovs" is one of my favorites though you cannot eat too much pork because of so much fat. There are two kinds of people: Those who love their pork to be cooked until the meat is like stone, and the other half who like the meat to be softer and keep its meat consistency better. The dish needs extra salt like you did, and the skin has to be hard, so it breaks with a sound when you eat it. When cooking it, the skin needs a lot of salt else it just continues being soft. Year, don't eat too much salt. It can give you a high blood pressure. All the Danish words with our special letters in them (æ, ø, å, and in the old days also spelled ae, oe, aa) are often hard to pronounce for other people.

[@nielsen145]

Bakken is older than that, but the theme park yes, another thing, Bakken and Tivoli, both has one of the oldest wooden rollercoasters in the world

[@agffans5725]

Your bathroom experience is hilarious, because it's highly unusual for Denmark. In fact being a Dane myself, I have never seen or heard of such a tiny bathroom.

[@agffans5725]

@@KurtFrederiksen .. Well, I was born in the inner city of Aarhus, in Vesterbrogade, and lived in the inner city all my childhood before buying a house in the outskirts at the age of 25, and I have never seen or experienced such a tiny bathroom, even among the poorest of my school classmates.

[@akyhne]

It's not uncommon, but tiny bathrooms are almost always the guest bathroom. My bro has a late 1960 villa in Esbjerg, with a tiny guest bathroom, and an uncle with a big 1920 villa, has a similar bathroom.

[@agffans5725]

@@KurtFrederiksen ... My grandparents moved into a 65 m2 apartment in Aarhus just after WW2, and yes it had a small bathroom, where you could take a bath but they also had a shared bath in the basement of the building, and according to the law it could not be renovated so long as they were living there, so in the 70's and 80's they were still living there paying around $310 a month in rent which is just crazy for an apartment in the inner city of Aarhus.

[@henriklykkejensen8225]

The old buildings in Copenhagen are very old. They are from that time. Where you had a shared toilet in the backyard and where you took a shower in the kitchen. Later, the small room (the food storage room) was converted into a bathroom and toilet. Therefore, they are very small. I love Copenhagen.

[@bryantwhitis6446]

Yes, growing up in Germany I recalled me and my friend ventured out and explored its that safe this was about the funniest part of my life. Riding our bikes down into the country side. 😯😊

[@Duconi]

What is for you the difference between a metro and a subway? This local trains have many names: Rapit transit, metro, subway, tube, underground, mass rapid transit, havy rail, etc. but it's always the same thing. A train system that moves people within a city on dedicated tracks, often under ground in tunnels.

[@DominusRexDK]

im both impressed and baffled that you managed to say stegt flæsk better than persillesovs

[@jesperjager6290]

Hi Heidi So nice hearing your perspective. Very happy you enjoyed you stay. :) A few comments. We have two types of Smørrebrød "Lav belagt" and "Højt belagt" You had "Lav belagt" that is the discount version that workers buy as a everyday meal very similar to what you would make everyday at home. You should try the "Højt belagt" that is the famous luxury type you get for special occasions. If you want them as takeaway you can get some good ones at "Torvehallerne" Regarding that ethnicity observation: Bear in mind that Denmark did not have slaves locally in Denmark. We did have colonies but most were sold quite early and the last ones we had was the West Indian islands that were sold to the USA but the were so very far away. That is the main reason we do not have many dark skinned people in Denmark. If you go to Holland or France they had colonies much longer and as I recall also had dark skinned slaves locally, therefore there is a lot more dark skinned people there. We surely had a lot of slaves (called Trælle) locally in the Viking age. But the wast majority was from Brittain and East europe. Looking forward to your part two.

[@mikeyb2932]

Loved the video :) Sorry to have a small correction - "Founded in 1583, Bakken, or Dyrehavsbakken as it is officially named, has been a firm favorite with the people of Copenhagen for centuries." I think you might have just switched up the 5 and 8 there, because I believe you mentioned 1853.

[@morteng.lauridsen8068]

Some of the bathrooms are so small that you almost have to sit on the toilet to take a shower. Can't remember the cutout of the lady on the rollercoaster, and don't know how many times I have take that ride, granted the last time, is quite a few years ago. But even as a kid she haven't made enough of an impression to be remembered.

[@torbenpetersen8983]

"Old Copenhagen" refers to that the building is from before 1900 (witch is not that old when you take into account that Copenhagen is founded in 1167). Flats from from around then was often small (50 sq. meters) and did only have a toilet. No shower or sink in the room. So when people wanted to have shower and a sink there wasn't room for it. That's why they are so small and the floor is raised so it can drain ..

[@PSimonsen]

The liverpate, you were talking about is called Leverpostej. And is a baked pate of pig liver and fat + herbs and usually onions.

[@melanp4698]

14:47 The picture shown in the video is Flæskesteg, not Stegt Flæsk med Persillesovs, in case anyone got confused :) I'm happy to hear you liked Denmark! Also 6:05 i dont know if this was meant ironically, but Denmark is the 3rd tallest country in the world lol.

[@Buzzfer]

Thanks for visiting Denmark :) if you liked Bakken, next time you visit Denmark, try "Den gamle by" in Århus, it is from the 1600-1900. i used to come there as a kid with my grandparents. Amazing place worth visiting That was a very nice pronounciation of Stegt flæsk med persillesovs :D

[@hejmuesli]

About the small bathroom: Many of the buildings are so old they never had a shower in the apartment. Some even didn't have a toilet. You'd use a shared toilet somewhere else in the building, and same for the shower. So for these tiny bathrooms it's often a room that was meant to only have a toilet (so a very small room), and then at one point someone got tired of having to shower outside of the apartment, so a shower was added inside the toilet room. So, yeah, it does tend to get quite tiny.

[@Flodhesten]

Its called copenhagen shower, installed decades, sometimes a century after the building was originally constructed. Most ppl try to avoid Them.

[@YONATOOTH]

So happy you had a good time here ❤

[@akyhne]

The no stop and no stop and parking are universal signs, in most countries. In fact most road signs are very similar, around the globe. And yeah, there can also be a small sigh under those signs you saw, with a time limited period.

[@terroristen]

The old shops in bakken, they're not from the original amusement park. They are part of a sort of special area in bakken, devoted to an old Danish tv series called matador. It takes place between years of 1929 - 1946 ish. The buildings are made to look like the main street in the tv series.

[@jesperjuhl6494]

Sounds like you had a fairly OK sized shower. My previous apartment had a bathroom/shower that was 1.3 square meters - when you were taking a shower you were literally sharing the space with the toilet and the sink. Two people could fit in the room, but *not* 3. And that's actually not *too* uncommon - we prefer to spend the space on other areas :)

[@ArthurOfThePond]

In the olden days in Copenhagen toilets were in the courtyard and baths were communal. They have struggled to find rooms in old Copenhagen apartments for toilets and I'm sure there are still some that doesn't have it.

[@PsyJoeTV]

I'm from Denmark and I actually usually have to put extra salt on food I eat. In Denmark I think it's pretty common for things, to be made slightly less salty and then you add more at your own accord.

[@travelgeography2734]

Cute and fun review of Denmark. Yes, you can find some insanely small toilets in Denmark, but actually Danes live in the largest houses and apartments in Europe (1475 sq. ft. on average, which is still small compared with the US (2164 sq. ft.). Things are just smaller and more compact in Europe (and energy and and real estate taxes are higher :-) ..

[@VogterViking]

The apartments old Copenhagen, like Vesterbro, were buit without runig water, toilets and baths. Toilets were in the back on the ground. Water had to be hauled up in buckets from a pump in the yard and there ws bathing dfaciities in comunal bathing houses.

[@imajinallthepurple]

Always excited to hear from people experiencing my country be it good or bad points and yeah, we're not really that up-tight on nudity and the human body. As you saw we prefer having fun with it over shaming it. 😄👍 Regarding the use of salt... I think it might have something to do with the sugar content of US foods? 🤔 It's a very common way for the food industry to keep the price down by adding a lot of both to "stretch" the more costly ingredients. And not only does your processed food contain a lot more sugar than in Europe but you also tend to favour farming naturally sweeter sorts of fruits and vegetables than we do. Having to add more salt is a natural counterweight to that in savoury dishes and it kind of messes with your taste buds in the long run. It's actually something I've discussed with my US family members who have been here a few times and have tried a lot of raw and cooked ingredients. Glad to hear you had fun here. Always happy to welcome you back... 🥰👍 ❤🤍❤️

[@emilkleis2821]

As a BA in health and nutrition, I can assure you that Danes do use a lot of salt - too much in fact - when cooking. But you are also right in saying that it is very customary to season your food at the table, before digging in. Less so a hard tradition, more of a learned behaviour (which can really land you in hot water elsewhere in Europe).

[@virtual-viking]

Some of the old Copenhagen apartments were built for workers during the industrial revolution in the mid 1800's, where there were no bathrooms and toilets were in the back yards. So bathrooms were eventually added wherever they could find space.

[@annetteku1]

Those tiny bathrooms are usually as tall as the other rooms in the apartment. But the arrangement and floor size is very common in old buildings in Copenhagen. But as you get into later periods of construction, the bathrooms get bigger and nicer. The same With kitchens. (I am Danish and lived in many types of places)

[@ChokyoDK]

OMG. Let's gooo. I've been waiting for you to travel to Europe so you could experience the things you were seeing in the videos. And then it's also my home country :) (Also how did Copenhagen remind you of the US??? Do you live in Solvang?😂)

[@larsrathsach3477]

haha, the small shops at Bakken is not actually part of Bakken. It is more an exhibition for a Danish show called "Matador" which takes part from 1920s-1940s. But glad you had fun.

[@biankakoettlitz6979]

😄 light outside 4a.m., don't go north of the artic circle in summer, you have times where you have sun 24/7, it called midnight sub, timetable on the internet.