[One Day Ten Thousand Steps, One Day One Thousand Characters] The Canal Path Where Fairy Tales Breathe, Copenhagen Waterfront Promenade

Visiting Copenhagen, the World's Best City for Walking②
'Is This Really the Sea?'
The Sea Flows Through Copenhagen Like a River

Walking Along the Waterfront, You Can Enjoy Copenhagen's Attractions Like the Library, Canals, and Palace All at Once

Copenhagen, Denmark, true to its title as 'the most walkable city in the world,' offers a variety of scenic views to enjoy while strolling. The course introduced today is Copenhagen's waterfront promenade, where various canals coexist in this harbor city. Walking along the path, you can fully enjoy Copenhagen's attractions all at once, from sea views to the Danish royal palace.

The Little Mermaid statue in Copenhagen, Denmark

Citizens of Copenhagen are enjoying the sunlight at Kalvebod Bølge, a waterside promenade built over the sea.
[Photo by Lee Chunhee]

Starting about 1 km southeast from Copenhagen Central Station, you will find an open waterfront. Although it looks like a river, this is actually the sea. Copenhagen, located on the eastern part of Zealand, Denmark's largest island, extends over the nearby Amager Island, with the sea running widely through the city center like the Han River in Seoul.

Citizens are preparing to swim in the pool set up at Kalvebod Bølge, a waterfront promenade in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Photo by Lee Chunhee

From here begins the waterfront promenade called Kalvebod Bølge. Walking along this wave-shaped path, you naturally get to see the sea and city from various heights. It is a comprehensive recreational space that includes a small pool for sea swimming and an area for kayaking. It seemed to embody Copenhagen's urban philosophy of creating spaces where humans and nature can harmoniously coexist, beyond just being a pleasant walking area.

New building of the Royal Library in Copenhagen, Denmark. Commonly known as the "Black Diamond"
Photo by Lee Chunhee

Walking about 10 minutes along the waterfront past Kalvebod Bølge, you will reach the Danish Architecture Center and the new building of the Royal Danish Library, known as the 'Black Diamond (Den Sorte Diamant).' Built in 1999 due to a shortage of storage space in the old building, the Black Diamond symbolizes that before humans accumulate knowledge, it is just a black box, but once knowledge is gathered in the library, it can shine like a diamond. The exterior is finished with black marble and glass, reflecting sunlight to sparkle like a diamond.

Designed by architect Schmidt Hammer Lassen, the building's underground art gallery represents the human brain, and the knowledge rising from there flows like waves on the upper floors. The idea of connecting this knowledge with bridges and moving walkways is realized architecturally.

Nyhavn Canal, Copenhagen, Denmark
Photo by Lee Chunhee

Continuing about 15 minutes along the path, you arrive at Nyhavn, considered the heart of a Copenhagen trip. Meaning 'New Harbor,' this canal was created in 1670. In the past, it served as Copenhagen's gateway and was always a bustling noisy district. There is a story that the fairy tale author Hans Christian Andersen moved three times here due to expensive room rents. One of the houses where Andersen lived even displays a sign to prove this.

Now, colorful buildings converted into cafes and pubs blend with the canal, creating a unique waterfront cityscape of Copenhagen. There are many restaurants famous for Denmark's specialty open sandwich, smørrebrød, making it a great place to take a break and enjoy a meal.

The Changing of the Guard ceremony is taking place at Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Danish flag is flying to indicate that the Queen is present at the palace.
[Photo by Lee Chunhee]

After fully enjoying Nyhavn, it's time to visit Amalienborg Palace. This palace is the residence of Queen Margrethe II and the Danish royal family. When the queen is in residence, the Danish flag is raised. The changing of the guard ceremony at noon is a must-see attraction in Copenhagen. Usually, only the guards perform the ceremony, but when the queen is present, a military band marches and plays marches during the change.

On the 2nd (local time), an act of vandalism occurred where the base of the Little Mermaid statue in Copenhagen, Denmark was painted in the colors of the Russian flag. (left) When the statue was visited again on the 4th, traces of such vandalism were hardly visible. [Photo by AP Yonhap News (left), Chunhee Lee]

Walking another 15 minutes brings you to today's final destination, the Little Mermaid statue. Created in 1913 by Edvard Eriksen, the statue depicts the protagonist of Andersen's famous work 'The Little Mermaid.' In reality, the statue stands alone on a rock in the sea, and along with Belgium's Manneken Pis and Germany's Lorelei rock, it is sometimes ranked among 'Europe's three biggest tourist disappointments.' However, many visitors to Copenhagen still come here for a photo opportunity.

As a symbol of Copenhagen, the statue has endured various hardships. It has been decapitated, subjected to paint vandalism believed to be by animal rights activists, and on the 2nd of this month (local time), its pedestal was painted in the colors of the Russian flag amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine. When visited on the 4th, no such marks were visible, but a sticker on a nearby sign saying 'Enjoy, Don't Destroy' evoked a bittersweet feeling, especially alongside the police presence guarding the Ukrainian embassy in Denmark encountered on the way.