city encounters from lonely planet

i just wanted to take a minute to recommend the lonely planet city encounter books for anyone traveling in the near future. i purchased these well-designed little guys by complete chance & couldn't be happier. each book is pocket sized, easy to read & will only cost you $9 or so. i usually find lonely planet books to be text heavy forcing you to map out your itineraries, work out neighborhood characteristics yourself & really sit down to think about your approach to the city (gosh, can i get one for seattle?). the books are also perfect for discreet decision making as well - no more pulling out a huge map given at the hostel to find your next destination.

each book is something like this:
- start off with 10 things not to miss, lovely pics & brief descriptions
- one, two & three day itineraries
- calendars & events
- neighborhood overview with easy color map & description giving general thoughts & places to see
- neighborhood breakouts with a detailed map, sights to see, food, drink & play each keyed on a map
- neighborhood spot details, quick write ups with logistical stuff
- snapshots (including design, shopping, fashion, gay & lesbian, architecture, museums, kids)
- city history & backgrounds, transportation info, language guides, etc
- full tear out map in the back

i also saw the wallpaper series, but these seem to be a little more posh than is realistic for me. i mean - maybe in a few years.

so this is munich

munich was a quick stop with only two full days. skeptical & cynical i spent the first day walking along the river with a quick (ohhh not so quick) stop at the villa stuck, a beautiful art nouvaeu museum featuring mid to late 19th century french political cartoons & a three story leighton exhibit. i took the tram through the maximillion street & was wowed by the posh little strip in a beer drinking destination. soon after check in & a shower i decided to venture off to the 8000 capacity beer garden, hirschgarten for dinner & a .5 liter of beer. disappointed, i was convinced this could have been great under another condition - that stina were with me. i took a scenic route home, listening to freescha & hot chip (thanks cage), past the nymphemborg palace & royal gardens.

yesterday was simple. bikes + beer + sun. it was a wonderful day in the english garden, the beer garden by the lake, watching the surf wave, more liters at haufbrahaus (classic lary) & a birkenstock purchase with a buzz. ohhhh, i felt so german. munich was nice, but only 2 days were needed for this little lady.

shopping musts in copenhagen

a quick list of places not to miss - even if you're in the states.



stilleben - danish & international ceramics & jewelry.



gronlykke - sigh, housewares you'd die for.



don ya doll - fashion, fashion, fashion.

day six in copenhagen

a beautiful day it was at that - a morning run, breakfast, a day of shopping & sites, the most delicious sandwich & glass of red wine (again from the living room on studiastraede), biking & biking, rosenburg slot & kongens hav with ice cream.

it was sad to say goodbye, but the adventure must continue. copenhagen downloads & shopping musts to follow. for the full album click here.

meeting for lunch

i couldn't help to snap a pic of these girls enjoying a snack & chat.

the sun came out - fourth & fifth days in copenhagen

ohhh sunny days in copenhagen, filled with canal tours, walks along the harbour in nyhavn, summerbird ice cream served at the gorgeous logismose, naps on a bench, beers on the sidewalk & the tivoli at night - that's just saturday. today was filled with bike rides & sunshine. bart & i went for a 2 hour ride before his departure (oh sooo sad), then i continued on for the rest of the day. i took a ton of cycle pics, sat on the steps of the new opera house, rode through the danish architecture center, enjoyed a nice glass of red wine at a plaza cafe, then went for the most expensive bowl of pho ever & a tall glass of carlsberg. sigh - copenhagen is fantastic.

picture overload i'm sure, but the blue skies make everything beautiful.

munich vs berlin

i need advice, quick. right now i am in copenhagen & trying to figure out my next move. originally, i planned to take a sleeper train to munich on monday night, arriving tuesday am. i would spend three lovely days in munich then head to berlin bright & early friday am. from there i'd be in berlin until early monday morning (london from then on).

the weather has been pretty horrid here until today, which was unbelievably great - this should continue until thursday. if i leave monday night i'd have to cut out the louisiana museum for modern art doing a killer exhibit on sustainable architecture & design; plus i haven't gotten to do much shopping & i'd love to get some time on a bike. maybe i'll stay here one more night, take a sleeper train tuesday night to munich then proceed with the plan as usual. sigh, 20 hours on a train for two days in munich?! maybe i should stay an extra day here then just head to berlin?

what do you think
- 2 more days copenhagen, 3 days munich, 3 days berlin
- 3 more days copenhagen, 2 days munich, 3 days berlin
- 3 more days copenhagen, 5 days berlin

second & third days in copenhagen

while it's been raining pretty much our entire time here, we've managed to see much of copenhagen - maybe just not in its prime. yesterday we had a leisurely breakfast at the hotel, then i went for my first run in a week. it was a perfect opportunity to see much of the city - i ran along the main canal & found myself at the sorte demiant (also known as the royal library or black diamond), passing through gammel strand (historic row houses), & up to the tivoli. once i was back & refreshed, we braved the rain & made it through the stroget. the shopping street is one of large scale, but quite honestly, the good stuff is on the side streets.

we made it to the rundetarn & saw the graphiks across borders show in the mid-level gallery. the space was quite unbelievable, but the works were definitely of a different taste than mine. after taking a minute braving the storm for views from observatory, we headed to a smaller part of the stroget known as pisserenden, consisting of a few streets, we found ourselves on studiostraede peeking into one fantastic secondhand shop after another. i managed to score a fantastic floral dress, but am still keeping an eye out for shoes & a jacket. with tired feet & a sweet tooth begging to be satisfied, we stopped in the living room. this coffee shop embodies the danish term, hygge (literally translated to cosy). we shared a delicious cream cheese brownie & chatted as we checked out the locals.

today was a day of even heavier rain. sigh. we went to christianshavn & christiana (the free community), but found it difficult to enjoy much with the wind & rain keeping us soaked & cold - i stared in amazement at those still walking & cycling everywhere. after a bit we decided that the only solution was a dry spot & a big glass of red wine. we met up with a friend's cousin & chatted for a couple of hours about life in denmark. after two glasses & bit of a breakdown about the weather (& such), we made it to the danish design center. again, the interior space was so perfectly designed it made you want to cose in & call it home. the exhibits featured installations on light & the new ways of using it. it was pretty fascinating to see where things are going & will continue to go.

we are now drying off in our hotel room, napping & contemplating a visit to the fontaine, a favorite spot for jazz in the city. twofers on large pints before 10, whatcha say?!

on a sad note, i'd love to send my love to the fritzsche family after the passing of their mom, wife & friend. just remember, there's juice & bagels on the table. with my love & sympathy.

danish design

and when it rains, we go shopping. i was able to resist the urge to buy, knowing that everything would have to travel with me for three weeks, but i have to say - there is some yummy stuff here in denmark. here are some of my highlights:


anne black ceramics


wire snake cable organizer


bodum canteen porcelain mugs


menu trivets


tivoli networks radio


kvadrat textiles