Tillykke med Fødselsdagen Dronning Margrethe!

It was an early start Tuesday morning. Myself and a whole flock of other exchange students had planned to spend the day in Copenhagen to celebrate the Queen's birthday, which meant a three hour train ride departing the local station at 7:30am. Ok, maybe not so terribly early, but I was still a bit sleepy on the trip over.

Three hours of doziness later, we arrived at Copenhagen's central station and proceeded to head directly to Amalienborg Slot, the Queen's residence. Once there, we scouted out a perfect vantage point, that would allow us to snap the optimum picture of the Queen and her distinguished wave. We were lucky enough to secure the ideal spot - we weren't at the front, but we had an unobstructed view of her balcony. I say "we were lucky", as the castle's courtyard was jam-packed with a couple thousands of Danes and foreigners alike. After a festive and jovial performance from the royal marching band and as the clock of Marmorkirke struck twelve, the Queen herself, accompanied by her entire family, emerged from one of the castle's four balconies--the crowd erupted with applause & began to wave their Danish flags spiritedly.

Now for some pictures.

The castle's courtyard beginning to fill up with spectators, with Marmorkirke in the background.

Part of the royal family out on the balcony.

The Queen with her husband and two sons. 

I spent the rest of the day with my friend, Mady, enjoying the wonderful city of Copenhagen in the beautiful sunny weather.

Our first stop after Amalienborg was for lunch. We decided to sit on the banks of the harbour to eat our picnic lunches and soak up the sun. It's worth noting that it was only about 15 degrees and we were sweating. That's what a prolonged Scandinavian winter will do to you. 

Iconic Nyhavn in the sun.

Mady and I decided to take a boat/canal tour. It turned out to be a great and "hyggeligt" way to discover of Copenhagen. It lasted for an hour and was well worth the 75kr tour cost. 

Walking up the "Round Tower". Apparently the sole purpose of its construction was so the Princess could ride up and down the tower in her carriage for entertainment. 

Nowadays the top of the tower offers spectacular views of the city.

Mady & I were almost the only people up there, so we could just be our normal selves ;-)

Looking up the Round Tower from the street. 

Our last stop of the day was at the Royal Gardens - a super place to relax under the sun. 

It was a super day and a fantastic cultural experience. The sunny, "warm" weather gave me a whole new outlook on Copenhagen, in comparison to my last trip there in November. Copenhagen is simply an outstanding city and well worth the visit.