roasted potatoes
There was a wild rush of activity in the first three weeks of December leading up to the end of school, to friends going out of town, to the last moments of frenzy before the quiet and welcome stillness.
But, it was fun :-).
Here are a few highlights (=
the only photos I have) of our final Copenhagen December:
Dinner at the Estonian Ambassador's house....
....complete with
Bear, Wild Boar and Moose as part of the menu.
Eaten with black bread; (
there were other things, too: roast pork and pumpkin salad, the golden potatoes above, as well).
Concert -- 3rd annual concert in our case, now -- to hear
Oh Land play.
hair styled by strong, windy weather outside
Dinner first with dear friends at a restaurant called
Oliver and The Black Circus. It's a great shame I don't have photos from the restaurant. I simply forgot -- we were laughing too much. :-)
As always, Oh Land delivered.
Julegudstjeneste at
Garnison's Kirke.
Oh, Garnison's Kirke....how I love thee!! This
yearly service given by the Royal Guards is my *favorite* service out of the whole year;
Holmens Kirke is my favorite Church....but, this Gudstjeneste is fantastic in every possible way, and I savor it *every*
year.
It is at the alarming hour of 8.30 on a Friday morning, and I secretly love that they will hold a service with full pomp and circumstance that early in the day.
It is also very late in December - the 19th, this year - which means that many of the Defense Attaches have already left the country for Christmas. This makes it a *surprise* for me to see who is there in the pew with us. :-)
The interior of this Church is sooooooo beautiful in pale grey and cream.
The minister is simply great, every year. He speaks very, very seriously, and weaves his themes together with gravitas; he is speaking to the military, after all. He also speaks slowly -- for which I am grateful, as it gives me a sporting chance to understand most of what he is saying.
But....he is *also* ever-so-slightly monotone in his delivery....and that, combined with all the uniforms and staff members of the Royal Household and polished seriousness.....well, it just reminds me SO MUCH of a scene out of Jane Austen, that I can't help but love every moment (
while secretly hoping that Colonel Fitzwilliam will lean over and tell me something I absolutely *must* know; and
every year, the "Colonel Fitzwilliam" next to me graciously obliges, too. ;-)
I enjoy these guys so much!!!)
I love this view as we leave the Church
It's even better afterwards; the whole assembly walks through the streets of Copenhagen together on the way to the reception. How much fun is that?
It's so much fun I forget to take pictures. (
I have not one photograph from last year, in fact. I was too busy listening to one of the Defense Attaches talk about a 18th Century Medal he'd recently found at an auction. Seriously - walking along the frosty sidewalk in that part of town with 400 years of solid history - surrounded by Military Officers and *that* story being told? You can't blame me for a little Jane Austen ;-)
time-travel.)
Tivoli in Copenhagen
We try to go every year to see the Christmas lights and market.....
...this year, it was already the 23rd by the time we made time for it. Eliza was the only one who wanted to join us.
It's always a nice couple of hours at Tivoli.
Everything here makes for a nice couple of hours, in fact. Even the train ride there and back.
