Thursday, August 18, 2011

Living European with Dogs: Pier Picnics, Inspiration from Copenhagen


One of the most important things we learned from our recent trip was that it wasn't about needing  to travel far away, but finding ways to recreate our favorite aspects at home, and of course with our pooches. During our travels we were lucky enough to go to Copenhagen, a magical city of brightly painted buildings, modern design, elegant girls on bicycle outnumbering car traffic, and a classic amusement park from the 1800's located smack dab in the middle of the city. Is it a wonder Hans Christian Anderson made this his home?
 But then we realized one downfall: everything was insanely expensive. An ice-cream cone was $8, fifteen dollars for a drink at a bar, and $25 for a hamburger. While one guy at our hotel told us he rarely went out, we quickly learned how to do Copenhagen like a local. They would go to the store, grab a six-pack of beer, and sit along the pier. The pier would be packed with people hanging out and sitting along the sidewalk.
Every chance we had, I kept asking E if we could go back to sit by the water with the beautiful buildings, and I thought it would be the one thing I would miss. Until I realized Chicago has its own beautiful waterfront views:

With city skyline:
 We decided to hang out with the pooches along the waterfront having our own 'pier picnic'. It's not really legal to drink in the city parks, so we did keep it legal, and Scandinavian, with this sparkling pear drink from Ikea.
With 18 miles of lakefront path, there are plenty of opportunities for different views and bigger crowds.

11 comments:

Kate said...

$8 for an ice cream cone?!?!!? Wowza that's expensive...

I love the idea of a pier picnic. It's so great that you guys have access to that in Chicago.

And I love those last few photos. That's a gorgeous skyline and I love how you captured your time with the pups there.

Two Grad Students and a Pittie said...

Wow expensive city! I think its funny when you realize the things you do on vacation you could do at home!

www.twogradstudentsandapittie.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

Holy cow that's an expensive place!! At least you can do it for cheaper at home!

I love seeing pictures of Miss M with her ears up...she looks so different! And, that last photo of the two of them together is so sweet!

Stewey said...

Nice post! Beautiful pics!
Stewey

Faye said...

Oh, thank you for this sneak peek at Copenhagen. I'll be there in about a week. Will definitely check out its waterfront and look for great dogs. None as great as two pitties though! Loved the photo of their back views on the pier.

Tucker The Crestie said...

Pier picnics! Great idea! I guess I need to win the lottery before I go to Copenhagen! Or at least take a lesson from the locals!

Kristine said...

Love the idea of sitting out by the harbour in the sunshine. Even without beer, with two great dogs by your side and all that blue sky, what more do you need?

Corbin said...

I think Mom would say we had to skip out on an $8 ice cream!
-Corbin

brooke said...

I love Copenhagen!
Though drinking (alcohol) in public places is illegal, we often see people with their bottle of wine at some of the parks we take Dar to. I think it's a fun idea to take drink to the park and layout in the sun!

Road Dog Tales said...

What a magical place! Good thing you learned how to enjoy it without breaking the bank, eh?

The Road Dogs

Kari in Alaska said...

I remember hearing how spendy Denmark can be!

Kari
http://dogisgodinreverse.com

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