Late in the summer we realized that the time had come to buy a new car. Our trusty Ford Focus "Niko", which we have had since the spring of 2002, was diagnosed with a fatal air conditioner disorder and severe "arthritis" of the main joints and springs after giving us over 160,000 of faithful service. Those of you who know us well also know that we have always had the most utilitarian of cars with more thought given to economy than to luxury. However, once the search for a new car began, we also came to the realization that we could and should now succumb to luxury and look for a car that would fulfill all of our needs and wants, too. There was one caveat, however. The car had to be no longer than 175 inches. Why? Well, how many of you have tried to find a parallel parking space in a crowded city on a more or less daily basis? A shorter car makes that job much less stressful in every way.
After looking at a number of different cars, and wandering into the Volvo dealer simply by chance due to a parking situation, we discovered that the Volvo C-30 might just prove to be the car of our dreams. We still had a few more cars to see, but on the way out the door of the dealership, we saw a pamplet that proclaimed, "Explore Europe with Volvo - Journey for Life". What? Volvo would actually pay for both of us to go to Europe to pick up a custom ordered car, and they would pay for insurance for us to drive that car around Europe, and they would pay for one night in a hotel and airport transfers and the shipment of the car back to the USA? This offer sounded too good to be true! We returned to Volvo after finding no other equivalent car that we liked better, found out that the offer was indeed just as advertised and decided then and there to go for it. We picked out the options that we wanted on our custom Volvo C-30, decided on exterior and interior color and put down the $$. We learned that our car would be ready for pick-up in December, and because it was not our year to have any of the family for Christmas, we settled on the dates of 18-29 December for Our European Winter Travel Adventure!
We drove up to Montclair on 18 December, visited a bit with Ashley, Jason and Claire, then left "Niko" with them for the 10 days. Jason drove us to the airport, and we were checked in for our 5:30 flight with a couple of hours to spare because Volvo had also given us free access to the SAS Lounge. We enjoyed the lovely and quiet atmosphere, open bar and abundant snack offerings until it was time to board our flight. That was a very nice perk, indeed.
We arrived in cold, snowy Gothenburg after a short stopover in Copenhagen before Noon on Sunday, 19 December. We were picked up by a driver and taken for check-in at the SAS Blu Scandinavia Hotel in the center of Gothenburg. We immediately set out to explore our surroundings, vowing to keep at it until the fatigue of an overnight trans-Atlantic trip set in.
The Gothenburg Wheel is a feature of the inner harbor section. Right across from this area is a beautiful and huge opera house. The Wheel sits just below a huge shopping mall, Nordstan, which we also frequented in order to pick up information and our Go: teborg Pass.
We wanted to take a canal boat tour, but unfortunately the canals were completely frozen and the holiday tours had been cancelled. I found some consolation in a cheese crepe and hot chocolate.
We took the tram out to Liseberg, a huge amusement park that was festooned with lights, filled with booths selling special holiday items, and a favorite with families. The rides were running, the Glogg (the mulled wine of the area) was flowing, and no one cared that the temperature hovered around 10 F. 
We stopped at these special warming stands to warm our hands and feet as often as we could find one.
But the cold did not stop the little ones from riding all the rides, running about screaming with excitement, and enjoying the special holiday atmosphere. I have seldom seen as many small children in snowsuits and babies in big wheeled strollers and carriages as I did at Liseberg that afternoon.
It began to get dark shortly after 3 PM, and the crowds just grew larger. The pavillion to my rear was the home of one of Santa's elves, Tomten, who was taking childrens' Christmas wish lists and having chats with them about what they had written. So cute!We left there at about 5:30 when Dale's eyes were closing while he was walking. It was early to bed that night, but only that night, as a busy week lay ahead.
By 9 o'clock on the morning of 20 December we had finished a bountiful breakfast and done more exploring of downtown Gothenburg. We were waiting for our 10 AM pick-up for the ride out to Volvo Land and the Volvo Factory Delivery Center.
There we were introduced to "Astrid", our gorgeous new C-30. She has a beautiful cranberry leather interior and more power than all of our previous cars put together. After learning all about her many features and how they work, and after a delicious lunch of Swedish Meatballs and other treats, all on Volvo, we put the pedal to the medal and took off on the E-45 for the 3 hour drive down to Copenhagen, Denmark.
The view up in the Copenhagen Island Hotel from one of the lobby chairs. We chose this hotel because of its reasonable price and available parking. It was situated a 15-40 minute walk from the main attractions of the city, but we welcomed the exercise.
The main Platz of Copenhagen illuminated by a full moon.
The "Stroget" has every kind of shop one could imagine, but we were particularly captivated the the Lego store. All of the things you see here, with one exception :-), are made of Legos.
This group of carolers was entertaining the shoppers outside of Illums Department Store. American Christmas carols were being sung and played everywhere. It was the Pottery Barn holiday sound track all over again.
By 9 o'clock on the morning of 20 December we had finished a bountiful breakfast and done more exploring of downtown Gothenburg. We were waiting for our 10 AM pick-up for the ride out to Volvo Land and the Volvo Factory Delivery Center. 
There we were introduced to "Astrid", our gorgeous new C-30. She has a beautiful cranberry leather interior and more power than all of our previous cars put together. After learning all about her many features and how they work, and after a delicious lunch of Swedish Meatballs and other treats, all on Volvo, we put the pedal to the medal and took off on the E-45 for the 3 hour drive down to Copenhagen, Denmark.We checked into the ultra-modern Copenhagen Island Hotel for a three night stay, and after putting "Astrid" safely in the hotel garage, we set out for the "Stroget" the main shopping and pedestrian only area of the city. On this Monday before Christmas, the stores were thronged with holiday shoppers.
The view up in the Copenhagen Island Hotel from one of the lobby chairs. We chose this hotel because of its reasonable price and available parking. It was situated a 15-40 minute walk from the main attractions of the city, but we welcomed the exercise.
The main Platz of Copenhagen illuminated by a full moon.
The "Stroget" has every kind of shop one could imagine, but we were particularly captivated the the Lego store. All of the things you see here, with one exception :-), are made of Legos.
This group of carolers was entertaining the shoppers outside of Illums Department Store. American Christmas carols were being sung and played everywhere. It was the Pottery Barn holiday sound track all over again.We enjoyed a delicious dinner that night at Peter Oxe, a traditional Danish restaurant. They were featuring a special menu of Christmas specialities, and Dale had deer while I had duck, and both were delicious. The rice pudding with a hot cherry sauce that the Danes all enjoy at Christmas quickly became a favorite after that dinner! As we walked back to the hotel, the snow began to fall, and by morning there was another 6-8 " covering everything.
Our hotel rate did not include breakfast, but we were fortunate that a huge mall, Fiskevort, was right next door. We had coffee and rolls there each morning we were in Copenhagen. One of the fun features of the mall was a beautiful aquarium full of the most colorful fish.
It was a four story mall with each level connected by moving sidewalks. People were able to pick up shopping carts at the entrances and push them around from store to store, moving them between levels up the moving sidewalks. I think that is an ingeneous idea that our malls should adopt. Beats carrying armloads of bags!
The sun was out that morning after the snowfall, and the walk into the center was cold but pleasant in the sun.
We were on our way to see the Amalienburg Palace, home of Queen Margarethe II, when we realized that the canals were not too frozen for the canal tour boats to operate. Hurray! We jumped on and were treated to a wonderful 1.5 hour tour of the city by water. It was such a great way to see everything and to have a unique perspective of this island city of many canals.
The Little Mermaid was back on her chilly perch after a visit to Shanghai, China for the big Shanghai Exposition.
The boats had to break the layer of ice that immediately formed after each passage, and our guide occasionally found herself apologizing for the extra noise that ice breaking caused. Here the boat is heading out of Nyhavn past the colorful buildings lining the quay.
Later in the afternoon, after a Smorrebrod lunch, we finally found ourselves at the Palace. The Danish flag flying indicated that the Queen was in residence. Do wish she had invited us in for tea or a toddy and a warm-up!
As dark fell, we wandered and shopped some then found ourselves at Tivoli for the festive holiday market and activities to be found there. I had heard about Tivoli all of my life, and I was excited to finally find myself there.
The entire park was beautifully lit and full of families shopping at the special Christmas stands and simply having fun. Once again it was frigid, but that did not stop the parade of families with children and babies. The people of Scandinavia take their children everywhere, and we only saw two minor tantrums the entire time we were in this park as well as in Liseberg. The children were just being so incredibly good. They all knew that Tomten was always watching.
There is a little slot parlor in Tivoli, and Dale just had to go in. I was frozen at that point, so I agreed that it would be okay for a few minutes. He had me pick the first game, and I promptly got three matching symbols. However, we did not know exactly what it meant or how to get the Bonus going. We had to go for assistance, but the result, after the right buttons were pushed, was a big win of over $66. Dinner was paid for!
There are a number of restaurants in Tivoli, but we chose the most traditional, Foegerkroen Bryggehaus. We had the Christmas brew and more duck plus schnitzel. It was hearty and delicious.
On 22 Dec. we set out for more sightseeing after our coffee plus at Fiskevort Mall. Our first stop was the neo-classical city cathedral, Vor Frue Kirke, or Church of Our Lady. The children's choir was practicing inside, and their sweet voices added a lovely touch.
Our second stop of the day was the Rundetarn or Round Tower. The observatory at the top of the tower is the oldest still being used in Europe. We enjoyed a Polser, Danish hotdog, for lunch after we came down from the tower. We also did more shopping along this section of the "Stroget". By 1:30 we were in the National Museum of Denmark where we spent the rest of the afternoon. The exhibits on the history of Denmark from the Stone Age until 2010 were incredible, and the artifacts from the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages greater than anything I could possibly have imagined. The bogs of that area of the world preserved things in an almost perfect state, bodies included. Ms. Global Studies was in her element!
We closed the museum at 5 PM and only saw two of the major exhibits!
Our hotel rate did not include breakfast, but we were fortunate that a huge mall, Fiskevort, was right next door. We had coffee and rolls there each morning we were in Copenhagen. One of the fun features of the mall was a beautiful aquarium full of the most colorful fish.
It was a four story mall with each level connected by moving sidewalks. People were able to pick up shopping carts at the entrances and push them around from store to store, moving them between levels up the moving sidewalks. I think that is an ingeneous idea that our malls should adopt. Beats carrying armloads of bags!
The sun was out that morning after the snowfall, and the walk into the center was cold but pleasant in the sun.
We were on our way to see the Amalienburg Palace, home of Queen Margarethe II, when we realized that the canals were not too frozen for the canal tour boats to operate. Hurray! We jumped on and were treated to a wonderful 1.5 hour tour of the city by water. It was such a great way to see everything and to have a unique perspective of this island city of many canals.
The Little Mermaid was back on her chilly perch after a visit to Shanghai, China for the big Shanghai Exposition.
The boats had to break the layer of ice that immediately formed after each passage, and our guide occasionally found herself apologizing for the extra noise that ice breaking caused. Here the boat is heading out of Nyhavn past the colorful buildings lining the quay.
Later in the afternoon, after a Smorrebrod lunch, we finally found ourselves at the Palace. The Danish flag flying indicated that the Queen was in residence. Do wish she had invited us in for tea or a toddy and a warm-up!
As dark fell, we wandered and shopped some then found ourselves at Tivoli for the festive holiday market and activities to be found there. I had heard about Tivoli all of my life, and I was excited to finally find myself there. 
The entire park was beautifully lit and full of families shopping at the special Christmas stands and simply having fun. Once again it was frigid, but that did not stop the parade of families with children and babies. The people of Scandinavia take their children everywhere, and we only saw two minor tantrums the entire time we were in this park as well as in Liseberg. The children were just being so incredibly good. They all knew that Tomten was always watching.
There is a little slot parlor in Tivoli, and Dale just had to go in. I was frozen at that point, so I agreed that it would be okay for a few minutes. He had me pick the first game, and I promptly got three matching symbols. However, we did not know exactly what it meant or how to get the Bonus going. We had to go for assistance, but the result, after the right buttons were pushed, was a big win of over $66. Dinner was paid for!
There are a number of restaurants in Tivoli, but we chose the most traditional, Foegerkroen Bryggehaus. We had the Christmas brew and more duck plus schnitzel. It was hearty and delicious.
On 22 Dec. we set out for more sightseeing after our coffee plus at Fiskevort Mall. Our first stop was the neo-classical city cathedral, Vor Frue Kirke, or Church of Our Lady. The children's choir was practicing inside, and their sweet voices added a lovely touch.
Our second stop of the day was the Rundetarn or Round Tower. The observatory at the top of the tower is the oldest still being used in Europe. We enjoyed a Polser, Danish hotdog, for lunch after we came down from the tower. We also did more shopping along this section of the "Stroget". By 1:30 we were in the National Museum of Denmark where we spent the rest of the afternoon. The exhibits on the history of Denmark from the Stone Age until 2010 were incredible, and the artifacts from the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages greater than anything I could possibly have imagined. The bogs of that area of the world preserved things in an almost perfect state, bodies included. Ms. Global Studies was in her element!
We closed the museum at 5 PM and only saw two of the major exhibits!We walked back to Nyhavn for dinner that evening, and we enjoyed a complete Christmas Brod at Nyhavns Foergekro that was abundant and delicious.
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