DAY 17: Paris to Copenhagen (Kanalhuset Apartments)

We woke nice and early and checked out of our hotel after breakfast. The hotel was actually in the terminal, so getting to our flight was extremely easy and not stressful at all. A good decision to come here a day early, I think.

We flew Scandinavian Airlines and it was only a 1:40 minute flight to Copenhagen. It felt almost like taking a domestic flight because we only had to show our passport once, just as we boarded. Jim had ordered a car to meet us at the airport, which was nice and luxurious.

Our hotel is called 'Kanalhuset' - or 'Canal House' because it is right next to the water. It is a rather strange arrangement -  because the front door is very unassuming and it looks just like a set of apartments. There was even a list of names beside bells, so we assumed that people live here as well as hotel guests. 

It turns out that the apartments are given people's names - not numbers. We're in H. Anderson - who has a name and a bell!

Our first issue was finding the reception, as there was absolutely nothing written anywhere. Jim asked a passerby, who said to go up to the first floor. Up the stairs, we found a busy bar - with people sitting around with drinks and food. It turns out the bar is also the reception desk. (A sign or two wouldn't go astray!)

Fortunately, our room is upstairs - and nowhere near the bar, which operates from 7am - 10pm. I have no idea how anyone even knows the bar is here! At least, the room is well soundproofed, because we can't hear a thing.

It is not actually one room - but five. You can tell it really is an apartment that people once lived in. We have a large kitchen/dining/lounge room, a large bedroom with a king-size bed and a desk (and a lot of empty space), a walk in robe, a laundry (yay!) and a bathroom with a shower (not a shower in a bath, which Jim detests). The kitchen has pots and pans and cutlery etc - but absolutely no food of any kind - not even salt and pepper. I doubt we'll be cooking anything while we're here!

The only downsides are there is no couch - and no TV. I never watch TV on holidays, but Jim often spends his evenings watching a movie or something. He'll be reduced to watching on his phone, or buying a book!

The staff were very keen to tell us all the things that they offer here. Apparently every evening at 7pm there is a communal dinner in the eating area next to the bar - and 100 people or so turn up! You sit at long trestle tables on benches and talk with all your neighbours. Sounds like a nightmare to me, but I notice that a lot of the reviews of this place mention the dinner with great enthusiasm. 

They also have free yoga sessions in the afternoon, a running club, a swim club and a singing group. What kind of place is this? It feels far too communal for my liking. We aim to be left alone on our holidays.

After settling in, we ventured out for a meal. A few minutes down the street, there is a lively shopping strip with lots of cafes and restaurants. I had a steak sandwich and Jim had a club sandwich. (Both costing $40 each.) This is an expensive place. The meals were quite substantial though, so we probably won't need dinner - as we ate at about 3pm.

It was getting dark as we left the cafe. Sunset is at around 3.30pm. We ventured down to the bar around 6pm for a coffee and cake, which was quite nice. Apparently they do a good breakfast too, so we'll try it out tomorrow. If we don't like it, there are plenty of bakeries near by.