Denmark sits like a star atop the European continent, the geographic and cultural link to Scandinavia and the gateway to the Baltic. It's thoroughly European, yet distinctively Danish.

One of the smallest countries in Europe, it has the oldest capital city and the oldest flag. Our queen, Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II, is the youngest queen in Europe, yet hers is the oldest lineage, dating from early 900 and Viking king Gorm.

Vestiges of its royal past are readily apparent in Denmark's stately castles, gardens, and manor houses.

Danish cities are filled with gracious plazas, statues, fountains, gardens crisscrossed with wide, tree-lined walkways, open-air markets, flower vendors on street corners, museums, galleries, and little cafes offering strong coffee and delectable pastries.

Danes are friendly ("If you have to throw yourself on the mercy of anyone," it has been said, "let it be a Dane"), English-speaking, and fun loving. And we come from a great literary and artistic heritage that includes the writers Hans Christian Andersen, the philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, the choreographer August Bournonville, and the designer Georg Jensen.

In the entire world, there's no place like Denmark. And there's no time like the present to discover why.

Skål!

It's lunchtime in Copenhagen, and on a warm day, there's no better place to park yourself than an outdoor cafe. Try our smørrebrød, open-face sandwiches with a variety of toppings (fried plaice, marinated herring, smoked eel, tiny sweet shrimp, roast beef, cheese, and much more) served with a thin layer of butter on dark rye bread, nutty black bread, or soft French bread and eaten with a knife and fork. It's traditional to begin with seafood, move on to meat, and end with cheese. Wash it all down with a Carlsberg or Tuborg beer, and perhaps a chaser of Danish snaps, or aquavit. Served ice cold, it's still fiery hot. To toast-be it with beer, snaps, or wine-we Danes raise our glasses, lock eyes, say "Skål", sip, hold the gaze, then lower our glasses. The custom harks back to Viking times.

At dinnertime, you can duck into a small restaurant announcing "Dagens Ret," the economical daily special. Expect stick-to-your-ribs fare like meat-and-potato hash; fried cakes with pork, egg, and onions (frikadeller); or Danish meatballs and red cabbage, all served in ample portions.  Or pull out all the stops and splurge on a modern-day Babette's Feast: fresh fish and seafood including herring and Scandinavian salmon, free-range chicken, beef and pork from Jutland, pheasants, and roast duck, as well as our incomparable Danish cheeses and sweet butter.

Hungry for a sweet? Our Old World cafes, called conditories, serve coffee, tea, cakes, and devilishly tempting pastries. You may call them "Danish," but they're "Vienna bread" to us! 

Tivoli Gardens

It seems that when asked about Denmark, everybody connects the country with The Little Mermaid and Tivoli Gardens. The old garden with its many flowers and lights, which opened on August 15 1843, in order to provide recreational facilities to the citizens of crowded Copenhagen, is now one of the primary targets of just about all tourists that come to Copenhagen.

It's 6:30 on a Saturday evening, and you're sharing Smoerrebrod, snaps, and conversation with friends at Grøften in Tivoli Gardens. Suddenly a burst of sound fills the air, followed by a flash of bright red jackets, gleaming brass instruments, and bearskin hats. The Tivoli Boys' Guard is marching by, in a tradition that dates back 152 years.

Tivoli combination amusement park, public gardens, and open-air stage, has been putting on a show in Copenhagen since 1843, when it opened just outside the main gates of the city. Its inviting entrance, with its graceful arch, trimmed in lights and the word TIVOLI emblazoned at the top, has remained unchanged since 1900. The city has grown over the years and now its beloved park lies at its very heart.

Fancifully shaped buildings decorated in the soft glow of incandescent bulbs, turn the grounds into a true fantasyland each day at dusk. Here a Moorish bazaar; there a muttered Chinese tower; over there an old fashioned Ferris wheel with balloon-capped baskets and a merry-go-round with gaily painted animals.

On the stage of the Peacock Theatre, the lovesick Pierrot pines for his Columbine in pure Comelier del'arte farce (watch carefully- the curtain actually comes down when it "goes up"). The 1,800-seat Tivoli Concert Hall hosts top names in classical music - Menuhin, Metha, Mutter, and more - in 150 concerts every season. At the close of the day on Wednesday and Saturday, fireworks burst into rainbow colors that dissolve into gold and then into fountains of shimmering silver.  (Notice how Tivoli spells 'I lov it' backwards)

Tivoli is as close to the center of Copenhagen (the Town Hall Square) as you can get, and is visited by scores of tourists every year. The accent on tourists is not accidental: If you want to go where the Danes themselves go, you'll have to go to an amusement park North of Copenhagen called "Bakken" (short for Dyrehavsbakken). Most Danes are too stingy to go to Tivoli and the price levels one encounters there.

What is Tivoli Gardens? As its name brother in Italy, just South of Rome, it is a garden with many beautiful flowers. Tulips bloom here by the hundred thousands, and most of the trees have been in residence since the opening of the Tivoli Gardens. Also, Tivoli is a place of lights, which makes Tivoli a very special place to visit once it gets dark. You have to go to Tivoli twice (or for a long time) if you want to experience both atmospheres of Tivoli: In the daytime the abundance of flowers, and in the night time the many lights and an atmosphere that could be taken directly from a fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen.

One remnant of the old fortification of Copenhagen, which can still be found in Tivoli, is the lake, which used to part of the moat in front of the fortifications. Today, gold fish and ducks share this tranquil water, which gets water added from as different sources as a water mill and a Japanese brook - both things that represent the tranquil atmosphere of Tivoli very well.

The Danish flag -- oldest flag in the world!

Hans Christian Andersen -- famous Danish author.

Tivoli Gardens -- a must for visitors!