My last night in Copenhagen encompassed everything that I loved about this beautiful city.  I visited one of the historic palaces, strolled down the main shopping street, had the best meal of my whole trip, and spent my last couple of krones on a glass of wine enjoyed al fresco.

After a delightful lunch at Atelier September, I walked over to Christianborg Palace via the Royal Library Gardens.  The library it’s surrounding gardens were gorgeous, but also swarmed with kids playing Pokemon Go (which had just come to Europe).  I walked next door to the palace, which was decidedly less crowded.

Within Christianborg palace, there are a few different areas to explore, all of which were included with my Copenhagen Card.  I chose to check out the ruins beneath the palace first, taking the stairs down to view the foundations of castles past.  The ruins were a lot larger than I thought they would be, sprawling out beneath the palace with paths weaving through.  There were plaques accompanying the landmarks in the ruins and small interactive installments.

To contrast the dark basement of the palace, I went to the reception rooms next, where I donned little blue slipcovers over my shoes to walk around like royalty.  The reception rooms were very grand, almost dripping with opulence.

As I wandered from room to room, I seemed to be going at the same pace as another woman, who asked me to take her photo as she shoved her phone in my hands, in each room we entered.  She would switch up her poses, then snatch back her phone and walk away.  This went on for a few rooms before I had the good sense to skip a couple of rooms and get ahead of her. I couldn’t help but laugh when I passed her again and saw she had roped someone else in to snap some photos as she posed looking pensive on a velvet bench.

My favorite room at Christanborg was the library, of course, but I loved how bright and colorful the whole palace was.  After I was done exploring Christianborg, I walked back to my hostel via Stroget, the pedestrian shopping street.  I wanted to do some window shopping and browsed along Stroget, and its side streets to look for souvenirs for my family.

After an hour or so of commerce, I sat down at the Victoria Bar in a beautiful square for a cider and some reading.  It was another beautiful day in Copenhagen, and I was happy that I got to spend much of it outside.  After my drink, I went back to the hostel to rest up and choose a restaurant to go to for dinner.

After reading many glowing reviews and ascertaining that the prices weren’t too crazy, I decided to try Mon Amour, a French restaurant in the Latin Quarter of the city.  It was a small, intimate restaurant with a thoughtful menu and a great wine selection.  Though the prices were pretty decent, it was still a bit of a splurge for my budget.  But it was 100% worth it.

I ordered the Veal Scallopine and a glass of Sauvignon Blanc and was extremely happy with my choices.  Everything was perfectly cooked and seasoned; I savored each bite.  I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Mon Amour, and I have no doubt that if it was located in Chicago, we would visit it frequently.

After dinner, I took one last wander around city.  Copenhagen and I had gotten off on the wrong foot when I arrived, but I had truly fallen in love with this city.  I stopped at Europa café for a glass of wine, leaving my last krones on the table.  Despite the late hour and it being a weeknight, the streets were still bustling with people.  I sat there contently, people watching and writing for a while before going back to the hostel.

Street musicians played as I walked, and I thought back to the exhibit I saw at the Copenhagen Contemporary, about the band, the National singing their song “Sorrow” over and over.  I was sad I had to leave and there was a line in the song that I kept repeating in my head as I walked: “I don’t wanna get over you, I don’t wanna get over you…”.  I wanted to hold onto the feeling that I developed over this trip, keep it in the little pocket in my purse to pull out when I’m sad or frustrated or uninspired.  That night, I packed up and went to sleep, satisfied with my trip and (mostly) ready to head home.