? The reason why I know Denmark is that it is the hometown of Andersen, the writer of "Andersen's Fairy Tales" that I loved when I was a child. But after I went to Denmark, I discovered that everything there was really beautiful and elegant, like an unreal fairy tale.
The Kingdom of Bicycles
Denmark is a kingdom of bicycles. I didn’t know about it until I arrived in its capital, Copenhagen, and got off the subway. When I got out of the subway station and saw the open-air bicycle shed at the subway station, I was really frightened by the sight. The densely packed rows of bicycles made me feel like I had stepped into a Chinese propaganda film from the 1980s and 1990s.
It is unimaginable that in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, a highly developed Nordic country, 50% of residents use bicycles for commuting. The city has more bicycles than residents (data from Denmark DK).
It was the first day we arrived in Copenhagen, and it happened to be time to get off work. We were walking on the city road, and when we reached a fork, we suddenly saw rows of bicycles swarming up in front of us, and the entire street was filled with bicycles. There are all kinds of bicycles, and people ride on them, crossing the road quickly and orderly. Like a faucet that was turned on, streams of water flowed down and filled the streets. That moment. I finally realized what the words “Bicycle Kingdom” really mean.
Not only are there a lot of bicycles in Copenhagen, but the styles of the bicycles also surprised me. The stroller-type bicycle makes me feel that they are really practicing environmentally friendly travel with their lives. You can see your father or mother riding a bicycle in the streets and alleys, with a baby stroller hanging in front of the bicycle. At this time, the bicycle becomes a three-wheeled one. It's like turning our domestic three-wheeled bicycles upside down. However, I have some doubts about the safety of this bicycle. Putting my child on the front of the bicycle always makes me feel uneasy.
? Quiet Zone in the Subway
The subways in Shenzhen and Guangzhou were recently established, so they are quite spacious. If you have experienced the short subway in London, the slow subway in New York, and the dark subway in Paris, you will know how comfortable the subway in China is. However, when I came to Northern Europe and Denmark, I realized the correct way to open the subway. Copenhagen’s metro makes me want to immigrate directly to Northern Europe. The extremely spacious carriage is about 1.5 times as wide as the usual subway. The chairs are cotton seats like the second-class hard seats of domestic high-speed rail. The seats are horizontal and the width of each seat is also large. There are also horizontal racks above for luggage. Is this a subway? This is the luxury version of the high-speed rail. What’s even more unexpected is that there is a special area for bicycles on the subway! You can take your bike on the subway and lock it on it! There are doors between the carriages. There are also dedicated silent zones (quiet zone carriages). In the quiet zone car, you are not allowed to talk, and there are signs not allowed to use mobile phones. When we took the ride for the second time, we suddenly found the sign above and found it very interesting, and then we didn't dare to laugh out loud in this area.
But for such a high-end subway, the price is naturally astonishing. A single ticket costs 24 Danish kroner, equivalent to 24 yuan. Going from the airport to the city costs 36 kronor, so the four of us took the subway from the airport to the city for half an hour without spending 144 yuan. My subway fare in Shenzhen for a month didn't cost that much. Prices have always been high in Northern Europe, and the prices for public transportation are even more astonishing (public transportation throughout Europe is actually very expensive). What is unexpected is that taking an Uber taxi in Copenhagen is more cost-effective than public transportation. It only costs more than 60 kroner to get to the city. If three people travel together, it is actually more convenient and cost-effective than taking the subway.
Nordic style
I have never understood what the so-called "Nordic style" popular in China is like. When I came to Denmark, I realized that it was a kind of freedom and ease. The house is not as heavy as in Paris, but relaxed, simple, but without losing details. After getting off the subway and walking on the road, you can see simple houses with their own modern style. Just like the first impression a person gives you is fresh and natural, polite and you can see his intelligence or charm. This is how the architecture of Copenhagen feels to me. It's a pity that I didn't take many photos. There are actually many unique buildings. In addition to being refreshing, I have an urge to live in them. There are also beautiful display windows in the store, which are very delicately decorated. Nordic style means that you don’t feel its luxury, but it is actually just luxurious and low-key.
This is called a polite nation
People in Copenhagen are very polite. This kind of courtesy means that they want to be nice to you from the bottom of their hearts. The owner of the B&B where we stayed was waiting for us at the door of the apartment downstairs when we were about to arrive. He was very warm-hearted. As for the owner of the first restaurant where he ate, he knew he was the owner because there was a photo of him and others hanging on the wall of the restaurant. Because we couldn't understand Danish, he explained the menu to us very patiently. It took us 20 minutes to order each dish, and he was still very polite. And I like his little move very much.
After the friend signed the bill, he saw that his friend's Chinese characters were written in flying colors. He was very curious and felt that the characters were very special, so he showed the bill to a woman eating at the next table. The girl also smiled and felt amazing. Such a small gesture showed me their heartfelt tolerance and acceptance of other cultures, instead of advocating, not advocating, not rejecting, and not even scorning. There was no pretentious reservation, no exaggerated and deliberate appreciation, but a very natural curiosity and hope that others would know this curiosity. I later regretted not taking a photo with him, because the charm of a warm-hearted but unassuming person is really attractive.
I then thought that the fusion of Denmark’s orderly bicycles and cities, polite people, simple Nordic architecture, and tasteful store decorations may be due to their stable high income and perfect Happiness created by social systems. People are not impatient because society is not impatient. Traveling does not have a sense of urgency because cities do not have a sense of urgency. Sentiment comes from the satisfaction and comfort of life.
Thoughts beyond the journey
Denmark is the hometown of Andersen, and all my inspiration for writing comes from a book I loved when I was a child, "Andersen's Fairy Tales." I have read this book so much that I can still remember some of the stories in it, including Idiot Hans, Big Claus and Little Claus, and Mr. Flea. When I reread Andersen a few years ago, I realized that it was not a fairy tale, but a fairy tale used to tell the truth of reality. It was Andersen who gave me the interest in reading. And coming here nearly twenty years later, it feels like a dream has come true. More than ten years ago, I never thought that I would come to Andersen’s hometown.
My dream was to travel around the world and become a travel writer. Because there are two writers I like the most, one is Sanmao and the other is Linda (the pen name of a couple), both of whom write travel notes. The former is biased toward perceptual thinking, while the latter is biased towards reflection on history. One is sentimental in writing, and the other is simple in writing. In other words, I am still thinking about the same thing now, but it can no longer be called a dream. It may be because I am already on the road, or it may be because I no longer think travel is the meaning of everything as I did at the beginning.
The experiences and thoughts on the journey are only one-sided and short-lived. Everything must return to life, and only when combined with life can travel have the meaning of travel. If you want to break out of the current circle, take yourself a quick trip. This idea may be too popular. But the source of happiness in life is not far away, but in the little things around you. Don't think of the place you want to go as a way to escape. If you really want to go somewhere, your heart will eventually take you there. People want to live in fairy tales, but the fairy tales written by Andersen are actually more realistic reality.
Alain de Botton wrote in "The Art of Travel": "Travel is not a direct way to obtain happiness, but a tool. Specific places during travel can prompt people to think, and these thoughts This is the key to our happiness. "Thinking outside of travel is integrated into life and forms seeds that affect daily life. That is the best meaning of travel.