To Be Or Not To Be

No trip to Denmark would be complete without a stop at Hamlet's castle, also know as Kronborg Castle, began life as a fortress called Krogen in 1420. Its position along the sound between Sjaelland and Sweden allowed the Danish kings to exact tolls from all ships passing through. Frederik II renovated it into a Renaissance castle which then proceeded to burn down. Christian IV, when he wasn't too busy being totally awesome all over the country rebuilt the castle into what it is today.


Some fun trivia: The cannons on the rear battlements of the castle are the oldest in Denmark, and are still used on special occasions.

These cannons.

They are so powerful that windows behind them have to be opened when they are fired, otherwise the shock waves would shatter them.


Shakespeare never actually went to Helsingør, but rather relied descriptions of the castle brought back by Christian IV's theater troupe, who he was acquainted with. Elsinore, the name of Hamlet's castle in the play is derived from  Helsingør, the town where Kronborg is located.


The location of this castle is quite simply phenomenal. Luckily, by sheer dumb luck I got a perfect day for my trip- sunny and brisk, but not quite mind-numbingly cold. The waterfront was gorgeous, the lighting as is always the case in these northern latitudes was almost sickeningly perfect, illuminating the most minute details of everything.

A bird was here.

Frost in the grass.

Christmas decor. Sorry to subject you to these artsy shots of mine, but I like them.

Ice crusted rocks along the water.

Hej Hamlet. Just look at that southern lighting.

Sunset. At 15:00.