The wedding day finally arrived. We took a taxi from our hotel to the church for the ceremony. Most things are walkable in Copenhagen, but this church was 30 minutes by foot even in comfortable shoes, plus it was sprinkling.

Just as in the US, it’s customary to arrive 15-30 minutes before the start of the ceremony.

The ceremony was conducted entirely in Danish. I had to escape out the back door about three minutes in after #1Toddler started fussing and shouting “No! No! No!” I heard a few guests quip that she was objecting to the marriage, so I figured that was our cue.

There was a break between the ceremony and a canal boat ride that lead up to the cocktail hour. Given the weather and the fact that someone needed a nap to achieve the important act of staying awake until the dance floor, we opted to skip the canal boat and take a family ciesta to recharge.

The cocktail hours started at 5pm, and we arrived at 5:30. The venue is located at Langelinie Pavillion near Kastellet, with 180 degree views of the water.

Nadja gave me a heads up on a few of the unique Danish wedding traditions. For starters, the dinner is five hours NOT including dancing. The Danish are famous for giving speeches. All guests are invited to toast the bride and/or groom. Sentimental or a roast, anything goes. But the speeches are formal and preplanned. Those wishing to speak must sign up with “the Toastmaster” ahead of time to be added to the schedule of speakers.

One of the quizzes asked attendees to raise a flag, US or Danish, to vote for whoever a given clue was true for. Someone enjoyed waving the flags indiscriminately.

After the promised five hours of toasts (which sped by) and a delicious steak dinner with pickled celery root and herb potatoes, the dancing began.

We had a goal of making it to the dancing which we were told would start around midnight. To our amazement, no one on our team needed a nap, and everyone powered through and made it to the dance floor to let loose.

At 1am we called it a night. We left impressed by the attention to personal detail displayed in every aspect of the wedding – the sentimental speeches that helped us get to know both Jeff and Nadja better, the thoughtful icebreakers and translations back and forth between English and Danish, and the exquisite food. Amir and I both decided we will RSVP yes to any Danish wedding invites from here on out.

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Day 7

To say we were moving slowly this morning is an understatement. Coming up on noon, #1Toddler began to get antsy and request to go to “da park, da park!” So she and I headed out on a solo walk in search of the famous trampoline sidewalks.

She of course fell asleep in the stroller just five minutes into the walk, so I took the opportunity to stop for an Aperol Spritz and cheese plate while she slept.

She awoke just as I was paying the bill and packing up to move us to our next destination. She didn’t miss the ice cream sign on the way out.

We walked just three blocks past Copenhagen Bicycles where we rented our family bicycle on Day 5 of our trip and found the Trampoline Sidewalk. Friends on one of my online mom boards recommended this one for kids.

Still working on jumping with two feet at the same time

After the trampoline sidewalk, we headed back to the hotel to reconnect with Amir who was resting and tackling a migraine.

The only other must-do item on the list for today was watching the Women’s World Cup Final between the USA and the Netherlands. We figured being in Europe where futbol is king, we’d have no trouble finding a spot to watch the game. To our surprise, we walked two miles and stopped by 8 pubs before finding our viewing home at the Happy Pig. In fairness, The Dubliner Irish Pub did have the game on, but it was standing room only and not toddler friendly.

On a random side note, Amir and I couldn’t help but notice the hundreds of discarded nitrous oxide cartridges that litter the streets in some hot spots of the city. In doing a little Googling, it seems whippets are the favorite drug of the young crowds here in Copenhagen.

After the glorious futbol victory, we made our way to Sticks & Sushi, a favorite restaurant of Jeff & Nadja, and also the place where we cancelled our reservation after an exhausting day on the bike and too much soft serve. I’m so glad we circled back and made it there. Commence the food porn.

Everything we ordered was unforgettable. We both agreed we’ve paid twice as much for meals we’ve liked half as much, and for sushi, the pricing was very fair given the quality.

The last two nights have brought the best meals yet. I can’t wait to see what we can eat tomorrow.