Aaron Sami

Copenhagen / Denmark

Aaron Sami
Copenhagen / Denmark

Day 1

A week after we arrived back from Fiji we headed to Copenhagen for a little taste of Denmark – and a birthday weekend for Monita! I loved this city, it was such a pleasure to photograph. The colours and the light made a perfect match. I also found out after putting together this post that Copenhagen beat out Amsterdam at being the most bike-friendly city on the planet!

A 7:30am flight from Gatwick meant a very early wake, at least we gained an hour once we landed. The Nordics are known for being notoriously expensive, and Copenhagen is no exception, luckily we had a decent amount of Airbnb credit so accommodation was a steal! We grabbed a 3 day ticket that let us use all the public transport – including the train from the airport into central. Made our way to the Airbnb which was a 10 minute bus from central, had a nap, because relaxing birthday weekend.  

The sun had been swapped for rain and we took refuge (it wasn’t raining that bad but it was a tad cold) in Café Dyrehaven. We tried a Smørrebrød – a traditional dish, basically an open sandwich on rye bread.

We then headed north on the wai-wai express up to Vesterbro, popping in and out of trendy shops, avoiding puddles and loving just how quiet everything was. Compared to some other cities we’ve been there just seemed a lack of tourists, which suited me fine. We carried on towards Nyhavn to see the classic 17th century coloured buildings along the waterfront. But not without going past towering Christiansborg palace. 

There was a very awesome, but sombering exhibition by artist Ai Weiwei for the UN World Refugee Day. The giant windows of the Copenhagen art museum had been stuffed with more than 3500 life jackets salvaged from refugees who arrived at the Greek Island of Lesbos. It is on such a grand scale that I only captured two of the fourteen windows!
 

The celcius started to dip so we headed into Magasin Du Nord, a massive department store. Admired the price of things and left to head back to the Airbnb. I grabbed a couple taquitos from 7-Eleven for dinner (the travel life is far from always glamourous) and we called it a night.


Day 2

Birthday day! Starting the day off with eggs on toast at the Airbnb before heading to Nørrebro. It’s the new hip – aka. Gentrified, aka where millennials can often be sighted. The street Jægersborggade can’t be missed. We got a coffee from the famed Coffee Colective – £10 for two coffees. Just wow.

From there we walked down Nørrebrograde taking in the sights and the shops before getting to Tovehallerne. A market close to central, where you can do your groceries and get something good to eat! There’s also a craft market next to it. We then headed back home via Nørrebro for a mid-afternoon kip. Reluctantly we dragged ourselves back out of the house (note this was a relaxing long weekend), went a grabbed a birthday burger before calling it a night.

Day 3

After checking out we dropped our luggage of at the train station and set out for Freetown Christiana. A very unique and interesting place that I recommend everyone visit if you’re in Copenhagen. It is a self-proclaimed autonomous anarchist district (read: hippie commune) where cannabis is openly sold and tolerated although still illegal. Photos are prohibited and I played by the rules.

The grey clouds loomed and the claps of thunder got progressively louder but thankfully the rain held off. A short walk from Freetown is a small island with an Arts Centre and a street food collective. 
 

After a refuel we wondered back through Nyvahn then north towards the Little Mermaid. The bronze statue of a mermaid is an iconic statue that symbolises a city, akin to the Statue of Liberty in NYC or Christ the Redeemer in Brazil. I found it strange as Copenhagen to me symbolised by the coloured buildings of Nyhavn. But it was still fun to see where all the tourists had gone! By the literal busload. 

Heading back towards central we walked through Kastellet, a star shaped 17th century fortress which would be amazing to see from above. It is one of the best preserved star fortresses in Northern Europe. One last Carlsberg sealed the deal (or broke it depending which way you look at it) then we slowly wondered back to the train station, grabbed our bags in a rush and jumped on (what we hoped) the right train. Weekend over.

Enjoy.
 

I love creating images that speak to me.

I grew up in a small town that nobody really knows about, Levin. Spent a good ten years in Hamilton making some of the best friends anyone could have. And now I’m living, working and playing in the city of Auckland, New Zealand. Also a small country that people have trouble locating – I’m looking at you America!

Life is about stories, and that’s what I love to capture and document. My shooting style is unobtrusive. You may be a natural in front of the camera, or have no idea what to do but before we even start I’ll make sure you’re comfortable and relaxed.

Things I love: Travelling to wherever I can, my partner Monita, homemade burgers, wood fired pizzas, the smell of rain on a hot summers day, mountains, the snow, sunsets and sunrises, star gazing, natural light, the aesthetic of wood, crashing waves and day dreaming.