There are more spots for kids to play in Copenhagen than I have ever seen in another urban setting. We met with Randa this morning at the Traffic Garden to discuss her involvement in staffed playgrounds. There are hundreds of parks within Copenhagen city limits and almost all of them have at least some playground equipment. Children in Copenhagen are independent, able to go to these playgrounds alone by the time they turn 6. Staffed playgrounds, as Randa told us, improve quality of life, prevent crime, and create a safe and helpful environment for all kids. Kids can come as go as they please, but parks and playgrounds are an essential active and social environment for these children. The Traffic Garden, Trafiklegepladsen in Danish, was unique because it was a miniature version of a typical Copenhagen street. Kids are able to walk and bike around the streets to learn how to deal with street signs and traffic signals before they go out on their own.
We were then tasked to go find five playgrounds and/or parks and I decided for the first time to go out and explore on my own. I wanted to be completely random in the parks I ended up at, so I did not even look at a map and biked around town without a destination. I first came upon Kildevældsparken, which was a smallish park, but it had a huge pond in the middle of it with a path all the way around it. There was also a playground area on the side with play equipment and basketball courts. I have already noticed that there are designated playground areas in almost all parks, no matter the size, making it a desirable destination for children to go to in any neighborhood. I found a nice bench here, ate some lunch, blogged a bit, and headed off west to find something new.
The next place I came across was barely a park at all, but it was still more significant than anything you would find in the U.S. in terms of proper utilization of public space. On the corner of Baldersgade and Nannasgade, there was a playground and a basketball court. Not much green space, but rather a great area for people to come enjoy a nearby public area. It was so small it did not even have a name, but on one of the fences there was a sign that said “Lost Gloves Copenhagen” and a bunch of gloves hanging. This is just another example of community building and people looking out for others.
Just a few blocks down the street was BaNanna Park, which had a huge green hill in the middle of it and again had places for people to do activities. However, the highlight of this park was the artwork. There were two huge murals and another one that was on a rock climbing wall. The next one I went to was the biggest of all of them and that was mainly due to the fact that it was mostly a cemetery. Assistens Kirkegård is Nørrebro’s largest green area and a beautiful place for the dead to rest. Once again, there was a playground next to the cemetery and more sports courts and green space.
My final spot was Korsegadehallen, which was essentially an indoor sport court with a massive domed green roof that could be summited. It was surrounded by residential apartments and more green space, making it a wonderful place for nearby residents to chill on nice days. At the end of the day, I had only actually gone to two places that were technically “parks.” However, I realized that there is so much green space and activity space that they do not need a whole lot of places that are just so called parks. People here do not have private yards, but rather share acres of public space that foster community engagement and social well being. The privacy of the American lifestyle is proving to be quite an overrated idea when coming to a place like Copenhagen.
The group met up again on the rooftop of a Danish UO alum who was kind enough to share her space with us. Cocktails, appetizers, and conversation is a really great way to spend a sunny early evening in the city. A couple of us met a few Danes later on in the evening who invited us to their houseboat, so we spent most of the night enjoying the company of a few young Danes and hearing their experiences. Once again, it was an amazing day in a city I am excited to be staying in for fall term.
