In Copenhagen for a conference, discovered that Christiana's famous 'Pusher Street'--where drugs were openly traded--was closed by the government last year, a new conservative coalition. That, plus the fact that Danes have been targeted in a 'fatwa' calling for jihad issued by the local chapter of Hizb-ut-Tahrir (anyone want to blame this on poverty?) a few years ago, makes Wonderful Copenhagen seem more like a real-world place. Of course it is still weirdly perfect-seeming, beautiful canals, bicycles, driverless metros. And very expensive. Even the conference-goers from Germany find the prices here sky-high. Dinner last night at a Mexican restaurant near the Fredriksberg Shopping Center. The owner joked that he got here after being kidnapped from his Mexican village by a Viking. Actually, he comes from Mexico City. So the menu featured authentic Mole but not inauthentic Fajitas or Burritos.
The new glass and steel Opera House donated by Maersk SeaLand looks nice on the waterfront, though Danes apparently all hate it (who knew they hated anything?), and the Little Mermaid statue has been fully repaired, after past decapitations and amputations.
Denmark doesn't use the Euro, rather their own Kroner, and is suspicious of the EU. It is expected that the Danes will vote against the new EU constitution in an upcoming referendum, especially if France votes 'Non' on Sunday.