"To be or not to be: that is the question:"

Shakespeare's longest play and the play responsible for the immortal lines "To be or not to be: that is the question:" and the advise "to thine own self be true," begins in Denmark with the news that King Hamlet of Denmark has recently died.

Denmark is now in a state of high alert and preparing for possible war with Young Fortinbras of Norway. A ghost resembling the late King Hamlet is spotted on a platform before Elsinore Castle in Denmark. King Claudius, who now rules Denmark, has taken King Hamlet's wife, Queen Gertrude as his new wife and Queen of Denmark.

The Magnum Opus: Kronborg Castle - also known as Hamlet Castle or the Elsinore Castle...

Castle Interiors - Fredriksborg

Castle Interiors: If people are wondering how the interiors of the Castle look like...then this is how it looks like. Carvings, embroideries and rich art...

The Castle Lake and Gardens

Behind the Fredriksborg Castle you can find the beautiful Castle gardens in Baroque style. Also seen is the Castle lake...very scenic...

The Fountain of Neptune

Not really the original but a copy of the The Fountain of Neptune is placed in front of the castle. The decorative fountain erected on the main square in Bologna is the first major work of the sculptor - Piazza Maggiore.

Several models in clay and bronze record its evolution. With a vertical rather than horizontal emphasis, the format is pyramidal and architectonic. Consistent proportions and the use of bronze throughout create an unity. The fantastic lower figures allow the viewer's eyes to ascend to the Neptune, silhouetted against the sky depicted in a striding pose.

The Frederiksborg Castle

The Danish Kings lived in Frederiksborg Castle for about a century and the absolute monarchs were crowned in the palace chapel from 1671. Since 1693, Christian IV's palace chapel has also served as the knight's chapel for the Order of the Elephant and the Knights of the Dannebrog and is also used as a parish church at the moment.

The Castle Tour Of North Zealand

Today I went on a major sightseeing trip. Visited 3 Castles in Denmark today. The Fredriksberg Castle, The Fredensborg Castle and The Kronborg Castle. The picture shown here is a view of Kronborg Castle taken from inside the Castle...Will be adding pictures of all three and some history...

The Fredensborg Palace

Fredensborg Palace at Lake Esrum is the summer residence of the Danish Royal family. The beautiful 18th century baroque palace is often the venue for important official state visits and events in the Royal Family.
The extensive palace and grounds came into being gradually during the 18th century at the hands of the finest Danish architects of the age. It is typical of the French-inspired Baroque style that the palace forms an architectural whole with the surrounding gardens.

The Rosenborg Castle

Rosenborg Castle was originally built by Christian IV as a country summerhouse, but up to 1624 it was developed into the Dutch Renaissance castle we know today.
The castle houses the Royal Danish Collections of interiors, portraits and handicrafts from Christian IV to Frederik VII.

The Christiansborg Palace

The Danish Parliament, the Supreme Court, the Prime Minister's Office, as well as the Royal Reception Rooms are all housed at the palace.

Fires have devastated several of the palaces that occupied this site. The present Christiansborg is the fourth palace, built from 1907-28 in a neo Baroque style under the supervision of architect Thorvald Jørgensen. The tower reaches a height of 106 m and is the tallest spire in Copenhagen.

Long before, on this very same site, Archbishop Absalon, the official founder of Copenhagen, built the first castle of Copenhagen, which was completed in 1167(Thats a long time ago!! In fact the city of Copenhagen was founded in 1167 AD).

A View From the Round Tower

A view of Copenhagen from The Round Tower. You see the Oresund Bridge in the picture - click on the picture to see a bigger version. The Oresund Bridge (joint Danish/Swedish hybrid name: Øresundsbron) is a combined two-track rail and four-lane road bridge across the Oresund strait. It connects the two metropolitan areas of the Oresund Region, the Danish capital of Copenhagen with the Swedish city of Malmö.

The Round Tower

The Round Tower - An obervatory built in 1642. Visited this interesting monument last weekend. Rundetaarn (The Round Tower) was built on the initiative of King Christian IV (1588-1648) with Hans Steenwinkel the Younger as the architect.
More Info: http://www.rundetaarn.dk/engelsk/frames.htm

Amalienborg Palace

The Amalienborg Palace - Home of the current Queen of Denmark. It was too cold when I visited the place - managed to click a few pictures before I got my hands back in the gloves :-)
The Amalienborg Palace complex consists of four rococo palaces and is the prime residence of Danish Royal family. The palace buildings are placed around a octagonal square with a equestrian statue of King Frederik V (1723) 1746-66 in the centre, who was the planner and builder of Amalienborg around 1750.

Copenhagen - The World's 6th Costliest City!

Just learnt that Copenhagen is among the Top Ten Most Expensive Cities in the World.