Tivoli Amusement Garden Copenhagen

Tivoli Amusement Garden

Copenhagen

Denmark

In the 18th and 19th centuries, pleasure gardens (commonly named "Tivoli" or "Vauxhall") appeared across Europe as a form of getaway from the increasingly expanding cities. The gardens were typically established as beautiful and lyrical parks complemented with promenade paths, outdoor pavilions, music and performance, public houses and amusements.


Copenhagen's Pleasure Garden, known as Tivoli Park, was created in 1843 by Georg Carstensen.

Tivoli will never be completed 

Mr. Carstensen said himself, "Tivoli will never be completed", meaning Tivoli is constantly changing.  Today, 169 years later, this oasis just outside Copenhagen, Denmark, remains true to the original vision, with a mixture of old and new buildings and rides.   This year the roller coaster marks its 100th anniversary.  It will be restored to its original design. Read about the restoration project for it's Centennial here.

Beauty, Fragrance, Amusement, Motion

The Ferris wheel
There is certainly something for everyone at Tivoli.  The Ferris wheel is a favorite at Tivoli with old and young. Feel the surge of excitement as you swing to the top with a glorious view over Tivoli and Copenhagen.

The Demon
Looking for some speed and thrills? The Demon is without a doubt the ride that causes the most screams of excitement in the whole of the Gardens. This wild ride features three amazing loops and reaches 28 meters at its highest point.

The Golden Tower
Feel the surge under your shirt and wind in your hair, with a fantastic view over the city in the Golden Tower.

The Star Flyer
There is an impressive 360-degree panorama view from the Star Flyer – that is, if you dare to look.

We have focused mainly on the rides in this article because this week's #FriFotos Twitter photo topic is "Motion".   Throughout Tivoli Park you can find examples of "Motion" as people stroll through the beautiful gardens, ride the various modes of transportation or enjoy one or more of their favorite rides.

Like any good amusement park in the states, you can certainly eat your way through the fair grounds.  Feast your eyes on these colorful suckers that appeal to young and old.

Baltic Cruise Highlight

Our evening visit to Tivoli was definitely one of our favorite memories from our Baltic Cruise on Celebrity Constellation.


Starting at 5:30 PM, Celebrity ran a shuttle to Tivoli . For $20 per person, you got a round-trip bus ride to Tivoli and admittance to the park. We walked around the beautiful grounds, which had hundreds of varieties of flowers.
 
After walking around, we had a BBQ sparerib dinner at Promenaden. The ribs were fabulous and a very healthy portion. After dinner we took a few more pictures, as the lights came on in the park, and then headed to the shuttle bus to return to the ship.

Be sure to plan a Baltic Cruise with an overnight in Copenhagen, Denmark so that you can experience the park in the evening.   As the sun sets and the lights come on, it is really magical.

Add Unique Perspective to Travel Pics

Unique Perspectives

Today we joined #TRAVELPICS chat on Twitter for a fun packed hour exchanging ideas and travel photos with like-minded posters. The theme was “unique perspectives” and participants shared their own travel pics about the theme and answered per-arranged questions.

Q1: How do you define unique perspectives in travel?

How would you answer this question?

A1. When your photo is different than those in the travel brochures 

A1. Also visiting the same place multiple times but capturing different memories

We responded to the first question and also shared several images as the chat progressed.   There is no right or wrong answer here - but if you are interested in breathing new life into your travel photography, some of the ideas shared here and in the chat may be helpful.  Follow us on Twitter: @ChrisPappinMCC

Look for a Unique Vantage Point

The main subject in the two images above is the Old Castle in Corfu, Greece.  We think that you'll agree the first photo could be a typical photo showing the castle from a distance.   It does capture the main subject, but isn't a very interesting photograph.    If your purpose is simply to document one of the sights seen during your Corfu visit, it would suffice.

The second image however is much more interesting to the viewer.  Your eyes are drawn to the main subject, the castle, and you also have the feeling of being outside the castle's gates, trying to look inside.   You are suddenly back in history when the castle fortress was full of life as it stood guard over the town.

Q2: Show us a unique perspective in a travel photo using different interpretations or unusual viewpoints-no right or wrong here!

This was one example we shared.   The images were both captured during our National Conference on Norwegian Breakaway last fall.  The image on the right could be a typical photo taken by every cruise passenger on the ship.  

The image on the left was once again from a different vantage point.   We captured it by accident.  While waiting for the rest of our group to catch up with us, we looked up and saw how amazing the chandelier looked from this vantage point.  So, quite simply, don't forget to look up for subjects to capture in your images.


Q3: Do you have any unique perspective or advice when it comes to traveling differently? Share it!

A3. Give yourself a photo shoot assignment especially if you've been to the same location before 

Some of our more interesting images use archways and doors to frame our subject.   Some of our self-directed photo assignments have been to capture interesting doors across the globe and also lamps, such as those on castles or outside historical locations.

Visiting a Port Multiple Times

If you are like most leisure travelers, odds are that you'll visit a location multiple times in your lifetime.   For those that like a winter getaway on a cruise ship, you'll probably visit several ports in the Caribbean many times.

So what do you do when you find yourself back in a town you've visited before?   You can seek out new attractions or shops to visit, or you can view the familiar sights differently.   For example, find a different angle to view them from;  look through a doorway or hole in the wall as we have above.  If you are able to bend down low, you can view your subject from the vantage point of a child (in other words, from ground level).

Plan for your Visit

To get the most out of a visit to either a new or familiar destination, we encourage you to do some research before you travel.   You may want to check with your professional travel consultant  for ideas about popular attractions as well as those that are off the beaten path.   That was another topic we discussed during the live chat.

The internet is a wealth of information.   Once you know some attractions that are on your bucket list, search for some images that professionals and amateurs have captured.   You may want similar images in your photo journal of your trip.   We suggest that you add a few more unique perspectives as well.

We hope that this has sparked your interest in taking your photography to a new level.  Follow the weekly #travelpics chat on Twitter for more ideas on this and other travel topics.   We'd love to hear your ideas as well, or better yet, join us for the next chat.

Thank you to this week's co-hosts: @AntiTourist @TheTravelCamel @poonamparihar @Sihpromatum @StephensPhotos @melbtravel

Star Princess Main Dining Room

Star Princess

Amalfi Dining Room

 In our last post about our Star Princess 12-Night Greek Isles and Mediterranean Cruise, we were preparing to sail away form Civitavecchia, Italy.  

As usual, my husband was taking pictures somewhere on the open decks before we sailed.   I had no idea where he'd gone and decided to return to the cabin and get ready for dinner.   Hoping that he'd gone to the dining room, I headed there and found him at our assigned table already engaged in conversation with two of our table mates from England. We had a table set for 8, but ended up with only 6 of us since their friends had to cancel due to illness.

At the advice of our waiter, Jigger, we ordered the spring rolls for our appetizer and the tenderloin of beef for our main course.   We've learned that you won't go wrong if you follow the advice of the wait staff. 

We've posted several more photos on our Facebook Fan Page and will be adding more as we continue to bring you the story of our cruise vacation. 

For those not familiar with dinners on a cruise ship, you select one or more appetizers, soups & salads, and the main course.  Following dinner the waiter will describe the desserts from which you can select one or more of those.   Some nights there may be a special appetizer or dessert prepared  such as a special pasta for an appetizer or cherries jubilee for dessert.

The food quality was very good.   We only had one meal that we didn't enjoy and that was the veal scaloppini which was too cold when it was served.  Our waiter notified the head waiter who came over to apologize and got the meals replaced.   Those were very hot.  We suspect the others had been left out too long.

Overall the dining experience in the Amalfi Dining Room was very enjoyable.  Our waiter and assistant were excellent.   After the first night, we never had to ask for ice tea again as they would bring it to us when we sat down. The only issue we had in the 12 nights was the one meal that must have been sitting   at the serving station too long before being server to us.  

Additional photos can be found on our Facebook Albums.




Click on the image to the left for more Blog posts about this trip.

Connect With Us On

        

Sign-up for Exclusive Email Offers


Where have you explored? 

Gather your travel and food pics and join us every Wednesday night for the latest installment of #FoodTravelChat

Norwegian Epic Arrives in Miami

Norwegian Epic is Here (click for images & savings)

Norwegian Epic, the brand new 153,000 ton addition to Norwegian Cruise Line's fleet of Freestyle ships, arrived in Miami as a fire boat saluted the new vessel.   The ship introduces a number of industry firsts, including an ice bar, cabins for solo travelers and performances by Howl at the Moon, Blue Man Group and others.  The entertainment is definitely among the best in the industry.

For Miami, Florida, the Epic represents the first new megaliner since 2007 to call the Port of Miami home.  The economy of Miami will get a boost with an anticipated 300,000 passengers sailing on the new ship which means approximately 90,000 passengers will arrive through Miami International Airport annually. The ship will support 1,000 jobs throughout the state and provide $3.5 million in annual revenues through fees according to estimates provided by the Port of Miami.

"We are bringing our best ship into Miami because we're proud of where we live and work," said Kevin Sheehan, CEO of Miami-based NCL Corp. 'We believe that the people of Miami deserve to have the best ship in the market there."

Norwegian Cruise Line had originally planned for two ships to be built by STX Europe but due to cost overruns, they backed out of their deal.   Therefore, Epic will be one of a kind.   

Be among the first to sail on this new engineering wonder.   Check out the pictures and videos by clicking the link above.   Take advantage of Norwegian Epic's Launch Bonus offer.