Copenhagen Midtown

The afternoon air becomes a lovely and lazy soup of smells and sounds as another easy european evening approaches. Families pack their cars for a long weekend, and tired drivers catch glimpses of stylish restaurants setting candles upon sidewalk tables. The weeklong grind is finally over and we can slow down for a few days grace, forgetting the florescent overhead lights of the office. Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark. It has repeatedly been recognized as one of the cities with the best quality of life. It is also considered one of the world's most environmentally friendly cities. The water in the inner harbour is clean and safe for swimming. 36% of all citizens commute to work by bicycle. Every day, they cycle a combined 1.2 million km. Since the turn of the millennium, Copenhagen has seen a strong urban and cultural development and has been described as a boom town. This is partly due to massive investments in cultural facilities as well as infrastructure and a new wave of successful designers, chefs and architects. As of 2010, Copenhagen is ranked as the 10th most expensive city in the world according to Forbes magazine. Copenhagen's founding has traditionally been dated to Bishop Absalon's construction of a castle on the small island of Slotsholmen in 1167 where Christiansborg Palace stands today. Recent archeological finds indicate that by the 11th century, Copenhagen had already grown into a small town with a large estate, a church, a market, at least two wells and many smaller habitations spread over a fairly wide area. Many historians believe that the town dates to the late Viking age, and was possibly founded by Sweyn I Forkbeard. This sound uses the following file from Freesound: http://www.freesound.org/samplesViewSingle.php?id=123564