Sakura in Copenhagen: A Mindfulness Walk along Langelinie Promenade

Copenhagen’s Langelinie Pavillonen tells an unexpected story of connection between two ancient monarchies: Denmark and Japan.

On this walking tour along the picturesque promenade and waterfront, you’ll learn how a Japanese baker’s love for Danish pastries led to 200 Sakura trees being gifted to Copenhagen, creating a living link between these geographically distant nations.

The tour starts outside the Museum of Danish Resistance and takes you through Churchillparken (Churchill Park), and past the iconic Gefion Fountain. You’ll stroll through Langelinie Park too, where the annual Copenhagen Sakura Festival celebrates Japanese culture, before making your way to the harbour to see historical monuments marking Denmark’s naval history.

Beneath a peaceful grove of cherry trees, I’ll guide you in a mindfulness exercise where you’ll engage all five senses, transforming a simple walk into a deeply personal experience. Our tour ends at the historical Ved Norgesporten (Norway Gate) at Kastellet fortress.

On this hour-long tour, you’ll have the opportunity to:

• Learn about King Frederik IX’s surprising connection to Japan through his dragon tattoo, the first of many that would decorate this unconventional monarch’s body
• Discover how a post-WWII Japanese entrepreneur fell in love with Danish pastries and built a bakery empire named after Hans Christian Andersen
• Understand the unique parallels between Danish and Japanese monarchies, the world’s two oldest royal houses
• Walk past the famous Little Mermaid statue and learn about the Japanese anime adaptation that preserved Andersen’s original ending
• Be surprised by what a very wealthy but homesick Danish princess ate for breakfast
• See visible scars on Kastellet fortress from WWII, a conflict that paradoxically created the conditions for the Danish-Japanese connection celebrated by the cherry trees
• Hear why a naval battle fought in 1710 deserved a memorial 180 years later, and how that was an inspirational story in Japan

Let me show you how this busy waterside neighborhood can also be experienced from a mindful perspective. You’ll gain unique insights into Copenhagen through the two kingdoms’ connection. Enjoy!

Image Credits:

All photographs by Eliana Cobos, except Location 9 - Langelinie Park at dusk by Nicholas Cobos-Ullitz; Location 11 - Øllebrød photo by RhinoMind; Location 11 - Russian Empress Maria Fedorovna by Charles Jacotin, Paris; and Location 11 - Fabergé Egg by Mojito_mak, Getty Images, through Canva

Sources:
Copenhagen Sakura Festival About Page
The Tattoos of the King Recreated
A Concept for the Fulfillment and Enrichment of Life through Bread - Always Modeled After Denmark by Andersen Institute of Bread & Life Co
The Nordics in the modern Japanese political imagination - Turning Japan into “Denmark on a bigger scale” by Kenn Nakata Steffensen