Fairy tales are what people grow up with. So what better way to go and discover all about one of the writers behind them than to visit their home town. Danish writer Hans Christian Anderson is responsible for the stories of The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling and The Princess and the Pea and lived in a town called Odense, located on the island of Funen in Denmark.

Odense is one of the oldest towns in Denmark and a 1.15hr train ride from Copenhagen. This perfect day trip is easy to navigate to with regular trains between the 2 cities. Odense is a charming town with cobblestoned streets and small coloured houses. My trip was just to get a glimpse of the town and also visit the Hans Christian Anderson Museum and House.

The H.C.A museum is great and well organised. It’s slightly hidden but there’s a tourist info office in the middle of the old town and Danes are pretty nice! You’re first greeted with bookcases filled with his books in roughly 130 languages of varying designs and size. There are some very nice leather bound and some very old editions however, the whole bookshelf is locked.

As well as the library, there are rooms that will take you through his life with personal notes and clothing (like did you know he met Charles Dickens?) and replica house attached that you can wonder into.

The H.C.A house is located on the other side of the old town. It’s a 1 storey house and small but if you’re a fan, definitely stick your head in to have a look at some of his works inside. Nearby is the Odense City Museum (housed in a lovely building).

I loved the architecture of the Old Town and enjoyed wandering the cobblestoned streets.

Odense also has other attractions including the Danish Train Museum, Odense Zoo, Odense Palace, Funen Village (open air museum) and St Canute’s Cathedral. If you don’t get charmed by the town, at least appreciate the H.C.A figure as the walking man at pedestrian lights.

-S.

Pictures (top to bottom): H.C.A statue welcomes you into the library. a street behind the museum-these are actual houses! and one of the streets in the middle of town. Almost makes you want to believe that you’re wondering around a town in one of those fairy tales.