We got on a train bound to Helsingor fairly early in the morning. The moment we got out of the station I realised the building which housed it was a rather special one, both on the inside and out.
Helsingor is said to owe its prosperity to its location linking the North sea and the Baltic, having been an International centre of shipping during the fifteenth century when Erik of Pomerania levied a tax on every ship passing through its local waters.
We came across an African sculpture exhibition as we were heading towards the Kronborg Castle, better known as Hamlet's Castle of Elsinore.
Because there were some works in progress on to reach the Kronborg castle we had to walk past the Cultural Centre, in front of which stands a replica statue of the little Mermaid in a male version and turn around behind it heading towards the Marienlyst Park.
The Castle gable flanked by the "Pigeon Tower" and the "Trumpeter's Tower" and the rich ornamentation of decorative style of the Netherlands renaissance with sculptures in niches was rather impressive, as we approached the main portal, though we still didn't know what to expect.
Having left the Dark Gate we walked onto a small forecourt before we actually came to the castle courtyard. The main Gate was decorated with statues of Neptune and Mercury, symbolising the basis of the King's wealth and power.
(to be continued)
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