The old and the new

       The city of Copenhagen has integrated both old, historic greenspace, with new, contemporary greenspaces. As one may expect, the cities new greenspaces have much more of a modern, urban flare than their historic counter parts. The old tends to have the classic elements of most parks: vast green expanses of grass, rod iron benched, colorful flower beds, paths for walking, and maybe a serene body of water or a babbling brook. Contrarily, newer parks offer areas made up of vast expanses of pavement, with many recreational features such as playgrounds for children, and colorful design.
      This week we visited parks both old and new. Made in 1699, Copenhagen's Frederiksberg park has truly become a favorite historic greenspace of mine. This park, established by King Frederik IV, was first a maze of linear flower beds and fountains that cascaded down the lawn in perfect form. With a change in style came the removal of the sophisticated gardens and the lawn in front of the palace is now a beautiful, we'll manicured grassy area. This historic space, is speckled with bodies of water in which visitors can watch and feed geese, ducks, and swans. It's winding trails, lined with trees, offers an intimate setting within nature. Small pockets of open green areas where picnicking and lounging occurs, are scattered rough the park. Whimsical bridges connected small peninsulas over calm bodies of water offer a complete sense of serenity. It is hard to believe you are in the middle of a city within this park, as all of your stresses and worries are forgotten and all you can hear is the sound of  song birds people enjoying themselves.
      Contrasting this beautiful historic park, is the newer urban park of Superkilen. This space was created in June 2012 in Copenhagen's Norrebro district. Superkilen is very different from Frederiksberg park in that it not only offers no feeling of escape from the city setting, but it also has very little green space, and what green space it does have is not heavily utilized. The park resembles a skate park with it's large blacktop area. What sets this modern urban park from others is it's design. The blacktop is painted wild shades of red, orange and pink, while other areas offer visually altering patterns. With its abstract design and noisy area, this park offers not feeling of relaxation and perhaps offers just the opposite. Additionally, a bike path cutting directly through the center of one park makes you hyper aware of your bustling surroundings.
        These two parks, both old and new are completely different from each other. While one offers a feeling of escape and peace, the other offers more of an area for recreation (biking,skating, playground). Both parks bring something to the city in different ways and are both integral parts of the neighborhoods/districts they are located in. However, when choosing to go to Superkilen or Frederiksberg, it should not be expected that you will have similar experiences as they are very different.