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Looking at my reflection, I seem to have on enormous golden pantaloons, visible only to me. Children sit in a stone basin imitating sea nymphs, meanwhile in the next room sits a chatting legume in a showcase, next to a tall stack of bedding. It represents the domain of the beloved author (1805-1875), a leading nineteenth-century's widely adored writers. I'm visiting Odense, located on Fyn in the southern part of the Danish kingdom, to investigate the writer's timeless impact in his home town 150 years after his passing, and to experience a few enchanted tales of my own.

The Museum: HC Andersens Hus

The H.C. Andersen Museum is the city’s museum celebrating the storyteller, including his first home. A curator explains that in past designs of the museum there was scant attention on the author's tales. His personal history was explored, but The Little Mermaid were missing. For guests who come to the city in search of narrative enchantment, it was not quite enough.

The renovation of downtown Odense, rerouting a main thoroughfare, made it possible to reconsider how the local celebrity could be celebrated. A major architecture competition granted the architects from Japan the Kengo Kuma team the contract, with the innovative curatorial vision at the center of the structure. The remarkable wood-paneled museum with interwoven spiralling spaces opened to much acclaim in 2021. “We have attempted to build a place where we don’t talk about the author, but we talk like him: with comedy, irony and outlook,” says the representative. The outdoor spaces embrace this concept: “It’s a garden for wanderers and for giants, it’s designed to make you feel small,” he notes, an objective accomplished by clever planting, playing with height, proportion and numerous twisting trails in a deceptively small space.

The Author's Influence

The author penned several memoirs and often changed his story. The museum adopts this philosophy to heart; often the opinions of his companions or snippets of correspondence are displayed to gently question the writer's personal account of events. “The writer is the guide, but he’s not reliable,” explains the expert. The result is a fascinating rapid journey of the author's biography and art, thinking patterns and most popular stories. It’s provocative and whimsical, for grown-ups and kids, with a extra lower-level make-believe land, the pretend town, for the smallest guests.

Visiting the Town

Returning to the actual city, the compact town of Odense is charming, with stone-paved roads and traditional Danish homes colored in bright colours. The Andersen legacy is everywhere: the street signals feature the author with his iconic characteristic hat, bronze footmarks give a complimentary guided stroll, and there’s a sculpture trail too. Each summer this commitment reaches its height with the annual Andersen celebration, which celebrates the author’s legacy through creativity, dance, drama and music.

This year, the seven-day event had numerous performances, the majority were complimentary. During my time in Odense, I meet colorful performers on stilts, fantastical beings and an writer impersonator sharing tales. I hear feminist spoken-word pieces and observe an amazing evening show including acrobatic dancers descending from the municipal structure and suspended from a crane. Still to come during the season are presentations, hands-on activities and, extending the storytelling legacy past the author, the city’s annual wonder event.

Every excellent enchanted locations need a palace, and Fyn features 123 castles and estates throughout the region

Pedaling Through History

Like other Danish regions, bicycles are the best way to navigate in this town and a “cycling highway” winds through the downtown area. From Hotel Odeon, I pedal to the complimentary waterside bathing area, then out of town for a loop around Stige Ø, a small island linked by a road to the mainland. City residents relax with food here following their day, or take pleasure in a tranquil moment catching fish, water sports or swimming.

Back in the city, I visit a local eatery, where the food selection is derived from the writer's motifs and narratives. The verse the patriotic piece is featured when I visit, and manager the restaurateur reads extracts, presented in English, as he serves every dish. Such encounters frequent in my days in the city, the island inhabitants enjoy storytelling and it feels as though storytelling is always on the menu here.

Historic Estate Tours

Every excellent enchanted locations require a palace, and this region boasts 123 castles and manor houses throughout the region. Going on excursions from town, I explore Egeskov Palace, the region's best-preserved Renaissance water castle. Despite parts are accessible to the public, this historic site is also the private residence of the aristocratic owners and his spouse, the princess. I contemplate if she might sense a small legume through a pile of {mattresses