Freetown of Christiania

After a few meters of going through unpaved path, herd of bicycles not visible, and sound vehicles rolling down streets not heard. People walked by with a smile, and cats stretched and slept carelessly next to a wooden swing set.

The utopia in the center of København, known as Freetown of Christiania, is a commune built on a former army ground by people sought for freedom in late 1960's. The government, which abandoned the historical ground due to chemical contamination, allowed young people to take over to build a community of peace as an experiment. The historical site, originally used as a base for army since the 17th century, became a place for the generation of hippies to build houses, family, laws, and a self-sufficient society. The name Christiania was the original name of the base, named after Christian IV, and three yellow circles on their red flag represent each dot of the letter "i".

In this community, no one owns anything, and no one is a ruler. Things such as welcoming of new comers are decided in the perfect democracy, but there are three rules that exist; no hard-drugs, no violence, and no cars. Of 500 residents there are artists, inventors, as well as people with jobs in the outside society. Although the crack-down has made soft drugs less common, there still remains the remains of time when it was commonly sold and used, and many young people and tourists gather to hang out at bars and cafe to inhale the atmosphere of good old days.

Although Christiania is enlisted on guidebooks and so is well known among travelers, the most common area is in the center where the bars are, but the actual soul of this area seem to lay along the lake-surrounding path where people have built houses with colorful exterior and grow vegetables in the yard. We were certainly fortunate to have a local guide to take us on a hike-tour of it to see it in a full scale.

We have also learned about how the government has just won the trial against Freetown of Christiania, on either getting this prime real estate back or to have the community pay for what was given to them 40 years ago. The commune well accepted by the people of Denmark, some even considers it to be a pride of the country is now on a verge to be stripped away from people who has protected it. I sincerely hope that they can find a way to save this community,  so it can be passed on to generations to come.