A Visit to Christiania

by two Tasmanian National-Anarchists.

Christiania is a famous secessionist enclave not far from the centre of Copenhagen. Given that it’s an abandoned military base, we were half expecting it to be all underground (visions of hippies living like mice in bunkers!), but it was actually an overground barracks, and quite a big one at that. It even had parks and walking tracks.

These more obscure parts of Christiania seemed a lot friendlier than the main square. Some houses had their own gardens, and there was a stable with horses. We also had a good vegan meal at a place called Morgenstedet, which we can recommend.

The main business area felt like a cross between a viking village and a funhouse, although it would have been a lot more pleasant if not for all the pot dealers loitering around, with cold faces and shifty expressions. But hard drugs are banned there – unlike Australia’s own famous ‘alternative living’ experiment, Nimbin, NSW, where heroin is now a major problem.

While Christianians are very selective about who they let live in their town, anyone is technically welcome to visit. Unfortunately, many come just to piss-splash the walls with ugly graffiti, of the same kind found in any other Western city. Some artwork was more creative, but while many cultures were represented (American Indian, Tibetan etc.), the only Danish image seemed to be a sign in runes, spelling the name of the settlement.

Christianian culture is obviously very pot-centred. You can smell marijuana wherever you go, which is probably the reason for all the signs saying “no photos”. We respected their wishes, however, and only photographed the exit:

It’s unclear what kind of defence the residents would mount if the EU actually did restrict their lifestyle. Their attempts at self-sufficiency seemed mainly token, with shops using Danish currency rather than a bartering system. The commune did possess its own garbage truck, however.

All in all, Christiania had both positive and negative elements. It’s an interesting social experiment, but certainly not the last word in independent community living.