Hot off the press...
Copenhagen hippie haven 'belongs to Danish state'
COPENHAGEN (AFP) – The future of Copenhagen's "free city" of Christiania, a refuge for hippies and artists, looked bleak Tuesday after a court ruled the site belongs to the state and not to squatters.
The ruling ends a legal challenge brought in November by squatters, who claim the enclave founded by hippies in 1971 is legally theirs and who want to protect its unique character.
Christiania is home to some 1,000 hippies, artists, activists and misfits. There are restaurants, cafes, shops and some psychedelic-looking homes designed by residents and the area attracts more than a million visitors annually.
Residents insist they were given the exclusive right to use the area as they wish, but the Danish centre-right government has rejected that claim.
It wants to clean up the area, build housing and open it up to the general public, a move Christiania dwellers have resisted amid fears those changes would bring an end to the special atmosphere [More...]
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I was reading the news just now and this caught my eye... was really surprised. Together with some of the Uppsala students we'd gone to visit copenhagen, and dropped by Christiania (by accident really.), we really were intrigued by its unique atmosphere... I've yet to post about it, shall update with pics when I have time.
I'm packing up and finishing up whatever things we have to do now... getting all sentimental inside, sigh
