The political and especially security situation in Europe is increasingly complex and the man is slowly afraid to visit the place where there are many people at the same moment. Such a place are even Christmas markets. We still could not resist and we visited with friends Copenhagen in Denmark and Malmo in Sweden during the advent time. We chose well. I think that even though people are one indicator of the popularity of the place, there was not as much as elsewhere and vice versa Christmas atmosphere here was comparable and in many ways even better than in other cities. Moreover, we saw something new. Besides typical markets we arrived in the local pubs too, we were on the coast and saw the most famous places of both cities.

Copenhagen (Danish: København) is the capital and most populated city of Denmark. It has a municipal population of 591,481 and a larger urban population of 1,280,371. The Copenhagen metropolitan area has just over 2 million inhabitants. The city is situated on the eastern coast of the island of Zealand; another small portion of the city is located on Amager, and is separate from Malmö, Sweden, by the strait of Øresund. The Øresund Bridge connects the two cities by rail and road. Since the turn of the 21st century, Copenhagen has seen strong urban and cultural development, facilitated by investment in its institutions and infrastructure. The city is the cultural, economic and governmental center of Denmark; it is one of the major financial centers of Northern Europe with the Copenhagen Stock Exchange. Copenhagen's economy has seen rapid developments in the service sector, especially through initiatives in information technology, pharmaceuticals and clean technology. Since the completion of the Øresund Bridge, Copenhagen has become increasingly integrated with the Swedish province of Scania and its largest city, Malmö, forming the Øresund Region. With a number of bridges connecting the various districts, the cityscape is characterize by parks, promenades and waterfronts. Copenhagen's landmarks such as Tivoli Gardens, the Little Mermaid Statue, the Amalienborg and Christiansborg palaces, Rosenborg Castle Gardens, Frederik's Church, and many museums, restaurants and nightclubs are significant tourist attractions.

Malmö (Danish: Malmø) is the third largest city in Sweden and the sixth largest in the Nordic countries. Malmö is also the most populous city in Scania and is the economic and cultural center of South Sweden. Malmö is also an important part of the transnational Øresund Region, which covers Denmark east of Great Belt (including Copenhagen) and Scania. Malmö was one of the earliest and most industrialized towns of Scandinavia, but it struggled with the adaptation to post-industrialism. Since the construction of the Øresund Bridge, Malmö has undergone a major transformation with architectural developments, and it has attracted new biotech and IT companies, and particularly students through Malmö University, founded in 1998. The city contains many historic buildings and parks, and is a commercial center for the western part of Scania too. The administrative entity for most of the city is Malmö Municipality, which has about 300,000 inhabitants in eight different localities. Malmö is also a bimunicipal locality, as part of it is formally situate in Burlöv Municipality. The total population of the urban area is about 325,000.

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