Copenhagen by car, baby
Yes, I was allowed to board, take off and the whole shebang. Copenhagen was the destination. KLM asked if I wanted to be at the airport by half past five, because that control could take hours. Well, there I was (read here what I thought). At gate D-trillion it turned out that the travel group consisted of twelve car journalists. And I can tell you that in car journalism the male population is large. As in: one hundred percent, on my trip at least. The most fun Janet from Renault was also along, so I found myself in excellent company.
And yet it remains a thing, testing the upgraded Renault Captur with men. Yes, because the handsome one has had a facelift, making you want to have him even more under your butt. Think: an interior of buttery soft leather with beautiful stitching, nicely shaped headlights (don't worry, I didn't say this in the presence of the car experts) and the luxurious version named ‘Initiale Paris‘. Look, that does something to you. The biggest Renault guru (he has fifteen parked under his carport) dared to step into the car with me. A road trip around Copenhagen was on the agenda. And what a trip, because now I not only have a crush on the Captur, but also on Copenhagen.
I aimed my camera in the glove compartment (correction: dashboard drawer, where I could still get lost it was so big), buckled myself in and after ten seconds it turned out I was with the safest driver ever. Copenhagen is a user-friendly city to navigate for us structured Dutch, with the right dose of cyclists. Within no time we drove through fields of rapeseed (and no, I didn't have that floral knowledge before this trip), where France would see green and yellow. Villages with wooden houses, shop windows with Scandinavian design that make your mouth water... Denmark, you are lovely.
“I not only have a crush on the Captur, but also on Copenhagen”
At lunch, I joined the experts, who first cautiously looked at what they had on the table in first gear, but soon revved up a range of jokes and complaints about women and cars. Are you ready? The woman in traffic never lets anyone go first. She always drives too fast. The man has more damage because the woman pulls strange stunts. Oh man, and the rest went in one ear and out the other at mach 12, because I have no idea what else he said. Of course, I didn't recognize myself in that at all, but I did see part of the female drivers in the description. I really did shout something about the monkey rock where men sit when they get behind the wheel, but I do that myself too. If a gentleman in a flashy car overtakes five cars and wants to squeeze his vehicle between me and my predecessor, I don't leave an inch free. And yes, I drive too fast. But mainly because my driving skills are particularly good. Even the Renault collector seemed reasonably relaxed next to me. Or at least that's the impression he gave. And for all the dangerous women on the road, you always have Renault. They have so many gadgets that you become a capable artist on the road as a woman.
But let's talk about the Captur for a moment before this turns into a Mars/Venus episode. You have the space of a four-wheel drive, but it maneuvers like a compact car. You can drive it from Copenhagen along the sea towards Hørsholm, and that coastline is definitely worth seeing. Without getting tired of driving for even a second, because it doesn't bounce all over the place. And so far my technical account, because I prefer to back it up with numbers (something about a shoemaker and lasts, not that my numerical sense is that outstanding). This model from Renault sells like hotcakes, as it was the best-selling crossover in Europe and the Netherlands in 2016. Look, a good example leads to good following. You can hit the road with it starting in June, and if I were you, I would take the boat to Copenhagen for real, a great location to get to know each other better.
