If you Google it, the official happiest city in the world is Helsinki, but Copenhagen is hungry for that accolade, so hungry that they’ve just opened the first happiness museum, aptly named The Happiness Museum.
While the place will no doubt induce an ear-to-ear grin upon entrance, there’s a little more to it than just that. The Happiness Museum comes from The Happiness Institute, and it explores far more than just the humble smile—visitors can learn everything from the past to the future of happiness, as well as the politics and geography of the innate feeling everyone deserves to experience.
Inside, it’s an interactive affair, where everybody is welcomed to take part in thought experiments, some involve light therapy and others involve chocolate. All are guaranteed to make you happy.
There’s also a section dedicated to the smile, which features an installation that unpacks the Mona Lisa, and which side of her face is in fact smiling. Inside, you’ll also find an area full of donated artefacts from around the world that are simply there to make people happy.
More ominous installations in The Happiness Museum also exist, like a Matrix-esque dilemma that poses a blue pill or red pill situation to guests. For the numbers types, there is also a map ranking all 153 countries on their happiness which also shows the effects man-made environments have on our moods.
The Happiness Museum is already open under COVID-related limitations. For guaranteed grins, pop it on your post-lockdown bucket list for your next Eurotrip.
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Image credit: Autumn Goodman