Getting A Viking Boat Tattoo in Copenhagen Meatpacking District

I got my third tattoo—a Viking boat—in the Meatpacking District of Copenhagen while traveling around Scandinavia with my best friend and cousin. I had wanted to get a tattoo representing Scandinavia, while she, far nobler than me, was getting her dad’s signature tattooed on her.

I remember researching the tattoo for weeks before finding the artist whose work resonated with me. I messaged the artist and found out she was on maternity leave. Of course, tattoo artists are human, too! Fortunately, another person at her tattoo studio took over and asked if it would be okay for her to do it.

In hindsight, I could approach the situation in two ways:

I shouldn’t get a tattoo from an artist I don’t know well—after all, tattoos should be love at first sight, both the art and the artist.

Or, I could see it differently—maybe having another tattoo artist offer to do it for me when my original plan didn’t pan out was kismet.

After a couple of days of mulling it over, I decided to pay the deposit and shared my design—a Viking boat (I did look up whether it could be considered cultural appropriation and found that it wasn’t).

The Viking boat is a nod to my fascination with Scandinavian culture—it was the pre-Covid era, when Hygge was all the rad.

This tattoo, which I semi-designed, incorporates a few elements that were meaningful to me. The boat represents my love for travel, while the Viking aspect symbolizes power. It also includes all four elements of tarot: the dragon head represents fire, the sail represents air, the coins on the side of the boat symbolize pentacles, and the boat itself embodies the water element.

Back to the day of the tattooing, we stood in front of Star Midnight, a kebab shop, pressed the buzzer, and walked up to the second floor. I had only been to one other tattoo place before—in Japan, at the artist’s home—so Fable Tattoo Parlour felt new, fascinating, and gorgeous, with plenty of light streaming through the big windows.

Jik went first; it was her first, and we both agreed that she should get it first so she wouldn’t chicken out. She was tattooed on her hand by a young guy named Lucas, who tolerated our nonsense, was kind, and fun.

Meanwhile, my tattoo artist was unsmiling and more direct. Nothing wrong with that—just not the most comforting presence for needle-fearing me.

But that’s okay because I love my Viking boat tattoo (on my feet)—and, more importantly, the memory of getting it in Copenhagen’s Meatpacking District with my best friend.

Read More: Japanese Torii Gate Tattoo—my first and matchy tattoo I got with Fafa to commemorate our married life // A Viking Boat Tattoo in Copenhagen Meatpacking District—I got it while traveling around Scandi with my BFF and cousin // A Tale of The Tiger Tattoo—another semi-matchy tattoo with Fafa // Rainbow Merlion Solo Tattoo in Singapore.

Fabel Tattoo address: Istedgade 101, 1650 København, Denmark.

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