COPENHAGEN: Hopping off his custom-built bicycle-turned-portable kitchen, Danish chef Morten Kryger Wulff started whipping up a feast of tantalizing, original dishes – served with a generous side of nature.

The 56-year-old chef, a veteran of prestigious kitchens across Europe, got the idea more than two decades ago to take his cooking to the great outdoors, leading customers on a gastronomic bike ride through Copenhagen – with delectable food served at every stop.

On a sunny weekday in July, grilled seaweed, dill cream, bean fricassee, Nordic pizza, and blackcurrant ice cream were on the menu for the ride from the Danish capital’s harbor to the Amager Nature Park.

“This is as close as I can come to nature, cooking-wise, in a chef way,” said Wulff.

The tour lasts about four hours total, covering three to five kilometers (around two to three miles).

It is broken into bike rides of about 15 minutes each, in between which the chef gets off his bike, unfolds his table and starts cooking.

“You take away the walls of a traditional restaurant and you expose yourself to the city and to the elements you’re in,” he said.

In his cargo bike – a contraption he designed himself, measuring over two meters (six feet seven inches) long and weighing 130 kilograms (287 pounds) – he brings everything he needs: a foldable work surface, a refrigerator, a gas burner and all his ingredients.

“It is impressive to watch him cook from that small kitchen, to see how compressed everything is,” said Pernille Martensson, a Copenhagen local who joined the tour with her husband to celebrate his birthday.

The route is “part of the menu,” said Wulff.

“For example, the dish with fish or shellfish or seaweed are typically served by the channels,” he said.

On the docks, he sautes shrimp before serving them in shells.

As Wulff and his group gradually move away from Copenhagen’s city center, the chef – who has worked at The Savoy hotel in London and Geneva’s InterContinental – shares stories about the city and the project.

It all began in 2002, when he was kicked out of a municipal park for trying to have a barbecue with friends, and decided to start cooking outdoors legally.

Wulff takes an ecologically gentle approach.

“The food we get for these tours is, of course, all harvested and bought locally,” he said, adding that even the wines come from around Copenhagen.

“Bicycle, it’s the most sensible vehicle, the smartest vehicle. It does not use any energy. You can have a battery, but it’s pedal-powered,” he said.

The mobile approach to dining means he and his customers “meet the city, we meet the locals,” he said.

The self-proclaimed “bicycle chef” said he is “very passionate about cargo bikes and what they can do.”

He frequently participates in the Danish cargo bike championships, an unconventional competition held annually in Copenhagen.

In 2016, he was named courier of the year.

The award committee said he had “demonstrated the many possibilities of the cargo bike with his mobile kitchen project.”

Bicycle-loving Copenhagen has over 385 kilometers (239 miles) of bike lanes, the oldest dating back to 1892.

You can only sit in front of the fridge with the door open for so long.
As heat waves blast the world like a blow dryer on high, folks are reaching for anything that promises a little personal chill: portable mini fans, cooling neck wraps, high-tech vests and all kinds of heat-beating headwear.
Of course, cooling gear helps most when paired with basic and safe strategies against the heat: most importantly hydration, shade and rest. Stay out of extreme heat when possible, and know the signs of heat exhaustion or heat stroke.
Yet these wearable wonders and breezy gadgets can offer some relief. They might look quirky, but when the AC struggles and the sidewalk feels like a stovetop, they can start to seem like must-haves.
When you’re at home
Indoors, stay comfy with cool-feel sheets (like those with a silky finish or lightweight fibers), bed fans (where a nozzle inserted into the bed linens pumps a flow of air around you), or a cooling pillow or chill pad, which are filled with a gel that can stay cool for hours. Sleep-product brands include Serta, Sealy, Casper, Pluto and Threshold.
The chill pads can work for your own bed and the pets’ bed too. There are chillable full-size mattresses (Chilipad, 8Sleep and BedJet get good reviews from The Spruce) and smaller, simple pads (CoolCare and Sharper Image, among others).
Outdoor wearables

Clare Epstein, an employee safety expert with Vector Solutions in Tampa, Florida, works to reduce heat stress for at-risk employees in industries like construction, aviation and agriculture. She recommends wearables like cooling scarves and evaporative cooling vests.
“By soaking the fabric in cold water at the beginning of the day, the vest slowly cools, and keeps the wearer cool,” she says.
Clothes made of “phase change materials,” or PCMs, contain gel capsules or pads that can help moderate body temperatures. Uline.com advertises a vest that stays under 60 degrees for a few hours, and AlphaCool offers a neck tube that performs similarly. Another feature of the tube, which is made of a polymer material, is that it doesn’t get overly chilled, so it’s safe for kids to use.
Also for kids, there’s a line of plush toys from Warmies that includes little critters of the farmyard, ocean, forest and safari that can be popped in the freezer before a trip to the park or playground.
Wearable items that incorporate small fans or thermoelectric coolers are also good, Epstein says. And there are vests with tubed reservoirs you can fill with water or electrolytes so you can sip as you go.
“These encourage people to take more water breaks, and stay hydrated,” says Epstein.
The wearables range is extensive. Along with cooling buffs, headbands, wristbands, socks and scarves, there are cooling brimmed hats and ball caps. Brands include Mission, Ergodyne, and Sunday Afternoon.
If you’d prefer a refreshing breeze, USB-chargeable handheld or wearable fans might do the job.
Chill advice
Lynn Campbell, co-founder of 10Adventures travel company in Calgary, Alberta, takes a lot of strenuous hiking and cycling trips with her husband, Richard. They’ve developed some easy hacks for hot days.
“We’ll wake up early, so we’re done by 10 or 11 a.m., or if we’re out on the trails, split the day in two, so we rest by water or in the shade over the hottest part” of the day, she says.
Wear light colors and thin, breathable fabrics.
And bring an umbrella. “This is a game-changer,” Campbell says. “Now we always pack ultralight, compact ones; they’re incredible.”
Also, pour cool water on your head and back. “We freeze a few bottles of water so we can pour ice water on us to cool down,” Campbell says. “Putting the bottles under the armpits, in the groin, or on the back of the neck can effectively cool a person down.”
And Annita Katee, a contributing writer for Apartment Therapy, has another way to prep your bed on hot nights:
“Pop your sheets into the freezer at least two hours before bedtime, then pull them out right before you hit the sack,” she wrote in a recent post. She folds hers into a zipped plastic bag, flattens it, then sets it on a freezer shelf between ice packs.
“The result? A delightfully cool bed that feels like a refreshing oasis against the heat.”