Hans Christian Andersen Childhood home and museums

You can visit the birth place and childhood homes of Hans Christian Andersen where he began to develop many of his famous fairy tales.  He was born in a small house in the slums of Odense shared by about 25 people, one family per room.  The house he grew up in was a little less densely populated but still in the poor area of Odense and shared by several families.  The area now is very clean and picturesque and not very representative of what it was like during his life.  

There is also a museum of his life where you can learn about his awkward childhood (the ugly duckling was based on his childhood) and see artifacts from his life.  The city is on the island of Funen,  The city has footprints embedded in the sidewalks so you can “follow in his footsteps”