Not so Hygge: Why Denmark is no cosy place for migrants

Denmark is famous for its high quality of life but the 'hygge factor' does not translate into a warm ­welcome for migrants, writes Meghan Davidson Ladly, reporting from Copenhagen

Xenophobic tone: A protest march organised by For Freedom (For Frihed) against Muslim immigration winds its way through Copenhagen. Photo: Ole Jensen/Corbis via Getty images

Despite the afternoon rain pelting the windows, Café Mandela is packed. The eatery lies opposite a police station in a detached brick building in Copenhagen's Vesterbro neighbourhood, where, thanks to gentrification, student cafés and upscale wine bars, pedestrians can get tattooed and then shop for home accessories.

The patrons of Café Mandela reflect this mix - a group of 20-somethings laugh at the bar, while an older man nurses a coffee while making faces at a baby in a pram. Each table is accented with a lit candle. And at a seat by the window, Syrian emigrant Yousef Jaeljawal Daas observes the scene.