Lost My iPhone in Royal Danish Moat—Can You Beat That?

A cracked iPhone screen

I don’t have too many firsts to my name. But I’m betting I’m the first to lose an iPhone 5 in the moat of Rosenborg Castle, the famous Danish royal family castle in the heart of Copenhagen. At least in 2013.

It just happened today—luckily my laptop was back at the hotel. I am here in Copenhagen visiting my daughter, Kacey, who is doing a semester abroad. Kacey, my wife, Nancy, and I were up for a little sightseeing this morning, and so after breakfast we took a brisk walk to Rosenborg Slot (“slot” being the Danish word for castle). After touring the castle and seeing the royal jewels, we went for a walk on the picturesque grounds. Little did I know what dangers lurked ahead on the seemingly harmless castle landscape.

It all turned dark when I spotted a great location for a photo, looking out over the moat and the park-like terrain beyond (here is a link to a photo of the moat in better weather–you can imagine the journey my phone took, glancing off the white railing before plunging to its demise). I brought out my iPhone and was approaching a little wall overlooking the moat. Suddenly, I slipped on the icy ground—an ancient defense mechanism? I was about to go down, and no doubt crash into the railing. Like the agile athlete I am, I reached out with my right hand to grab the rail and regain my balance. All went well on that score. But unfortunately, the iPhone was in the same hand. The phone flew from my grasp as my hand opened, hit the slanted railing overlooking the moat, and then took off gracefully downward. I saw it fly down, and then hit the moat, carving a little impression of itself in the thin ice along the surface. Then it was gone.

“My iPhone,” I wailed. Kacey and Nancy thought I was joking and laughed. Then they realized I wasn’t joking and they laughed even harder. I was ready to go over the wall into the icy waters below, but they held me back. It was over.

I am appealing to the Danish royal family for help. If that doesn’t work, I will pay Verizon for a new iPhone when I get back.

If you’ve lost a phone in a more glorious way, please share your ordeal in the comments below, or send me an e-mail.

Below are some pictures to help you feel my pain.

With Kacey in happier times (with iPhone) in Copenhagen market.
With Kacey after the tragic turn of events (notice my open right hand).
The Danish royal family can afford to buy me a new iPhone.

Author: Robert Buderi

Bob is Xconomy's founder and chairman. He is one of the country's foremost journalists covering business and technology. As a noted author and magazine editor, he is a sought-after commentator on innovation and global competitiveness. Before taking his most recent position as a research fellow in MIT's Center for International Studies, Bob served as Editor in Chief of MIT's Technology Review, then a 10-times-a-year publication with a circulation of 315,000. Bob led the magazine to numerous editorial and design awards and oversaw its expansion into three foreign editions, electronic newsletters, and highly successful conferences. As BusinessWeek's technology editor, he shared in the 1992 National Magazine Award for The Quality Imperative. Bob is the author of four books about technology and innovation. Naval Innovation for the 21st Century (2013) is a post-Cold War account of the Office of Naval Research. Guanxi (2006) focuses on Microsoft's Beijing research lab as a metaphor for global competitiveness. Engines of Tomorrow (2000) describes the evolution of corporate research. The Invention That Changed the World (1996) covered a secret lab at MIT during WWII. Bob served on the Council on Competitiveness-sponsored National Innovation Initiative and is an advisor to the Draper Prize Nominating Committee. He has been a regular guest of CNBC's Strategy Session and has spoken about innovation at many venues, including the Business Council, Amazon, eBay, Google, IBM, and Microsoft.