AHHHH I DON'T WANT TO GO HOME! DON'T MAKE ME!

A couple weeks ago, I would have begged you to move up my departure by at least a week.  But now that it comes down to it, I am incredibly emotional about leaving.  While I know it would not be practical for me to stay for a whole year, that's all that I really want right now.  My two best friends here, Elizabeth and Marianne, are staying for the whole year, and leaving them knowing they still have another 4 months here makes me green with envy.  At the same time, there are so many things I am looking forward to about going home and back to Santa Clara next semester... But it's just so sad to think that this chapter of my life is over.  Well, bittersweet I suppose, but I am the type of person who has a hard time letting things go so.... that is not helping the situation.

As much as I would love to say, yeah, I will go abroad at another point to work or volunteer, the odds of that are slim and it still wouldn't be the same.  Nevertheless, it is a nice thing to keep in the back of my mind during this time.  I feel like I really started to blossom here only recently.  Bummer.

I was going to make a list of things I will miss about Denmark, but instead maybe I should try to be a little more positive and think about what to look forward to when I get back:

-my family and friends, of course!

-Holidays with my whole giant family... I wouldn't miss it for the world

-Chipotle/taco bell/good Cali mexican food (yeah, make fun of me for the taco bell but you would miss it too if you are surrounded by pickled herring and rye bread for 4 months)

-heat. sunshine. not wearing a jacket, tights under my pants, gloves, a hat, a scarf, snow boots...

-moving into my new house!!!!

-seeing everyone back at school

-meeting the new dg babies (I am a grand-big now... so old!)

-so many more types of food I could list here... but specifically my momma's cooking :) which i will only have for a few weeks, but still...

-not worrying if people are making fun of me in a language I don't understand

-21st birthday in 2 weeks!

that's just a short list.  But it's already making me feel better.  Be home soon!!!

I leave Denmark in 4 days.  Well, more like 3 and a half days. I have not started packing and still have a final tomorrow, so these will be a few crazy days.

I am having very mixed emotions about leaving.  For the last couple of weeks I have been very antsy to get back home, but now that it is coming down to it I am realizing how much I am going to miss this place, for so many different reasons.  There are things that I didn't get a chance to do that I regret, like taking the 30 minute train ride to Sweden... just to be in a different country that easily and quickly is something I should have taken advantage of!  And maybe I have spent a little too much time in bed wrapped in blankets watching movies online.  But hey, maybe thats not the worst thing... and it's pretty much the best option when you live in a weird little town 30 minutes out of the city, and your room has no heating.  I have come to cherish my time alone; it's not really a thing you get much of in a college atmosphere (ask me about it when I am living in a house with 9 other girls in a few weeks) and I think it's important to be able to be content without always having to be running around doing stuff or constantly being surrounded by other people.

People have told me that you don't really realize how great your abroad experience was until you are back home.  I'm sure that it will hit me even more then, but right now I cannot tell you how lucky I feel to have been able to live and study in a different country for 4 months, completely on my own.  With more and more American students studying abroad, especially from Santa Clara where it's almost an expected right of passage during your junior year, it is so easy to take this opportunity for granted.  It's easy to forget that not everyone can just drop everything and go to Europe for four months.  Not only have I learned about a different culture and way of life, I have met some fabulous people who I would have never had the opportunity of meeting otherwise.  I have been pushed out of my comfort zone, but with incredible results.  So to those who encouraged and enabled me to have this experience (most of all, my fabulous parents) and supported me along the way, I cannot thank you enough.  

Now, I am off to make the most of my remaining time here...

I can't tell you how many times I have been asked, mostly by confused Danes, "so uhhh, why did you come to Denmark?"

I really don't know what to tell them.  The abroad options which I seriously considered spanned a good 5 continents, and my reasoning for each place was completely different.

My reason for choosing Denmark at the time was: I don't know anyone going, and I want to have an experience all my own (turns out John and Will are here from SCU, but they hardly distract me from having my own experience, but rather provide comfortable and familiar faces :). )  I get credit for all of my classes here as well, which is great for a double-major that is slightly behind on classes.

Other reasons?  It's somewhere different, and I must admit, I thought everyone in Denmark was going to be a hippie or something.  Which is not the case at all, but they still lead a pretty relaxed lifestyle, and have really got their priorities straight.  While I certainly do not think that such a welfare system would EVER fly in the US, I think we could learn a few things from the Danes.  For starters, Danes value family and friends above all else.  Most only work a good 6 hours a day, which I know because I see them at 3 pm "rush hour" losening their ties and having a beer on the train with their friends before they go home to spend some quality times with their families.  They don't really get why Americans work so hard, which I don't really get either, except for money I guess.  And personal satisfaction.  But personal satisfaction in Denmark doesn't exactly consist of how much you get done in a day's work.  It's about cultivating personal relationships and knowing how to spend their free time in an enjoyable manner.

Yup, us Americans could sure learn a few things from the Danes.

Except in my opinion they are kinda crazy for living in a place with 5 hours of sunlight and ridiculously cold weather.  But that's just me.

a few things i love about winter in denmark (despite the 5 hours of sunlight everyday):

-Christmas decorations EVERYWHERE, and everything being all hygge... and candles (Jen knows how great the candles are!)

-people wearing santa hats around, just for the heck of it, and not getting weird looks

-little kids waddling around in snow suits, looking like the little brother in the Christmas Story... I so wish they made them in adult sizes!

Hello my loyal blog readers,

I have had quite a week!  In a nutshell, I had a blast with Jen Jen and Heather who came to visit this week, I finished a huge group project that was 60% of my grade (with an A-, horray, what a relief!), and experienced my first snowfall in Denmark.  So basically, it was a great week.

Jen, Heather and I had a ton of fun this week.  We went to a jazz concert that was really fun even though it was mostly old people (we youngins spiced things up a bit), ate some great food including a traditional Danish meal, which I had not had yet since I have been here!  We enjoyed the Christmas decorations and spirit, as well as the magical Christmas atmosphere at TIVOLI!  Definitely the highlight of my week.  For those of you who don't know what Tivoli is, it is basically a theme park here with some rides, great restaurants, a bunch of shops and great decorations.  Walt Disney drew his inspiration for Disneyland from a visit to Tivoli, so if that doesn't convince you of it's magic, I don't know what will.  I had been holding out on going until Christmastime because it is a little pricey, and so Jen and Heather and I went on Friday.  And wouldn't you know, it was the first snow of the season that day.  I can't explain how BEAUTIFUL it was there, but I will post some pictures to try to illustrate.  We went on a 10$ roller coaster that I would say was worth it, munched on some "varm vaffels" and sipped on yummy glogg.  

Tivoli, AMAZING

Jen and I at the Absolut Ice Bar, I can't figure out how to turn it :( Sorry

As you can see, we also went to the Absolut Ice Bar.  As if it wasn't cold enough already!  But we had a great time, it was definitely an experience and I am glad I went because I am sure I would regret it if I had not gone the whole time I was in Copenhagen!

It was so great to have them here, I really needed that espeically because I am so sad to be missing Thanksgiving in Shasta this week, and CRAFT DAY.  I guess I can't complain though because I am going to Paris on what would be craft day... boohoo, poor me.  I got most of my schoolwork done last week so this week should be fun as well!  Updates soon!

Here it is, at last, Spain!  It feels like forever since I have been back in Denmark, so I will try my best to recap everything.

Barcelona was, of course, beautiful and tons of fun.  It was kind of a bummer that all of my friends studying abroad there were off elsewhere on break while I was there, but Pat and I still had a great time.  It was a little overwhelming though; there were tourists and Americans everywhere.  I guess I have gotten used to fitting in in Denmark, but obviously Pat and I stuck out like sore thumbs in Spain.  Our hostel was cute and in a bustling area, and it was fun to meet the people from all over who were staying there.  I enjoyed my first experience with real Spanish tapas, and will forever thank Barcelona for introducing me into tortilla sandwiches.  Not actual tortillas--tortilla is what they call a sort of potato-omelet, which itself is scrumptious, but put that baby on a sandwich and it is heaven.  I am serious, even the ones we got that the lady did not defrost all the way and were still frozen in the middle were exceptional, and that's saying a lot.

We went to the Picasso museum, and it was WAY cooler than I thought it would be.  Not a lot of his later stuff was there, but all of his works from his youth were and I was blown away by how amazing and realistic his paintings were when he was, oh you know, about EIGHT.  It's crazy how that transition to modern art occurred.  We also saw a lot of Gaudi architecture... I really didn't know I was a fan of architecture until I saw this guys stuff--AMAZING does not even begin to describe it.  The Sagrada Familia--or as I liked to call it, the Sangria Familia-- was crazy; something you can't really understand unless you go.  So go, all of you!  And the park he designed... I felt like I was in a Dr. Seuss book or something!  So those were the highlights from Barcelona, along with the amazing weather which was such a nice change.

This is a picture of Las Ramblas, the big (touristy) pedestrian street by where we stayed.  It was awesome except for the fact that there were tons of stands selling caged animals like tiny bunnies and chinchillas and mice.... so sad. Pat had to tear me away, I wanted to free them all. But anyway, it was a beautiful street, as you can see:

Next we flew to Granada, which was definitely my favorite stop in Spain.  I am sure it had something to do with seeing my friends who are studying abroad there.  That was really what I needed, I had really really been missing my friends from home.  Granada is such a charming little city and a very nice change of pace from the craziness of Barcelona.  The Moorish vibe made the city very unique, and the teahouses were SO AWESOME.  At one point I found myself sitting in a Moorish tea house drinking Pakistani tea and reading "Three Cups of Tea"... which is about Pakistan... a little ironic? 

 Anyway, the highlight of Granada, besides seeing my chickens of course (no, not real chickens...), was the Alhambra.  One word: B-E-A-UTIFUL. okay, another word: MAGICAL.  And maybe also just plain AMAZING.  When I was reading tour books before we got to Granada I kept reading about "the magic of the Alhambra" and how it is the most visited site in Spain, but I honestly had never heard of this place.  Nor am i quite sure how to describe it.  It basically is a huge ornate Moorish/Spanish-style castle and series of other old buildings that are... well, they are old.  Sorry but I really don't remember the history here.  Except that Ferdinand and Isabella were involved somehow so that makes it pretty old.  And the gardens were beautiful; we didn't even get to see the big garden because there was a huge downpour while we were there (thankfully we had already seen the palace) and we got to run down the hill back to our hostel (which was also gorgeous and charming, by the way) in really classy blue plastic ponchos.  But nonetheless, it is just a stunningly beautiful place.  I would put it way up there on the places to see before you die list.  This is a picture of a fortress in the Alhambra, I have a lot of other pictures I will put on Flikr so check them out! 

Next, Pat and I took a 3 hour bus ride to Seville.  To be completely honest, I don't remember too much of Seville.  I was absolutely exhausted and only there for less than 24 hours anyway, plus my camera had run out of batteries and I lost my charger somewhere along the way.  Oh, and all of my jewelry.  Yeah, not fun.  But annnnyway, I do remember Seville being similar to Granada in its architecture and Northern-African vibe.  It was a beautiful place and I wish I had gotten to explore a little more, but what we did get to do was see a Flamenco show.  I literally  have never seen anyone so concentrated or passionate about anything as that Flamenco dancer.  It was not at all what I expected--it was much better.  I thought there would be all these ladies prancing around in tacky frilly dresses, but it was actually just a singer, guitarist, and dancer all fully hypnotized by the music and in their own world, seemingly unaware that there was anyone watching them at all.  So yes, that was definitely the highlight of Seville.  Sorry, no pictures, but I will steal some from Pat to put on Flikr later.

It was sad to leave Spain and my brother, who stayed there for a few more days, but I was really anxious to get back to Copenhagen.  After my day and a half in Amsterdam, of course!  Amsterdam... what a crazy, crazy place.  It really didn't seem real.  The canals are gorgeous, the people are so, so nice and happy (hmm, I wonder why??)... I had been really really excited for the Van Gogh museum, especially after the taste we had in Vienna at a temporary Van Gogh exhibit, and it lived up to my expectations and made me want to sit down and paint right then and there.  I never made it to the red light district, which apparently was stupid on my part, but I really didn't have time nor was I particularly interested.  

I met up with some friends while I was in Amsterdam, but there were a lot of people from Santa Clara there at the same time who I never got to see.  I was there for Halloween, which actually is not a big deal at all in Europe, even in the crazy city of Amsterdam.  But I wore my Viking hat all day anyway and got some strange looks.  Vikings didn't actually wear hats like those, by the way, according to my Nordic Mythology class (see mom and dad, I am actually learning stuff over here!)...  Anyway, it was a great ending to the trip, but I would love to go back when I have more time and energy (but really, which one of these places would I NOT want to go back to??)

It is really great to be back in Copenhagen, I have had an absolutely insane week though and been at school from sun up to sun down every day (which isn't too hard when the sun rises at 8 and sets at 4:30, but still...).  So I am very much looking forward to the weekend and my cousin Jen coming next week!  I hope the weather gets better when she is here, it has been very windy and rainy... not fun.  Anyway, I will be better about updating from now on, now that I am all caught up!

After London, I flew to meet up with my family in Vienna.  Vienna was gorgeous, but I was exhausted and sick at this point in my trip so I'm afraid I didn't give enough effort to really take in all of the city.  Sorry, Vienna.  A couple of my favorite things (besides being so happy to see my family, of course) were the Mozart Strauss concert that we went to, and the Van Gogh exhibit.  The architecture was beautiful as well, and it was great to meet up with my friend Julienne from school who was studying there.  However, my time there is kind of a blur as I was either half asleep or in desperate need of sleep most of the time.  I guess that means that I must go back someday to give it the proper visit it deserves!

Luckily, a few days later when it was time to go to Prague, I was feeling much better.

Prague really blew me away.  I had heard that, like most European cities I had seen, it was beautiful and, unlike most European cities I had seen, it was cheap (which proved to be relatively true, especially compared to Copenhagen and London).  But I also found Prague to have a charm that I can't quite describe here.

I guess what explains it well is my very first experience in Prague:

We had arrived midday and decided to wander the city for a bit.  We walked to the city center to find that there was a political rally of sorts with a concert and free food and beer.  It was a very lively place and everyone seemed to be very happy (I don't blame them, come on, it's free food and beer!).  But what really made me realize Prague was a great city was when an older man got on stage and started singing Frank Sinatra 'Under My Skin,' but with his charming accent it sounded like "under my schkeeeen."  Priceless.

Other fun things we did included exploring the old castles on the hill and the wonderful views from there, and seeing a jazz show at a place Bill Clinton had once played the saxaphone... they took this claim to fame pretty seriously and had pictures of him everywhere.

One word of advice for anyone who might go to Prague someday:

Don't mess with the swans.  They are vicious.

First of all, let me just say.... HORRAY FOR OBAMA!

Last night I went to my friend's kollegium to watch the election coverage.  The Danish students who live there had planned a whole big party... they were all decked out in Obama shirts and buttons, there were posters and red white and blue streamers all over the walls, and they had made a map of the US on a whiteboard and colored in each state red or blue as the results came in.  (Oh, and they had a big picture of Sarah Palin taped onto a trash can lid for people to throw trash at... maybe a bit offensive to some but clever nonetheless).  CNN coverage was projected onto a big screen, and everyone was so into it, it was so adorable and fun.  I really felt like I was back in America, that's how much the Danes care about the election.  It is a really awesome thing to see the world so involved with the election and even better so have foreigners congratulate me, saying "you finally got it right!"  This may sound a bit dramatic, but I sincerely felt more proud than ever to be and American as the results rolled in and the Danes high-fived all of us, thanking us for helping to bring about a much-needed political change.

So now that my political rant is over, I will get on to recapping my three week trip....

First stop, LONDON!

Anyone who knows me well already knows of my undying love for London, starting with the fateful troop 1776 trip in the summer of 2005 and continuing with my senior trip with my dear friend Jessica the next summer.  Needless to say, I was beyond thrilled to be going back.  This time, I went with my Communication and Mass Media program, all 40-something of us plus our two fearless teachers, Marie and Jakob.  Seeing as it was an 'academic' trip, I wasn't quite sure how the itinerary would be planned out, but it turned out that we had a perfect balance of academic visits (all of which actually turned out to be fun, like the trips to Oxford and the BBC), cultural experiences (Spamalot!!!) and free time.   I had a few friends in the group, but by the end of the week we were all super close and having a blast together.  

The first day we basically just took a big walking and bus tour around the city, which was fun because there was a lot of stuff that I hadn't seen before like the London Bridge and the Tower of London that we got to see and hear the history of.  The next day, we went to Petticoat Lane Market, which was super fun but sort of a mistake because I didn't have the money or room in my luggage to be shopping at ridiculously cute little booths in a ridiculously cute little market.  But I restrained myself... sort of.  Or at least justified my purchases as all being one of a kind London type things, which is true.  But anyway...

We went to the Tate Modern after that, which I had been to before and I am not so much a fan of modern art but it's always fun to wander around museums anyway.  And then was one of my favorite things, the London Eye.  I have always wanted to go but never really gotten the opportunity so it was perfect that they had it planned out for us.  We went at sunset and had beautiful views of the whole city (that's where I took the picture above), and you can fit a lot of people in the pods that take you around so we had a blast.  

Other things we did throughout the week included a tour of the BBC; I wasn't very excited about it because who wants to LEARN when they are on VACATION?, but the building was very cool and high tech, and a lot of people in our program are interested in TV journalism so it was especially great for them.  We saw the British museum as well, which is probably my favorite historical museum because of it's awesome ancient Egypt exhibit featuring the Rosetta Stone, and the ancient Greece and Rome exhibits as well.  And, as I said, we spent a day in Oxford and had a kooky tour guide who showed us where parts of Harry Potter had been filmed and insisted that we reenact them (sounds dorky was was pretty entertaining, especially when the teachers got involved).  

Here is our leader Jakob as Malfoy sneaking up on Harry

And who could forget Spamalot?  This was one of the highlights of my trip, I would say.  I always liked Monty Python, but this musical really took the humor and ridiculousness up a notch.  Very, very entertaining.  And the sad thing is that I would love to see it again but I know that it would not be quite as good anywhere else.  Oh well, another reason to go back to London someday!

We ate VERY well on this trip.  The three-course meals at fancy restaurants was a big change from my grilled cheese for every meal thing I had going on before I had left Copenhagen.  And, of course, the good eating would continue for the remainder of the three weeks.  Needless to say, my stomach is not very happy with my upon my return to my meager eating lifestyle in Denmark.  

The nights out were fun, of course.  I was able to meet up with some of my Santa Clara friends like Megan and Nadine, at it was wonderful to see familiar faces.  One of the nights we went out we ran into a German bachelor party doing a pub crawl, that was pretty entertaining.  They were having people paint the face of the bachelor, so of course I decided to paint the faces of all of them with hearts and glitter and very mature things like "I like guys."  Heh.  It is fun just to go to pubs in London and talk to people; British people are probably as nice as they come.  So anyway, London was, as you can tell, a BLAST.  I will update later on the rest of the break, and I leave you with this picture of my artistic masterpiece...

I am back after my three weeks of traveling!  I had such an incredible time, I can't even begin to explain what an amazing experience this was.  I am too exhausted to write about everything in detail right now, but I assure you that posts and pictures will be coming soon!

Until then, I am going to sleep...

Let the 3-week 'holiday' commence!

Tomorrow I leave for London with my communication and mass media program, we have a ton of fun stuff planned, I am so excited!  That is until Thursday, and then I am on my own in London until next Saturday.  Then I fly to Vienna to meet up with my family, and we will all go to Prague a few days later.  Then Pat and I will fly to Barcelona, stay there a few days, take the train to Granada and Seville.  Lastly, I will be heading to Amsterdam for Halloween!  I am so so excited for all of this, it will probably be a while until I can post again but I'm sure I will have a lot to say!

So, until then, "Hi Hi" from Denmark!

OKTOBERFEST!

Well, I am thoroughly exhausted by another weekend of incredibly fun times.

I flew to Munich, Germany on Friday morning and arrived alone without anyone's cell phone number and no money for a cab (for some reason Germany hates Visa so I couldn't get money out of an ATM).  Luckily, Montana and Shana were waiting for my plane to land, which was a huge relief because the entire flight I was having visions of wandering around a crowded, loud Oktoberfest alone and scared as hell.  So anyway, we went to our hotel and then straight to the center of the activities!  Of course it starts to rain, but it didn't really bother us--we were on a mission.  It was too late in the day to get into a tent, or so we were told, but I decided to try to shmooze my way in anyhow, to no avail.  Every time someone went in I started yelling "Hey!  I know you!  I am coming with you!"  But needless to say, no one was buying it.  So we ended up huddled under an umbrella outside and were happy when our first beers arrived.  I had approximately one sip before some large man tried to sqeeze past me, sending my mug flying into a hundred little pieces all over the ground.  The Germans got a kick out of this and of course made loud cheers-ing noises and chugged their own beers happily (similar to the reaction I would get the next day when I tried to jump over a mud puddle and ended up falling in it).

It was wonderful running into so many Santa Clara kids, it is basically impossible to get in touch with people when roaming calls cost about 10$ a minute and you don't know anyone's cell number anyway.  So bumping into people you had no idea would be there was really fun!  And let me tell you, I am SO glad that I have started eating chicken again because Oktoberfest chicken is the greatest thing I have ever tasted in my life.  Montana and I split at least two chickens each day, I am pretty sure.  

I did not realize that Oktoberfest was like a carnival; there were roller coasters, ferris wheels, and the scariest looking 'fun' houses I have ever seen (certainly not MY idea of 'fun').  It was only a matter of time before the always-enthusiastic Montana dragged me off to a roller coaster, despite my pleas that all I wanted to do was eat chicken and drink beer, and rides are "sooooo expensive!!"  I don't remember the last time I had been on a carnival ride, but me and roller coasters have officially rekindled our love for one another.  I can't tell you how many rides I rode this weekend, but what I can tell you is that I blew about least half of my money on them.  Well worth it though!

Saturday morning we arrived early, as we were told we should, in order to get into a tent (we would rather not get soaked again, thank you very much).  But apparently a half hour early isn't early enough, so that was pretty unfortunate.  However, we scored a prime table outside under the heaters.  It was a long day and everyone had to take a nap at one point or another, but it was so, so much fun.  There were people from all over Europe, and everyone is so darn happy to be there that if you strike up a conversation with them you are automatically their new best friend.  Which is awesome, because there is nothing like making friends with jolly, rowdy, singing, leiderhosen-wearing Europeans.  All in all, Oktoberfest was beyond my expectations and I wish that I was still there, although my family gets in tomorrow and I cannot wait!  And then in 6 days I am off for three-weeks of European roaming!

Singing and dancing... How come they kicked me off the table when I tried to join in??

Cheers!

And here is my Flickr page to see more photos!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30595453@N02/

Nyhavn, beautiful seaside area of the city

Sorry it has been so long since I have updated, I was gone all weekend, school has been picking up, and my internet has been in and out all week.  I had a wonderful weekend in Norway, we were expecting the cruise boat to be pretty crappy because of the amount of money we paid, but it was a legit cruise boat with restaurants, shops, clubs, pool and hot tub, etc.!  A lot of other kids from DIS went so it was awesome to make some new friends. 

Oslo is a lot cooler than I expected.  It was weird because we got off of the boat in an industrial area and the weather was terrible and no one was around, and we were a little discouraged and kind of just wanted to get back on the boat.  All of the sudden we turned a corner and there was a huge, beautiful walking street that was literally packed with people.  There was some sort of fair going on and booths everywhere, mostly environmental organizations (yay).  The sun came out and it was seriously the most beautiful day.  We got back on the boat and went in the hot tub on deck and watched the stunning coastline pass by and the sun set.  Anyway, it was the coolest thing ever.  I want to be back there!

 

I can't go anywhere this weekend because I have a Nordic Mythology fieldtrip on Saturday.  It is to a Viking Museum which sounds pretty awesome but I am a little bummed because I had to back out of my Sweden boat and canoe tour.  Bummer!  But I have a lot of homework to do this weekend so it's probably for the best.  The weather has suddenly turned beautiful again after a pretty gray week last week, so I am trying to soak it up before it is gone for the rest of the year!

Roomies for the weekend: Jill, John, Will and I

The view leaving Norway

GORGEOUS sunset along the Norwegian coast

Paige, Caroline and I in Western Denmark about to go into a manor filled with old things and dead animals...

Me being a real live camera woman! We did a mock broadcast on our study tour that was really cool, it will be online so I will post the link when I find it
The horse I fell in love with at Funen village, a recreated 19th century farming village

I have had a wonderful long weekend!  On Thursday we woke up bright and early, and my communication and mass media program headed to Western Denmark for a 3 day study tour.  I will not lie, my expectations were a little low since this was, after all, going to be an academic trip.  But we had a lot of fun as well, and I actually LEARNED things!  We did a mock newscast, as you can see from my camerawoman picture above, which was really neat.  Then we went to the TV2 station, the biggest TV station in Denmark, and took a brief tour and then a cameraman who had gone with the Danish troops to the front lines in Afghanistan talked to us for a while. It was really crazy to see his footage, and when it aired it was a huge deal because the Danes really had no idea what was going on there (and I had no idea that Danish troops were even in the Middle East.. come on, they are supposed to be peaceful!)

The next day we went to Funen village, as I wrote under my picture with the horse.  It was awesome to see how Danes used to live and learn a bit of history, and we had a 'rustic lunch' that really wasn't all it was cracked up to be.  It was really cold that day, the coldest day so far, and I was unprepared in my leggings and cardigan so I spend a lot of time inside watching a 15 minute film at least 4 times waiting for the bus to come.  But it was a fun day nonetheless!  Next we went to a Friday bar at a high school... yes, everyone drinks after they get out of school on Friday at 3 o'clock... a very weird thing to think about, especially since the bar is in the school!  It was fun because the Danes were very excited to meet us and were super friendly. 

 We left Saturday, and then on Sunday my friends and I went to the European Beer Tasting Festival.  I absolutely hate beer, but it was fun just to be there, it was a pretty big deal and actually a pretty classy event.  They had beers from all over Europe and apparently they were amazing (again, I would not know).  So that was a bit of European culture for us and a very fun time.  I was exhausted from the weekend--those of you who know me well know how I get after three days in a row without naps--so I went to bed really early last night and slept through my alarm!  Not a good thing... but we did not do anything in that class apparently.

I am working on planning a cruise to Norway this weekend with some friends, I am VERY excited and I have heard that people who did my program had more fun on this cruise than anything else during their entire time in Europe!  You sleep on the boat so we won't have to pay for a hotel, which is awesome.  Oh, and great news!  The conversion rate is getting better at better, it was 4.7 Danish Kroner to US dollar when we got here,  and now it is 5.2!  Yay for the Danish economy going into recession... is that selfish of me?  

Terrible news. Old man Jim Fox, the self-proclaimed "most sought after act in Europe," is going back to Wales.  I am going to miss his dirty white beard, personal serenades, and hilarious rendition of "don't you wish your girlfriend." (Here he is singing to Alicia).  Goodbye Mr. Fox, we will never forget you.

I am going to some random place is Western Denmark from Thursday to Saturday. It will be the first time leaving Copenhagen so that should be nice to see something different, but it is a study tour so I don't know how much work we will be doing.  Who knows.  I am trying to plan other trips as well, but flights are a lot more expensive than I had expected! So I will probably stay in Northern Europe and skip out on Italy and Paris and such (though Pat and I will be going to Spain! Horray!).  John, Will and I are looking into this ferry to Oslo, Norway for a weekend... it sounds really fun and I guess a lot of students do it.  And of course I will do the whole Amsterdam thing, and Oktoberfest in Germany.  I guess they are having a mini-Oktoberfest here in Copenhagen this Sunday!  I just found out about it but it sounds like it should be a blast!  Especially since there is never anything to do here on Sundays.

I am off to Parliament for the second time in a week, not as fun or interesting as it might sound, but oh well.  At least I get to see horse-drawn carriages going around in circles out front of the building. I have no idea what that is about.

This weekend has been really fun, although now it is Sunday and they take their day of rest very seriously here in Denmark--there is really nothing to do.  But it is nice to relax, I downloaded a season of Friends and have not been able to stop watching it.  

Yesterday we went to Christiana, this little hippie commune type community on an island just outside of the city.  It is a really odd but awesome place--the government sort of ignores it and regards it as a 'social experiment,' which I think would be an appropriate title.  There are really crazy murals all over the place, but they do not let you take pictures (I snuck one in though!).  Not to mention they have awesome jewelry and hippied-out clothing, AND the best ice cream I have tasted in my life.  Anyway, it is just fun to walk around there and check out all of the 'eccentric' characters wandering around and playing various obscure musical instruments. 

The weather is still nice at times, but there have been outbursts of random rain.  Although, it is still warm when it rains, which is nice.  The temperature variation is less than 10 degrees every day (usually high in 60s and low in the 50s). But the rain can be annoying. Friday night we had to run home in it for about 10 minutes after we got off of the bus, but this was nothing when I found out that my friends had missed their bus stop and had to walk 3 miles to get back to the kollegium... thanks only to John's Iphone GPS (see mom and dad, wouldn't you feel SO much more comfortable if I had an iphone?!).

This is the old man singing "sweet Caroline" to my friend Caroline.  He happens to be at every pub we go to, sings the same songs and always says: "Oh you are AMERICANS! Well, you have an election coming up... DONT SCREW IT UP THIS TIME!"  

My lovely room--doesn't look like much but I love it!  Notice the beach picture for when I miss sunny California.

One of many murals in Christiana, but the only one I managed to sneak a picture of

I never dreamed the weather could be so wonderful here!  We have had at least three days of sunshine, and today I actually wore shorts and a t-shirt! IN DENMARK! So exciting, and I am trying to enjoy it because I know it will not last for long.  I am not sure when it is going to start getting cold, but when it does, it will be brutal.  So, it is very nice to have pleasant weather at least for a little while.

This week went by very quickly; my classes are going well and are not as difficult as I would have thought, at least in terms of daily assignments (who knows what tests and papers will be like though).  The teachers here give manageable reading assignments which I can usually do on my 30 minute train ride to class.  And having Wednesdays off is a great way to split up the week, although I did have to wake up super early this Wednesday to go to Parliament with my political rhetoric class.  I am not sure what I am going to do this weekend--maybe keep wandering the city, there are still so many parts of it that I have not seen because I am so afraid of getting lost!  I guess getting lost in a city is the best way to figure out how to get around though.  

My room is finally decorated and feeling very hygge, I bought a few posters (one of the beach for when I miss California) and have made it very neat and clean and cozy.  I know I know, it is hard to believe that I have a clean room for once, but it is a place here where I want to be comfortable and feel at home so I will be doing my best to keep it nice all semester!

Random note:  While I have said before that the Danes may not be particularly friendly, I have in fact found my own proof to support that they are the happiest people in the world (or at least start out that way): I have yet to hear a Danish baby cry.  Seriously, it is so strange!  They are everywhere in the city, sprawled out in their huge luxury strollers smiling and giggling.  Precious.  They are even happy when their moms leave them outside in their strollers while they run into a store.  Yes, hard to believe, but I have seen it on several occasions.  Anyway, I don't know what kind of freak culture this is where babies don't cry but it is very nice considering there are always tons of babies on my commute everyday.  Yes, silence to do my small amount of reading every morning.  Very pleasant indeed!

I am really starting to love it here.  Like, really really love it.  There are things that I am not a fan of, naturally, such as the lack of food options available when I am hungry any time after 10:00pm (excuse me, I mean 22:00).  But anyway, it is so beautiful here and I am starting to somewhat be able to navigate my way around the city.  Well sort of.  Seriously, it is impossible.  If you walk down a street for 10 minutes it will change names at least 3 times.  And mind you that it is also impossible to pronounce any of the street names, so Danish people laugh when you ask if they could please help you find "Larslejstraede"--The Danes basically don't pronounce the majority of the letters in words, so this would sound something like "larestred."

Something that I don't appreciate is how stylish everyone is, and how no matter how hard I try I can't look half as cool as the Danes.  They have this I-just-rolled-out-of-bed-and-threw-on-clothes-but-still-look-like-a-supermodel thing goin on.  The women are tall and skinny and gorgeous and can pull off anything they wear.  NOT FAIR! I look stupid when I try to wear trendy euro stuff.  I need to make Danish girl friends to be my stylists I guess.

Today I had my first three classes, which are awkwardly spread out over a 10 hour span.  I am not sure if this is a good or bad thing.  There is not much to do if I go back to my Kollegium anyway (except napping, one of my favorite things in the world).  So I will have plenty of time to study in the school library or to just explore the city, which will be fun to do on my own.  Today, however, I spent my break frantically searching for my wallet, which I lost yesterday.  I tore my room apart, and called the supermarket where I thought I might have left it so many times that the customer service lady was visibly irritated with me. ("are you SURE it is not there?  Can you check again?  Could you ask the cashiers? Please?!")

I came home a complete wreck and got online, and I miraculously see an email from my program saying that someone had turned in my wallet! All of the cash was gone, and it was quite a bit of money (guess I am not eating for a few days), but I got it back so that is all that really matters.

My first class today was 'News Media in Transition' which looks to be very interesting.  There are three teachers that alternate teaching and all have very long resumes and at least 6 years of grad school under their belts (a bit intimidating).  The second, 'Political Rhetoric,' is going to be a lot of work but AWESOME. We are basically spending the whole semester creating a mock campaign for a Danish political party, the Liberal Alliance.  At the end of the semester, each group does a half hour presentation in front of politicians, speech writers, campaign leaders... I am going to be a nervous wreck, but what an awesome experience!!!  I am not quite sure yet how to feel about 'Environmental Problems and Policy: A European Perspective'.  It is a lot about the EU, which I don't know much about and would love to learn about, but the teacher will readily admit that environmental studies is not a speciality of his.  Tomorrow I have 'Nordic Mythology.' I am pretty excited but they gave us EIGHT BOOKS for the class. eeek.

I sat alone in a cafe reading for about two hours this afternoon (wow, what a cliche thing for an American living in Europe to be doing, now that I think about it).  But I realized that the fact that I do not understand any Danish will be conducive to my studying.  Usually I love to study in coffee shops and the like, but am distracted by other's conversations.  But here, the lull of a language I cannot even begin to translate is strangely soothing.  It must be the 'Hygge' atmosphere.  Hygge is all the rage in Copenhagen.  It is hard to translate into English but means something along the lines of a cozy atmosphere, kind of like that warm and fuzzy feeling you get when you look at Christmas decorations (or is that just me?).  People use hygge to refer to places, situations, conversations, anything really.  But it is what really gives this city character.  I guess it is kind of hard to understand, but you must come here to experience it!

I had my first complete Danish conversation today:

Me: "Hi!" (it's the same but you say it differently kind of, like Scandanavian-ly... ha) 

7-11 chick: "Hi!"

7-11 chick scans my soda and says how much it costs in Danish, I have no idea what she says but hand her a large bill so I can't be wrong.

Me: Tak! (thank you)

Her: Hi Hi! (which means bye, it makes me laugh every time haha)

So there. she did not even know I was not Danish! AND i got asked for directions while waiting for the train yesterday. of course i had no idea what they were saying but still. I am fitting in! How exciting!

BIG NEWS.

I ATE CHICKEN YESTERDAY. ON PURPOSE.

I stupidly figured that Denmark, being an objectively liberal country, would have a lot of vegetarians. Well, they don't.  So i am trying to ease into chicken (just chicken and maybe ham, no red meat) because all I have been eating is bread pretty much. They have maybe 1 vegetarian option at most restaurants. So anyway... crazy.

We went to an Irish pub last night (there is always live music at Irish pubs here, usually it's smelly old guys but they are usually good and play American songs which is fun... Denmark does not really have music of their own).  Anyway, someone asked where I was from and I said California, to which he replied "Oh. I though you would be more...brown." Ha, I come to the only country where people are whiter than me and still get crap for being pale.  

I don't really understand these Danish people.

first of all, we were warned when we first got here that they will seem unfriendly and cold, which i would not expect from the so called "happiest people in the world." Plus, they have no word for please. And the bikers will hit you if you don't get out of your way. seriously. 

Let me just mention the homeless lady on the train last night who was smiling and laughing at us, seemingly entertained by ... maybe the fact that we were speaking english?... and then starts cursing at us and flipping us off while we awkwardly sat there quietly while this continued for at least 20 minutes until we could finally get off the train. crazy lady.  For some reason I expected everyone here to be smiling and polite all of the time, and I especially did not expect to see so many homeless people in such a socialist country.

Don't get me wrong, I have met many many nice Danish people, and I understand that these things (with the exception of the crazy train lady) are cultural and it will take a while to get used to.  It's just hard to be outgoing when you feel like no one really wants to get to know you.  But anyway, everyone in my program is awesome so it does not bother me so much that I have not gotten to know a lot of Danish people so far.  Except for the guy across the hall who I though was an RA/CF type figure and woke up because i locked myself out of my room and I needed to be let in... to find out he is just some random Danish student.  Oops.

School starts in two days and my classes seem like they are going to be really cool, but they have been trying to freak us out and saying it will be so hard, this isn't like other abroad programs, blah blah blah.  So I am a little scared.  We will see I guess!

I am here I am here!! 

This is day two of Maggie in Denmark! After a looooong sleepless flight (I sat behind two babies...fun), awkward introductions, and a few minor freak-outs, I am finally getting settled in.  It is absolutely beautiful here... it's not nearly as cold as I had expected, although the sun has been hiding all day.  My Kollegium (dorm) is 20 minutes out of Copenhagen. We were a little scared on the bus ride to the Kollegium because someone had heard that it looked "like a concentration camp." But it's actually very nice. There is a  lake outside with swans and a bunch of little grassy areas and a pretty park next to it, and the town we are in is so cute!  There are about 20-30 other kids from my program here so it's really fun.

We took the train into the city today...SO PRETTY!  The buildings are beautiful, everything is clean, and it is not too crowded... although you have to be on your toes because bikers literally will run into you if you don't get out of their way!  I was only there for a few hours so I did not get to see too much of the city but I can't wait to go back!