So yesterday, we had Jenni's birthday celebration even though her birthday was over 2 weeks ago. It was over travel break (Florence, how amazing)...so Rete (host mom) decided to throw a Danish bash. We invited all our usual friends aka burgians to our host family. First stop in this wonderful afternoon was to see another palace, Fredensborg. It is the summer palace where Queen Margarethe lives from April to November. Then she moves to Amalienborg Palace in downtown Copenhagen. So we roll up to the Queen's house, you can get right up there...no security except some guards out front. It is the Crown Prince's daughter's (Queen's granddaughter) 2nd birthday so moms and kids are coming and going to drop off/pick up for her party. Casual Danish people who's children happen to attend the same Preschool/Kindergarden as the little prince and princess. Imagine if your kid was attending that party, so cool. Well the Queen was obviously going to her granddaughter's party. She had to leave it early though to go to exhibit premiere at a museum in her honor. SO we got to see her walk out of the palace, get intot he rolls royce and she is literally driven right by us. We are standing on on eside of her driveway, alongside several paparazzi photographers and she waves to us from her car...like 3 feet in front of me! Didn't get a good picture unfortunately so I might have to steal one from friends' cameras.
After this we headed back for Nachos and some downtime..ate 4 batches of nacos between the 9 of us..then had a big Danish dinner with Appetizer, then pastries for dessert...SO full. No wonder I don't lose any weight here.
Anyways, stress is at high levels right now...so I should get back to work. Only 3 more weeks until the US...though I was beginning to think that volcanic ash would cause some issues. Not that I would mind relaxing a bit more in sunny Copenhagen (IF it stays sunny...)
xox
PS. It has been like high 30's to low 50's all week. Still so cold. It's almost MAY. This weather even has the Danes confused. Yesterday, I experienced 4 different types of precipitation in one day. Legit. Rain in the Morning. Sleet in the afternoon which turned to full-out Snow after an hour. Then, big hail in the Late Evening. Who knew that was possible.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Queen's Birthday
This past Friday was the Queen's birthday in Denmark. Thousands of people with Danish flags crowded the streets, chanting, smiling, for such a nice sunny day. At noon, she comes out from the balcony of the castle to wave to her citizens and again at 2pm from Town Square. It was so amazing, so crowded, and apparently a "once in a lifetime experience", as one Danish woman told me. This is because Queen Margerethe II turned 70, and it is basically their form of a national holiday...times ten. As in the capital is bombarded with the entire nation of Denmark. I kind of got delayed by all the road blocks and people and missed my friday afternoon class...oops?
Travel Break
So I know it has been a while since my last week. That's because I had a whirlwind two weeks traveling around Europe with friends, living out of a backpack and dirty hostels, and then a ton of work back here in Copenhagen. I shouldn't even be posting right now. I have a lot of work to do. Had an 8 page paper due today, I have a Workshop presentation in my core class and another 5 page paper due in 6 days...started neither. Joy. This abroad program is not a joke, though I wish I could enjoy my last few weeks instead of spend it in my bed, hunched over the computer, desperately trying not to procrastinate.
Anyways! My travel break:
Prague, Czech Republic
Budapest, Hungary
Vienna, Austria
Florence, Italy
Pisa, Italy
Rome, Italy
There is so much to tell, but essentially I did a lot of eating. 'Food' would be the main theme of the trip...to McDonald's cause we're poor, to gelato twice a day...and only the exercise of walking all around each city. I did a lot in the past two weeks- saw a lot of famous dead people such as Machiavelli, all the Popes, Galileo, Raphael to some not so famous ones..aka thousands of bones piled up in catacombs from the Plague. I signed the John Lennon Wall in Prague. I went to the natural public baths in Budapest and had a massage by a hungarian woman. I went to the opera in Vienna, then spent the day lounging at the summer palace. I went to easter mass at the Duomo in Florence, then saw fireworks explode off of an elaborate cart outside it (Easter celebration). I saw Michaelangelo's David. In Rome, I saw the Colloseum, The Forum, The Pantheon, The Sistine Chapel, The Vatican and St. Peter's.
These only touch on everything I could share. A lot of it is difficult to put into words and random moments were so fleeting and amazing all at once. I can't wait to share my stories in person, and even then, most of them will slip my mind. I think it is impossible to try and remember all that happened. Regardless, I am a seasoned traveler, I would say. We train-ed all over Europe, even overnight in a sleep car (interesting). At some points, we were on the train for 12 hours with multiple connections and multiple countries such as Germany and Slovenia to name a few.
I feel incredibly grateful to have seen all these amazing things and to have shared them with friends. It really makes you realize how insignificant you are in relation to all the world has to offer. In each city, we most often ended with a sunset overlooking it (accompanied by wine). Watching the beautiful scenery at dusk was always the perfect setting in our conquering of each place, and a perfect reminder to how lucky we are.
Anyways! My travel break:
Prague, Czech Republic
Budapest, Hungary
Vienna, Austria
Florence, Italy
Pisa, Italy
Rome, Italy
There is so much to tell, but essentially I did a lot of eating. 'Food' would be the main theme of the trip...to McDonald's cause we're poor, to gelato twice a day...and only the exercise of walking all around each city. I did a lot in the past two weeks- saw a lot of famous dead people such as Machiavelli, all the Popes, Galileo, Raphael to some not so famous ones..aka thousands of bones piled up in catacombs from the Plague. I signed the John Lennon Wall in Prague. I went to the natural public baths in Budapest and had a massage by a hungarian woman. I went to the opera in Vienna, then spent the day lounging at the summer palace. I went to easter mass at the Duomo in Florence, then saw fireworks explode off of an elaborate cart outside it (Easter celebration). I saw Michaelangelo's David. In Rome, I saw the Colloseum, The Forum, The Pantheon, The Sistine Chapel, The Vatican and St. Peter's.
These only touch on everything I could share. A lot of it is difficult to put into words and random moments were so fleeting and amazing all at once. I can't wait to share my stories in person, and even then, most of them will slip my mind. I think it is impossible to try and remember all that happened. Regardless, I am a seasoned traveler, I would say. We train-ed all over Europe, even overnight in a sleep car (interesting). At some points, we were on the train for 12 hours with multiple connections and multiple countries such as Germany and Slovenia to name a few.
I feel incredibly grateful to have seen all these amazing things and to have shared them with friends. It really makes you realize how insignificant you are in relation to all the world has to offer. In each city, we most often ended with a sunset overlooking it (accompanied by wine). Watching the beautiful scenery at dusk was always the perfect setting in our conquering of each place, and a perfect reminder to how lucky we are.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Paris: Versailles, 4 hour walking tour, and insomnia
Salut!
Just got back from Paris last night. It was a whirlwind weekend but so amazing and so worth it. I don't know many other people going to Paris this semester, but after seeing it all, I can't believe they aren't. It has so many wonders to see, history, art, it is actually incredible. We packed so much into basically a day that there was hardly even time for sleep. I can say that thus far I have yet to be in awe so many times in one day. I'm sure that'll change soon because we leave for our travel break on friday! I can't believe it is already almost here but it will be 2 weeks of travel (by train) to 4 countries. We are heading to Prague, Czech Republic onto Budapest, Hungary then to Vienna, Austria and finally Florence and Rome in Italy. I will probably have to do several blog posts following that trip. Currently I have a lot of work due before we leave, so I am not sure how long this post can be. There is so much to tell, it is almost overwhelming.
Okay. So we get there Friday around 5:30. About a 90 min flight. Now, it took us around 30 minutes to figure out the metro and RER trains but for the most part we really only messed up once (and we think, bought an extra ticket for no reason, oops). Our hostel was in Montemartre, right near the moulin rouge. Montemartre is one of the quarters and is known for *entertainment* (as in strippers, showgirls, sex shops etc) but is also where a lot of young people live and go out. Our pub crawl we did Saturday night actually met right near our hostel so that was lucky. Anyways, we to our hostel by metro, step outside and there is the Moulin Rouge. So cool. We then navigate to our hostel which was interesting and uphill. But all along the hill are markets, tons of them for seafood, fresh fruit, I wanted to eat all of it. Especially Watermelon, which I have not seen in the country of Denmark. Anyways, also a lot of the typical french cafes with people sitting outside casually and laughing. So cute. Our hostel room we shared with 2 other strangers, a man and woman, which at first we felt really awkward. We didn't speak to them actually at any point because we would wake up early leave, then come back change around dinner time, and come back late. Never talked to them when either was awake. Kind of bizarre, but then we realized they didn't know each other either so it wasn't a couple like we had originally thought. Cause that would have been awkward. So we changed and went to a nice cafe for dinner called Cafe de Luna (i think). I tried exercising my french abilities, though got really awkward and unsure and started speaking half english and half french. Basically what I spoke the whole trip. We split a bottle of Rosé and had some really good salad and then good meals. I got a steak of some sort with pommes frites (fries). So yummy. We were so full from dinner but then we headed out to some of the pubs along the street. Pretty casual, not much going on actually, until this one guy who was a bit sketchy showed us a place called O'Sullivans which was more of a night club. They played good American music and there was dancing so we loved that. Anddddd. We returned around 3am, woke up 4 hours later at 7, ate breakfast at hostel, hopped on metro to Versailles at 8. Tired.
By the time we figured out how to get to Versailles, it had taken about 90 min. It is around 40 mins from Paris center, but we were not right in the center so we had to do a lot of connections to get there. Actually was not too hard. I can say I am a lot more confident in train navigating now that I have had to do it in several countries and in different languages.
Anyways, we roll up to Versailles and you just are immediately dumbfounded at how amazing it is. So vast and it gets even better and more amazing once inside. We did an audio tour guide and navigated through it. The castle was home to Louis the 14th, the Sun King, and also to Marie Antoinette. Louis had decided he wanted to rule outside of the city, so he moved out of the Louvre and had this place built. The rooms were also so ornate and there literally was not one inch that didn't have detail on it. We saw the bedrooms of the king and queen, their counsel/court's rooms, and too many other ornate rooms to count. Every room contained the original paintings of Louis, other famous people, Napoleon, etc. I especially felt smart when I recognized paintings of Louis from my AP Euro textbook senior year of high school. Guess I did learn stuff from it? The Hall of Mirrors was especially cool and the ceilings were incredible. I can't imagine how hard it was to construct and decorate everything.
We were a little short on time in Versailles since we had to meet our Walking Tour of Paris at 1pm and leave room for navigating back/eating lunch. So although it was only like 90 minutes there we also went outside to the gardens. Designed so intricately and they go on forever. I can't believe that was someone's actual backyard. Not to mention, when we were there people were just casually going for runs through the landscape. Their normal life. No big deal.
After Versailles, we headed to Paris on the train. We had to navigate to Saint Michel in the Latin Quarter (a lot of students live here). Latin quarter was basis for intellectual thought in Paris hundreds of years ago. Everyone spoke Latin there, so that's where it got its name. We had a bit of trouble finding our tour but we did. We probably asked a lot of french people some stupid questions. For lunch (before tour) I had some quiche and a tarte au sucre. Basically bread and sugar, so good. Also It was nice to have starbucks at relatively normal prices.
SO our walking tour was 4 hours long. Paris is huge so it is difficult to cover all of it. We saw, basically, Notre Dame de Paris, The Latin Quarter, Ile-de-la-Cité, Pont Neuf bridge, The Louvre, Palais Royal, Haussmann's Renovations, Eiffel Tower (from a distance), Tuileries Gardens, Les Invalides, Académie Française, Opéra Garnier (from far away), Musée d'Orsay, Pont Alexandre III, Napoléon's Tomb (from far away), Assemblé Nationale, Champs-Élysées, Arc de Triomphe (from far away also), Grand & Petit Palais, Place de la Concorde.
These places are by no means right near each other. It was a long day. Also we enjoyed the tour a lot and reliving all of the history behind every place. Our tour guide was probably about our age, a little weird, but spoke loudly and was very knowledgable. My feet were killing me by the end of it but I felt fulfilled. We were upset that we didn't go right up to le tour eiffel and arc de triomphe so after the tour ended around 4:30 we took it upon ourselves to walk there. I love history so it was so neat being able to experience it. The tour included an obselisk from ancient egypt that the French basically stole in the 1800s. It was so surreal to see actual egyptian writing from so long ago. The obselisk stands at the sight where Marie Antoinette and Louis the 15th had their heads chopped off, formerly the guillotine's public location at the time.
Also I never knew that statues of men on top of horses have a certain symbolism. For instance, if the horse is standing completely with 4 legs on ground, the person riding them died of natural causes. If two legs are raised, the person was killed or wounded in battle. Apparently this is true for most cases. Also during World War II and the Nazi occupation so many of the statues/memorials in Paris were destroyed. There is only one building (with bullet holes in it) that is evidence of that destruction.
I feel so grateful that I was able to see all these sights and for free! We decided to do the same company's pub crawl that night, the one near our hostel, for 12 euro. We ate some dinenr at an Outback-like restaurant except styled to the American west and Buffalo Bill haha. We got burgers that were really good along with some good french fries. The burgers' bun was so good, it was made out of what I would call tater-tot buns. So it was potato. Never thought of that, ingenious.
For the Pub crawl, they brought us to 4 different pubs and then a nightclub. By chance, it was also the night of the World Rugy Championship and the two in the final: France and England. The bars were so over-crowded and pack and rowdy and full of chanting frenchmen. Intense, but cool to see and experience. I never knew Rugby was so huge there, but it is. And anything France vs. England is always intense...France won, got even more intense! But finally the pubs cleared out a bit and we were able to relax/actually sit down.
We had to wake up at 6:30 the next day so actually got like 4 hours of sleep. We had to take a taxi home which was not too expensive except he started the clock right when we got in then sat there for a good 3 euros worth while he "looked" up our hostel. He didn't know english, so finally I told him to just bring us to the moulin rouge and drop us off. Again, casual.
Our flight was in the morning Sunday and was delayed a bit. We were actually dead in the airport but were home at 2pm in Denmark. I have a lot of work this week so I was glad to get home early. France, overall, was so amazing. I can't pick a favorite yet out of Denmark, France, Scotland, and London..but it was probably the most informative trip. I enjoyed learning about the sites I saw in addition to seeing them. It made it about 10x better/worth it.
I can't wait for our 2 week trip which is so soon. It's a bit stressful to think about and the trains I chose probably will get all messed up but I can't wait to see so many places. It is 5 of us: Britt, Jenni, Tara, and Deirdre and I.
Wish us luck because we will need it haha.
Au Revoir,
Hilary
Just got back from Paris last night. It was a whirlwind weekend but so amazing and so worth it. I don't know many other people going to Paris this semester, but after seeing it all, I can't believe they aren't. It has so many wonders to see, history, art, it is actually incredible. We packed so much into basically a day that there was hardly even time for sleep. I can say that thus far I have yet to be in awe so many times in one day. I'm sure that'll change soon because we leave for our travel break on friday! I can't believe it is already almost here but it will be 2 weeks of travel (by train) to 4 countries. We are heading to Prague, Czech Republic onto Budapest, Hungary then to Vienna, Austria and finally Florence and Rome in Italy. I will probably have to do several blog posts following that trip. Currently I have a lot of work due before we leave, so I am not sure how long this post can be. There is so much to tell, it is almost overwhelming.
Okay. So we get there Friday around 5:30. About a 90 min flight. Now, it took us around 30 minutes to figure out the metro and RER trains but for the most part we really only messed up once (and we think, bought an extra ticket for no reason, oops). Our hostel was in Montemartre, right near the moulin rouge. Montemartre is one of the quarters and is known for *entertainment* (as in strippers, showgirls, sex shops etc) but is also where a lot of young people live and go out. Our pub crawl we did Saturday night actually met right near our hostel so that was lucky. Anyways, we to our hostel by metro, step outside and there is the Moulin Rouge. So cool. We then navigate to our hostel which was interesting and uphill. But all along the hill are markets, tons of them for seafood, fresh fruit, I wanted to eat all of it. Especially Watermelon, which I have not seen in the country of Denmark. Anyways, also a lot of the typical french cafes with people sitting outside casually and laughing. So cute. Our hostel room we shared with 2 other strangers, a man and woman, which at first we felt really awkward. We didn't speak to them actually at any point because we would wake up early leave, then come back change around dinner time, and come back late. Never talked to them when either was awake. Kind of bizarre, but then we realized they didn't know each other either so it wasn't a couple like we had originally thought. Cause that would have been awkward. So we changed and went to a nice cafe for dinner called Cafe de Luna (i think). I tried exercising my french abilities, though got really awkward and unsure and started speaking half english and half french. Basically what I spoke the whole trip. We split a bottle of Rosé and had some really good salad and then good meals. I got a steak of some sort with pommes frites (fries). So yummy. We were so full from dinner but then we headed out to some of the pubs along the street. Pretty casual, not much going on actually, until this one guy who was a bit sketchy showed us a place called O'Sullivans which was more of a night club. They played good American music and there was dancing so we loved that. Anddddd. We returned around 3am, woke up 4 hours later at 7, ate breakfast at hostel, hopped on metro to Versailles at 8. Tired.
By the time we figured out how to get to Versailles, it had taken about 90 min. It is around 40 mins from Paris center, but we were not right in the center so we had to do a lot of connections to get there. Actually was not too hard. I can say I am a lot more confident in train navigating now that I have had to do it in several countries and in different languages.
Anyways, we roll up to Versailles and you just are immediately dumbfounded at how amazing it is. So vast and it gets even better and more amazing once inside. We did an audio tour guide and navigated through it. The castle was home to Louis the 14th, the Sun King, and also to Marie Antoinette. Louis had decided he wanted to rule outside of the city, so he moved out of the Louvre and had this place built. The rooms were also so ornate and there literally was not one inch that didn't have detail on it. We saw the bedrooms of the king and queen, their counsel/court's rooms, and too many other ornate rooms to count. Every room contained the original paintings of Louis, other famous people, Napoleon, etc. I especially felt smart when I recognized paintings of Louis from my AP Euro textbook senior year of high school. Guess I did learn stuff from it? The Hall of Mirrors was especially cool and the ceilings were incredible. I can't imagine how hard it was to construct and decorate everything.
We were a little short on time in Versailles since we had to meet our Walking Tour of Paris at 1pm and leave room for navigating back/eating lunch. So although it was only like 90 minutes there we also went outside to the gardens. Designed so intricately and they go on forever. I can't believe that was someone's actual backyard. Not to mention, when we were there people were just casually going for runs through the landscape. Their normal life. No big deal.
After Versailles, we headed to Paris on the train. We had to navigate to Saint Michel in the Latin Quarter (a lot of students live here). Latin quarter was basis for intellectual thought in Paris hundreds of years ago. Everyone spoke Latin there, so that's where it got its name. We had a bit of trouble finding our tour but we did. We probably asked a lot of french people some stupid questions. For lunch (before tour) I had some quiche and a tarte au sucre. Basically bread and sugar, so good. Also It was nice to have starbucks at relatively normal prices.
SO our walking tour was 4 hours long. Paris is huge so it is difficult to cover all of it. We saw, basically, Notre Dame de Paris, The Latin Quarter, Ile-de-la-Cité, Pont Neuf bridge, The Louvre, Palais Royal, Haussmann's Renovations, Eiffel Tower (from a distance), Tuileries Gardens, Les Invalides, Académie Française, Opéra Garnier (from far away), Musée d'Orsay, Pont Alexandre III, Napoléon's Tomb (from far away), Assemblé Nationale, Champs-Élysées, Arc de Triomphe (from far away also), Grand & Petit Palais, Place de la Concorde.
These places are by no means right near each other. It was a long day. Also we enjoyed the tour a lot and reliving all of the history behind every place. Our tour guide was probably about our age, a little weird, but spoke loudly and was very knowledgable. My feet were killing me by the end of it but I felt fulfilled. We were upset that we didn't go right up to le tour eiffel and arc de triomphe so after the tour ended around 4:30 we took it upon ourselves to walk there. I love history so it was so neat being able to experience it. The tour included an obselisk from ancient egypt that the French basically stole in the 1800s. It was so surreal to see actual egyptian writing from so long ago. The obselisk stands at the sight where Marie Antoinette and Louis the 15th had their heads chopped off, formerly the guillotine's public location at the time.
Also I never knew that statues of men on top of horses have a certain symbolism. For instance, if the horse is standing completely with 4 legs on ground, the person riding them died of natural causes. If two legs are raised, the person was killed or wounded in battle. Apparently this is true for most cases. Also during World War II and the Nazi occupation so many of the statues/memorials in Paris were destroyed. There is only one building (with bullet holes in it) that is evidence of that destruction.
I feel so grateful that I was able to see all these sights and for free! We decided to do the same company's pub crawl that night, the one near our hostel, for 12 euro. We ate some dinenr at an Outback-like restaurant except styled to the American west and Buffalo Bill haha. We got burgers that were really good along with some good french fries. The burgers' bun was so good, it was made out of what I would call tater-tot buns. So it was potato. Never thought of that, ingenious.
For the Pub crawl, they brought us to 4 different pubs and then a nightclub. By chance, it was also the night of the World Rugy Championship and the two in the final: France and England. The bars were so over-crowded and pack and rowdy and full of chanting frenchmen. Intense, but cool to see and experience. I never knew Rugby was so huge there, but it is. And anything France vs. England is always intense...France won, got even more intense! But finally the pubs cleared out a bit and we were able to relax/actually sit down.
We had to wake up at 6:30 the next day so actually got like 4 hours of sleep. We had to take a taxi home which was not too expensive except he started the clock right when we got in then sat there for a good 3 euros worth while he "looked" up our hostel. He didn't know english, so finally I told him to just bring us to the moulin rouge and drop us off. Again, casual.
Our flight was in the morning Sunday and was delayed a bit. We were actually dead in the airport but were home at 2pm in Denmark. I have a lot of work this week so I was glad to get home early. France, overall, was so amazing. I can't pick a favorite yet out of Denmark, France, Scotland, and London..but it was probably the most informative trip. I enjoyed learning about the sites I saw in addition to seeing them. It made it about 10x better/worth it.
I can't wait for our 2 week trip which is so soon. It's a bit stressful to think about and the trains I chose probably will get all messed up but I can't wait to see so many places. It is 5 of us: Britt, Jenni, Tara, and Deirdre and I.
Wish us luck because we will need it haha.
Au Revoir,
Hilary
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
SUN
Also, did I mention that... I am 20 times more in love with Copenhagen just for the fact that it is about 35 degree F and has the first week of blue skies? No more clouds and greyness.
= happiness.
= happiness.
Eddie and some Hard Rock American Food
So Eddie just visited! (trying to catch up on the blog posts)
The week seemed to go by so fast. He had got here on a Saturday morning and left 6 days later Friday morning. Although the week was full of him sleeping most of the time, it was nice to continue to do tourist-y things in Copenhagen again. I can say that Jetlag prevailed most of the time though. Either way, it was nice to spend time together. His hotel was located right near Nyhavn, which is one of the most scenic areas of the city. It is the harbor with the colored houses, very stereotypical Copenhagen (if you google image the city). Needless to say, that was a main sight to see in Copenhagen...at least until April when everything fun opens haha.
We were able to head to the Carlsberg Brwey for a tour and 2 free specialty beers. It was really neat, though the self-guided tour was cold since it was in the old factory. Got to see the draft horses that pull all their carriages. So cute. Apparently they are all from the same lines...its like a family of them that they've been breeding for decades, maybe even longer.
Also, had to take pictures in front of the huge stone elephants (a carlsberg symbol and one of their beers- "Elephant"). I literally would not stop until we found these elephants. Everyone probably wanted to kill me, but we finally found them. Also they are on either sides of a street so we almost got killed about ten times. Worth it though.
I also took Eddie to Christiania, which I also had yet to visit. It is an indescribable place. It is it's own little community, of 850 people, covered in graffitti and looks like a artistic version of the projects you'd find in America. So much more though. The graffitti and grunge makes it a "dirty" type of pretty. Couldn't take photos though since it is a hippie community. They literally sell hash (weed) and weed brownies in tables and huts all up and down the street. Pot is illegal in Denmark, but this little area just abides by its own rules. There are police raids every now and then, they've been cracking down on it since 2004.
Anyways, it was very neat to walk through. Wish I could take pics, but can't cause of the illicit activities haha...there are no photo signs everywhere. Also there a tons of trashcans with burning fires in them- something I'd only seen in movies haha sad but true. It was a cool experience, and before judging me...it is a true tourist area that is a must-see when people come to Copenhagen. When you exit Christiania, the sign says "You are now entering the EU."
Other than that, the week was full of walking up and down Stroget (main pedestrian shopping street), walking along the harbor, and some food (that we could afford). One night we got Burger King...was 18 dollars. Expensive Copenhagen. It is crazy that I come home in 2 months exactly. Time is flying by.
So also, now this week, Britt's parents are visiting.
They have been really nice to us and have taken Jenni and I out to both dinner and to a bar.
This was no ordinary dinner and no ordinary bar, however. Dinner was at Hard Rock Cafe Copenhagen, which we all have been dying to go to. We have restrained because it surely is very expensive, so it was nice to be invited there. It was also nice to eat American food. So good :) Especially the fries.
The bar we went to the next day was an Ice Bar- only 5 like it in the world. Everything was ice, the walls, the glasses...they melted as you drank them. You had to wear some eskimo gear while in there since its so cold but it was a great experience!!
Alright, so again..I'm going to Paris this weekend and will update afterwards.
xoxo
The week seemed to go by so fast. He had got here on a Saturday morning and left 6 days later Friday morning. Although the week was full of him sleeping most of the time, it was nice to continue to do tourist-y things in Copenhagen again. I can say that Jetlag prevailed most of the time though. Either way, it was nice to spend time together. His hotel was located right near Nyhavn, which is one of the most scenic areas of the city. It is the harbor with the colored houses, very stereotypical Copenhagen (if you google image the city). Needless to say, that was a main sight to see in Copenhagen...at least until April when everything fun opens haha.
We were able to head to the Carlsberg Brwey for a tour and 2 free specialty beers. It was really neat, though the self-guided tour was cold since it was in the old factory. Got to see the draft horses that pull all their carriages. So cute. Apparently they are all from the same lines...its like a family of them that they've been breeding for decades, maybe even longer.
Also, had to take pictures in front of the huge stone elephants (a carlsberg symbol and one of their beers- "Elephant"). I literally would not stop until we found these elephants. Everyone probably wanted to kill me, but we finally found them. Also they are on either sides of a street so we almost got killed about ten times. Worth it though.
I also took Eddie to Christiania, which I also had yet to visit. It is an indescribable place. It is it's own little community, of 850 people, covered in graffitti and looks like a artistic version of the projects you'd find in America. So much more though. The graffitti and grunge makes it a "dirty" type of pretty. Couldn't take photos though since it is a hippie community. They literally sell hash (weed) and weed brownies in tables and huts all up and down the street. Pot is illegal in Denmark, but this little area just abides by its own rules. There are police raids every now and then, they've been cracking down on it since 2004.
Anyways, it was very neat to walk through. Wish I could take pics, but can't cause of the illicit activities haha...there are no photo signs everywhere. Also there a tons of trashcans with burning fires in them- something I'd only seen in movies haha sad but true. It was a cool experience, and before judging me...it is a true tourist area that is a must-see when people come to Copenhagen. When you exit Christiania, the sign says "You are now entering the EU."
Other than that, the week was full of walking up and down Stroget (main pedestrian shopping street), walking along the harbor, and some food (that we could afford). One night we got Burger King...was 18 dollars. Expensive Copenhagen. It is crazy that I come home in 2 months exactly. Time is flying by.
So also, now this week, Britt's parents are visiting.
They have been really nice to us and have taken Jenni and I out to both dinner and to a bar.
This was no ordinary dinner and no ordinary bar, however. Dinner was at Hard Rock Cafe Copenhagen, which we all have been dying to go to. We have restrained because it surely is very expensive, so it was nice to be invited there. It was also nice to eat American food. So good :) Especially the fries.
The bar we went to the next day was an Ice Bar- only 5 like it in the world. Everything was ice, the walls, the glasses...they melted as you drank them. You had to wear some eskimo gear while in there since its so cold but it was a great experience!!
Alright, so again..I'm going to Paris this weekend and will update afterwards.
xoxo
Scotland: scottish cows, malt whiskey, ghost tours, and more
Hej!
So it has been about a week since my return from Edinburgh and Glasgow, Scotland. It was a packed week full of both academic visits and planned cultural activities. We did have a lot of free time to explore (shop!), and go out at night. Again, anything is cheaper than Copenhagen, right?
So we left Sunday, flew out as a class from the airport, we pretty much took up the entire plane. It was fun though, traveling with friends, and I look forward to it for my upcoming travel break. We got there on Sunday night and pretty much went to bed at our hotel right away. We stayed in Ediburgh the first half of the week. My first impressions of Scotland was the view I woke up to in the morning from my hotel room. Overlooking all of the beautiful old buildings built into the hill-y countryside. The city is so old and built like a fortress. Very cool. Monday morning we got to go to Ediburgh castle, again, built like a fortress so it is high up and overlooks the entire city. It was so cool and where I took a lot of pictures. I am just in awe of history that dates back to the 1400 and 1500s. We did an audio tour of the castle, which was inhabited for some time by Mary Queen of Scotts in the early 16th century.
After the castle we were given free time for lunch. Four of us were just wandering around and we happened to stumble upon...none other than...The Elephant House. Better known as, the cafe where JK Rowling wrote the first book. Where it all began, she sat in the back room overlooking the Edinburgh castle...and was inspired to write Harry Potter. We sat in the same back room, and what made it even better, was that the food was amazing. Brie, Chicken, Mango Chutney panini with some shortbread was heaven.
I won't go too in-depth on the academic visits because those can seem boring. Mainly all of them had to do with how Scotland is taking the initiative and placing well-being/happiness at the forefront of mental health care. We learned a lot about their policies, different organizations, and explored expressive therapies in a workshop.
We got to do a Ghost Tour of the underground vaults in Edinburgh- which, I must say, puts Gettysburg to shame. Maybe cause it was listed at one of the top ten scariest/most haunted places in the United Kingdom. It was very scary. Crammed like 30 people into these chambers beneath the ground in pitch black with temperature fluctuations and dripping water. By the last vault I was ready to get out of there, clutching my friend Maggie, and keeping my eyes glued to my feet. Still, I'm glad I did it. If you want to, google Edinburgh Underground Vaults, scroll down, and pictures come up of what it looks like. Ahhhh.
Tuesday we got to see a lot of the Scottish countryside on the way to one of our academic trips. Very pretty. Looks like PA with beautiful white mountains in the background.
Also, during the trip we headed to a whiskey distillery to sample some true Scotch. It was in the middle of the countryside and was called Glengoyne. We tasted their 10 yr old malt whiskey then preceded to have a tour. Neat, though I am no fan of scotch. Felt bad wasting 10 years of work, but after a few sips, some form of chaser I didn't have was needed.
We were supposed to go hiking, see Stirling Castle, and the scenic Loch Lohmond. They lied to us, however, and one full day (I think wednesday?) was spent on a bus...driving by these sights...with a British sounding yet supposedly Scottish old woman tour guide named Leona. She had a knack for yelling through the intercom, preventing us from sleep or itunes, and pointing out scottish cows. I wasn't very pleased. I became further angered when our scenic view of Loch Lohmond consisted of being given 5 mins to hop off the bus, take a picture, then leave. :(
Britt and I also did some exploring, I forgot to mention, In Edinburgh. We climbed Calton Hill which also is another high point and overlooks the city. The sun was setting and it contained these greek looking ruins that were so pretty and good photo-ops. We're freaks. Also to further our weirdness, we sought out this cool cemetary with old tombstones and graves...and general..creepiness. Also, when I saw David Hume was buried there...I was excited...which I suppose makes me a nerd.
Ummm...so the rest of the week we stayed in Glasgow. It was pretty. It had more of a nightlife than Edinburgh which was fun. We met this scottish man named Phil, who was generally not creepy, and he told us about a concert going on the next night. Even though I missed the concert, I was able to navigate and find our group (who had left our dinner early to get there). The night was fun though and we found a club-esque placed where we could dance, so all was good. People in Scotland were all very nice, from those we had met. A funny. And drunk.
Glasgow reminded me of an American city though it did have some neat architecture and and pretty park that Maggie, Amanda, and I explored. We just basically enjoyed getting lost. Sometimes thats the best way to sight see.
All in all, this is what I can remember from Scotland. There was some interesting meals to say the least...don't get why europeans love liver pate (in Denmark especially).
Alright, I'm heading to Paris this weekend with Jenni! Will update after that!
So it has been about a week since my return from Edinburgh and Glasgow, Scotland. It was a packed week full of both academic visits and planned cultural activities. We did have a lot of free time to explore (shop!), and go out at night. Again, anything is cheaper than Copenhagen, right?
So we left Sunday, flew out as a class from the airport, we pretty much took up the entire plane. It was fun though, traveling with friends, and I look forward to it for my upcoming travel break. We got there on Sunday night and pretty much went to bed at our hotel right away. We stayed in Ediburgh the first half of the week. My first impressions of Scotland was the view I woke up to in the morning from my hotel room. Overlooking all of the beautiful old buildings built into the hill-y countryside. The city is so old and built like a fortress. Very cool. Monday morning we got to go to Ediburgh castle, again, built like a fortress so it is high up and overlooks the entire city. It was so cool and where I took a lot of pictures. I am just in awe of history that dates back to the 1400 and 1500s. We did an audio tour of the castle, which was inhabited for some time by Mary Queen of Scotts in the early 16th century.
After the castle we were given free time for lunch. Four of us were just wandering around and we happened to stumble upon...none other than...The Elephant House. Better known as, the cafe where JK Rowling wrote the first book. Where it all began, she sat in the back room overlooking the Edinburgh castle...and was inspired to write Harry Potter. We sat in the same back room, and what made it even better, was that the food was amazing. Brie, Chicken, Mango Chutney panini with some shortbread was heaven.
I won't go too in-depth on the academic visits because those can seem boring. Mainly all of them had to do with how Scotland is taking the initiative and placing well-being/happiness at the forefront of mental health care. We learned a lot about their policies, different organizations, and explored expressive therapies in a workshop.
We got to do a Ghost Tour of the underground vaults in Edinburgh- which, I must say, puts Gettysburg to shame. Maybe cause it was listed at one of the top ten scariest/most haunted places in the United Kingdom. It was very scary. Crammed like 30 people into these chambers beneath the ground in pitch black with temperature fluctuations and dripping water. By the last vault I was ready to get out of there, clutching my friend Maggie, and keeping my eyes glued to my feet. Still, I'm glad I did it. If you want to, google Edinburgh Underground Vaults, scroll down, and pictures come up of what it looks like. Ahhhh.
Tuesday we got to see a lot of the Scottish countryside on the way to one of our academic trips. Very pretty. Looks like PA with beautiful white mountains in the background.
Also, during the trip we headed to a whiskey distillery to sample some true Scotch. It was in the middle of the countryside and was called Glengoyne. We tasted their 10 yr old malt whiskey then preceded to have a tour. Neat, though I am no fan of scotch. Felt bad wasting 10 years of work, but after a few sips, some form of chaser I didn't have was needed.
We were supposed to go hiking, see Stirling Castle, and the scenic Loch Lohmond. They lied to us, however, and one full day (I think wednesday?) was spent on a bus...driving by these sights...with a British sounding yet supposedly Scottish old woman tour guide named Leona. She had a knack for yelling through the intercom, preventing us from sleep or itunes, and pointing out scottish cows. I wasn't very pleased. I became further angered when our scenic view of Loch Lohmond consisted of being given 5 mins to hop off the bus, take a picture, then leave. :(
Britt and I also did some exploring, I forgot to mention, In Edinburgh. We climbed Calton Hill which also is another high point and overlooks the city. The sun was setting and it contained these greek looking ruins that were so pretty and good photo-ops. We're freaks. Also to further our weirdness, we sought out this cool cemetary with old tombstones and graves...and general..creepiness. Also, when I saw David Hume was buried there...I was excited...which I suppose makes me a nerd.
Ummm...so the rest of the week we stayed in Glasgow. It was pretty. It had more of a nightlife than Edinburgh which was fun. We met this scottish man named Phil, who was generally not creepy, and he told us about a concert going on the next night. Even though I missed the concert, I was able to navigate and find our group (who had left our dinner early to get there). The night was fun though and we found a club-esque placed where we could dance, so all was good. People in Scotland were all very nice, from those we had met. A funny. And drunk.
Glasgow reminded me of an American city though it did have some neat architecture and and pretty park that Maggie, Amanda, and I explored. We just basically enjoyed getting lost. Sometimes thats the best way to sight see.
All in all, this is what I can remember from Scotland. There was some interesting meals to say the least...don't get why europeans love liver pate (in Denmark especially).
Alright, I'm heading to Paris this weekend with Jenni! Will update after that!
Sunday, February 28, 2010
London Calling
Hello!
So I am about to leave for Scotland in about 10 minutes so I thought I should probably write my blog about London last weekend. London was in one word...amazing. I have wanted to go there my entire life and it was well worth the trip. To sum it up it was about good sights, good food, good friends. Alyssa, Annie, Britt, Jenni, and I headed to the Copenhagen airport a bit early in the morning last friday. Our flight was a 1:15 so we just relaxed for a while and talked, got massive amounts of food, it was all good. I consumed a whole box of pringles, sour cream and onion, which I think was worth it due to my deprivation of chips over here.
Also, security here in CPH is a lot more 'lax than at home, you don't even need to remove your shoes and they don't even check your passport really (maybe once). So we get to London where we are supposed to me Alex, Britt's freshman year roommate, who also goes to Gettysburg. So we are wandering around Heathrow baggage claim trying to find her, and Britt is suprised she is nowhere in sight because she always sticks to promises (and she said she'd pick us up). SO, we finally get in touch with her via phone and turns out the tube was broken (the line to the airport) and she had tried to get there for over an hour before they kicked off everyone on the train alltogether. So the 5 of us took a very expensive cab to her apartment. I think split between 5 of us it was about 20 pounds each.
So expensive, but we got to see some of London as we navigated there. We finally got to her, she felt really bad, then we crammed all into her little single apartment with the greatest location right by Waterloo Station. I was already in awe as she took us around, across the bridge, to trafalgar square, big ben and parliament...all beautiful as the sun was setting. I was already in love with London and it had only been 3 hours.
Scariest thing ever was trying to climb this lion statue for perfect photo-op at trafalgar square. Thought I was gonna die and fall to my death on to the hard cement, but somehow made it.
We continued to just tour/walk around. Alex was the best touguide, and was all weekend. She was so good to us and we would have been horribly lost without here.
We decided to head back to her apartment, change, go out to the cheapest london dinner we could find, then went out to this place called Oxygen Bar. We stayed there the entire night, where we encountered many strange things such as a Bachelorette's party, sketchy old men, spaniards both by the name of Javiar, Australians, and much more. I probably have the least amount of stories from this night, but ask the others, they'll tell you.
So we head back pretty late, but we were ready to make the most of saturday. We woke up kinda late and didn't get out of the apartment until noon. But thankfully there are starbucks and a tube pass to get us all around London all day. So we head to Kings cross station, see platform 9 and 3/4...my dream is complete. We also head to Buckingham palace and walk around the park a bit. It was so pretty and the weather was perfect and sunny. A nice change since it's always overcast and cold in Copenhagen. Thankfully it didn't rain!
We also headed to Abbey Road and tried to mimic the infamous album cover. Harder then you think, considering it's a real street with a good amount of traffic. Also hard when you have this creepy man who waits for someone to take a pic (loiters near you) then puts on this sketchy white murderer mask and his black hood up..and follows you..only to ruin your picture. Happened multiple times, I wanted to kill the guy.
I believe we ended Saturday with a trip to Westminster Abbey which was so beautiful. The sun was just setting and I got some amazing pictures. It was a nice day to just walk around and explore with friends. I'm probably forgetting some things now since it's a week later.
Saturday night we headed to chinatown for some good chinese good to celebrate the chinese new year. So many lanterns everywhere, it was so pretty. We then went out to this place called O'Neill's with 4 floors and a live cover band which was amazing. Of course we were in the front row, intensely dancing, which I don't think anyone else in the crowd did. We looked a little crazy, but I guess that's what Gburg does to us.
We ended the night a little bit earlier so we could wake up in time the next day sunday, go out to breakfast, and hang out before leaving England.
Overall, it was a wonderful weekend. I am rushing now because I am off to Scotland for a week with my class!
Will update then...and Eddie will be here!
xoxo
So I am about to leave for Scotland in about 10 minutes so I thought I should probably write my blog about London last weekend. London was in one word...amazing. I have wanted to go there my entire life and it was well worth the trip. To sum it up it was about good sights, good food, good friends. Alyssa, Annie, Britt, Jenni, and I headed to the Copenhagen airport a bit early in the morning last friday. Our flight was a 1:15 so we just relaxed for a while and talked, got massive amounts of food, it was all good. I consumed a whole box of pringles, sour cream and onion, which I think was worth it due to my deprivation of chips over here.
Also, security here in CPH is a lot more 'lax than at home, you don't even need to remove your shoes and they don't even check your passport really (maybe once). So we get to London where we are supposed to me Alex, Britt's freshman year roommate, who also goes to Gettysburg. So we are wandering around Heathrow baggage claim trying to find her, and Britt is suprised she is nowhere in sight because she always sticks to promises (and she said she'd pick us up). SO, we finally get in touch with her via phone and turns out the tube was broken (the line to the airport) and she had tried to get there for over an hour before they kicked off everyone on the train alltogether. So the 5 of us took a very expensive cab to her apartment. I think split between 5 of us it was about 20 pounds each.
So expensive, but we got to see some of London as we navigated there. We finally got to her, she felt really bad, then we crammed all into her little single apartment with the greatest location right by Waterloo Station. I was already in awe as she took us around, across the bridge, to trafalgar square, big ben and parliament...all beautiful as the sun was setting. I was already in love with London and it had only been 3 hours.
Scariest thing ever was trying to climb this lion statue for perfect photo-op at trafalgar square. Thought I was gonna die and fall to my death on to the hard cement, but somehow made it.
We continued to just tour/walk around. Alex was the best touguide, and was all weekend. She was so good to us and we would have been horribly lost without here.
We decided to head back to her apartment, change, go out to the cheapest london dinner we could find, then went out to this place called Oxygen Bar. We stayed there the entire night, where we encountered many strange things such as a Bachelorette's party, sketchy old men, spaniards both by the name of Javiar, Australians, and much more. I probably have the least amount of stories from this night, but ask the others, they'll tell you.
So we head back pretty late, but we were ready to make the most of saturday. We woke up kinda late and didn't get out of the apartment until noon. But thankfully there are starbucks and a tube pass to get us all around London all day. So we head to Kings cross station, see platform 9 and 3/4...my dream is complete. We also head to Buckingham palace and walk around the park a bit. It was so pretty and the weather was perfect and sunny. A nice change since it's always overcast and cold in Copenhagen. Thankfully it didn't rain!
We also headed to Abbey Road and tried to mimic the infamous album cover. Harder then you think, considering it's a real street with a good amount of traffic. Also hard when you have this creepy man who waits for someone to take a pic (loiters near you) then puts on this sketchy white murderer mask and his black hood up..and follows you..only to ruin your picture. Happened multiple times, I wanted to kill the guy.
I believe we ended Saturday with a trip to Westminster Abbey which was so beautiful. The sun was just setting and I got some amazing pictures. It was a nice day to just walk around and explore with friends. I'm probably forgetting some things now since it's a week later.
Saturday night we headed to chinatown for some good chinese good to celebrate the chinese new year. So many lanterns everywhere, it was so pretty. We then went out to this place called O'Neill's with 4 floors and a live cover band which was amazing. Of course we were in the front row, intensely dancing, which I don't think anyone else in the crowd did. We looked a little crazy, but I guess that's what Gburg does to us.
We ended the night a little bit earlier so we could wake up in time the next day sunday, go out to breakfast, and hang out before leaving England.
Overall, it was a wonderful weekend. I am rushing now because I am off to Scotland for a week with my class!
Will update then...and Eddie will be here!
xoxo
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Short Study Tour to Århus, Esbjerg, Roskilde and more.
Hi,
I have been bad about updating the last couple weeks, I know. I think it is because my work is picking up and there is so much to do and well...sleep is precious.
I have not had the chance to detail my trip to western Denmark to the lovely towns of Århus, Esbjerg, and Roskilde. I posted pictures on facebook from the trip which involved visits to organizations semi-related to my core class, the Psychology of Happiness (the fluffy term...known in the field as Positive Psych).
We first took a bus to Århus, where we did a workshop at this special type of school called the KaosPilots. It is a program for entrepreneurers (can't spell that) who learn business and life skills. Basically they help them find their passion in life while teaching them process management etc. It was a cool workshop, we did these relaxation exercises and got to know our classmates better, talked about our feelings, you know..psych stuff. One exercise I enjoyed was we were asked to list the top 7 things we are passionate about in life, then the top 7 things we are angry about in society, then the top 7 things we are great at. It is pretty difficult to write down things you are great at, which was the toughest part for me. Anyways, after compiling these lists...we got in groups of 3, shared them, then worked to give each other suggestions about what each could be themed. So, for instance, my top 7 passions...the common theme among them (we decided) was "cultivating/finding beauty in life and relationships"...so yeah, I guess that's me.
We stayed at a hostel that night, and also go to go out to a nice dinenr and then experience some Århus social scene. There was a scottish bar with trivia in english that basically alluded to the fact that Americans are dumb. Not much excitement with this night, I was so full from dinner (in a good way) I thought I might puke. SO on to the next day.
We then journeyed by bus to the lovely town of Esbjerg. There we were introduced to this school containing a program called the SKILLS program. On the way there, however, we go to stop at these really cool statues called "Man Meets the Sea"..essentially these 4 white, stone giants overlooking the ocean. It was SO cold and SO windy...pretty much unbearable...but still so beautiful.
Anyways, this SKILLS program took in troubled youth, teens with horrible pasts and gave them a 8 week course on essentially...life. They ate together, exercised together, learned about proper nutrition and taking care of yourself. They also were taught all that grown-up stuff no one teaches us in the States, such as banking, taxes, etc. Additionally, they had classes in Psychology as well to learn about its uses and applications. There were 17 and 18 year olds who stood up in front of all us and shared their incredible stories and abusive pasts and how this program changed their life. It made me feel indrecibly grateful for who I am and how I got here. They were so inspiring, and I wish we ahd programs like this in the United States. It may seem like we do from the description, but trust me, we do not.
After our emotional day, we checked into our hostel and then headed to a...bowling alley... for some dinner and cosmic bowling. Kind of bizarre. It was interesting to say the least. Bowling came with a free drink and there was a bar so everyone could relax, have some fun, and...bowl.
The final day was spent traveling. We then had a lovely lunch at a restaurent on the water with a traditional Danish dish called "shooting star" in english. Fish, Shrimp, Caviar. Next we headed to the Viking museum next door, had a very boring lecture on viking culture and Danish Hygge (coziness). I only say boring because we were all so tired at that point, no one was paying attention, and the man lecturing sounded like he should be employed by those companies who make "put you to sleep tapes." He had a soft, soothing voice that just, well,...put you to sleep.
So I was so tired when we got back from this trip, but it was a Saturday, and an opportunity to go out..so my friends and I decided to. I mean, we are in Europe, right?
Well I was not very pleased when this one bouncer rejected me and told me that in order to get in I needed to carry around a copy of my passport.Meanwhile, I had shown him an ID with my birth date on it. Anyways, there is no way I am doing that. So that made me mad. Luckily, when we went elsewhere, we were able to have fun. Though Danish Clubs play some really bizarre music. Like techno about bouncing kittens. No joke. I asked them to play some Lady GaGa, but no cigar.
Alright, well, there is more to update on. Essentially, it was Fashion Week in Copenhagen this past weekend which was cool. We put our names on the guest lists of some shows/events but never made it there (and lines were long). We also with with Britt's host sister to see Valentine's Day...the movie with a billion famous people in it. It was good, since I technically have a valentine, but probably depressing for those who don't. It was no where near as good as Love Actually (same premise), Taylor Swift was a horrible actress and painful to watch, and Patrick Dempsey's character was mean (so obviously didn't approve of that). Also, forgot to mention we had a mexican buffet dinner pre-movie that was amazing.
Sorry this post is all over the place but I had a lot to fit in. I will try to be better next time. I am going to be in London this weekend (!!) and then the next weekend I'll be in Scotland for a week with my core class. I will update after London!
Hilary
I have been bad about updating the last couple weeks, I know. I think it is because my work is picking up and there is so much to do and well...sleep is precious.
I have not had the chance to detail my trip to western Denmark to the lovely towns of Århus, Esbjerg, and Roskilde. I posted pictures on facebook from the trip which involved visits to organizations semi-related to my core class, the Psychology of Happiness (the fluffy term...known in the field as Positive Psych).
We first took a bus to Århus, where we did a workshop at this special type of school called the KaosPilots. It is a program for entrepreneurers (can't spell that) who learn business and life skills. Basically they help them find their passion in life while teaching them process management etc. It was a cool workshop, we did these relaxation exercises and got to know our classmates better, talked about our feelings, you know..psych stuff. One exercise I enjoyed was we were asked to list the top 7 things we are passionate about in life, then the top 7 things we are angry about in society, then the top 7 things we are great at. It is pretty difficult to write down things you are great at, which was the toughest part for me. Anyways, after compiling these lists...we got in groups of 3, shared them, then worked to give each other suggestions about what each could be themed. So, for instance, my top 7 passions...the common theme among them (we decided) was "cultivating/finding beauty in life and relationships"...so yeah, I guess that's me.
We stayed at a hostel that night, and also go to go out to a nice dinenr and then experience some Århus social scene. There was a scottish bar with trivia in english that basically alluded to the fact that Americans are dumb. Not much excitement with this night, I was so full from dinner (in a good way) I thought I might puke. SO on to the next day.
We then journeyed by bus to the lovely town of Esbjerg. There we were introduced to this school containing a program called the SKILLS program. On the way there, however, we go to stop at these really cool statues called "Man Meets the Sea"..essentially these 4 white, stone giants overlooking the ocean. It was SO cold and SO windy...pretty much unbearable...but still so beautiful.
Anyways, this SKILLS program took in troubled youth, teens with horrible pasts and gave them a 8 week course on essentially...life. They ate together, exercised together, learned about proper nutrition and taking care of yourself. They also were taught all that grown-up stuff no one teaches us in the States, such as banking, taxes, etc. Additionally, they had classes in Psychology as well to learn about its uses and applications. There were 17 and 18 year olds who stood up in front of all us and shared their incredible stories and abusive pasts and how this program changed their life. It made me feel indrecibly grateful for who I am and how I got here. They were so inspiring, and I wish we ahd programs like this in the United States. It may seem like we do from the description, but trust me, we do not.
After our emotional day, we checked into our hostel and then headed to a...bowling alley... for some dinner and cosmic bowling. Kind of bizarre. It was interesting to say the least. Bowling came with a free drink and there was a bar so everyone could relax, have some fun, and...bowl.
The final day was spent traveling. We then had a lovely lunch at a restaurent on the water with a traditional Danish dish called "shooting star" in english. Fish, Shrimp, Caviar. Next we headed to the Viking museum next door, had a very boring lecture on viking culture and Danish Hygge (coziness). I only say boring because we were all so tired at that point, no one was paying attention, and the man lecturing sounded like he should be employed by those companies who make "put you to sleep tapes." He had a soft, soothing voice that just, well,...put you to sleep.
So I was so tired when we got back from this trip, but it was a Saturday, and an opportunity to go out..so my friends and I decided to. I mean, we are in Europe, right?
Well I was not very pleased when this one bouncer rejected me and told me that in order to get in I needed to carry around a copy of my passport.Meanwhile, I had shown him an ID with my birth date on it. Anyways, there is no way I am doing that. So that made me mad. Luckily, when we went elsewhere, we were able to have fun. Though Danish Clubs play some really bizarre music. Like techno about bouncing kittens. No joke. I asked them to play some Lady GaGa, but no cigar.
Alright, well, there is more to update on. Essentially, it was Fashion Week in Copenhagen this past weekend which was cool. We put our names on the guest lists of some shows/events but never made it there (and lines were long). We also with with Britt's host sister to see Valentine's Day...the movie with a billion famous people in it. It was good, since I technically have a valentine, but probably depressing for those who don't. It was no where near as good as Love Actually (same premise), Taylor Swift was a horrible actress and painful to watch, and Patrick Dempsey's character was mean (so obviously didn't approve of that). Also, forgot to mention we had a mexican buffet dinner pre-movie that was amazing.
Sorry this post is all over the place but I had a lot to fit in. I will try to be better next time. I am going to be in London this weekend (!!) and then the next weekend I'll be in Scotland for a week with my core class. I will update after London!
Hilary
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Hello everyone!
I'm trying to update this more frequently, but I have been dead tired. As a matter of a fact, I am currently contributing to this excessive tiredness due to the fact it is 12:30 am here and I decided to post a blog. Keeping the blog seems to ground me, so I enjoy doing it. I also enjoy sleep though. I have to keep like 3 diaries of other sorts for some of my classes, which I have yet to start. I feel like those will be pushed aside more than I'm willing to admit because the blog is much more fun. I changed the title of my blog as well....now it is a little less intense, and more along the definition of 'to cavort' aka to have boisterous fun, says dictionary.com.
Last week I decided to focus on the wretched blizzard, but low and behold..it blizzard-ed again today! Had to leave the city early so our train wasnt canceled or delayed. Train delays in freezing cold are not very fun. I do not have class tomorrow, but If I am forced to go into the city I plan to explore a little bit...which I do need.
This weekend was fun. We went out to a club on Friday, stayed the same place the entire night. Danced a lot, though didn't get back until very late. It was nice to just dance though. More normal. Saturday night was Deirdre's 21st. A bunch of us gettysburgians trekked over to her and Tara's host family/house to enjoy about a 7 course meal (including cake before the appetizer, ahhhh) after which I gained about 20 pounds. But soooo yummy! Salmon, shrimp as appetizer...steak, potatoes, salad as main course...all so familiar. Then brownie and ice cream for a second dessert. I was in heaven, until the next day when we were fed a huge breakfast and then a second brunch...felt like I was gonna hurl on the train home due to excessive eating. Guess all that exercise went to no use.
This week we have class Monday and Tuesday, our usual no class Wednesdays (except if you have a field trip) and then on Thursday we leave for what is called our 'Short Study Tour' to western Denmark. You go to different cities out west depending on what program you are in (Jenni and I are different). I forget a lot of specifics but I leave Thursday morning for Århus, which is a 4 hour bus trip away from Copenhagen. We go to another city Friday and then another on Saturday before returning home. I will update you all on how it went, because hopefully after the fact, I will have knowledge as how to describe it.
Also, exciting news...5 of us: Jenni, Me, Britt, Alyssa H, and Annie all plan to go to London on Feb. 19th! Can't wait. Though booking travel is probably the most unorganized messy thing I've encountered..and this was for one city. Should be interesting when we have to do our Spring break MArch 27-April 11 travel plans.
Although I have been sooo tired and irritable this week, I am glad to say this blog is a bit more on the positive side..which this site in general definately needed.
I will write again soon! Probably Sunday.
xoxo
Hilary
I'm trying to update this more frequently, but I have been dead tired. As a matter of a fact, I am currently contributing to this excessive tiredness due to the fact it is 12:30 am here and I decided to post a blog. Keeping the blog seems to ground me, so I enjoy doing it. I also enjoy sleep though. I have to keep like 3 diaries of other sorts for some of my classes, which I have yet to start. I feel like those will be pushed aside more than I'm willing to admit because the blog is much more fun. I changed the title of my blog as well....now it is a little less intense, and more along the definition of 'to cavort' aka to have boisterous fun, says dictionary.com.
Last week I decided to focus on the wretched blizzard, but low and behold..it blizzard-ed again today! Had to leave the city early so our train wasnt canceled or delayed. Train delays in freezing cold are not very fun. I do not have class tomorrow, but If I am forced to go into the city I plan to explore a little bit...which I do need.
This weekend was fun. We went out to a club on Friday, stayed the same place the entire night. Danced a lot, though didn't get back until very late. It was nice to just dance though. More normal. Saturday night was Deirdre's 21st. A bunch of us gettysburgians trekked over to her and Tara's host family/house to enjoy about a 7 course meal (including cake before the appetizer, ahhhh) after which I gained about 20 pounds. But soooo yummy! Salmon, shrimp as appetizer...steak, potatoes, salad as main course...all so familiar. Then brownie and ice cream for a second dessert. I was in heaven, until the next day when we were fed a huge breakfast and then a second brunch...felt like I was gonna hurl on the train home due to excessive eating. Guess all that exercise went to no use.
This week we have class Monday and Tuesday, our usual no class Wednesdays (except if you have a field trip) and then on Thursday we leave for what is called our 'Short Study Tour' to western Denmark. You go to different cities out west depending on what program you are in (Jenni and I are different). I forget a lot of specifics but I leave Thursday morning for Århus, which is a 4 hour bus trip away from Copenhagen. We go to another city Friday and then another on Saturday before returning home. I will update you all on how it went, because hopefully after the fact, I will have knowledge as how to describe it.
Also, exciting news...5 of us: Jenni, Me, Britt, Alyssa H, and Annie all plan to go to London on Feb. 19th! Can't wait. Though booking travel is probably the most unorganized messy thing I've encountered..and this was for one city. Should be interesting when we have to do our Spring break MArch 27-April 11 travel plans.
Although I have been sooo tired and irritable this week, I am glad to say this blog is a bit more on the positive side..which this site in general definately needed.
I will write again soon! Probably Sunday.
xoxo
Hilary
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Positive Psychology
A little ambitious to do two posts in a row, but I wouldn't necessarily count this. My core class here in Denmark is called The Psychology of Happiness. In the field, it is known as Positive Psychology. Basically, the area of Psych tells you to quit dwelling on the typical Psychology we see and hear about these days...the kind of stuff such as disorders, psychopathology, etc. Positive Psycholgoy focuses on your strengths. For instance, I took a 240 question test this morning that at it's result...gave me my top 24 character strengths. It is pretty cool.
Anyways, I decided to share my results.
Top Strength: Industry, Diligence, Perseverence
2: Judgment, Critical Thinking, Open-mindedness
3: Hope, Optimism, Future-Mindedness
4: Kindness and Generosity
5: Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence
6: Caution, Prudence, Discretion
7: Capacity to love or be loved
8: Honesty, Authenticity, Genuineness
9: Gratitude
10: Leadership
I am only posting my top ten, since writing them takes forever. Anyways, it is a pretty neat test. If you have about 20 minutes you should check it out. Go to AuthenticHappiness.com, do the quick registration, and then hit test center. This test is called the VIA Survey of Character Strengths (Adults). There are a bunch of other neat tests you can take as well.
Til next time,
Hilary
Anyways, I decided to share my results.
Top Strength: Industry, Diligence, Perseverence
2: Judgment, Critical Thinking, Open-mindedness
3: Hope, Optimism, Future-Mindedness
4: Kindness and Generosity
5: Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence
6: Caution, Prudence, Discretion
7: Capacity to love or be loved
8: Honesty, Authenticity, Genuineness
9: Gratitude
10: Leadership
I am only posting my top ten, since writing them takes forever. Anyways, it is a pretty neat test. If you have about 20 minutes you should check it out. Go to AuthenticHappiness.com, do the quick registration, and then hit test center. This test is called the VIA Survey of Character Strengths (Adults). There are a bunch of other neat tests you can take as well.
Til next time,
Hilary
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Week 2: I look like I live in a freezer...
So it's been over a week in Copenhagen! It is going by slow and fast, if that even makes sense. I feel as if I have been here longer. Due to the cold and blizzard conditions, however, I have been limited in exploration. AKA I basically only know how to get to my school. The rest is still a bit of a challenge. Hopefully that will end soon.
Nightlife in Copenhagen can only be described in two words: expensive and late. The city isn't very much alive until from 12-6am. Thus, I have been getting home very late and very cold. The trains run all night on friday and saturday, but only once per hour. Ours, unfortunately, only comes at :02...so if you don't catch the 2:02....you have to wait. Until 3:02. I have already spent many atimes, huddled up, loitering in the 7/11 on the corner near our train station desperately trying to retain any form of warmth while waiting for our train. It is not a fun-filled wait. When all you want to be in is a warm bed. But that warm bed is a 25 minute train ride and one mile, painfully cold walk away. As a result, I have very little desire to go out.
Did I mention, when you are out in the city at night, that not one of us knows where we are going? So we spend usually over 30 minutes walking in the freezing cold place to place, trying to figure out the scene. We still haven't. I see these leggy, blonde, gorgeous danish girls in skirts and I think they are utterly insane.
Did I also mention my awkward reaction when Danish men try to hit on me in Danish...the look on my face must be priceless. I pretty much just nod and try to avoid their desperate attempt to make me play pool with them.
Classes are going well. I haven't done much but I have tons of reading. So any mention of being abroad and it being a joke can be disregarded. I probably have more reading than at Gettysburg.
Today, I had a field trip to the Danish Institute for Human Rights. Wednesdays we do not have class and sometimes have field trips, depending on what classes you are in. Now, I was very much looking forward to this. However, Today it literally blizzard-ed in Copenhagen. I'm talking high winds, more ice than snow...flurries...whipping me in the face, stinging my eyes...I could not even look up. Well, this institute, it is a 40 minute walk from my school. In a blizzard. I also was not wearing a hat today. My hair had ice encrusted to my scalp. You couldn't even tell my hair color. I felt like I was in Antartica. It seemed like some kind of joke.
The field tip was very informative, but basically 4 different lecture topics for 2 hours. I was falling asleep toward the end. I did learn some interesting information though. Such as, did you know that even if you are born in Denmark, you are not considered a Danish citizen unless one or both your parents are Danish? Different from the US. Basically even if you were born and grew up here your entire life, if you break the law or do something stupid...you can be shipped out at any point. Scary. Anyways, I did not want my field trip to end, because of course, the blizzard had gotten worse.
My teacher also did not walk us back, as he had walked us there. Luckily, a girl knew the way to the nearest Metro and we smushed into a metro train packed like sardines. My first time on the metro. So crowded I could not breathe. People were pressed up against the glass, that is how crowded it was.
I finally made it back to near my school. I had to meet up with Jenni who was at a Museum with Britt. Lucky.
We (Jenni and I) still had the interesting task today of going grocery shopping. Now, our Danish host mom was home all day doing nothing. She asked us if we could get her some groceries and gave us a list and some money. I considered this fine until I realized we would be carrying very heavy grocery bags across Copenhagen in a blizzard, taking the train where we would be warm for 25 minutes, then trekking home in 4 inches of snow and wind for about a mile with the heavy grocery bags. Via a blog, this probably does not seem too bad. Buttttt....
Let me tell you, I have never laughed this much since being in Copenhagen. I laughed because if I didn't, I think I would collapse on the ground, curl up and die. In the snow. Laughter was the only thing getting me home at that moment, because all I wanted to do was chuck the grocery bags onto the train tracks and crawl home.
So, before this, we had to navigate the grocery store...with EVERYTHING in Danish...finding stuff such as yeast...which I do not even know where its location is in a US supermarket. We decided to splurge on ourselves at the grocery store and buy ourselves chips and salsa. This purchase would later be my single motivation in getting home from the train station.
So, we take the train, which is packed as well, home with groceries. And our dreaded trek in the snow for a mile begins. Jenni and I each have a very heavy grocery bag as well as all of our school stuff on us (in our school bag). I could not move my uggs very far through unplowed snow that had accumulated so much since this morning. I know this because I shoveled the path from the driveway before I left for school. We were so hopeless, we began to go a little mad..shouting chips and salsa, chips and salsa for about half the way home just so we could get there. I seem dramatic, but I am not kidding in the least. Again, like earlier in the day, I looked like I stepped out of a freezer. Ice all over my body.
Needless to say, I am never complaining about walking the full 10 minutes it takes to go from point A at Gettysburg to point B. Never, ever.
I don't know what else to discuss, so I will end it here.
Hej Hej,
Hilary
PS. The chips were amazing. The salsa tasted/had the consistency as if you were dipping a chip in pasta/red sauce. A bit odd but what can ya do.
Over and out.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Week One: Peanutbutter Jelly Time
I decided to try doing a blog. Adventurous some may say, but alas it remains the best way to keep everyone updated on my life across the pond. For this first entry, I could probably write pages. The last 4 days have felt like an eternity. Now that classes have begun today, I may finally have the chance to settle into some sort of routine. If I have told you about København already, sorry and too bad, cause I´m writing it again.
Speaking of sorry, I´d have to say...though trivial...it is one of the biggest culture differences I have encountered thus far. Danes are very blunt. In the city, if you are knocked around by mobs of commuters getting to work, there is no *excuse me* or *sorry* ever uttered. People just go on with their day. Now after been almost run over several times by countless bikes (you know, the whole Green concept) and being almost hit by a car- to even squeezing by someone..I keep saying sorry. I then of course, remember I am speaking English, am a silly American, and they frankly don´t care if they´ve bumped into me or not. I heard someone at DIS explain it as...if you bumped into 50 people on your way to work each morning, you would then be saying sorry 50 times, and what is the point of that?? True, I guess it does make sense. Anyways, us Americans are a little baffled. They also don´t have a word for please in their language, which by the way...is the most complicated thing I´ve ever heard. Nothing NOTHING sounds like it looks, legit. There is not even a slight chance I will be learning it, once again labeling me as a foolish American who always mumbles across words when going to a cash register at a store, being confused as Danish and thus being spoken to in utterances, until I work up the courage to say ´Ummm.............................I only speak English´. True story of my first encounter, most awkward thing ever. Jenni witnessed. I´m thinking it gets less awkward each time...hopefully.
By the way, the last few days have consisted of primarily jetlag, going to school and getting home in pitch black due to lack of sunlight, adjusting to Danish home life, trying to navigate trains when everything is in Danish and I have no idea WHAT it says, and running around the city on scavenger hunts in between 4 hour orientation sessions twice daily where I fall asleep due to waking at 5am. Sounds fun, right? I´m looking forward to classes starting. Also, did I mention I have NO IDEA where I am or where I am going about 75% of the time. I am clueless with direction and maps and find myself forgetting places I was an hour ago. Things are looking up.
Okay I´ll stop with the harsh stuff, onto the amazing stuff...like living in Europe. Ahhh.
The city is very pretty. I love the buildings and the area, and I am very grateful to be here. Did I mention, however, this is their coldest winter in 15 years?? It hardly ever snows in København but has been snowing the past week. My scavengr hunt around the city was in a blizzard. that was interesting. Im glad to have snow instead of rain though, since that would just be awful. I took some pretty cool pictures and I cant wait until everything is green again!
My host family is very nice. Rita is the mom, a teacher, and Flemming is the dad and a lawyer. Their house is small and one story (no basement either) but furnished very nice. There is a kid suite area with cabinets, couchs, and a tv...kind of like the kid section of the house. Jenni´s room connect to it, so it is almost like her own suite. My room is on the wall before it and also right next to my 14 yr old host brother´s room. My room is much smaller than Jenni´s since she won the rock paper scissor´-for first pick- challenge. BUT her room is extremely cold and she has less of a bed. Mine is not as cold and more comfy and much warmer so I am happy.
Just to exemplify Danish bluntness, our host mother approached the 2nd or 3rd day and was like "Dont you have a present for Valdemar (host brother)? He is expecting his present." Good thing I got him something, or else I probably would have died in embarassment. I was shocked she said it this way, but I guess that´s just how it is different.
In the kid area we have our own minifridge where my host mom bring us food to pack for lunch. Now we have already been introduced to some interesting food, most of which I can write or pronounce, let alone know what it is. I eat it though. They eat fish a lot, we´ve had fish soup several times which is good. Only problem is Fish of all sorts makes Jenni gag, so thats unfortunate. Glad I like it. Rita also makes homemade buns all the time which are tasty. I have not taken to eating cheese and jelly on my buns though, and their breakfasts are different--containing carrots, and ham and cheese options as well. A lot of stuff we would eat for lunch. I tend to have some cereal and skim milk for breakfast along with a bun with jelly on it.
Lunch is where it gets tricky. She is supposed to make us something (most people´s host moms do) but we make it ourself which is also common among students living with a family. However, we mainly have access to only the food in the kid fridge. She basically thinks all Americans love peanutbutter and banana or peanutbutter and jelly sandwichs...that or ham and cheese (which i dislike)...so I pretty much have eaten peanutbutter..something...everyday for lunch. We will have to see what other stuff she eventually gets us. Im hoping one day we can go grocery shopping with her (which I have also done at a Danish store called Netto during Orientation).
Last night for dinner we had Veal and it was pretty good. It was cooked kind of like the way a crockpot cooks roast beef all day and I just had to tell myself I wasnt eating baby cow the whole time. It was realy good though. The other night, Jenni and I went to one of our older host brothers (does not live in the house) hockey game. He plays for the national team for Denmark...pretty cool. It was fun, despite the fact we stood and watched it for 2.5 hours or however long..after a tiring day of running around the city and little sleep. Guess I just thought we would be sitting...but no. Other than that, it was really fun and good bonding with our host family.
Jenni and I have been happy so far, of course I am unable to say I am loving it yet, but I think that is just about adjusting. Im probably leaving sooo much out but Im in the small DIS library at school and waiting for Jenni to get out of class so we can travel home and NAP. Therefore I will end it here. I already have a lot of homework to do, even before the first class, which angers me but its all good in the hood. Til next time.
Hej Hej (bye bye in Danish)
Hilary
PS. A danish (the pastry we eat) is not called a danish here. Its called Vienna bread, but in Danish. Wienerbrød. Weird that we call it a danish, and they say its from Vienna. Adios.
Speaking of sorry, I´d have to say...though trivial...it is one of the biggest culture differences I have encountered thus far. Danes are very blunt. In the city, if you are knocked around by mobs of commuters getting to work, there is no *excuse me* or *sorry* ever uttered. People just go on with their day. Now after been almost run over several times by countless bikes (you know, the whole Green concept) and being almost hit by a car- to even squeezing by someone..I keep saying sorry. I then of course, remember I am speaking English, am a silly American, and they frankly don´t care if they´ve bumped into me or not. I heard someone at DIS explain it as...if you bumped into 50 people on your way to work each morning, you would then be saying sorry 50 times, and what is the point of that?? True, I guess it does make sense. Anyways, us Americans are a little baffled. They also don´t have a word for please in their language, which by the way...is the most complicated thing I´ve ever heard. Nothing NOTHING sounds like it looks, legit. There is not even a slight chance I will be learning it, once again labeling me as a foolish American who always mumbles across words when going to a cash register at a store, being confused as Danish and thus being spoken to in utterances, until I work up the courage to say ´Ummm.............................I only speak English´. True story of my first encounter, most awkward thing ever. Jenni witnessed. I´m thinking it gets less awkward each time...hopefully.
By the way, the last few days have consisted of primarily jetlag, going to school and getting home in pitch black due to lack of sunlight, adjusting to Danish home life, trying to navigate trains when everything is in Danish and I have no idea WHAT it says, and running around the city on scavenger hunts in between 4 hour orientation sessions twice daily where I fall asleep due to waking at 5am. Sounds fun, right? I´m looking forward to classes starting. Also, did I mention I have NO IDEA where I am or where I am going about 75% of the time. I am clueless with direction and maps and find myself forgetting places I was an hour ago. Things are looking up.
Okay I´ll stop with the harsh stuff, onto the amazing stuff...like living in Europe. Ahhh.
The city is very pretty. I love the buildings and the area, and I am very grateful to be here. Did I mention, however, this is their coldest winter in 15 years?? It hardly ever snows in København but has been snowing the past week. My scavengr hunt around the city was in a blizzard. that was interesting. Im glad to have snow instead of rain though, since that would just be awful. I took some pretty cool pictures and I cant wait until everything is green again!
My host family is very nice. Rita is the mom, a teacher, and Flemming is the dad and a lawyer. Their house is small and one story (no basement either) but furnished very nice. There is a kid suite area with cabinets, couchs, and a tv...kind of like the kid section of the house. Jenni´s room connect to it, so it is almost like her own suite. My room is on the wall before it and also right next to my 14 yr old host brother´s room. My room is much smaller than Jenni´s since she won the rock paper scissor´-for first pick- challenge. BUT her room is extremely cold and she has less of a bed. Mine is not as cold and more comfy and much warmer so I am happy.
Just to exemplify Danish bluntness, our host mother approached the 2nd or 3rd day and was like "Dont you have a present for Valdemar (host brother)? He is expecting his present." Good thing I got him something, or else I probably would have died in embarassment. I was shocked she said it this way, but I guess that´s just how it is different.
In the kid area we have our own minifridge where my host mom bring us food to pack for lunch. Now we have already been introduced to some interesting food, most of which I can write or pronounce, let alone know what it is. I eat it though. They eat fish a lot, we´ve had fish soup several times which is good. Only problem is Fish of all sorts makes Jenni gag, so thats unfortunate. Glad I like it. Rita also makes homemade buns all the time which are tasty. I have not taken to eating cheese and jelly on my buns though, and their breakfasts are different--containing carrots, and ham and cheese options as well. A lot of stuff we would eat for lunch. I tend to have some cereal and skim milk for breakfast along with a bun with jelly on it.
Lunch is where it gets tricky. She is supposed to make us something (most people´s host moms do) but we make it ourself which is also common among students living with a family. However, we mainly have access to only the food in the kid fridge. She basically thinks all Americans love peanutbutter and banana or peanutbutter and jelly sandwichs...that or ham and cheese (which i dislike)...so I pretty much have eaten peanutbutter..something...everyday for lunch. We will have to see what other stuff she eventually gets us. Im hoping one day we can go grocery shopping with her (which I have also done at a Danish store called Netto during Orientation).
Last night for dinner we had Veal and it was pretty good. It was cooked kind of like the way a crockpot cooks roast beef all day and I just had to tell myself I wasnt eating baby cow the whole time. It was realy good though. The other night, Jenni and I went to one of our older host brothers (does not live in the house) hockey game. He plays for the national team for Denmark...pretty cool. It was fun, despite the fact we stood and watched it for 2.5 hours or however long..after a tiring day of running around the city and little sleep. Guess I just thought we would be sitting...but no. Other than that, it was really fun and good bonding with our host family.
Jenni and I have been happy so far, of course I am unable to say I am loving it yet, but I think that is just about adjusting. Im probably leaving sooo much out but Im in the small DIS library at school and waiting for Jenni to get out of class so we can travel home and NAP. Therefore I will end it here. I already have a lot of homework to do, even before the first class, which angers me but its all good in the hood. Til next time.
Hej Hej (bye bye in Danish)
Hilary
PS. A danish (the pastry we eat) is not called a danish here. Its called Vienna bread, but in Danish. Wienerbrød. Weird that we call it a danish, and they say its from Vienna. Adios.
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