Copenhagen Update

I love red and green... you can find it anywhere if you look hard enough.

Hej! Hej!

So, as I promised in my last post I will include a little blurb about Danish candle light and the gluten-free bakery.

Hygge

This is a Danish word that has no English equivalent. The closest translation would mean a cozy/comfy atmosphere. It is usually used as an adjective describing the feel of a room, the look of a person curled up on the couch, wrapped in blankets and surrounded by lit candles, or it can even describe the type of night someone had. For example, after leaving a party or get-together the guests might say, “thank you for the Hygge time.” (in Danish, of course)

This is where the candle light comes in. Danes typically have many candles all over the house… and they don’t have scented candles, by the way… they think scented candles are odd. (So, the scented and aurally enhanced fire crackling candle that I was going to bring as a gift for my roommate probably would have been over the top.) haha, I can imagine Lars thinking that the smelly, noisy candle was some annoying and incredibly unnecessary contraption.

The reason that they light candles so much is because it creates a hygge atmosphere. People need to feel comfy and cozy when there are only 6 hours of non-sunny daylight in a day… I am not kidding… I think today was the first day that I have seen a little bit of sun in the sky since I have been here. Luckily, daylight is supposed to be coming fast, and I am pretty excited about that because it means twice as much exploring time!

Another thing that is funny about the candle situation is that Danes don’t seem to know that the rest of the world is much less dependent on candles. :) I told Lars that in the US a lot of people have candles in their homes, but they don’t light them because that would mean their expensive wax decorations would slowly disappear. It is funny when you think about it… why have a candle and not light it? If people really did want a colorful stick as a decoration, they could just paint a wooden dowel and it would be much cheaper. I my previous US roommates and I actually do/did light candles though… I think the display of decorative wax sticks is a tradition practiced predominantly by the average US homeowner… (mom)

NextTopic:

Naturbageriet: The GF Bakery!

This is a cute little vegan bakery that also produces some gluten free breads and sweets. There are a few locations around Copenhagen, but I have only been to the one closest to me. It seems scary that they make gluteny bread in the same facility… kind of unsafe…so I think I will only visit if I am in desperate need for a bun, or carrot cake? Also, I was excited to talk with the manager to see if there were grocery stores nearby that would sell gluten-free things… but, unfortunately, when I tried to ask him he must have misunderstood because he started trying to discuss how some people just can’t handle gluten…blablabla… I don’t know, so I smiled, nodded, and said mhmm. Haha, also when I would ask what something is he would misunderstand and put it in my bag… which is how I got stuck with a piece of sugar-free, fat-free banana cake. Yum, doesn’t that just sound great? J It actually wasn’t that bad…but, then again I didn’t finish it. Oh! But here are the two things I got the first time:

Carrot Cake & Rum Ball

The carrot cake was really good… but, the rum ball… ummm, I don’t know… maybe if I had known it was going to be a rum ball when I took a bite I wouldn’t have been so confused and taken aback by its taste… I asked the bakerman… “do you have anything that is chocolate?”… and he pointed to what looked like a chocolate coconut ball; however, he didn’t address the fact that is was actually a rum ball in disguise. Hmmm, but it was ok… I just wouldn’t get it again.

New Topic,

The Royal Theater!

I am in a History of European Ballet class and we have to critique four ballets… which conveniently means that I have to go see four ballets, and in the Royal Theater no less. I think the theater is beautiful… and so was the ballet, Romeo and Juliet.

So, after the ballet I went out to a few bars… and it was fun. But then I found myself to this hidden “biobar” which is apparently a bar for biology students attending the U of Copenhagen… yes, that’s right… in Copenhagen all of the majors have their own bars. These bars are run by students and they happen to be really cheap. It was quite interesting …especially discovering just how in depth Danes like to discuss things such as politics… also, there are no superficial “how are yous” here… which I appreciate… I have never been great at small talk… it always seems too transparent. But, on the other hand, it is a gift for some people, I suppose… I think I would enjoy it much more if people either answered how they actually are instead of the go-to response: “I’m good.” or alternatively if the person asking me how I am actually cared to hear the answer… and I am not saying that people don’t care… but it’s just not expected that you say how you are actually doing… So why don’t people just end their greeting at hi? It would accomplish the same purpose… in less time… and then you could get on with your day, or to other questions that you actually care to know the answers to. For the record… when I ask, “how are you,” I appreciate a real answer.

…I also decided not to memorize my new phone number… not knowing your phone number comes in very handy as an excuse for not giving it out … J because of my inability to say no or be mean, this indirect let down technique might just do the trick… (I know this sounds ridiculous… but it’s not a joke.) … what do you think happens when you go to bars? Danes are very outgoing when they drink…

Also, most of the Danes I have met have stressed how in love with their country they are… I think it is cute…not to mention great. Of course, it helps that the Danish Government has admirable ideals and agreements… and that the people here are not greedy…they care about the wellbeing of everyone in the country as a general rule… unlike the US… so, sadly, I didn’t have anything to brag back at them with… but, maybe with Obama that will hopefully change.

The funny thing is about Denmark being so lovable is that I think its high tax laws weeded out all of the greedy people of Denmark. Anyone who was naturally greedy at heart would hate paying high taxes just to help those that couldn’t help themselves… so, they would probably move to a different country with lower tax laws like the US… which I guess means that people brought up in the US aren’t generally taught to be selfless to any degree, in any terms… but most specifically tax terms. And then we get all the greedies from other countries …doesn’t that just top off the generally greedy public…

New Topic,

Unique Danish Things

I love the way Denmark is set up… it’s so cute! On almost every block there is a plant store! Not one of those lame plant stores either… the cute kind, with a bunch of unique plants in pots. There is also a little grocery store on every block. Additionally, there are little outdoor markets of flowers and produce everyday. Everyone rides bikes… but not road bikes, like in Minneapolis… they ride cruiser bikes… which I think look much less scary to ride than road bikes. There are actually bike streets everywhere here.

Another funny thing… Denmark is actually Danmark. The US is the only country that calls it Denmark… weird, huh? …but oh so typical.

Also, it seems that Danes do not know the difference between the words fun and funny… because they use it interchangeably … which I think is funny. Another funny thing they do is to add the letter s onto the end of words when it is unnecessary. For example, I have heard the word “furnitures” so many times… and I smile to myself all of those times. For some reason when furniture is made doubly plural my imagination starts to personify couches and desks… I imagine them to sport jolly faces while dance/wobbling around… it’s kind of like that movie, the Adventures of the Little Toaster or something… well, anyway, that’s mostly why I smile when people say the word furnitures. Also it’s hard to take someone seriously when they are using the word furnitures.

Next Topic,

Western Denmark: Study Tour

Well, I have some fun pictures I took this weekend while on a study tour around Western Denmark. To tell you the truth, I was not very enthusiastic about a study tour of Western Denmark... to me, it produced just about the same amount of excitement as a western tour of North Dakota might... but, despite being sick (I had, and still have a cold), having to blow my nose in every avaliable bathroom (because I have a phobia of blowing my nose in front of people, and I think it is kind of disgusting), and also despite starving (as most meals were comprised of some sort of deli meat, bread, and cheese)... I actually had a really good time... even while surviving on apples and almonds. hmmm, I like to think of it as a four-day study tour detox... haha, ok just kidding... sort of.

I also suspect that I adventureously tried some salmon with butter on it... oops! Mistake, don't assume that salmon is always served butter-free, it's not.

So, while on this study tour we went from Sealand (the Island Copenhagen is on) to Funen (the next big Island, then to Jutland (the large part of Denmark attached to Germany) by bus. The cities we spent the most time in were Sonderborg (which would have been remarkablely cute, had it been daytime or nice outside, Kolding (a town without gluten-free restaurants... but on the upside, it does have a castle) Vejle (no comment) and Odense (my favorite.)

We also toured some businesses: Ecco Shoes and Arla Foods

Ecco Shoes was kind of neat... well, mostly because they talked about how they are coming out with their first and one of a kind running shoe that mimicks running barefoot: March 2009, keep a lookout :)

Arla Foods might have been more interesting if I could partake in eating cheese... but, instead I toured a cheese factory and watched everyone else eat it... but that's ok... the smell of the cheese factory lessened my initial interest in actually consuming it. As a whole their company was actually interesting.

Ok! on to the pictures (ie. the interesting part of all this)

I spotted the lovely scene on the way to the castle Koldinghus in Kolding.

And Here is the castle Koldinghus itself...hmmm, well, ok... so it isn't the most glamourous of castles, I suppose.

Here are a few of the castle doors... yep, mhmmm interesting.

I took a few pictures overlooking the town of Kolding after climbing to the top of the castle.....

Kolding Again...

Yeah... it tends to be gloomy here... yet, Denmark manages to retain some charm. And, I guess I managed to find this next picture to be interesting as well... in case you can't tell what it is... I'll give you a hint. I'm still at the top of the castle here. Really, I just liked the red and green.

I am really not a fan of pictures with people in them... but just to prove I do have friends... haha :)

Castle exploring with Jenny...

Just in case you are wondering... yes, the castle did have a real dungeon... and there I am in it.

Here is a statue of Hans Christian Andersen... the author of stories such as: The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling, The Princess and the Pea, Thumbalina (I love this one!) and The Emporer's New Clothes (I love this one too!) ... among many others. He was Danish... did you know?

We went to his museum...

Oh, and did you know... Denmark is also home to pink trees.

So, I was thinking about what my favorite part of the trip was... and even thought it was really fun, and I met some great people, and saw some great things... my favorite part might still be listening to the Fleet Foxes while looking out the window durring the long bus rides... The countryside was just so calming and beautiful, especially with a Fleet Fox background... foggy and mysterious... and astonishingly green... we also passed a few forests... I love/miss forests.

ahhhh... sorry this post seems to be long and boring... oh well, tomorrow I plan on having another adventure... so I'll update sooner this time... promise!

Love you all.

Megan