It’s definitely getting more difficult to keep up with my blog now that life in Copenhagen is really picking up, but I’m doing my best to keep track of all the amazing adventures I’ve been having.
“Interesting title!” you probably thought upon reading the heading of my latest entry. Don’t worry, I’m not going to crazy over here in Denmark – just trying to learn to stay up a little later so I can stop wanting to go to bed before the bars even get crowded on the weekend. (My friend has referred to this project as “increasing our party stamina.”) In the US, bars get busy at 11pm and most close at 2am; here in Denmark, the bars don’t get busy until 1am and apparently 6am is a normal time to call it a night. Last Friday, Valentine’s Day, we had a little party in our common room here at the kollegium. The Danish people who live here are so friendly and fun, so I was determined to stay awake long enough to make it to one of the local bars. My friends and I went out with one of our SRA’s (kind of like an RA in the states) to a local bar. We didn’t leave until around 1:30am, but I stayed awake and had a great time!
The next day, my friends and I decided to take it easy so we visited the National Aquarium. We saw all different kinds of fish – from starfish to beautiful tropical fish to huge sharks. My favorite part was definitely the huge tunnel you could walk through with water surrounding you from all sides. We also got to see a fish feeding, which was really interesting even though I couldn’t understand a word of the explanation.
My friend from my kollegium participates in a “visiting family” program, which is a DIS program that pairs students with Danish families. It’s a nice way for students who don’t live in a homestay to see how a traditional family lives here. My friend’s visiting family graciously invited five of us over for “Italian Night” dinner. Kenneth and his wife, Edith, had to drive two cars to pick us up from the airport because the cars here are all very small for the most part (it was my first time in a car in four weeks!) Walking into the house, I immediately felt at home – it was so charming and comfortable. It was rather eccentrically decorated for the party, complete with red, white and green candles (to fit the theme), a disco ball, and plenty of great Italian wine brought back from their many travels to the country. We were welcomed inside and enjoyed a good chat and a couple of glasses of wine before dinner. When it was time to eat, we were all speechless. Not only are home cooked meals a huge treat, but they had really gone all out – cheesy tortellini with chicken and bacon, pasta with Danish meatballs and cream sauce, fresh bread with pesto butter, and plenty of Danish cheese. I feasted on more carbs than I usually eat in several days… and then they served dessert. Dessert included a huge tray of berries, along with fresh ice cream with a warm waffle (SO good).
After dinner, we sat around the table and talked for hours over coffee and tea, and playing the with the family dog (a German shepherd, who made me miss Sophie and Trigger!). Kenneth showed us his CD collection. He and some friends make a new CD every year with each person picking a few songs to make for some really great mixes. I also chatted with Edith about her fabulous cooking skills and what it’s like to raise kids here in Denmark. When I looked at the clock, I could hardly believe that it was 1am! I guess whether it’s partying or just socializing, everything is later here. Before we left, though, Kenneth and Edith pulled out their atlas, so we could mark down our name and where in the US we were from. It’s a neat tradition that they do with all their DIS students. The whole family was just so nice and welcoming that time flew by; they loved talking to us about Denmark and the US, and really payed attention to every little detail, making for a perfect evening.
The feasting continued on Sunday. Last week was restaurant week in Copenhagen, so of course we had to take advantage of it. We went to an Italian Restaurant, La Vecchia Signora. We had a three course dinner, starting with a mushroom ragout. The main course was veal with roasted potatoes and spinach in a garlic cream sauce, and dessert was creamy ricotta cheese with a berry topping. It was all delicious!
Sunday night brought even more excitement, as I finally got to pick up my bike!
My late class was cancelled on Monday, so I decided to take it out for a test ride (just down the street to the grocery store – nothing major). After leaving a message in my kollegium’s Facebook group (“Taking my bike out for the first time! Just letting you all know in case I don’t make it back for dinner so you can come looking for me…. — feeling determined.”), I headed down the road to Fotex. I got passed a lot, but I made it there safely! Unfortunately, I overestimated the size of my basket and had a rather difficult time fitting all my groceries inside for the ride back. I really felt like a true Dane balancing my groceries on one arm as a rode back home.
Tuesday night we hosted another DIS-funded kollegium event – Taco Tuesday! My friends did the grocery shopping this time, but I was more than happy to show up for the cooking. Somehow I got stuck cooking all the meat (I’ve never cooked so much meat), but thankfully I had help from a Danish student who was studying in the common room while we were cooking. I think he may have just wanted to make sure that I did’t poison everyone with half-cooked meat, but I was thankful for the help either way. The party turned out to be a great success – all the food was gone within the first twenty minutes. My favorite part, though, was that it was a great way to bring together a bunch of people who wouldn’t normally all hang out together. Posting “free food in the common room!” on our kollegium Facebook page draws people from all over.
As it’s now 2:30am, and I have to leave at 5am to catch a bus for my weekend travels, I’m not sure if I should sleep or just now or on the bus…? I think I may take a little power nap for an hour or so, but more to come about my weekend travels soon!
Xoxoxo ❤
Dirt Roads to Denmark 