Sorry for the apparent delayed post (I've been receiving a few grumbling remarks about how I don't post often enough) so I figured I could take this time to update you on my past week in Copenhagen!
The past week has been a whirlwind! I think that is the only way I can describe it! Classes have officially begun, and despite only having three days of classes I have still managed to fall behind on my reading. I feel as though using sightseeing as an excuse is more legitimate here than in Gettysburg though! Schoolwork is not the only thing I've been struggling with, but also the doors. I have somehow set off every alarm that exists in the DIS buildings within an hour time span. I wouldn't be surprised if the politiet came after me soon!
So since I'm using sightseeing as my excuse for falling behind on my reading I feel as though I should be more specific as to where I visited. I saw Amelienborg Palace (where the Queen lives), as well as Rosenborg Slot (another castle that was important) and my host family's summer home, which is right by a fjord! At Amelienborg I saw the changing of the royal guards, which consisted of a half mile (that's a guess) march where they played all sorts of instruments. Then, a formal ceremony where they break the other guards. It was really entertaining to watch! Everything I saw was just beautiful! Unfortunately, I haven't had my camera with me for the past week so I have no pictures to back up my excuse.
Also, I moved in with my host family! They are all so nice, and it has been great to experience the culture! Everything is fairly similar to the U.S., except that they don't eat peanut butter here (I'm not quite sure how I'll handle that!), and they serve their yogurt out of a milk carton? Hmm.. I haven't had the courage to try that yet! Oh, and several of the family members have had birthdays, and they decorate with flags (very patriotic), wake each other up in the morning by singing happy birthday, and however many candles you miss while trying to blow them out is how many boyfriends you will have for the year (at least I believe that's what they said). Beyond that, being with the host family has really made me want to brush up on my Danish.. if only I could get around to pronouncing one word correctly!
In other news, the Danish handball team won the European Championship! I wasn't even quite sure what handball was, but apparently it is HUGE here! I got caught in the middle of their celebration in Copenhagen today! It was crazy! I wasn't even able to move my arms it was so crowded! Apparently there were 15,000 people there, and they all had the Danish flag and were screaming for the players. It was all so exciting, but it did make me late for the reservation for my host sister's birthday dinner. Whoops!
I suppose I have some reading to do, but I will try to update more frequently!
Monday, January 30, 2012
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Lost in the Metro
We made it to Copenhagen!
Unfortunately, we couldn't even get past the airport without getting lost - or almost setting off an alarm (I guess my blog name is appropriate!). Our flight was overnight, so I haven't slept in the past 27 hours (I figured I should preface my blog with this!). After dropping our billions of suitcases off in the fanciest hotel I've probably ever stayed in (thanks Sal!) we set off for the metro. This was our first mistake - assuming we could navigate a metro that is completely in Danish. After standing at the ticket dispenser for twenty minutes we succumbed to buying our tickets from an actual person instead. We told the woman where we would like to go, and set off on our way.
We didn't even make it one stop before we were asked to get off the metro because we had punched the ticket wrong (whoops). Fortunately, we met two friendly women on the metro that informed us there were two stops for the center of Copenhagen. We took the first of the two stops they suggested. We stepped off the metro, walked down one road for five minutes and immediately decided to go to the next stop because there were no coffee shops in plain sight (I'm not sure if I can blame this on being overtired, or just being completely overwhelmed by this foreign city I've decided to stay in for the next four months!).
Fortunately, the next stop had coffee shops all over the place! When Emily ordered her macchiato, she gracefully dropped a 50 kroner down the crack in the counter. Despite the baristas best effort to retrieve the money with a knife it was hopeless. The 50 kroner was lost. What was Emily's immediate reaction: "Oh no! I dropped my 50 dollar bill down there!" It was difficult to remind ourselves that 50 kroner is not the equivalent of $50 (like our reaction might have showed, but instead $8 or $9). Needless to say, I think that barista thought we were crazy!
Also, Christine and I decided to ask the barista how to say "thank you" in Danish (tak). I think that is the only word I can successfully pronounce in Danish as of now. We decided to look up sorry when we got back to the hotel (undskyld). And that looks like one of the easy words. I think it's safe to say that I won't be able to speak any Danish upon my return to the U.S.!
Our next mistake was letting Christine navigate (sorry Christine!). We walked up and down the same street several times before Emily put herself in charge. We finally started making progress. However, we were "those" tourists that stopped at every corner to read a map, and took pictures of literally every single thing in sight. I think it's safe to say we represented America well today! Everyone is so friendly, though, and we had multiple people stop and ask us if we needed help while we were trying to figure out the map. The only way to describe this city is chic. Every single person is drop-dead gorgeous, and looks like they belong on a runway, not roaming the streets of a city. The houses are all colorful and beautiful. Most of the roads, or sidewalks, are made of cobblestones, and the architecture is amazing!
We found the school, stopped in a few amazing cathedrals, wandered around a gorgeous pond/park, drank several more cups of coffee, and ate dinner at 2:30 in the afternoon (or 8:30 am our time - ugh!). After dinner was when we decided to call it a day and head back to the hotel for the night (and it was already starting to get dark). We had been up for 27 hours, and it felt like one of the longest, yet most amazing days ever. All throughout the day we kept saying how excited we were, yet we were too tired to even show our enthusiasm. It took us a half hour to locate the metro again, but we eventually found it and remembered stamp it the correct number of times. Yet once again, we didn't even make it past one stop before we realized we were on the wrong line, and had to get off again (this one I'll attribute to sheer exhaustion, and the confusing Danish language!). At long last, we made it back to the hotel and collapsed. We are off to explore the city again tomorrow so I'm sure there are only more adventures to come!
P.S. I've decided to do a quote of the day for my blogs (I will most likely only do this while I am traveling, but I'll try to keep it up!)
Quote of the day:
"So, what do you call people that live in Copenhagen? The Kopennese?"
Unfortunately, we couldn't even get past the airport without getting lost - or almost setting off an alarm (I guess my blog name is appropriate!). Our flight was overnight, so I haven't slept in the past 27 hours (I figured I should preface my blog with this!). After dropping our billions of suitcases off in the fanciest hotel I've probably ever stayed in (thanks Sal!) we set off for the metro. This was our first mistake - assuming we could navigate a metro that is completely in Danish. After standing at the ticket dispenser for twenty minutes we succumbed to buying our tickets from an actual person instead. We told the woman where we would like to go, and set off on our way.
We didn't even make it one stop before we were asked to get off the metro because we had punched the ticket wrong (whoops). Fortunately, we met two friendly women on the metro that informed us there were two stops for the center of Copenhagen. We took the first of the two stops they suggested. We stepped off the metro, walked down one road for five minutes and immediately decided to go to the next stop because there were no coffee shops in plain sight (I'm not sure if I can blame this on being overtired, or just being completely overwhelmed by this foreign city I've decided to stay in for the next four months!). Fortunately, the next stop had coffee shops all over the place! When Emily ordered her macchiato, she gracefully dropped a 50 kroner down the crack in the counter. Despite the baristas best effort to retrieve the money with a knife it was hopeless. The 50 kroner was lost. What was Emily's immediate reaction: "Oh no! I dropped my 50 dollar bill down there!" It was difficult to remind ourselves that 50 kroner is not the equivalent of $50 (like our reaction might have showed, but instead $8 or $9). Needless to say, I think that barista thought we were crazy!
Also, Christine and I decided to ask the barista how to say "thank you" in Danish (tak). I think that is the only word I can successfully pronounce in Danish as of now. We decided to look up sorry when we got back to the hotel (undskyld). And that looks like one of the easy words. I think it's safe to say that I won't be able to speak any Danish upon my return to the U.S.!
Our next mistake was letting Christine navigate (sorry Christine!). We walked up and down the same street several times before Emily put herself in charge. We finally started making progress. However, we were "those" tourists that stopped at every corner to read a map, and took pictures of literally every single thing in sight. I think it's safe to say we represented America well today! Everyone is so friendly, though, and we had multiple people stop and ask us if we needed help while we were trying to figure out the map. The only way to describe this city is chic. Every single person is drop-dead gorgeous, and looks like they belong on a runway, not roaming the streets of a city. The houses are all colorful and beautiful. Most of the roads, or sidewalks, are made of cobblestones, and the architecture is amazing!
We found the school, stopped in a few amazing cathedrals, wandered around a gorgeous pond/park, drank several more cups of coffee, and ate dinner at 2:30 in the afternoon (or 8:30 am our time - ugh!). After dinner was when we decided to call it a day and head back to the hotel for the night (and it was already starting to get dark). We had been up for 27 hours, and it felt like one of the longest, yet most amazing days ever. All throughout the day we kept saying how excited we were, yet we were too tired to even show our enthusiasm. It took us a half hour to locate the metro again, but we eventually found it and remembered stamp it the correct number of times. Yet once again, we didn't even make it past one stop before we realized we were on the wrong line, and had to get off again (this one I'll attribute to sheer exhaustion, and the confusing Danish language!). At long last, we made it back to the hotel and collapsed. We are off to explore the city again tomorrow so I'm sure there are only more adventures to come!
P.S. I've decided to do a quote of the day for my blogs (I will most likely only do this while I am traveling, but I'll try to keep it up!)
Quote of the day:
"So, what do you call people that live in Copenhagen? The Kopennese?"
Monday, January 16, 2012
I guess it's time to start packing..
Hi Everybody!
In a couple of days I will be embarking on an adventure to Copenhagen, Denmark! I am extremely excited for the opportunity to meet new people and immerse myself in a new culture! I will be staying with a host family in a small town (Gadstrup), which is about 35 kilometers outside of Copenhagen. I'm arriving a couple of days before the start date of my program so I will have the chance to explore the city with a couple of my friends before school starts (I keep forgetting that I'm actually going there for classes - not just to explore Europe)! So if I survive the first couple of nights lost around Copenhagen with my friends I will spend the next four months there for a semester abroad where I will be learning Europe's views on environmental issues!
I have never blogged before, and I am historically known for forgetting to do things so I can't promise frequent updates, but I hope to update this often enough so that you can get a sense of my trip! Since there is not much excitement in Maine at the moment I will try to update this once I'm there and bring some funny stories to you all!
-Mikaela
In a couple of days I will be embarking on an adventure to Copenhagen, Denmark! I am extremely excited for the opportunity to meet new people and immerse myself in a new culture! I will be staying with a host family in a small town (Gadstrup), which is about 35 kilometers outside of Copenhagen. I'm arriving a couple of days before the start date of my program so I will have the chance to explore the city with a couple of my friends before school starts (I keep forgetting that I'm actually going there for classes - not just to explore Europe)! So if I survive the first couple of nights lost around Copenhagen with my friends I will spend the next four months there for a semester abroad where I will be learning Europe's views on environmental issues!
I have never blogged before, and I am historically known for forgetting to do things so I can't promise frequent updates, but I hope to update this often enough so that you can get a sense of my trip! Since there is not much excitement in Maine at the moment I will try to update this once I'm there and bring some funny stories to you all!
-Mikaela
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