I'm sure it seems like all I do is travel outside of Denmark to exotic locations like Amsterdam, Brussels, and Kangerlussuaq - but that is not the case. This weekend I am staying in Denmark. Granted, I am traveling from Copenhagen to Jutland, the main peninsula, but at least I'm not leaving the country. And it's not all fun and games; I have research papers to do. I mean, I won't work on them this weekend because this is strictly family business, but hey, it's something hanging over my head. First, I will take a bus to Århus to visit some [View Full Entry]

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Even though I only spent three and a half days in Greenland, I am in love. I arrived at the airport early Monday morning, groggy but excited, only to find out that our 0915 flight to Kangerlussuaq has been delayed six hours. An ominous start to the trip, yes, but I spent that time productively, befriending some classmates and spending the meal vouchers the airport gave us. Long story short, our flight was cancelled to due technical problems with the one plane that Air Greenland owns for flights between Kangerlussuaq and Copenhagen. Kangerlussuaq is the largest airport in Greenland, [View Full Entry]

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This weekend I traveled to Amsterdam to meet my best friend Amanda (who you may remember from the Swedish cycling holiday adventure) for two days of boots, maps, music, and friendship. And it certainly was. Picture this: an enthusiastic reunion between two childhood friends near the luggage carousel in Amsterdam-Schipol, full of hugs and jumps and giggles and inside jokes. They immediately start scheming ways to make the most of their weekend together. The first idea? No sleep. The second idea? Lots of coffee. Did they make this happen? Very, very nearly. My introduction to the city of A [View Full Entry]

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My plan for this evening was to start on one of the many papers I have due in the next couple weeks. What have I done with my time instead? Watched Whale Wars on Animal Planet, of course. And an interview on BBC's Hard Talk with the Hungarian Foreign Minister. So it was still a totally educational, academic evening. Today my Women, Art, and Identity class took a field trip to two museums. The first one had an exhibit of Edvard Munch (of The Scream) which was ok, but not mind-blowing. Mind-blowing is, however, the adjective I will use to describe [View Full Entry]

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They warned us that the long study tour would be exhausting, and they weren't kidding. All the academic visits that we did are like a blur, so I'll just highlight the parts of the trip that I like best/remember best. Day 1 is nothing but driving. Really. I wake up at the crack of dawn and a bus full of my classmates departs Copenhagen at 0845. We drive south, cross to Germany on a ferry, turn west, stop in the Netherlands for dinner, and arrive in Brussels at 2300. Our hotel is called Maison du Dragon ("dragon house") and it is [View Full Entry]

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A quick recap of October 2: The Olympic committee met in Copenhagen on Friday to decide which candidate city would be the host in 2016. The candidates were Tokyo, Chicago, Rio de Janeiro, and Madrid. This is why Obamas and Oprah were in town. The Danes really like Pres. Obama. His arrival was the only thing on the news Friday morning, and my cousins were almost late for school because they wanted to watch his plane land on the television. I never realized that the host city selection process was a big deal before, but I guess when you are hosting [View Full Entry]

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First I was busy, then I was unproductive, but now I'm back. But still fairly unproductive. Saturday, September 26, 2009: The climate is a hot issue in Denmark. Unlike the United States, their available resources and land have always been limited (read: no manifest destiny) so the Danes have developed an acute and sophisticated sense of awareness when it comes to reducing, reusing, and recycling, emphasis on the reduce part. There's an island called Samsø that is entirely self sufficient, as far as energy is concerned. Wind power produces nearly 20% of Denmark's energy. So it makes sense th [View Full Entry]

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I don't mean to disappoint, but this week has been kind of slow. I know, I know, studying abroad is supposed to be glamorous and full of crazy adventures and mis-communications. But I'm the dull exception to that rule for now. I finally started Danish lessons, twice a week, for three hours each day! I'm studying at Studieskolen, which is downtown. The other students are from Brazil, Portugal, Spain, Germany, Austria, England, Italy, and the USA. I can talk about the weather and deliver a message for you if you're late to work. Good stuff. Since class is three hours long [View Full Entry]

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I would now like to introduce a new section of the blog called TINADAD - Things I've Noticed about Denmark and Danes. (You should pronounce the acronym like Trinidad but without the r.) TINADAD 1: Gas here costs about 9,71 kr/liter. After some simple arithmetic I've discovered that gas costs about 7.25 USD/gallon. Apparently though, the cars are much more fuel-efficient. The other day I read an article in one of the free Danish-language newspapers that I pick up every morning at the S-tog station (the train I take to school, tog meaning train in Danish) about how to max [View Full Entry]

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I woke up in Lubeck at 730. This is actually sleeping in, as most days I wake up around 7 o'clock to breakfast with my family before they go to work/school. My class embarks on a walking tour with a very mustached man we meet by the river (don't worry, it's on purpose). He shows us some sights and tells us some facts, but I'm pretty sure everyone will only remember the mustache. And the marzipan shop that we invaded directly after the tour...yummmm. Time for the bus! We set off for Hamburg. I try to enjoy the scenery along the [View Full Entry]

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