Leaving/ Heading home

It has been such an incredible trip. I can't even begin to express how thankful I am that distance and time has not changed the strong relationships I have with my friends. I am so sad to go. I love them all dearly and wish that I had more opportunities to see them. There is something incredibly special about living together and growing up with your friends. I don't have siblings, but that's what the people I have in Denmark feel like.
Please forgive my sentimentality. It's been an emotional 2 weeks! So see you later, dk. I will be back as soon as I can with another incredible person I know in tow. Xb

Big Pray Day

Today is a national holiday in Denmark, Store Bede Dag, big pray day. I asked Ida what it was all about, but she could only tell me that we are supposed to pray today. Interesting that in a country full of atheists they have a national religious holiday where the banks and stores are closed but we can't have a single Christmas tree in a museum in Chicago... but I digress.
I know what I am praying for, so no objections here for this holiday!
I had a lovely afternoon yesterday with Ida drinking coffee in the sun. I met her boyfriend Mark, a very nice Australian who is quite taken with our small country. A few nights ago I went to dinner with Sarah to a really neat little place we happened upon. It was a narrow restaurant wedged between two much larger establishments and when you went inside you realised that it was an old train car! Very cute with great burgers.
After Sarah and I met some of my girlfriends and we had drinks til rather late. My wonderful friend Signe had just arrived from New York and it was so great to catch up. Silly that we live in the same country but have to travel to Denmark to see eachother! Signe has actually been to visit me in Chicago 2 years ago. I invited her for fun in a Facebook invite and the great girl that she is, she flew over for the weekend! Best birthday gift!
But now it is my second to last day, dinner tonight and my good friend Charlotte's birthday tomorrow. Charlotte and I have know eachother since we were 11! I will miss Denmark greatly, but I am looking so much forward to seeing Chris. X

Taking it easy

The last 2 days have been very relaxed. Just napping, eating and watching miscellaneous Scandinavian television. I'm having dinner with some girlfriends tonight and I am really looking forward to it. Here are some random pics that I've taken the last few days. The 2 girls are lulu and Vivian. Ellen Paige anyone?

Catch up

The last couple of days have been hard. I have been very home sick and worried, so it hasn't felt right to write posts about trivial things. But thenI thought that maybe Chris would enjoy a little escapism. It is the only thing I can offer from so far aways. I love you, bird. You are in my heart everywhere I go.

Friday night I was invited to have dinner with my dear friends Ida and Ines and Ines's apartment. She lives right in the middle of copenhagen in a really cute flat. We spent the whole night laughing about old and embarassing stories. I often miss high school, but it also nice to be reminded of how far we have come since then! We ate lasagna and they old me about their lives. Ida is in love with an Australian who recently moved to DK. She is working and going to school to get her masters. Ines is studying to be a law and is about to run a marathon on Sunday next week! I told them about the museum and about my performing.

The next day I went and spent the day with one of my best friends, Vivian. It was so nice to spend hours catching up and laughing. Vivian is also working on her masters in Life Long Learning. I didnt know such a thing existed, but it is all about how people are constantly learning throughout their lives and the importance of continuing education as adults. I love it, only in Denmark. I wish we valued education more in the US.

That evening I met my grandmother for dinner and theatre. We went to eat at very old and famous hotel in Copenhagen, D'Angleter. I had never been there before but had heard a lot about it. There is a very old Danish song that says "Hun misted det på D'Angleter..." Which means, "She lost it in D'Angleter..." which of course refers to her innocence and not her mind...
We then went to Den Kongelige Teater (The Royal theatre) to see ballet. It was really lovely. Pictures on facebook to come.

After the theatre I headed over to Ida's flat where she was hosting a birthday dinner. I had missed dinner, but was just in time for wine and coffee. I got to meet some of Ida's friends from school who were so nice and welcoming. We all headed into town from there to a bar called ZOO. We must have left her place very late because after lots of dancing, we stepped out for some air and I could see that the night sky was beginning to grow light. I turned to Ida and asked what time it was. "Quarter to 4." WHAT!??? This old lady hadnt been out that late since.... the last time I was in Denmark! I said goodnight to all the girls, hailed and cab and got myself home stat!

Today  I am back in Dragør with Elsebeth and my mother. My mom heads home tomorrow. I wont have regular internet over the next week, so posts may be few and far between. But I hope you have enjoyed them so far!
xB

A few very Danish things

In elsebeth's town, all of the houses are painted yellow. You are simply not allowed to paint them any other color!


Danish bakery


I tried to find a baby and stroller, but this will do. Danes will leave their baby, dog, etc outside of a store while they go in and shop. Can you imagine that in the states???


And we think we bike a lot in chicago...


All of the school children ride their bikes to school. As soon as the training wheels are off, so are they!

Positive energy

Sending lots of love to Chris today. We got some difficult news. I wish so much that I could be there with you, bird.x

Flashback

Looking through old photos with my mom, elsebeth and her daughter, my childhood friend Sarah. Czech this out. I am one fly motherf*****

Farmor's Fødselsdag!

Yesterday was Farmor's 90th birthday. 30 of my grandmother's friends and family descended on Hornbæk. The weather was just perfect, blue skies and lots of sun. My uncles and their familes arrived first and we all got dressed and posed for photos. First the brothers, then the daughters in law, then the cousins, then by family. It was iterally the first time since Elinore and I were 4 that we were all together!

Once the guests began to arrive we all had champagne in the garden. It was so interesting to see and meet Engelstofts that I have never even heard of. Distant cousins of my grandmother and even of my grandfather who passed away in 2004. One of my Farmor's friends from when she was 6 years old was also in attendance. Really amazing.

From the House we walked to the hotel where the lunch was going to be held. The table was enormous and beautiful. The food was delicious and everyone had a lovely time. I sat between Farmor and my uncle Sten. Sten made a lovely speech that had everyone laughing.

After the lunch we went back to Farmor's for even more drinks, and a few finger sandwiches to get the guests sobered up. I think she was very happy with how everything went and by the end of the evening we were all exaughsted.

Now we are in Dragør with my mother's dear friend, Elsebeth. My father leaves today and so my mother and I will spend a few days with Elsebeth before my mother leaves after the weekend.

Things to remember for when we return to Denmark.

I had almost forgotten what it is like to stay at my grandmother's house. So to prepare Chris for our trip, here are a few things to be aware of:
The bathroom:
- the shower is against a window that looks into the neighbor's house, and likewise, they can see into the bathroom. My grandmother is a true Dane and would never be shy about nudity. She does however, recognize that others may be, so there is a very light fishnet type curtain that hangs over the window. It doesn't do much to protect your business, and if you shower in the evening with the light on, it does nothing at all.
- the "shower" is also not much of a shower. It is a bathtub with a shower wand and hose. In Denmark we call it a telefon brusser, a shower phone. The shower phone hose is rather short so you must duck down ever so slightly to use it. Also the bathroom is carpeted, so you have to make sure not to splash around too much.
- Now if this weren't enough, there is a limited amount of hot water in the shower tank so you have to alternate turning the water on, rinse, turn the water off, soap, turn on, rinse, turn off, shampoo, and so on. It is a very delicate balance. There are 4 other people who need to shower so you must also hurry the hell up!

Always an adventure! But more later.

Day 2

Yesterday we walked around hornbaek and ran errands for my farmor (grandma in Danish). We found ourselves at the harbor again and decided to have another hotdog! 2 for 2!
After we got home we drank rose and wrapped gifts for my cousin Elinor who was to arrive in the evening with her boyfriend Martin, my uncle Jacob and his new girlfriend Erise. I hadn't seen Elinor in 10 years! We are the same age and although we share half a family, we are so different. She has blonde hair and blue eyes, she trains horses and competes with them, and is a big vegetarian. The last time i saw elinor she was vegan and we stayed with her mother and her in their small farm in the woods of Sweden. It was really nice to see her again last night, learning about her and communicating through broken English, heavy swedish, and light Danish. My farmor especially enjoyed seeing her 2 grandchildren together.
My uncle Jacob is a real character. Bordering on anarchist, he is an incredible violinist and big time hippie. He's very fun to listen to and it makes the other 2 brothers crazy! His new girlfriend is young and very sweet. My uncle has a way with younger women. None of us gets it, but they love him!
We all had dinner together with my father's former nanny, Freu and her husband, Rudy. They told us fun stories about my father and uncle. Rudy had my favorite line of the night, "water is the best thing you can drink. But you can't always have the best. so we drink wine instead."
Today is the actual party and birthday of my grandmother so we will be getting ready soon. Thus morning we went to the beach with my grandmother's dog, berthe. I leave you with some photos. Lots of love, b

First day in dk

I couldn't have asked for better weather! It is so beautiful in Hornbaek, my grandmother's town. I am sitting outside of the local library stealing WiFi signal with my father. You have to be a resident of Denmark to enter their libraries. They have an actual card scanner to even open the front door! So I'm perched on a bike stand writing this post.
I arrived very early yesterday morning and took the train to Helsingor. My parents met me at the station and we went to have brunch with 2 of my dad's oldest friends, Helle and Jan. After brunch we drove to my gma's house, but we were locked out because she had gone to a birthday party and hadn't expected us back until later. So we decided to walk around the town, check out the little stores, stop by the restaurant we would have dinner in the next day and enjoy the sun. We eventually found ourselves in hornbaek's harbor and at my mother's request, we stopped to have a danish hotdog. It was amazing!
Finally at around 5pm we decided to head back to the house, my gma still hadn't made it home. Rather than wait around, my mom and dad quickly conspired and decided to try and hop the fence! My dad was the one who made it over, so he unlocked and let us through the garden gate. Still locked our of the actual house, we napped in the garden until my grandmother got home. 
It is so strange to be here again. It is very familiar, but it also all feels like a distant memory. Here are a few photos from the train and my gma's house.x

Landed

Waiting to go through customs, but I am here! It is almost 2am chicago time and almost 8am in cph. I got very little sleep on the 2nd flight, but got caught up on several films I had been meaning to see. My dear friend Chris B. lent me an unlocked phone, so I am going to try and buy a sim card in the airport. Hopefully I will be able to text you, Chris I! Also I need to somehow inform my parents which train I will be arriving on... so hopefully there will at least be a pay phone! Wish me luck...

Ko-boy boots

3 pairs of cowboy boots spotted on 3 Danes... new trend? Or souveneirs?

Dansk Dansk

Ooo it's getting exciting! I can hear danish being spoken all around the gate in Newark! But even without them speaking, I can spot a Dane. Particularly older Danes. Sharp architectural glasses, tanned leathery skin, sensible shoes. Here is a snap of one minus the shoes, I couldn't catch that in the picture.(the gentleman standing on the left.)

New York

Ok, it's Newark....

Concourse

And I'm off!

After an anxious night of sleep, I am finally in a cab and on my way to the airport! I woke up at 4am with a terrible upset stomach. Nerves or dairy products or both, either way, it was good I woke up. I suddenly realised that I had no idea where my passport was. I knew where it once was, in a bag, on the floor, next to my bed where I keep all of my important documents, but last week during a bout of strep throat I decided to rearrange our bedroom. Which means that everything was tidied and "put in its place." Having never had a place before, my passport was definitely somewhere, the question was what had I defined as its place and could I find it without waking Sir Ambien next to me.
After a few minutes of tip toeing around the house, switching various lamps on and then off again, I finally found the yellow bag. Phew! And although Chris did wake up a little, he probably doesn't even remember that it happened!
Crisis averted, Copenhagen here I come!

Ok!!

We are up and running. The purpose of this blog is to share photos and anecdotes of my trip to Denmark with my sweet Christopher. Chris was supposed to come to DK with me, but he must stay home in Chicago and get ready for a kidney transplant at the end of the month! It is the best excuse I can think of to avoid a family vacation...;)  Actually, Chris really wanted to come with my folks and I, but as I told him, this is not the first time I am going to DK, it won't be the last. We have so many trips in our future!
But for now, I am still getting my act together, packing etc. Will I pack more than one night in advance? Will I remember to print my ticket? This blog may just replace my post-it notes...

Camera test

Ok, hopefully this is the last test. Thank you for your patience!

Test post from phone!

Let's seeeee!

Goddag!

Hej min dejlige, Chris!
Thank you for helping me set up my new blog for DK!
I cannot wait for us to travel together. I love you.
xB