Okay so I haven't blogged yet about my trip to Copenhagen so here it is. I have to say first of all that the Danish language is not hard to read since I know German, but hearing it is a completely different thing. It really does sound like gibberish and I never thought it sounded like they were making sense. That drove me crazy! Anyways, after leaving the train station and finally meeting up with Alex we started the long trip back to his apartment. We had to lug around my two huge suitcases, I had my back pack and my other bag so that was fun. All of those cobblestone streets are not fun with suitcases and lots on your back. Luckily we were able to get my stuff down to the train platform and then onto the train without too much of a problem.
The train ride home was about twenty minutes. We had a little more difficulty getting the suitcases out of that train station because we had to go up stairs and then down some stairs and there weren't any escalators or anything like that. The walk home was about twenty minutes with the suitcases and not fun. Once we were there we had to go up to the top floor, about three flights of stairs, with the bags and by then I thought my arms were going to fall off.
Once we got into the apartment, dinner was waiting for us and I met Elinor and Rosie. They were both very nice and I really liked Elinor. She was an 83 year old woman who liked to folkdance, do yoga, and gymnastics. She was the typical spunky old woman that would tell you like it is and she was pretty sarcastic. She made us a lovely dinner with some kind of pork dish, red cabbage, and potatoes. It was pretty good and it was nice to have real food after my long long day.
After dinner Alex and I went to meet some of his friends at the Australian Bar located across the street from his school. They were having beer pong night and there were only Americans there. It was fun though to meet some other IU students and other DIS students. I wasn't in the mood to drink, but I had fun. Once we got back home I hit that bed and was out in no time. I was lucky that Alex didn't have class the next day so I could sleep in til 10.
On Wednesday, Alex, myself, and his friends Adam, Amber and Syed all went to the National Museum because it was free on Wednesdays. Before Syed got there we walked around and saw Parliament and some of the buildings around there. The museum itself was really nice and there was a lot to it. We mainly saw medieval and renaissance art, but it was cool. Afterwards Adam and Amber left and the rest of us stayed to look at the great, but small toy exhibit.
Afterwards, Alex, Syed and I all walked to try to find Christiania. Elinor had suggested it to me that morning, but I didn't really know what it was. Alex and Syed knew more about it or at least had some idea. I think I kept thinking she was talking about something related to Hans Christen Andersen so when I first saw it I didn't think we were at the right place. Let me just say that was a very interesting place. I knew right away that we stuck out and people were giving us looks. I was glad I was there with Alex and Syed.
There was a lot of graffiti and a few dogs running around. People were selling some things and standing around fires in barrels. It was a very different place then what I was used to. Most people were smoking and you knew they weren't smoking cigarettes. I don't think I have ever smelled that much weed in my life. We walked up some stairs and then asked some random man where the center of the town was and he pointed to where we had just come from. We asked him about the drugs and he said that people only really smoke weed and if you ask about other things like coke they will get mad. When we asked about prices, the guy just whipped out a joint and told us how much one of those would cost and then preceded to light it and smoke it. It was really eye opening to say the least. Afterwards we went back home and had dinner. I just watched a movie and Alex did homework.
The next day we had to be up early for Alex's class. After his first class we did some exploring and found the pharmacy since Alex was sick. We then walked along the water and saw the palace where the royal family is. We saw the city church, which we think was Lutheran, and it was really pretty on the inside. I love going into churches and that one was extremely beautiful. Then we got to see the changing of the guard which was fun. A band came marching in and then around the square. The guards did their weird thing and it was pretty funny to watch them. We didn't stay for the entire thing since it looked like they were just staring each other down.
We also went to this little quant tea shop to buy a gift for Elinor. This place looked like something out of Harry Potter. They had little scales to weigh the tea and they gave you a piece of candy after you bought some. It was great! We had a little lunch at a bakery and I had some pizza. It was served cold, which was okay, but not my favorite. I then agreed to go to Alex's Hans Christen Andersen class and they were discussing the Little Mermaid. It was a really said story and I would much prefer Disney over his original version any day. Once class was over we went and found the Little Mermaid statue. It took a bit to find and we started by going the wrong way, but we managed to find it. It really wasn't as exciting as you would think, but it was nice to see. Since we walked around all day, my shoes ended up getting soaked and then my socks. It sucked because I had to walk around with wet feet and I was concerned that by the time I took my shoes off I would have really stinky feet, which would not be pleasant for anyone. Luckily that didn't happen.
That night I just took it easy and Alex and I watched a movie. We also watched some TV with Elinor and that was fun. It was a nice night to stay in and I'm glad I did. The next morning we had to struggle again with my luggage and this time the handle on the biggest bag wouldn't come up so we had to drag it. Not fun!
It was a great time though and I highly recommend Copenhagen to everyone!
Monday, February 23, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
The Most Terrifying Moment of My Life
So this is my first blog after arriving in Europe. I am currently sitting at the DIS Center in Copenhagen, Denmark while Alex is off at a meeting with one of his professors. I have been here for a few days and I have really enjoyed myself. I will definitely write more about what I have done in Copenhagen, but I have to recap my flight(s) over here.
I had to drive to Chicago in order to catch my flight because most of my flight options would have taken me there any way and this way I wouldn't have to worry with any connections. The drive there wasn't too bad. My parents got frustrated with each other because they were trying to take directions from both the GPS and the Map Quest directions my mom had printed off. I finally just said they had to pick one to listen to. As we were driving, there was a police car that passed us that was followed by three or four big, black SUVs with very dark windows, then a van/truck of some sort, and another police car. We were convinced that it was Barack Obama on his way to the airport since he had been in Chicago for the weekend. I have to say, it was pretty cool.
Once we got to the airport, a little more frustration arose in the car because we were having major troubles figuring out where to park. Once we did it was better, but those ten minutes were not enjoyable. It took forever to check in because there were two different groups of Asians that were over the weight limit and were trying to repack right there. Both of them had bought a large supply of items, such as lotion and vitamins, that are more expensive in Asia. It was very frustrating having to stand there and wait on them. Plus it didn't help that there were only three lines open that then decreased to two, but had the option of having around fifteen to twenty people working. Stupid airlines! Once I got up there, it took about five minutes to check in and my bags were 32 and 42 pounds respectively.
Saying good-bye was not pleasant. I realized that after a while we were just going to have to get it over with. There was no point in sitting there any longer so after a teary good-bye, I went up the escalator and never looked back.
My flight wasn't full and I regret not switching seats. I could have gotten a roomier seat with more leg room had I just moved across the isle, but I decided I could manage. I was poorly mistaken. I was extremely sore during the flight after my first attempt at sleeping. My knees have never hurt so much. The upside was that I got to watch The Secret Lives of Bees, part of The Dutchess, and Nights in Rodanthe. The flight was pleasant and besides the lack of leg room there really wasn't much to complain about.
I arrived in Frankfurt at 5:45am. I had to go through customs and the guy ended up asking me a lot of questions. He asked me where my final destination was (I said Frankfurt), how long was I going to be there (1 day, then I am going to Copenhagen), and what was in Copenhagen (a friend). When he was done asking he just smiled and said Cheers!
Then I had to go and rangle my luggage. I was lucky enough to have a cart so I didn't have to try to lug them around on my own, but I had a very hard time finding an elevator. Once I found one, I just sat around until about 9 to check in for my next flight. I did discover a sex shop in the airport that had a woman seductively eating a strawberry on the outside and then a sheet covering the door. When I saw two older men walk in I was a little grossed out.
Sadly I had to pay 110 Euros because my bags were overweight. This I knew going in and I knew I couldn't avoid because I had all of my things with me. I just had to suck it up and pay it and I'm going to have to pay it again when I go to Berlin. The flight there was extremely horrific. The flight wasn't full, which was nice, but it wasn't the smoothest. As we were ascending, all of a sudden the plane got really quiet and it sounded like the engines just shut off. We then felt like we were falling, people were talking and sounded nervous, I was waiting for the air masks to drop down and screaming in my head "Oh my god I am going to die and I'm going to die alone!" Luckily, about a minute or two later things went back to normal and we just continued on.
Once I got to Copenhagen I had to get my luggage again and then figure out how to get on the train. I had to get to the central station and that was easy enough to buy my ticket and find the platform. Unfortunately the trains weren't labeled that well so I wasn't sure if I was getting on the right train. Trying to get on the train was extremely difficult with my bags and no one was about to help me. I looked like a complete fool as they fell down and I didn't know how to get the automatic doors open to the seating compartments. I just stayed close to the door and asked someone if I was on the right train. Getting off the train was another ordeal because my bags fell again and then I almost tripped over one and I was trying to avoid the three people that were just standing there on the platform looking at me. It was horrible.
Then I sat in the McDonald's for about an hour and a half, listening to old 90s music and writing in my journal. I didn't eat anything because it was actually really expensive. I did see that instead of fries, you can get carrots as your side. They also had things called Chili Cheese Poppers and some kind of chicken sandwich with cheese. I was also amazed by how busy it constantly was. It was never empty and the line was always to the door.
I finally got picked up by Adam, one of Alex's friends, and he walked me to DIS. Once Alex was done with class, I would say my trip really began!
I had to drive to Chicago in order to catch my flight because most of my flight options would have taken me there any way and this way I wouldn't have to worry with any connections. The drive there wasn't too bad. My parents got frustrated with each other because they were trying to take directions from both the GPS and the Map Quest directions my mom had printed off. I finally just said they had to pick one to listen to. As we were driving, there was a police car that passed us that was followed by three or four big, black SUVs with very dark windows, then a van/truck of some sort, and another police car. We were convinced that it was Barack Obama on his way to the airport since he had been in Chicago for the weekend. I have to say, it was pretty cool.
Once we got to the airport, a little more frustration arose in the car because we were having major troubles figuring out where to park. Once we did it was better, but those ten minutes were not enjoyable. It took forever to check in because there were two different groups of Asians that were over the weight limit and were trying to repack right there. Both of them had bought a large supply of items, such as lotion and vitamins, that are more expensive in Asia. It was very frustrating having to stand there and wait on them. Plus it didn't help that there were only three lines open that then decreased to two, but had the option of having around fifteen to twenty people working. Stupid airlines! Once I got up there, it took about five minutes to check in and my bags were 32 and 42 pounds respectively.
Saying good-bye was not pleasant. I realized that after a while we were just going to have to get it over with. There was no point in sitting there any longer so after a teary good-bye, I went up the escalator and never looked back.
My flight wasn't full and I regret not switching seats. I could have gotten a roomier seat with more leg room had I just moved across the isle, but I decided I could manage. I was poorly mistaken. I was extremely sore during the flight after my first attempt at sleeping. My knees have never hurt so much. The upside was that I got to watch The Secret Lives of Bees, part of The Dutchess, and Nights in Rodanthe. The flight was pleasant and besides the lack of leg room there really wasn't much to complain about.
I arrived in Frankfurt at 5:45am. I had to go through customs and the guy ended up asking me a lot of questions. He asked me where my final destination was (I said Frankfurt), how long was I going to be there (1 day, then I am going to Copenhagen), and what was in Copenhagen (a friend). When he was done asking he just smiled and said Cheers!
Then I had to go and rangle my luggage. I was lucky enough to have a cart so I didn't have to try to lug them around on my own, but I had a very hard time finding an elevator. Once I found one, I just sat around until about 9 to check in for my next flight. I did discover a sex shop in the airport that had a woman seductively eating a strawberry on the outside and then a sheet covering the door. When I saw two older men walk in I was a little grossed out.
Sadly I had to pay 110 Euros because my bags were overweight. This I knew going in and I knew I couldn't avoid because I had all of my things with me. I just had to suck it up and pay it and I'm going to have to pay it again when I go to Berlin. The flight there was extremely horrific. The flight wasn't full, which was nice, but it wasn't the smoothest. As we were ascending, all of a sudden the plane got really quiet and it sounded like the engines just shut off. We then felt like we were falling, people were talking and sounded nervous, I was waiting for the air masks to drop down and screaming in my head "Oh my god I am going to die and I'm going to die alone!" Luckily, about a minute or two later things went back to normal and we just continued on.
Once I got to Copenhagen I had to get my luggage again and then figure out how to get on the train. I had to get to the central station and that was easy enough to buy my ticket and find the platform. Unfortunately the trains weren't labeled that well so I wasn't sure if I was getting on the right train. Trying to get on the train was extremely difficult with my bags and no one was about to help me. I looked like a complete fool as they fell down and I didn't know how to get the automatic doors open to the seating compartments. I just stayed close to the door and asked someone if I was on the right train. Getting off the train was another ordeal because my bags fell again and then I almost tripped over one and I was trying to avoid the three people that were just standing there on the platform looking at me. It was horrible.
Then I sat in the McDonald's for about an hour and a half, listening to old 90s music and writing in my journal. I didn't eat anything because it was actually really expensive. I did see that instead of fries, you can get carrots as your side. They also had things called Chili Cheese Poppers and some kind of chicken sandwich with cheese. I was also amazed by how busy it constantly was. It was never empty and the line was always to the door.
I finally got picked up by Adam, one of Alex's friends, and he walked me to DIS. Once Alex was done with class, I would say my trip really began!
Friday, February 6, 2009
Hopefully the last post until I leave
Right now I'm still in Indiana and I haven't yet for Europe, so the title of my blogs are a lie thus far. I will be in Europe very soon (less than two weeks) and I'm getting very excited. I have a lot of packing and organizing ahead of me and I'm not looking forward to it.
I don't want to think about all what I need to take for five months. I know that I will want to take lots of my clothes and I have already done an initial run through what I had at my apartment and I pared it down from there. Sadly I think I may need to go through and take out a few more things because I know that I will be doing lots of shopping. I will have about a week and a half in Berlin to do whatever and of course I am going to want to go shopping. I love to shop, especially in foreign countries. So I'm pretty sure I will find clothes in Berlin and based on my previous visits, I will.
This weekend is kind of like a mini farewell tour. I am at Purdue right now visiting some friends and seeing some people before I leave. This afternoon I will be heading back to IU and then seeing people there. I'm going to go out tonight to celebrate by 21st with my friends there. I'm really excited because I get to go to all the IU "hot spots" and finally celebrate being legal! I don't know exactly what's going to happen tonight, but I'm sure it will be fun.
Tomorrow night we're having a great dinner party/party with all of our close friends. It will be the last time that I see everyone and I'm excited to see everyone, but I know I'll be sad when everyone leaves. It is going to be really hard to say good-bye to everyone for such a long time. I know that we'll still be in touch and that's what's so great about technology, but it will still be hard. Until I have to say good-bye I know we'll have a great time and I can't wait!
After all of that I'll head back home and begin to think about the things I still need to buy and the things I want and how I'm going to pack. I'll have to make sure I have all the proper documents that I need and anything else important. I'm sure I'll forget something, but at least I know my parents will be coming in April and can bring it then or send it. I will have to carry around a lot of my stuff when I go to Denmark and Berlin, but it's a small sacrifice to say the least. Hopefully it won't be too bad trying to maneuver on my own.
I can't wait to go and see old friends and to make new ones. I'm going to have an experience of a lifetime and I can't wait til I can actually blog about my adventures in Europe :D
I don't want to think about all what I need to take for five months. I know that I will want to take lots of my clothes and I have already done an initial run through what I had at my apartment and I pared it down from there. Sadly I think I may need to go through and take out a few more things because I know that I will be doing lots of shopping. I will have about a week and a half in Berlin to do whatever and of course I am going to want to go shopping. I love to shop, especially in foreign countries. So I'm pretty sure I will find clothes in Berlin and based on my previous visits, I will.
This weekend is kind of like a mini farewell tour. I am at Purdue right now visiting some friends and seeing some people before I leave. This afternoon I will be heading back to IU and then seeing people there. I'm going to go out tonight to celebrate by 21st with my friends there. I'm really excited because I get to go to all the IU "hot spots" and finally celebrate being legal! I don't know exactly what's going to happen tonight, but I'm sure it will be fun.
Tomorrow night we're having a great dinner party/party with all of our close friends. It will be the last time that I see everyone and I'm excited to see everyone, but I know I'll be sad when everyone leaves. It is going to be really hard to say good-bye to everyone for such a long time. I know that we'll still be in touch and that's what's so great about technology, but it will still be hard. Until I have to say good-bye I know we'll have a great time and I can't wait!
After all of that I'll head back home and begin to think about the things I still need to buy and the things I want and how I'm going to pack. I'll have to make sure I have all the proper documents that I need and anything else important. I'm sure I'll forget something, but at least I know my parents will be coming in April and can bring it then or send it. I will have to carry around a lot of my stuff when I go to Denmark and Berlin, but it's a small sacrifice to say the least. Hopefully it won't be too bad trying to maneuver on my own.
I can't wait to go and see old friends and to make new ones. I'm going to have an experience of a lifetime and I can't wait til I can actually blog about my adventures in Europe :D
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