At first, it was all very overwhelming. I arrived in Copenhagen on Sunday morning at 7:30 a.m. local time (which of course felt to me like it was 1:30 a.m. after a sleepless night on an airplane). I took a bus to my Kollegium, the place that I would be staying for the semester, and then was left alone to get myself acclimated to my new surroundings. As I lacked Danish money (kroner), food and even toilet paper (which after an 8 hour flight is a necessity) I immediately took to the streets of my local neighborhood of Nørrebro in search of these items, but it was not as easy as it seemed.
You see, it appears that the entire city of Copenhagen is closed on Sundays. To make matters worse, as I was wandering about 1 mile or so from my Kollegium, the bipolar weather of Denmark set in and it went from a sunny day to a torrential downpour in a matter of seconds. Silly me arrived in Denmark wearing shorts, leather sandals and a flowy white shirt, but after I returned to my room soaking wet and shivering with a completely see-through shirt and my feet stained black from the leather of my shoes I learned that I was going to have to adjust my wardrobe to be able to cope with the climate.
I have now been in Denmark for a whopping 4 days and have learned a great deal. I plan on wearing only boots for the remainder of my time here, I carry an umbrella and a rain jacket wherever I go and I do not wear anything that, after a typical Danish rain storm, could leave me exposing a little more than I would feel comfortable with (even in Europe) - but back to the impressions.
Here is a breakdown of what I have observed of Denmark, the Danes and Copenhagen in the short time that I have been here:
The Food:
1. Juice sold in supermarkets is CONCENTRATED. If you drink it straight from the jug, like I did, you will probably go into shock and get diabetes instantly.
2. They love spreads. There is an entire refrigerated section devoted to things we have such as egg salad and tuna salad as well as a variety of other items that create a kind of creamy spread from various other meats. Also, I have seen Philadelphia cream cheese at every store, which is kind of cool.
3. They're all about the fat and grease. As one Dane pointed out to me, laughing, when I asked where the margarine was, "we don't do margarine here, we're all about the butter!" Everything that I have tasted has been oozing with grease, and from what I hear from other students living with host families, the home cooking is too.
4. Yogurt is sold in cartons. Not particularly interesting, but I was kind of surprised when I saw a bunch of cardboard cartons (that looked like little milk cartons) full of tangy, sour yogurt.
5. All fruit, except for the grapes, is half the size that it is in America. Then again, all Danes are about half the size of Americans - so I guess this makes sense.
The Danes:
1. I know everyone says that the Danes are good looking, but they are really really good looking. Copenhagen is basically a city full of tan (which I am seriously confused about - there is no sun here - why are they all still tanner than me?!), tall, blonde supermodels wearing chic clothing on bikes. Especially given the horrific weather here, the fact that they still manage to look so good while I look like I've just been drenched in rain then blown dry with hurricane-force winds (which, um, I have) completely amazes me.
2. The analogy I have heard several times is that Danes are like old glass ketchup bottles. Sometimes, it's impossible to get anything out of them, but once you do, they don't stop. I have rarely heard Danes having conversations on the street, the morning bus is DEAD silent, and most stores have an eery calmness to them. However, if you ask a Dane a question, they'll give you the most thorough, long answer you can imagine.
3. The Danes are very poetic. I got lost on my way to orientation, so I stopped and asked a man on the street how to get there. He told me I could walk a little farther down, take the bus 2 stops and it would be right there - OR - I could take a stroll through the beautiful gardens, wind along the famous Nyhavn, walk past the parliament building, and slowly meander over there. I told him I was late, and he smiled and said that there was always time for beauty. So naturally, I chose to take the long-cut and take in the true beauty of the city. I walked with the man for a while after he gave me direction and before we parted ways he said, "I hope that you find all that you seek." Everything about this man was sheer poetry, and I loved it.
4. Everyone speaks English. What's more, is they know when to speak English (AKA when they ask me a question and I stare blankly at them, they immediately switch over, correctly assuming that I am an American). I have been surviving in this city for 4 days on my own with no clue how to speak Danish. I go to stores, banks, food carts, everything and just speak English like I were back in America and have (knock on wood) yet to run into a problem yet. This fact is a lot less surprising once you take a look at how the Danes grew up. Since Denmark is a small country, and the only country who speaks Danish, they have to import a lot of things in from other countries. Television, music, movies, everything is all in English. From birth, the Danes hear English spoken every day. At university, the Danish textbooks are all in English, since it would simply not be profitable to translate all of the texts into Danish given the small number of students who would be reading it. After learning this, it is no wonder that they can all speak it so perfectly (though still very, very impressive - most don't even have accents.)
5. Everything is extremely clean. All of the water is free from debris, there is no litter in the streets and all of the public transport systems are cleaner than any car or bus I've been in in America. The thing I find odd though, is the prevalence of graffiti. It is literally everywhere. In America, we tend to associate graffiti with lower-income areas, dangers neighborhoods, gangs and crime. But here, it appears as if it's just an accepted form of expression. Still, that doesn't mean that I'm not terrified that when I look out my window I see graffiti everywhere - it reminds me of Camden. A windy, rainy, cold, clean, safe, Camden.
The City:
1. The coolest thing I have noticed about Copenhagen is the mix of old and new. There are some buildings that were built in the Middle Ages, and some that look like they were built in the future and transported back in time. The juxtaposition of architectural styles is the most notably different aspect of Copenhagen that I have observed so far, and the best example of this is the Danish Royal Library. The original section is built in the old style - beautiful red bricks and all, and the new section (added on about 10 years ago) is very futuristic looking. The outside is built from black granite imported from Africa forming what is known as "The Black Diamond." My first impression of this place was, "I cannot wait to have homework so I can do it here." That's when you know a place is awesome, when I am asking for work to do just so I can spend time there.
2. It is really old. Like, really old. There are two sections of the city center - the medieval and the modern cities. The medieval city was built around the 1400's, and the "modern" city was built before America was even founded. Makes us feel like babies, doesn't it?
3. There is no good way to navigate it. Most times, when I ask Danes directions (which I often do) they just point in general directions as opposed to giving me street instructions. The reason for these vague responses is that medieval Copenhagen, unlike most modern cities, was not built on a grid. The streets twist, curve, wind, stop, start seemingly at random. So, instead of getting directions, you just get a general way to wander. Which, for a tourist/short-term student like me, is perfect.
4. The weather is way worse than anyone ever let on. I expected it to be dark, cold and rainy...and it is. What I did not expect was the wind. I have honestly never faced wind so strong as far as I can remember, and I've been in some pretty bad storms before. I should have realized how bad it would be when I first looked out my window and saw that all of the grass/shrubbery was completely blown over to one side like palm trees on a tropical island - and it wasn't even windy when I first arrived. The other thing is how cold it gets so quickly. Yesterday was August 24th and I wore riding boots, leggings, a sweater, a scarf and a winter jacket and I was still cold. I am in serious trouble.
5. The good news is, it's not as expensive as everyone let on. It is still a lot more expensive than at home, but not all that terrible as long as you know where to shop and what to avoid. I would say that the prices fall somewhere between NYC prices and prices you would see at a theme park or sports game. Which, since it is a major city like New York and is in a country with heavy taxation, makes sense.
Okay, I think I've rambled on enough for now. I'll update again once I start classes and see some more of the city. Vi ses!
