4 months in

It’s 9h30 pm and the sun hasn’t set yet, and it won’t for another half hour. This is the cherry on top that made me fall in love with Copenhagen. The last two months have flown by and I already have less than two months left here and I feel like I’m racing against time to make sure I’ve done everything I set out to do.
Since Paris, my friend George came over with two of his British buddies Dave and Chris, they were only here 3 days, but I don’t think I have ever laughed like that… ever. There are too many stories to write about, but here is a brief recap: I ripped my jeans getting into a grocery store cart, Chris almost got beaten up by an Irish bartender for being English and making fun of the Irish, Dave was sick, but that didn’t stop him from showing me the real meaning of banter and George asked for a danish in a Danish pastry shop. It was LEGEN…wait for it…DARY!
It was also my birthday, the big 2-3! Many of my close friends were on a trip that week end, but my friend Marie took me out 2 nights in a row and it was one of the best week ends here. I rented a bike for the first time and we bar hopped a little, CPH has an amazing night life, so many different bars and clubs and cafes, I will never have time to do all of them, but I’m getting my drink on and working on it!
I’ve discovered the most amazing place on earth and it’s the huge park in front of my apartment, barely a day goes by that I don’t at least walk through it. It is always full of people playing soccer or Frisbee, picnicking, running, lounging around, that park is one thing I wish I could bring back home with me.
I hang out a lot with 2 other girls from Quebec, Virginie and Caroline, and we were feeling the hockey fever all the way here, my French roommate, Mylene, was even hooked. So, for the big Habs vs. Flyers game we made poutine drank some beers and stayed up watching the game from 12 to 4am, only to see them loose, we were devastated!!!! But it was a really good game, and the poutine was delish.
Since then, I’ve been doing some school work, hanging out in the sun, meeting some Danes and partying as per usual. Next week I’m going to England and Ireland, I’ll get to see Zoe, Dave, Chris, my cousins Andrew and Caitlin, it should be a fantastic time!
Hope all is well with everybody, sending my love!

Paris in the springtime

People should really make a bigger deal about PARIS. I wanna go back with my best friend, with my lover, in the summer, in the fall, for a week, for a month, for a year? For some reason I had no idea what to expect, I didn’t even think I was going to be impressed, but Paris BLEW ME AWAY! Everything was perfect; it was me, my mom and the city of lights. We walked up the Arc de Triomphe, we walked down les Champs Elysees, we walked around Les Marais and Montmartre, we ate the best falafels and the best crepes, we walked through the Louvre, along La Seine, over Pont Neuf and all the way to la Cathedrale Notre-Dame, basically we walked everywhere and tried to see everything and we ended every night with a bottle of French wine and a baguette. It’s amazing to think that my mom and I shared this incredibly rich experience, which has undoubtedly brought us closer and that for the rest of our lives we will reminisce and say “remember that time…in Paris…?”

2 months in

The last month has been great! I feel like I know this city now and I’m ready to discover more of Europe, which I will, I’ll let you know about it in the weeks to come. Bonds and friendships have been forged with complete strangers; so much is being shared with people I will probably never see after this summer. Being here I actually live day to day and I have become very aware of my actions and my choices. I have never felt so relaxed and peaceful in my whole life. I have also become more aware of you, my peeps, back home. You all rock my world, you have all in your own different ways shown me love and have made it ok for me to be so far.

Last week my friend Melanie was here for her spring break, it was fantastic! We did the tourist thing, we partied with the other international students, especially these 2 other Québécoises (we were like a French Canadian force), we shopped like only Melanie can, we had long conversations and it was already time for her to go…

This past week end Brianna came to visit from Germany, we had fun like we used to in the MTL. The day I wanted to show her around the city there was a snow storm, the first this year, it was St-Patty’s day. We figured since we were Canadians we could do it, after 4 hours of walking around we got home soaked and whiny. Because we are Montrealers, which by definition makes us Irish on St-patty’s we had to go out to an Irish pub in Copenhagen. It was one of the most fun St-Patrick’s parties we ever experienced, we got home at 5am, she had to head back to Germany at 11h30am…

Tomorrow my mother is coming to Copenhagen to visit me, talk about a mother daughter bonding experience. We will also be traveling to Paris for her birthday, I am so excited I feel like jumping around like a kid, wait give me 2 seconds… ok that’s done!

There is still some snow on the ground and it’s beautiful, the sun has been shining.

it's all me

I go out, I meet new people, I make new friends, I visit new places and it’s all me. I hear people say they are settling into their new routine, but it’s impossible to feel like a routine when so many things everyday surprise me or are new to me. I feel settled, but just (un) comfortable enough to be kept on my toes. I discover the city, I discover new bus routes, new cafes, new bars, new museums and new shops and it’s all me…ok sometimes my roommate too!
Last week end, une Québécoise, my French roommate and I stumbled into a food festival, somebody said something about free food and there we were. We had no idea why we were there or why they were giving out all this great food and we were clearly the only non-Danish speakers. We didn’t ask any questions, we didn’t want to attract more attention to ourselves, so after a bar-b-q chicken breast, frozen toes and a delicious piece of cake, we left still not knowing what was going on!
After more than a month in Denmark, I actually started classes yesterday, which I’m happy about! I know, I’m a huge dork but I really enjoy being in class. No Danes to be found in my classes though, all international students, which makes classes interesting considering we all have extremely different backgrounds in communication studies.
I haven’t been homesick yet, I think it has to do with the fact that I often listen to the news on CBC radio and can appreciate what a horrible winter you are living everywhere in Canada… I would be so whiny!

Settling in

Cold, gloomy, pork, wet, small, bicycles, windy, trains and beer are some words used to describe Denmark. I might have only been here 2 weeks and a half, but these 9 words have been recurring conversation starters. It’s mostly been in a whiny tone “Why is it dark its only 15h30...” or “As if they just put fried pork bits in my vegetarian tuna sandwich” or my favorite, “is it just me or is it 10am and they are drinking Carlsberg’s before going to class?” Yeah, Danes are crazy like that! ; )
I’m having a better time every day, I moved into my new Copenhagen apartment on Sunday with my new roommate Mylene from France. We live at about a 6 minute bus ride from the city center, we each have a big room and we share the kitchen and the washroom with the owner, Bright, an IT consultant at the medical school. So far, so good! My classes are officially starting next week-ish and they seem really interesting and pretty easy, final assignment: 3-5 page essay…haha!
Last week end Zoe came to visit me, it was a short blast. Danish hot-dog, beer, shots, beers, sleep, tourism, coffee, apartment, movie, gin, Indian buffet, beers, statues, sleep, move into apartment, coffee, walk, SUN, read to each other like old couple, leave, sad. It was so great to share some of my experience with her, for her to see what I was up to here and meet my awesome new friends I’ve been discovering so much with. Copenhagen is a gorgeous city filled with beautiful architecture, cool bars and cafes and interesting people with great style. Everything still feels a little unreal.

Beginning

It’s hard to know where to start, but I’m here and although it’s overwhelming, it’s incredible and every moment is lived at high intensity. Copenhagen is small, Roskilde my University town is ...smaller, both are gorgeous! In Roskilde they are very proud of their Vikings and their royalty.
I don’t yet have a place to live, but I am working on it. Two other exchange students, a British boy and a French girl are also homeless; we hope to find a place together.
The darkness is a killer, so far it’s been dark until almost 9am and the sun goes down at around 4pm, we definitely try to stick together and have fun, otherwise you concentrate on the gloominess, the darkness and the rain.
The other international students are great!! We have been taking Danish classes together, wow is this language ever hard, half the letters in each word are silent, but the letters change in each word...haha. So far I can say my name! Oh and ask if you speak English, that is the most important!
Classes start in about 2 weeks, until then we keep busy being tourist and learning more about the Danish culture. The night life has been pretty good so far, the bars and pubs are very cozy (but mucho expensive), candle light is essential, it sets the mood. It’s so funny though, people drink all the time everywhere, everybody walks around with a 6 pack of beer, especially during the week ends.
Danish people are ridiculously good looking, the men are so well taken care of , but in a non-metrosexual way, so they still exude masculinity…haha! And yes it is true that most of them are tall, blond and blue eyed! It’s really hard when I go out having to glance and look at all these beautiful men, now I know how you boys feel when you go out in Montreal!
So far I’m the only Canadian, but I think more are coming. Almost all the other students are from somewhere in Europe, they are all amazed of how far I came from..