Hi everyone,

I realized the other day that it has been a while since I’ve given an update. It is absolutely crazy to think that at this point I only have eight more weeks in Copenhagen meaning I’m over half-way done with the second semester. That in itself is mind-blowing because I could have sworn that I just got here. Seriously, I think I started class, then within three weeks we took a trip to Stockholm then a few weeks later it was mid-terms and spring break!!

With that being said, I guess I should just do a short recap and then maybe do more in-depth posts later? We will see.

My classes this semester are incredibly thought-provoking. My favorite, Islam in the West, leaves my head in a tizzy after every class (that may be due to that fact that it is a level 300  :o) Either way, I’m learning so much from a more global perspective than what my classes last semester was geared toward.

Every Sunday, two girlfriends and make brunch plans which have turned into a surprising highlight of my time here. It gets me out of the house and into some pretty cool areas, with delicious food (that I couldn’t cook myself at home) and meaningful conversations. It’s my moment to escape from normal, everyday requirements.

The weather has been much friendlier since the sun is greeting us practically every day now and stays out much longer than it did. That in itself is amazing because it makes the days feel way longer and way more productive. It was a bit of a tease when it was warm enough to wear skirts outside, but now it’s returned to the mid-40s. Funny how when you start to get older something as simple as the weather has such a great impact on your mood. I appreciate it much more now.

Life here is more routine and comfortable than last semester. Which is probably why it’s going by so much quicker. Also, a possible reason why I don’t feel like I have that much to update on other than the day to day life that consists of cooking, class, studying, yoga, gym, etc.. with the occasional fun activity such as art museums or other outings. I might make it more of a priority to pinpoint those exciting moments and document them here in the coming weeks. Those are the moments I don’t want to forget.

Talk soon,
Chrisann

Bonjour! (Or bonsoir)

Thus begins my adventure into my second college semester. I am so so so happy to be returning to Copenhagen — I’ve said it a million times, but I would have been horribly disappointed if I didn’t get another semester in this wonderful place.

I departed from North Carolina on January 9th and met up with my cohort friend Bella before flying together to Paris!!

Bella and I both placed Paris on the top of our lists to visit so you could imagine how excited we were to spend five days there together. We even managed to stay in a small, authentic feeling French hotel per recommendation of our fabulous art professor. The shower was so small that we had to bend at the knees to pick up soap, our hotel provided breakfast which was an option of tea, coffee, or hot chocolate with half a baguette, and we carried our heavy luggage up wobbly stairs, but we loved it! Most of the guests were French themselves and it was located in a quaint area left of the Seine.

What’s really awesome is that we were able to cross practically everything we had planned to do off our list (and successfully avoided any effects of the riots occurring) My favorite things were spending hours at the Musée d’Orsay. Hanging there was some of my favorite pieces we had studied in art history that are now some of my personal favorites. I felt giddy turning corners and coming into contact with paintings I had oggled and analyzed for the past couple of months.

On our last day, we sat for over an hour on a park bench, crepes in hand, watching the sun go down and waiting for the Eiffel Tower to twinkle on the hour. My back was turned away from the tower to talk to Bella when mid-sentence, her eyes lit up with the reflected glow of the twinkling masterpiece. In those five minutes, we snapped pictures, took videos, and smiled at how beautiful it looked in real life. It’s silly sounding how happy this moment made both of us.

It was a magical trip that lived up to my expectations, and it was interesting to see how the portrayal of the riots in France compared to reality. While there is extreme and important demonstrations taking place, the city functioned regularly and we simply avoided the Arc de Triomphe on Saturday evening. Each night Bella and I hopped into bed to read our books and chat about how excited we were to return to Copenhagen.

We got back on the 15th and classes began on the 17th. It was super easy to get reacclimated with the city and lifestyle again. Walking from the Metro station to my apartment felt like a proper homecoming.

With the waves of new DIS students among us, the youngest students in the building now have become the most knowledgeable. It’s kind of funny reflecting that we were in that position just five months earlier. At this point, we all have our routines and knowledge of the city, culture, and language, but in a way, I’m jealous of those new students; little do they know what’s in store. Also, as of today, I’ve been to all of my new classes twice. All of them are super interesting (Humanities Through Film and Literature, Research Methods, Sustainability, Islam in the West, Economics, and Global Politics.) but might require a bit more thinking effort on my part because there are so many thought-provoking topics being introduced in each class so soon.

Looking forward to another adventure.

Talk soon,

Chrisann

Hi everyone,

I wasn’t true to my promise of writing over the winter break, though I’m not shaming myself since it was spent in the best ways. I flew back to the states mid-December and enjoyed three weeks of visiting friends and family I hadn’t seen in a while, ending lots of comfort American food, watching numerous movies, and cuddling my pets.  There wasn’t much conscious time for reflection, although there was some. I made an effort to be present in the moments with loved ones whom I’ve missed. My biggest accomplishment was actually finishing the novel I started before I went to Copenhagen the first time — that tells you how much free time I had or how much I the idea of pleasure reading abhorred me with all the required readings last semester held. I’ll take the time in this blog post to do some reflections before class begins in a couple of days.

The first reflection can be summed up in saying that I don’t know as much as I thought I did. Or I’m a lot more confused than I thought I was. Compared to high school, I felt fairly confident in my knowledge of life and my place in the word. Months later and through experiences and meeting people and mind-opening classes, I’ve found myself often questioning things as well as looking at things from different perspectives. In no way is this a negative revelation. I am happy that last year and into this year, I’m expanding my mind and becoming more aware of things. I’m so grateful for incredibly knowledgable professors and for my travels to unveil the beauty and reality of the world.

Last semester, I figured out that being comfortable with being alone with your thoughts is important — through the good and bad. I found myself being very conscious of the time alone with my thought. The phrase “love yourself” is so constantly thrown around I never saw it as anything other than maybe a body positivity phrase. Body positivity is important and something I try and practice, but that phrase coined a new meaning when all of the sudden I saw it as loving your personality, your mind, and your soul. That sounds quite out reading, but nevertheless, I find that true and something I hope to explore more in 2019.

Going along with the last point, I believe that thoughts matter. One day in yoga, my instructor was saying that your brain has to focus on something at all times. While she was talking about focusing on our breathing during poses, it made me wonder what my brain focuses on in any given moment in a day. My mom always talks about self-fulfilling prophesy and I believe that to be true. If my thoughts are negative, it severely impacts my mood, activities, day, week, etc. I want my thoughts to be reflective of the moments as they are happening through a positive lens. In that way, I stay focused on life as it is happening and hopefully fulfill my ideas of happiness and success.

Relating more to being independent and traveling, I’ve found myself embracing flexibility more. I’ve always prided myself as a planner which for me is a positive quality since I’m able to manage my time well and ultimately save myself from a lot of difficulties that may occur. That being said, I’ve allowed myself to let go a bit. If someone asked me to go somewhere with a 30-minute notice, I would rarely hesitate to say yes. Before arriving in  Berlin, we hadn’t figured out our exact transportation plan into the city, but I didn’t mind whatsoever. I was confident in my new traveling abilities that we would make it there. I have a new found pride in my ability to function as a semi-adult.

Of course, there are many other things I have learned about myself, the world, and life, and that won’t stop after one semester.

Here’s to growing up.

Vi ses!

Chrisann

Hi everyone.

It’s been about a month since updating you all about what I’ve been up to. Since my travel break adventures, I’ve been dealing with lots of school work and fun here in Copenhagen!

My parents were able to visit me here the week leading up to Thanksgiving, and it was so refreshing to be able to hug them and talk in person. It felt so strange showing them around the city because to me it was just home, but I loved how enthusiastic they were and I was so proud of my beautiful Copenhagen 🙂 I was able to eat at some amazing restaurants and do some cool things I had never done before like eat at the top of the Christansborg Palace Tower and explore the pop-up Christmas markets which were adorable. My favorite thing we did was stumble upon Copenhagen’s oldest bar and enjoyed Jul Tuborg (Christmas beer) and hot glasses of Gløgg (mulled wine). Mom swears it was the best-mulled wine she’s ever had and we simply sat there, safe from the cold, talking about what I’ve learned from living here and much more. We also visited Tivoli, the world’s second oldest amusement park. It was adorable, but the rides were no joke. My dad and I mustered the courage to ride one that sent us swinging high into the air. It felt as though if something were to have broken, we would have been flung all the way to Sweden. Dad still talks about how scary it was. It was also nice that they were able to bring my friends and I some comforts from home. By comforts, I really mean lots and lots of snacks since we’re home-hungry.

They came while I still had school so I was busy studying for finals and rounding off some work before we three left to go to London on a Tuesday night. I was soooooo happy to be going back! It had only been 2 weeks since I was last there, but I couldn’t wait to go back. Going with parents and going with friends are two completely different experiences. My parents and I toured the Tower of London, went on the London Eye, ate the most amazing Indian food at Dishoom, went shopping at Harrods and Selfridges, completed the touristy check offs like Buckingham Palace, explored the V&A museum, had a Thanksgiving meal, and my personal favorite, toured the Harry Potter Studios! The Harry Potter nerd I have always been was over the moon. I really am not sure if I could get tired of London; there was still much more I wanted to do!

It brought me so much joy to experience London with my Mom who has always wanted to visit and is the biggest Anglophile I know; she was like a kid in a candy shop at the Tower of London. I wouldn’t be surprised if she could have given a tour of it herself.

It was sad to see my parents leave and get back to the reality of school. But just a week after I was on my way to Berlin with some girlfriends for a fun 19th birthday weekend!

Berlin was super cool! The vibe was very distinct — I had no idea how large the city actually was, but my friends and I were able to successfully navigate the transportation system with little difficulty. My favorite things we experienced we walking along the East Side Gallery, walking through the giant Christmas markets, and eating delicious cheese-spatzle at a cozy restaurant. The most exciting though was flying home at 7:30 Monday morning to make it back to Copenhagen for a 10:00 AM class. No worries as I made it back with plenty of time to spare. Though we only get a weekend,  it still feels like a good amount of time to see the city and take the time to relax.

In less than a week, I will be back in the USA to spend Christmas with my family which I have a whole newfound appreciation for. I’m making a promise with myself to enjoy  and be present in every moment with them since being away taught me to cherish the small things.

Until then, I’m studying for finals as I have finished all of my classes! First college semester flew by, and I couldn’t be more grateful for the time spent here. I have learned so much academically and just simply about the world around me. I hope to make a post as a wrap up of my thoughts about these past few months at a later time. Until then.

Vi ses (see you),

Chrisann

Hi friends!

It’s me again. This update is going to be about the week of adventures that is called  travel break. With so many places to travel to from Copenhagen, we couldn’t pick just one so my friends Bella, Meaghan, Paige, and Becca and I agreed to backpack (yes, we packed for eight days in our school pack) from Copenhagen to Brussels, Belgium then on to Budapest, Hungary and ending in London, England before heading home. Why you may ask? The fight to Brussels was $18… the rest were comparably cheap as well.

Let’s talk Brussels. Waffles! Chocolates! Pom Frites! Beer! This was the city to eat and eat we did. You could never be too far away from a two euro waffle truck that gave you a deliciously crispy, sugar-coated waffle. We were shocked at how small the city actually was, but the architecture was gorgeous! Just google the Grand Place of Brussels. There were adorable cartoons painted on the sides of buildings that was fun to see, and we even paid a visit to the European Parliament. The main attraction though was Mannekin Pis, a little statue of a boy peeing that has become the national symbol of Brussels. Cheeky. I don’t think of us were quite aware of how much French is spoken here — Bella was ecstatic to practice, and I even managed to order a baguette in French by the end. A highlight was visiting the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium for free (as we aren’t yet 19) and seeing masterpieces we studied in class. Namely The Death of Marat by Jacques-Louis David.

Then came Budapest. We landed late at night and planned to take a bus into the city from the airport…long story short we ended up buying TWO tickets for the wrong bus before finally hopping on the right one making us arrive at our Air B&B around 1:30 am. A small mishap in the grand scheme of things and we made the most of the two wrong tickets by using them to get to the Széchenyi Thermal Bath in the morning. The weather couldn’t have been better! We were able to lounge by the beautiful baths (I even got a slight tan).  Budapest is much larger that Brussels and split into two halves (Buda and Pest) by the Danube River. We resided on the Pest side explored so much. We were able to enjoy a river tour and saw the Parliment building lit up at night which was incredible! I also loved visiting the Fisherman’s Bastion on the Buda side and wish we had more time to explore that area more. Always a reason to come back! One of my favorite things was going to a famous ruins bar,  Szimpla Kert, the mecca of all ruin bars. Simply a delightful chaos of people if an abandoned building turned multibar. With live music, funky art, and colors, and a multitude of stickers. We were also able to get breakfast at the worlds most beautiful cafe, The New York Cafe. I highly recommend their coffee with ice cream and whipped cream.

London Town. I did not expect to love London as much as I did. Immediately getting onto the street from the tube, I felt at home which is ironic because we were probably in the least safe city out of all the ones visited. Nonetheless, I was so comfortable. It might be because it reminds me of NYC in a way, a city which I’ve always adored. We landed there on Halloween night and spent the evening watching a band originating from North Carolina called Rainbow Kitten Surprise. So. Much. Fun. We stayed in a hostel and were able to meet some Brits who showed us the cool places to hang out the next few nights. We spent our days checking off the touristy spots to see like Buckingham Palace and the Tower Bridge. My favorite thing we did was head up to Nottinghill and walk along Portabello Road. I purchased a pressed flower with a line of a poem the man selling them had written, he told Bella and me, “The spirit of the flower inspired the line.” I didn’t feel pressured to see everything there was in London because I knew I’d be back. Literally, because I’ll be there in a week with my parents, and figuratively because I have this feeling it’s a place I will go to as many chances as I get (study abroad spring 2021??)

Besides me telling you the bits and details of travel, let me tell you what I’ve really been thinking about.

The world is so, indescribably large. No really. I thought I knew that living in America, but now I can’t walk down the street without wondering what a person’s story is. Visiting these cities allows me to contemplate the story of humankind. While in Brussels, we heard the heartbreaking news of the Pittsburgh shooting at a synagogue. It’s incredibly difficult for me to put into words how much pain I feel in regards to this event. Budapest has a strong Jewish presence and memorials to the horrors that happened in WWII, and learning/seeing first hand the negative aspect of humankind from a historical perspective and then witnessing this horrific act in today’s age makes it difficult for me to see the progress of our society. I hold strong to the hope that we will teach love and stop history from ever repeating itself.

Till next time,

Chrisann

Hi friends!

Long time no see. That’s because school has me kicked into high gear reading books like a madman and scribbling out essays like it’s my job. Luckily,  two weeks ago I  was in  Venice, Italy enjoying a week-long study tour that focused on Venetian art! My goodness, it was beautiful.

Many people say that Venice is an overrated city due to the crazy amount of tourists that visit each day. The latter may be true, but that doesn’t make Venice any less special or magical. I think in order to appreciate Venice for more than the canals and gondolas, it’s important to understand Venetian history and art. The city has a foundation like no other and frankly an architectural feat. The facades of the buildings alone are considered magnificent art.

Each day, we visited churches, museums and/or schools of art to marvel at the pieces we had been studying in class for weeks. To do this, we walked all over the island, hence why I put 10 miles in the title (we walked at least that each day). Totally worth it. I don’t want to totally bore you with art history talk, but it’s pretty incredible the ways you can analyze a piece so that you truly understand it. What was amazing too was seeing ginormous artworks in the places they were made for, not hanging in a gallery. The feeling of walking into the Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari and seeing the altarpiece The Assumption of the Virgin by Titan was indescribable and the painting…breathtaking.

Let’s talk about Italian food. That’s something that’s not overrated by any means. I’m not kidding when I say I had eleven cones of gelato because it was DELICIOUS as well as refreshing on the sunny days. We ate pasta and pizza for lunch and dinner, which I’m not sure how sustainable that is, but my taste buds weren’t complaining. The prices were much more wallet-friendly in comparison to what I’m used to here in Copenhagen.

I enjoyed getting out at night because my cohort member Sebastiano is a native Venetian and knew the places to go and drinks to enjoy. He also allowed us to pet his dog which temporarily cured me of my puppy withdrawals. His mother, a Wake Forest graduate, works at Save Venice, a nonprofit that restores the valued art of Venice, and was kind enough to take us behind the scenes of the Carpaccio St. Ursula cycle restoration lab. Because of my knowledge of Venetian art, I was so much more appreciative of this experience and being up close and seeing in detail the paintings from long, long ago.

If anything, this trip deepened my thirst for travel and experiences. I’m so grateful for this opportunity to collect these memories that I will hold the rest of my life.

An update from Copenhagen: it’s getting darker and colder as we speak. No worries, I have a coat that withstands even Denmark’s weather and enough fake candles to light up our “hygge” apartment. Although it’s October, the Christmas decorations and shops are popping up and making me so excited to go home to my family in Alamaba celebrate Christmas with them. I get to see my sweet parent’s faces in less than four weeks and I can’t describe how happy that makes me. Also, this Saturday I’m leaving with girlfriends to explore Belgium, Hungary, and England!

(Also, putting pictures here is really quite difficult so check out my Facebook or Instagram! @chrisann.timbie)

Till next time,

Chrisann

This weekend, I caught a ferry from Sweden to Denmark’s small island of Bornholm. I had zero expectations of how my days would be spent, but let me tell you I was so pleasantly surprised. We arrived very late on Friday night and awoke Saturday to a range of possibilities.

My friends Hannah, Bella, Quynh, and Becca, as well as others, all hopped on bikes and started out on a journey to the city of Rønne which, we were told, hosts a farmers market on Saturdays. This would be a 24 kilometer journey (15 mile), coast to coast, to reach Bornholm’s capital city and what was supposed to take us an hour and 15 minutes, took us approximately three hours for many different reasons.

First of all, there were SO many hills! Inexperienced bikers as we are, we decided to save our legs the pain and guide our bikes up the long inclines on foot. I felt like a kid racing down the hills with the wind whipping through my hair. This journey allowed us to experience diverse landscapes. The first being fields and farms overlooking the water that were enhanced by the clear blue sky and brilliant sun. It felt as though we were biking through Van Gogh’s paintings. We also rode through forests lined with pine trees where the sun danced between them and smelled exactly like Christmas. We spent majority of our time in the countryside with geese, kitty cats, fruit and vegetable stands, and fields of daisies and the occasional sunflowers. We rode past a large red wheelbarrow with a sign that read “Free Apples” so we proceeded to ask the gentlemen tending to the garden to take some, and I’m so glad we did. It was the most delicious apple I’ve ever eaten. I felt like I was living in a fairytale. After, we rode into a field of daisies where ,of course, we stopped to take pictures.

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Processed with VSCO with l9 preset

Our destination left much to be desired. There were only two stands in our promised farmers markets and nothing else to do in the town. Although we did stop in a cafe on the harbour to enjoy a smoked salmon sandwich and a chai latte. We laughed about how sore every part of our bodies were going to be and how sore our rears already were. As amazing of a bike ride we had, none of us could muster up the strength to make another 15 mile trek back home by dinner. With that being said, we were determined to catch a bus back to the city of Gudhjem where we were staying. Our friend Sara took the bus to meet us for lunch and said it might be possible for us to bring our bikes back on the bus as no one was on there. So we waited for the next bus back to town which only came every hour. We designated someone to start crying to get the bus driver to sympathize with us and let us bring five bikes on if they opposed. After waiting a bit, the bus arrived, and it was packed. A look of dread appeared over all of our faces. Luckily, I think we had the nicest bus driver in all of Denmark. He put each of our bikes on the bus for us and even accommodated room by moving strollers to make us all fit without a single complaint.

I had never understood the phrase that said that the journey was better than the destination till yesterday. It was the most beautiful realization.

I’ve been contemplating a lot lately  about how I picture my life going, and I’ve even decided to write a serious bucket list.  Recently, I wrote a short story and in it I had written, “To me, life should be an equation where your choices equal the sum of your existence. How exciting is it to imagine your existence being so overwhelmingly large because you weren’t afraid to live.” My whole life, it bothered me that I never had a clear end point in my life. I don’t know what I want to be or where I want to live because I’m in love with all these versions of what my life could be– I could live in the desert climbing rocks with two dogs or in New York City and be surrounded by artistic geniuses or in the middle of nowhere with horses and chickens and tending a giant garden. Why not do all of it? Like my biking adventure, my life isn’t about a destination, I’m going to make my life a journey of every little thing that I can picture myself enjoying. Maybe this is common sense, but I needed to learn it. My life doesn’t have a clear end point, and it doesn’t need to. I feel at peace accepting the fact that I don’t need to know what the future holds.

Enjoy your journey.

Love,

Chrisann

Hello everyone! Go ahead and get comfortable because I have a lot to tell you.

Quick little realization…I’ve been in Copenhagen over a month! (Woohoo!)

A week ago my cohort and I, along with most of our professors, ventured into western Denmark for three days with each day in a different place focusing on a different class . We spent Thursday in Copenhagen and a separate day traveling in Denmark on Friday before flying out that night to go to Scotland.

We awoke at the crack of dawn Monday morning and made our way to Rødding Højskole, Denmark’s oldest folkehøjskole (Folk High School) for our Danish Language and Culture class. Although it’s called a high school, it’s not a high school like American’s would call it. It’s comparable to a boarding school where anyone over the age of 18 attends for a few months with the sole purpose being to learn. There are no grades or examinations– just a desire to continue your education if you didn’t want to go directly to university. It’s extremely common for students graduating gymnasium (the Danish version of high school) to take a few years in between that and university. In fact, most first year university students are 23. Attending a folk high school is popular during student’s gap years, but different to all schooling in Denmark, the student’s must pay to attend. (Yes, all school is free in Denmark)

I had a very interesting experience on my one day as a Folk High School Student. While there, I participated in their USA Politics class. We dove deep into the interworkings of both American and Danish democracy. To make an extremely long story short, I was mind boggled at the difference between our societies. The Danes have a very homogenous culture and suffer from xenophobia while America is a salad bowl of cultures and we fundamentally suffer from racism. This one statement plays a lot into our way of thinking. For example, in class, I answered a question and the teacher remarked at how “beautifully American” my response was to accommodating Muslim girls into a public swimming pool who don’t feel comfortable around males. In America, we’re use to accommodating because we don’t have a prevalent culture. But in Denmark, they prefer people to be Danish because that’s what works for them. You see too, America is an individualised county. We believe we can pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps and make our lives the way we want, but in Denmark, structure plays a larger role than the individual. They believe you are more likely the product of your environment. That’s why here, if you commit homicide, the maximum sentence is 16 years and you will be rehabilitated in prison because you committed the crime due to your soundings, not because you’re inherently evil. This example is  very over generalised and that’s not always they case because the Danes do know about psychopaths and large dangers to society exist but people in Denmark trust one another because of this homogenous, structure dependent society. In theory, I see why this works well, but it really stuck my all American, capitalistic, you can be whoever you want, mind as strange. I’ll leave this at that, but if you have questions please reach out as I would love to discuss this further!

For my History of Western Art class we took a trip 20 miles away from the school to Ribe, Denmark’s oldest city. Now this place seemed like a ghost town. It was beautiful and quaint but carried this eerie silence. The focal point of the city was the Ribe Domkirke, or church, that was built in 860 AD. What’s interesting about this church was that it encompasses Roman and Gothic architecture and modern art. In the 1980s, Carl Henning Pedersen was commissioned to add mosaics and murals in the front of the church. These abstract and odd pieces earned a lot of attention and debate.

From there, we spent the next day at the Wadden Sea National Park for my Sense of Place in Literature class. What a wonderful experience. This sea stays at low tide, but it rises twice a day and we ventured out at low tide where the sky meets the water and on foggy days, you can’t tell which is which. It’s expansive and mystical and all you hear is the vicious wind whipping around you. I wrapped myself up tight in a little bubble of warmth and contemplated nature and human’s relationship with it. It was a little scary because you think the wind  could blow you right over or at any moment, the tide could rise and you’re stuck in the middle of the ocean. On the other hand, you could feel a sense of power over nature. Here you are walking out into the middle of the sea disrupting everything with your rubber soles.

At the end of the week on Friday, my art class traveled south of Copenhagen to Møns Klint to see the white cliffs and the Fanejford Kirke. Take a look at the church and notice the funky frescos dating back to the 13th century. They tell the story of the Bible and were whitewashed over once the church converted from Catholicism to Protestantism and these paintings weren’t discovered until the 1930s and were painstakingly uncovered piece by piece. You can see the fairytale like style and almost childlike simplicity because they were for illiterate peasants to understand. Afterwards we went to the cliffs. I saw a seal sunbathing on rocks and felt the cool breeze off the water. I had to climb down 468 steps to see this beauty, but I also had to climb 468 steps back up which was a struggle.

That Friday night, three friends and I, hopped on a plane to Edinburgh, Scotland! This was out first full weekend trip and it was amazing! I missed having everything in english (it made navigation so much easier). On Saturday, let me preface by saying we walked 13.5 miles to see everything we wanted to, but it was SO worth it. We started the day walking through the Grassmarket and ate at the cafe where JK Rowling wrote Harry Potter then meandered though the Scottish National gallery and saw a huge Rembrandt exhibition with 5 galleries full of his paintings and printworks. We then took a walking tour of the Royal Mile which ended with a ticket to the Edinburgh Castle which is practically a city in itself. After we walked around Rose street and had tea and scones in a cute second level cafe because when in the UK you have afternoon tea. The day was topped off with dinner at a Scottish pub on the Mile and an ice cream. The next day I woke up earlier to go to a cafe and submit a paper (I still have to do school work unfortunately) and enjoyed a slice of banana bread before attending a Scottish Whiskey tasting tour. I sampled a single malt from the lowland region of Scotland which carried notes of citrus. (I’m not sure I like whiskey though) after that we toured Holyrood Palace which Mary Queen of Scotts spent a lot fo her time.

Wow,that was a lot so if you guys read all the way though congratulations!

This was by far the busiest I’ve been and I’m juggling these adventures with non stop papers and reading. That’s college for you! But I wouldn’t trade this experience for the world.  I’ve taken a week to recover and this weekend I’m enjoying what my city has to offer with movies, soccer games, and more museums!

To conclude, as much as I love these places and where I am, I have come to the realization that I have much more patriotism that I had originally thought before coming here. I really do love America, and I miss it quite often. I feel very blessed to love the home I’m in now and love the home I’m coming back to at the end of the year.

Hej hej for now,

Chrisann

After spending my first week in Copenhagen, I finally have the time to sit down to update you all on what an amazing time this has been. Looking back, the days begin to swirl together, and I’m left with memories of cobblestone streets, coffee and croissants with new friends, and an overwhelming sense of wonder. My friends and I have been going non-stop trying to soak in the city as the weather has been treating us so kindly. We’re lucky enough to be staying in the Inner City close to a Strøget, a high end shopping street. I should also mention, our apartment is older than America (so we’re not allowed to wear shoes inside) which is awesome to think about and kinda crazy they’re trusting us 18-year-olds to live here.

With such a prime location, I’ve felt the need to first go see what’s around me. Right next to our building is the 17th century Rundetaarn (Round Tower) that allows you to see all the way to Sweden on a sunny day. Nyhavn, a harbour that will pop up when you Google search Copenhagen, is some what of a longer walk, but just as spectacular in person as it is on Google. Bustling with people and restaurants, it is a nice place to sit by the water with friends. On our second day here, we took the Metro to Christianshavn where we enjoyed a Danish outdoor concert and market in an area called Freetown Christiania (an anarchist commune). Classes began on Thursday and have proven to be quite interesting and reading intensive. The amount of homework hasn’t stopped us from still venturing out. Our apartment is also a quick five minute walk from the King’s Garden which encompasses the Rosenborg Castle so naturally I’ve taken the time to go and read my book and people watch. On Saturday, we took the Metro to the harbour Island’s Bryyge to par take in the Kulturhavn Festivel where my friend Hannah and I practiced out handstands and then cheered on our friend Colin as he was invited to play in a pick up game of kayak polo with a group of visiting Italians.  On Sunday, my cohort participated in the Habour 5K. I’m not much of a runner, but I loved the experience bonding with my friends and picnicking near the water afterwards. Even after all these amazing moments, some of my favourite have been cooking dinners with (and for) my roommates and sitting together in our courtyard, as well as finding cozy cafes just around the corner to order overpriced coffee and dive into my assignments.

This whole week has been a major transition; from jet lag to learning to cook for myself to making my way around a new city. Although, it’s already starting to feel like home. The Danish culture is quite different than ours, but not so much so that I can’t assimilate quickly (except regular denim skinny jeans don’t quite seem to fit into Danish fashion and those are my go to 😦 ) For example, even after the first few moments off the plane, here was an odd sense of quite. The whole city is much quieter than what an typical American city might be. You can spot Americans by how loudly we speak — especially in public transport. Danes don’t tend to chit-chat, but will be friendly if you need advice. My roommate and I share a favourite saying that we’re not quite homesick, but that we’re home hungry. The food isn’t quite as sweet and the fries aren’t as salty, but there are some great spots for some fantastic food (we also stop by the grocery for candy when our sweet cravings arise.) Just a few more weeks, and I should be navigating this new place like a pro, but until then…

Hej Hej!

Chrisann

Hi, everyone! Regardless to whether you know me personally or not, welcome to my blog. I felt compelled by my friends and family in America to keep them updated about my time living in Copenhagen, Denmark and traveling to other cities throughout Europe.

Now, let me start off by saying, I’m not flying off on my own accord, and my travels are perfectly sanctioned through my new university. In fact, I am participating in Wake Forest University’s Global AWAKEning’s study abroad program that I applied for in my application to the University. Upon my acceptance, myself and 15 fellow freshman will spend both semesters studying through DIS, a university in Copenhagen. We will complete  freshman general courses revolving around a humanities semester and a global perspective semester taught by English-speaking professors.

Flash forward to now, in three short days I will be arriving on Wake Forest’s campus to take part in orientation. Orientation for me will be a little different as it’s only with my cohort and we will prepare for living in a different country and come to love the place we get to call home when we come back our sophomore year. We spend three nights on campus before leaving together at the end of the week.

There’s so much I want to say, but I can’t say too much until I’ve experienced something. I hope to update this blog as frequently as my time allows with any interesting stories or just with what my daily life  consists of.  I will write again once I get acclimated to Scandinavian life and see if my expectations are anywhere near reality.  I’m VERY excited to begin my classes, live with my peers (who I will soon call my close friends), and embrace a city and culture entirely new to me. The expectations of this Type A person may fall short at times, but I will push myself to express gratitude through all situations to remember that this journey is once in a life time.

With love,

Chrisann