Definitely my favorite phrase today. Somehow, I manage to get myself about as lost as possible, and never realize it until I'm completely off the map. We usually travel with a couple friends from one place in Copenhagen to the other, but we got an hour lunch break so I decided to try to go to the DIS main office to pick up my package with my converter, so I could finally use my straightener!
Somehow, I managed to make it to the main office successfully, and decided I would be able to get back without a map. Bad idea. I have definitely learned that when I am with a group of friends, I become one of the least perceptive people I know, and don't pay attention to where I am going. This is how I managed to end up on the busiest pedestrian street of Copenhagen when I should have been six blocks in the opposite direction.
Luckily, getting lost allowed me to learn just how nice the Danes can really be (and how much they appreciate an attempt at the Danish language, regardless of how much you butcher the words). Three very helpful and friendly Danes later, I found myself at my destination. It is seriously lucky for me that so many Danes know the English language, even to enough of an extent to point me in the right direction.
Another thing I'm still getting used to is that it's completely normal to see a bunch of kids my age or even younger sitting on the steps of the fountain carrying a six pack and drinking from it, in the open. The bikers are serious is Copenhagen, that's the only way to put it. They ride them as their trip to work, so its not a lovely stroll in the park. Its also interesting to see how many Danish women bikers have mastered the art of biking in heels, and I'm not talking about "pumps" with a thick one-inch heel. I'm talking about three inch stilettos- serious stuff. Fashion is never sacrificed to bike riding.
After all the orientation activities, I had a few hours before my last activity of the day, so my friend, Kaitlin and I hung out in "Studenterhuset," the European version of a campus union. The only difference is that this one doubles as a cafe and a bar- definitely a place you must experience to truly get the "hyggeligt" feeling. This is a word in Danish that doesn't really have a true translation but is more of a feeling of coziness- sitting around a coffee table, drinking cafe drinks and relaxing with friends: just enjoying eachother's company. I could definitely get used to hyggeligt.
After my last information session I rode the train back with a friend who's also on my line- it definitely helps in making the commute seem shorter (although in trains, it is not normal for anyone to talk above a whisper, and if you do, you're immediately characterized as the obnoxious American tourist). I then did reading for school and helped with dinner. Dinner today was like a pita pocket with random vegetables and chicken stuffed in it. And of course there was the "ost" or cheese. The Danes love their cheese and put it on a very large percentage of their sandwiches.
Tomorrow is my last day of orientation, then my first day of classes!
Til imorgen!
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