Day 22--From kroner to Euro: Berlin, Day 3

Today was our last day in Berlin, but it got off to a slower start than usual.  We got up at 9:30 (well, it felt like 8:30 due to daylight savings time), had breakfast, and checked out of the hostel.  We then went to the hotel we're staying at tonight, which is nicer and has internet in the rooms.  We couldn't get our room right away since it was too early to check in, but we were able to leave our stuff at the hotel for the time being.  We then made our way to the German Historical Museum, but due to various occurrences along the way, we didn't end up going there until 2 in the afternoon.  By that time, I was really tired, and while I did enjoy the museum, at one point I had to sit on a bench for a little bit to rest my legs.  After the museum, we found dinner at someplace cheap, then we went to that ice cream place we went to yesterday, and I had 3 scoops of (strong) vanilla ice cream in a waffle cone.  We then went to Alexanderplatz to get more food.  I got a crepe w/ Nutella, some cotton candy that was bigger than my head, and a pretzel.  After that, we went back to the hotel.  Tomorrow we have to get up early since our bus to Copenhagen leaves at 7:45 am.  It has been a great Easter break, and I'm looking forward to being back in Copenhagen tomorrow!

Day 21--From kroner to Euro: Berlin, Day 2

Today we hit two major places in Berlin with some unorganized things in between.  After eating breakfast, we went to the Olympic Stadium.  While we could not get into the actual stadium (since a football game was taking place that day), we got to walk around Olympic Park and take a lot of pictures.  I found the pool, which was outdoors (the swimming events used to take place outside).  Even though it looked old-fashioned, as expected, I thought it was really cool at the same time.  After Olympic Park, we started our trek to the Jewish Museum.  However, along the way, we stopped at a random costume store as well as random kiosks that sold WWII-era souvenirs, such as officer hats and jackets.  Ryan and Ian, after much deliberation, bought a couple items from those kiosks.  It was after 2 when we finally arrived at the Jewish Museum.  The museum was pretty awesome.  The first exhibit we saw consisted of various items that had belonged to those who were affected by the Holocaust, which was moving.  We then went to an exhibit that consisted of approximately 10,000 steel parts that had faces cut out of it.  Those faces represented the victims of war, and that these victims still have a voice today.  Afterward, we hit the main exhibit, which gave a history of the Jewish people from the time of Constantine to today.  There was definitely a lot to see in the museum, and I had a great time learning more about the Jews, since I am Jewish myself.  After the Jewish Museum, we went to a Japanese-Vietnamese place near Wittenberg Platz for dinner.  I ordered pho, which was good, while Ian and Ryan both had the all-you-can-eat sushi buffet.  I tried some of Ian's sushi and it was pretty good too, so maybe I'll try to have sushi more often.  We then got dessert (ice cream and crepes) and we went back to the hostel for the night.  Tomorrow we will switch hotels, and tomorrow is also daylight savings time, so we will be 6 hours ahead of the eastern US.  Also, tomorrow is Easter, so for those of you who celebrate it, happy Easter!     

Day 20--From kroner to Euro: Berlin, Day 1

So today was our first day in Berlin!  We woke up at 8:30, which was early considering how late we arrived the night before.  We quickly ate breakfast, then we struggled to find a pass that would give us full access to the Metro and discounts to most of the attractions.  It wasn't too long before we succeeded.  Afterward, we bought a day ticket to the sightseeing on/off bus tour around Berlin.  We got to see the old Berlin wall/Checkpoint Charlie, then we went inside a museum explaining the history of the German Parliament.  We then went to a chocolate place near the museum, which was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING.  THERE WERE SO MANY THINGS ON DISPLAY MADE OUT OF CHOCOLATE, INCLUDING THE TITANIC!!!!!  Anyways, I got some chocolate mousse, since I can't leave Germany without experiencing the wonderfulness that is German chocolate.  It was to die for, I mean, I had an Augustus Gloop moment there.  We then went on the bus and saw various attractions, including the TV tower, one of the Holocaust memorials, and the Brandenburg Tower.  We had dinner at a pretty nice restaurant.  (I forget the name, but it started with a "W".)  I had salmon, green beans, and potatoes, which were very good.  We walked around for a while after dinner, including Alexanderplatz.  We didn't expect to see anything there, but since it's Easter weekend, there was some sort of carnival there with food and clothes and even a Merry-Go-Round.  I got a crepe with honey (since it sounded very good), and I got a funky hat with pom-poms that said "Berlin" on it.  After spending time at Alexanderplatz, we went home (well, back to the hostel we're staying at).

Day 19--More last minute things, then off to Berlin!

So remember when I told you that I got to go to the spiral tower one day but I couldn't climb up since I got there 15 minutes before it closed?  Well, today Ian, Ryan, and I actually got to climb up this time.  There were so many stairs.  At one point while I was climbing up it felt like I was in the Notre Dame since there were so many bells.  After we reached the top, I was utterly impressed by the view.  Also, despite the fact that I am usually not afraid of heights, I could not stop holding onto the railing since it was so high up and windy.  I got some amazing pictures of the city though, which should be on facebook as soon as possible.  In addition, Ryan got over his fear of heights long enough to be able to reach the top as well.  After a bit, we climbed back down, which was scary at times since the stairs were rather steep.  We left the tower, then went to a bakery for a snack, then I got some more food for the long trip ahead.  We then went back to the apartment and packed.

So we took the 5 pm bus from Copenhagen.  I expected it to go by slowly, like all other bus rides go.  However, early in the bus ride Ian, Ryan, and I met "Kasper," who is doing his Masters in Copenhagen and who did undergrad at Georgia Tech.  Additionally, there was a 2-hour ferry ride for part of the trip (we got back on the bus afterwards).  So the four of us spent the whole ferry ride talking about Denmark and other stuff.  (By the way, the ferry was the largest ferry I've been on in my life, so it was pretty awesome.)  After the ferry ride, we spent 3 more hours on the bus (I slept for part of it) before reaching Berlin.  Ian, Ryan, and I exchanged information and goodbyes with Kasper and we took a taxi to the hotel.  By that time it was almost 2 am, and I was so tired that I didn't have time to go on the Internet before crashing.  (And this is why this post is really late, sorry!)    

Day 18--The day before Easter break

So today was a busy day at work.  Not many people were around, but Chietara, Mike, and I had to finish our weekly project proposal.  It took us until almost 3 to finish it, which was kind of a bummer since I'd been hoping to go to the museum with Ian and Ryan.  Also, I didn't have too much to eat for lunch since there wasn't a whole lot of food in the fridge.  So by the time I got home from work, I was a bit hungry, so I had a croissant, then I biked to the pool and swam for an hour.  I was glad I went today because the pool will be closed tomorrow through Monday because of Easter.  Speaking of Easter, Ian, Ryan, and I will head to Berlin tomorrow evening by bus.  I know that Hannah will go with two other people to Oslo, Norway, another group of people will go to Switzerland to ski, several others will go to France, and the rest will go to Munich and Berlin on a separate trip from us.  Tonight and tomorrow we will have time to get food for the long bus ride and pack our stuff.  Our bus leaves at 5 pm and will arrive in Berlin at 1 am.  From there we will find our way to our first hotel (yes, we will stay in more than one hotel), get to bed, then we'll see what goes from there.  I don't know if there will be Internet at either of the hotels, but I'll be sure to keep you posted somehow.

Day 17--Danmark v. Bulgarien

Today I got up early, went for a quick swim, then biked directly to work.  Work was pretty normal, although only a few people showed up.  In addition, the advisor made a surprise visit to check up on our progress with the project.  After biking home from work, Mike, Eric, and I walked to the stadium to get tickets for tonight's football match.  They were pretty expensive, but we have decent seats from the sideline.  In total, seven people from the apartment went to the game, although I was the only girl.  Before the game, I got myself a funny hat and a scarf outside the stadium to show my inner Dane.  The game itself was pretty quick. The final score was 1-1, and there was no overtime due to the fact that it was just the qualification round for the World Cup.  It was still fun though, even though it still won't compare to American football.

Day 16--Back in the water

Niels wasn't at work today, nor will he be at work all week, but Chietara, Mike, and I went to work anyway.  It was a pretty normal day at work.  The receptionist wasn't there to make sandwiches, but Camilla ordered them and they were still pretty good.  After work, I decided to go for a swim at the pool near the stadium.  It is approximately 5-10 minutes by bike.  Upon biking there, I got a monthly membership, then swam for about an hour.  The pool is pretty nice, although the lanes are somewhat narrow.  This is true especially when I need to pass someone.  I swam about 2200 meters (yes, meters, not yards) and biked home.  Dinner was pretty good (beef and potatoes), then I relaxed for the rest of the night.

Day 15--Wandering around downtown...again

So I didn't think I would leave the apartment today thanks to last night, but after doing laundry and relaxing for a couple hours, Ian, Ryan, and I decided to go for a bike ride.  We biked to Kongens Nytorv, parked, and then walked to the Spiral Tower.  However, we arrived there 15 minutes before the tower would close, so we decided not to climb up this time.  In addition, we passed by a museum near the Parliament, but we decided to go there on Wednesday since that museum is free on Wednesdays but not Sundays.  We then wandered around until we got to the walking streets near Norreport, and we decided to find a place to eat there.  We went to a Chinese buffet, which was not that cheap but we definitely got our money's worth.  In addition, I was craving ice cream, despite the cold weather today, so I got ice cream at nearby Paradis.  After getting my ice cream, we decided to find our bikes, but we realized we had to take the S-train and the Metro to get to our bikes because the walking streets led to some confusion regarding where we were.  Nevertheless, we found our bikes and biked home, then walked to Netto to get groceries for the week, rather, the next few days since Ian, Ryan, and I will leave for Berlin on Thursday :)  

Day 14--Remembrance, grief, and love: Roskilde

Today we all spent the day in Roskilde, which was a 40 minute train ride away.  Upon arriving, we met up with Mogens, who took us to a bakery, where he bought us whatever we wanted.  I got a Danish and some hot chocolate.  We then walked over to the cathedral there and toured the inside.  After that, we had lunch, then walked over to the Viking Ship Museum and spent some time there.  My favorite part of that was when we dressed in Viking clothes and posed for a lot of pictures.  We then took the train home.

Later, Ian and I went to Strecker's, a bar near Copenhagen Central Station.  We didn't plan to stay out very late, but the drinks turned out to be good, and the live entertainment wasn't bad either.  I had only one drink, a Mai Tai (a very sweet drink aka your classical "chick drink").  We succeeded in requesting several songs, including "Smoke on the Water," but they didn't play one of the songs we requested, "Piano Man," before we decided to leave at 2:15 am.  We got back at around 2:45 and quickly went to bed.  (This is why I am posting this a little late, so I apologize for that.)

Day 13--The end of work week 1

Today, I biked to work for the first time.  It was an easy commute overall, but I kept checking my map to make sure I was on the right path.  The first thing that we did at work was give Niels an expensive bottle of wine as a token of our appreciation for our trip around Denmark.  We then spent most of the day sorting out our information from the trip and starting to type up the final paper.  Lunch today was smorrebrod (note, the o's have slashes through them but I'm too lazy to figure out how to type them in).  Smorrebrod is pretty much an open-faced sandwich on bread, but there are a lot of toppings on it, including meat, veggies, mayonnaise, and more.  It was pretty good overall, especially the bread.  Also, there were some chocolate croissants still around, so I ate two of them; they were good too.  The bike ride home was easier than the bike ride there because I knew where to go, but I was riding against the wind for most of it, which was a bit annoying.  However, I like biking around Denmark, especially since it gives me an opportunity to exercise and get fresh air.  At 5, all sixteen of us met with the advisor.  We told him about our week and then he gave some general announcements regarding next week as well as tomorrow's outing.  I'll tell you more about the outing tomorrow.  Nothing much happened tonight, but maybe something will happen tomorrow night.  Anyways, I need to go to bed.  Good night!

Day 12--Around Denmark in 2 days--Part 2

So today was another long day.  Woke up at 7, had breakfast at the hotel, then we drove to a recycling center at the Ringkobing-Skjern municipality.  We had more free food and got to tour the recycling center.  We then went to Eso, which is a municipality company, which was the same deal:  tour plus free food.  Afterward, we went to Ribe, where we went on a guided tour of the Ribe Cathedral and part of the town, including the harbor.  The tour was very interesting, and the tour guide gave me a piggyback ride during the tour (well, just to prove something in history).  Afterward, we toured our final company of the trip, Dansk Affald, no surprise what happened there.  We then went to a nearby hotel to eat dinner, which was very good (again), and then we went to the conference where Niels would present.  We ended up arriving half an hour late since Niels kept getting lost, but we made it there.  Since the conference was in Danish, I went on the Internet for a bit since I had the Wifi password.  After the conference, we drove home.  I'm sorry this is a short post, but I'm pretty tired and I just wanted to write something down before hitting the sack.  Night!

Day 11--Around Denmark in 2 days--Part 1

So today was a very long day.  I got up at 6 am and had a quick breakfast.  Then, Chietara, Mike, and I took the S-train to Buddinge Station to meet Niels.  From there, we drove about 1.5 hours to get to Nyborg, where Trio Plast (manufactures plastic films from polyethylene), our first stop, was located.  Once inside, the next couple hours consisted of a short presentation (with coffee, tea, and the *actual* Danish pastry), a tour of the factory, and free souvenirs.  During the entire time I was there, I was thinking, "Oh my god, if I were a Danish citizen, I would totally want to work here."  The process was *beyond* incredible, particularly when the plastic waste was made into pellets, which were then melted and extruded.  During B term (or second quarter, for those readers who don't attend WPI), I learned about extrusion for a materials processing class, which seemed all right, but upon seeing the extrusion process in person I was thinking, "OH MY GOD I WANT TO WORK HERE RIGHT NOW!"  My time at Trio Plast was so perfect that I didn't expect as good an impression at the other two places we went to, Eurec A/C (a private buy-and-sell company) and RenoSyd (a public municipality company).  As a matter of fact, neither place was bad.  I learned a lot at both places, but the presentation at Eurec was very long, and I was very hungry during the presentation so it was hard for me to focus.  In addition, the tour at RenoSyd took place in the late afternoon, when I was starting to get tired and lose focus.  Plus, our time at RenoSyd was three hours, which was the longest amount of time spent of the three places we visited today, and three hours in the afternoon is not when I am most likely to pay attention.  However, the presenters at all three places were nice, and I got to see a lot of cool things and get some souvenirs as well.  Also, I almost forgot to mention that I SAW THE CLAW!  AT RENOSYD!  (Yes, it's the one from Toy Story.)

Anyways, Chietara, Michael, and I have been treated like kings during the trip.  Niels has paid for all of our meals as well as the hotel, and I might not be able to thank him enough.  The meals were pretty good so far.  Dinner was the best.  I had Danish minced beef (which is pretty much really good meatloaf), potatoes, cranberry sauce, and garlic bread.  In addition, although the hotel is an "old school" hotel that has actual key access instead of the modern card access to rooms, I get my own room.  Also, I think the pillow is some sort of off-brand Tempur-pedic because it *definitely* feels like my pillow from back home.  I will probably get a good night's sleep tonight thanks to the rooming situation :)

Speaking of which, I should probably go to bed early because I have a long day tomorrow as well.  Three more places to visit, plus sightseeing in Ribe, plus a conference (in Danish), so we probably won't get back to Copenhagen until midnight.

Day 10--"I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride my bike..."

Today, Niels wasn't at work because he had to attend a conference, but my advisor decided to come to work with us to have a look around.  After taking a look around and talking with "Jakob," one of the superiors of the organization, my advisor talked to us for a bit about our project, and my group and I decided that we'd meet him tonight for dinner.  We prepared for tomorrow and Thursday but we didn't have much more to do, so we got out at 2.  However, we got to meet everyone else in the organization for some coffee in the afternoon, including "Camilla," who is a student assistant in the organization.  Everyone seems very nice and helpful, especially Camilla, who gave me information on how to get directly to Berlin cheaply.  Yes, Ian, Ryan, and I are planning to perhaps go to Berlin next week for Easter break, but we haven't finalized that yet.  Anyways, after getting out of work, I went to Dybbolsbro to get a bike.  I got it for 1000 kroner (so about 500 kroner/month, which is pretty cheap).  I also got lights, since I need lights for when I need to ride at night.  I successfully managed to make it back to the apartment from the station, but not without checking my map several times.  I then decided to try to find the swimming pool nearby, just so that I would know where it is and so I could obtain membership information, both of which I did successfully.  My group and I had Domino's Pizza with our advisor at 6, which he paid for, and then we went back, relaxed, and packed.  I'll need to get some sleep early tonight because we're leaving early in the morning.

Day 9--First day of work

So today was my first day of work.  I woke up earlier than I had to so that I could get a microwave for the apartment.  (There was no charge to get it, but I had to go downstairs to the receptionist in order to get one.)  Chietara, Mike, and I left the apartment at 9:15 and we arrived at work a little after 9:30.  We got an itinerary for the week, and Niels went over it with us.  We will be going on a trip to various municipalities in Denmark on Wednesday and Thursday.  First we will take the 6:59 S-train to Buddinge Station to meet Niels, then we will drive to Trio Plast, a private company in Nyborg for a tour and interview.  We will then travel to Eurec A/S in Hedensted for the like.  We will then have lunch and travel to RenoSyd for the like, then go to Ringkobing-Skjern for dinner and stay there for the night.  Thursday we will go to a recycling center in that municipality, then Eso, a company in Tarm, then lunch, then sightseeing in Ribe, then Dansk Affald.  We will then have to eat dinner and travel to Holsted since Niels has to present at a conference.  The conference will be all in Danish so unfortunately we will have to find something to do during the presentation. After the conference we will then go back to Copenhagen; we will probably not arrive until midnight.

So to continue with how the actual day was, we started to prepare for Wednesday and Thursday by researching the places we were visiting.  We got a lot done, too, for we finished at around 3:30.  Lunch, by the way, was pretty good, and the best part was that it's free every day.  After leaving, I went to 3 different bike shops to find a bike, but with no success.  However, I will go to Dybbolsbro tomorrow after work if I have time and buy a bike there.  I heard that the bikes there are pretty cheap, so hopefully I will find something good.

So before I finish for tonight, I just want to warn you that my posts for most weekdays might be shorter than normal, unless something unusual happens that day that I would want to share with you.  I apologize in advance.  I'll be sure to still update you daily, especially since Denmark is an awesome place and you all should go there at some point in your life.

Day 8--"Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick's Day"

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  Slept in until 11 am, which was good considering the lack of sleep I got the night before.  We stayed in the apartment for a couple hours, then headed to the St. Patty's Day festivities outside of Copenhagen City Hall.  I drank some Irish coffee, which was pretty good, and I had some candy floss--er, cotton candy.  I also bought myself a green hat with a belt buckle on it.  There were many performers present, including fiddlers, singers, dancers, and a bagpipe and drum band.  The "master of ceremonies" for the parade was, of course, St. Patrick, who, ironically, was Scottish and looked like Sean Connery.  I got to be in a picture with him.  Anyways, the performers performed from 3:30 until 5, then people started to line up for the parade.  Yes, anyone was able to participate in the parade, so Ian, Ryan, and I joined the parade.  It wasn't too long a walk, and despite the cold, I enjoyed myself and it was worth it.  After the parade, I took a picture of Ian and Ryan with St. Patrick, then we headed back home, had dinner (Hannah was kind enough to make some for us before we got back, yay!), and relaxed.  Didn't go out again tonight since we all have our first day of work (IQP) tomorrow and we want to make a good impression on our sponsors.  In fact, my group and I tweaked our presentation a bit for tomorrow's presentation to our sponsor.          

Day 7--Attack of the Umlauts: Malmo, Sweden

Even though I didn't get back from the bar until 3 am last night, I woke up at 9:30 (mostly due to my roommates being loud), and I went with Ian and Ryan to Malmo, Sweden for the midmorning and part of the afternoon.  (Note that there are umlauts above the "o," but I don't know how to type them.  Also, there are no umlauts in the Danish language, but they are part of the Swedish language.)  We did not have a set plan for when we arrived in Sweden, but we were able to find a very lovely park with footbridges and a windmill. Ryan even decided to pretend to be a troll and have his picture taken under one of the bridges.  (There are stories about trolls under bridges, and these stories take place in Sweden.)  We then made our way to the downtown area, which consisted of many lovely walking streets.  There is a lot of foreign influence in Sweden, which was demonstrated by the Scottish pub that we passed that played American music, as well as the T.G.I. Friday's and some street performers that played American music.  We walked around for a bit and came across the St. Peter's Cathedral.  It was built in 1319, but when we walked inside, it was absolutely gorgeous.  Unfortunately, I could not take any pictures of it since my phone had been dead for some time.  (I only managed to take pictures of the park before my phone died.)  We then had lunch at the Espresso House, which had really delicious food that was relatively cheap.  After lunch, we walked around some more and went into a game store (board and card games, not video games), and a science fiction book store.  Later, we met up with more people from the apartment and we saw the church again before heading back to Copenhagen.  Ian, Ryan, Hannah, and I had dinner at the apartment, and we decided to not go out tonight since last night was very long.  I watched "She's the Man."

Anyways, looking forward to tomorrow, since it's St. Patrick's Day.  I'm looking forward to sleep in since I didn't sleep well last night and since the festivities won't start until 1 pm.  It'll be my first St. Patrick's Day in Europe as well, so things should get interesting.

Day 6--Share your shit: Meeting the sponsor

Today we had our last day of language classes.  I was particularly alert for that class, given that part of the class was learning about the education system in Denmark versus that in the US.  Apparently, a 4-year university education in Denmark (as well as Europe in general) is equivalent to a Master's Degree in the US.  That made me understand how disconnected the US is from the rest of the developed world in terms of education, and that the US government needs to really wake up and smell the roses.  During a break in the class we finally got our student IDs in order to gain access to the university at any time during our stay (as well as to the student bar in nearby Norreport).  In addition, the chefs at the university prepared a really nice meal with roasted potatoes and bread and something that resembled a latke.  After lunch, each project group headed to their respective sponsors for an introductory meeting.  My group was able to easily find the Danish Waste Association by taking the S-toget to Vanlose, taking the Metro from Vanlose to Forum, and walking about a block or two down and a block over.  The inside of the building is really nice, and several organizations share it, including the Danish Waste Association.  Painted on the wall of the hallway of the Danish Waste Association is "Share your shit" which means to share the resources among everyone and everything, much like a cycle.  Once we got to the end of the hall, we met our sponsor, Niels.  He is really tall, about 6'-6" or 6'-7", and he is pretty lanky as well.  He showed us around the building and introduced us to the others who work for the organization.  They all seem very nice and they speak English pretty well.  Niels then showed us our office and then told us about what would happen next week.  We will come in on Monday at 10 am and make a quick presentation of our proposal.  We are also scheduled to travel to various municipalities all over Denmark on Wednesday and Thursday and interview people from those municipalities.  I am looking forward to the traveling, but we will not be back in town until very late on Thursday.  In addition, aside from Monday, we might have to come in at around 7 or 8am each morning because that's when Niels comes in to work.  In addition, while I was pleased to know we have free lunches, I was not pleased to find out that we do not have free bikes.  This means I might have to find a place that sells cheap bikes and buy one, fast.  Two of my roommates have bikes already from their sponsor, and I am insanely jealous of them, since I really want to make biking an everyday part of my time here in Copenhagen.  Well, I am determined to find a bike, especially since work is not terribly far from my apartment.  My daily commute would involve biking with the lakes to one side.  This would be a beautiful commute, indeed.  After getting back to the apartment, we relaxed for a little while, then we went to Norreport for a group dinner at a Turkish buffet restaurant.  The dinner was really good and I stuffed myself.  This turned out to be good because all of us went to a bar several hours later, and I had a can of hard cider and 2 shots of tequila and didn't feel a thing.  The bar had good music for dancing, so it turned out to be fun.  I even met a couple Danish guys and we made small talk for a bit.  I didn't get back home until 3 am though so I passed out as soon as I got home.  

Day 5--The Queen designs her own carpet

Today we had language class, as usual.  However, it was shortened because we had a 1:00 appointment with a member of the Folketing, aka the Danish Parliament.  The appointment got shortened even more because we couldn't find the entrance to the Parliament, which greatly upset Mogens, who was meeting us there.  Nevertheless, we got to learn about what the Parliament does overall as well as the specific things the member talking to us does in the Parliament.  In addition, we got to see a session in the chamber, even though the session was conducted in Danish.  We then got to tour the ruins of Bishop Absalon's Castle as well as the Royal Reception Rooms at Christiansborg Palace, home of Queen Margrethe II.  It was very interesting to see what was there, but by the time I got back to the apartment after the tour, I was tired.  Additionally, my group (which consists of "Chietara," "Michael," and I) had to meet with our advisor to rehearse our presentation for our sponsor for tomorrow.  (We will travel by public transportation tomorrow afternoon to meet our sponsor for a short introductory meeting.)  My roommates and I split a pizza from the pizzeria across the street, and then we went to Netto to buy more supplies, including stuff we needed to make apple pie tonight.  Yes, in honor of Pi Day, Hannah and I made apple pie (well, Hannah made it, and I looked over her shoulder and helped chop apples).  I got to try some raw pie crust and some "apple cider" that was the syrup left over from boiling the apples and cinnamon.  (Of course, the pie was good, too.)  Anyways, last day of orientation tomorrow, which will end with a nice dinner.  IQP starts next week!  Vi ses!  Hej, hej!    

Day 4--Jeg vil gerne have en kop kaffe

Today was our second day of language classes.  I feel like I'm getting somewhat better at speaking.  I'm learning more phrases each day, such as "I would like a cup of coffee," which is the title of this post.  A bunch of my group members are now practicing their Danish, so that may motivate me into practicing my Danish, too.  Also, during a break midway through the class, I discovered a coffee machine (similar to a snack machine) close to the classroom we were in, and I successfully managed to get a hot chocolate, which was really good.  After class we took the subway and the Metro (note, they are not the same thing) to Nyhavn, where we were scheduled to take a canal tour at 2.  When we arrived, however, we still had an hour before the tour started, so we walked into a coffee shop nearby and hung out.  I bought a chocolate-chip scone and some Chai tea, both of which were delicious.  The tour itself was awesome despite the snowy weather.  I took probably 80 or so pictures from that alone.  After the tour a bunch of us walked home and we had dinner.  We then quickly dressed up and went to a ballet at the Royal Danish Theater.  The ballet consisted of not two, but three, acts. Here's what each act was about:

Act 1:  Basic plot creation. Boy from one kingdom meets girl from another, they fall in love, boy is supposed to marry other girl, first girl finds out and is unhappy. Pretty interesting so far.

Act 2:  Mostly dancers showing off. Near end of plot, first girl finds out boy is married to that other girl and is killed by a snake. Boy realizes too late that he loves the first girl.

Act 3: Boy shoots himself, then boy and girl dance in heaven among the angels, then about an hour of other showing off after that, with many times where the act could have ended, but didn't.

Show finally ends, with several curtain calls, but not all the actors come out. Also conductor recognizes the soloists in the orchestra.  By the time the show ended, it was 11pm, so we went back and called it a night.

Day 3--No "please" in Danish

So this morning we went by S-toget (subway) and bus to go to the Denmark Technical University for our first crash course in the Danish language.  In addition to a quick tour of the university, we learned some basic Danish phrases such as "What as your name?", "My name is...", "I come from (this place)."  I also learned (the hard way) that Danish is a difficult language to learn.  One particularly difficult thing is that the "d" is not generally pronounced like the "d" in English; instead, the "d" is pronounced kind of like the letter "l," but with less movement of the tongue.  I hope to become better with this over the course of the week, but as far as I can tell, I won't have to speak Danish at all since a lot of Danes speak English very well.  After the class, we ate lunch at the college, then we went to downtown Copenhagen and took a tour of City Hall and the Round Tower.  We even got to walk to the top of the Round Tower and take pictures.  The view of Copenhagen was pretty good; I got to see the top of the football stadium from there.  After the Round Tower we went back to the apartment.  Dinner was potatoes, veggies, and chicken (again courtesy of Hannah; if you haven't noticed by now she is an awesome chef).  Soon after that, my roommates and I went to the walking streets around Norreport and walked around a bit.  We even stopped at a place that made waffles on a stick, and Ian and I got those for dessert, while Ryan had churros.  We went back home afterwards and called it a night.  More language classes tomorrow, followed by a canal tour and then ballet!  :)

    

Day 2--The start of orientation

Yesterday I crashed at around 8:30-8:45 pm, then woke up at 2 and couldn't get back to sleep until 4 or 5, especially since several people from back home were online.  I finally was able to get back to sleep and then wake up at 9:30, but not before getting woken up several times by my roommate.  This morning I decided to relax with Ian and Ryan to rest from the previous day.  After eating lunch at the apartment, the three of us decided to try to find our way to the grocery store we were at last night, and once we got there, we decided to walk around the area.  We found and spent time in a toy store.  I didn't buy anything, but I did take pictures of the superhero action figures and Star Wars Legos and a pinball machine.  I also saw a Harry Potter-style wand as well as three pens representing Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin (not sure why Gryffindor was missing).  Afterwards, we found a fairly large park with a playground, and we spent some time trying to navigate the obstacle course. (Mostly Ian and Ryan did, while I took pictures.  Face it, I'm a swimmer; I'm not coordinated enough to do much on land :P )  We also found and bounced on trampolines, but they weren't normal trampolines.  They looked almost like manholes, but they were a lot sturdier than normal trampolines.  After a while, we had to head back since we had a meeting with our advisor as well as "Mogens" (pronounced "moans"), who is our tour guide and language instructor for the week.  Mogens handed out our bus passes and told us a little about the bus system.  We also took a short walk while Mogens pointed out a few landmarks.  Once we reached another park, we stopped, then Mogens pulled out shot glasses and some "Old Danish" beer.  After Mogens taught us how to toast, each of us had about half a shot (I had about a quarter of a shot).  The beer tasted like a combination of beer and medicine (aka disgusting), and I had bug-eyes almost immediately after, but I was fine after a little bit.  After that my roommates and I went shopping at Netto, which is a cheap grocery store; food is expensive in Denmark so anything cheap is awesome for us.  We then had chicken, pasta, and veggies for dinner (courtesy of Hannah).  We then hung out with people from another apartment for several hours before calling it a night.      

Day 1--Getting past the jet lag

My flight left Newark at 5:30 pm and arrived in Copenhagen at 7 am.  Overall it was a smooth flight.  The best part about the flight was Wreck-It Ralph.  On repeat.  There were two bad parts about the flight.  One was the food, as expected.  The other bad part was that the pilot told a funny joke when we touched down in Copenhagen, but the joke was in Danish, which I do not understand, yet.  Anyways, I exchanged my money for kroner (the Danish currency), left the airport, and took a taxi to my apartment.  I soon found out that, unfortunately, my apartment is on the fifth floor, and there is no elevator in the building, either.  So after lugging two suitcases and a backpack up four flights of stairs, I finally unpacked and settled into my apartment.  I then went back downstairs to the first floor since another person in the IQP group, "Andrea," had arrived at her apartment.  We had coffee, which I desperately needed, talked for a while, and then we decided to walk around Copenhagen for a bit.  She had a better idea of where she was going than I was, since she had arrived several days before and had stayed elsewhere.  We walked through a park that had a castle and a museum (I forget the names, and we didn't go inside either), then we walked towards Nyhavn and had lunch.  (I forgot to tell you that for breakfast, I went to this bakery across the street and had delicious chocolate scones.)  I ate a pretty good salmon sandwich, and then we walked down a pedestrian street and then took the S-toget (subway) in order to go back to the apartment.

Here are a few things to note about the apartment.  It has a small kitchen and bathroom, and the shower in the bathroom is weirder than the showers in Stoddard (the dorm I was in my freshman year).  In addition, there is a fairly large common room, a large bedroom (mine and Hannah's), and a small bedroom (the guys'), and the floor of the bathroom radiates heat to my feet, which is good because today was pretty cold and windy, which is normal weather for Denmark.  There are televisions in both bedrooms as well as the common room, but I assume that most of the channels are Danish.  Additionally, while there is internet, it is extremely slow on my computer for some reason, which means I might not be able to post as often as I want.  However, I will promise to do the best I can to get my experiences in Denmark out there.               

Less than 24 hours before I leave...

It's hard to imagine that in less than 24 hours, I will be leaving home to go to Newark Liberty, where I will fly to Copenhagen!  Yes, I have started packing; in fact, I have pretty much filled both my checked suitcase and my carry-on suitcase to their capacity, so I don't have much more to do.  I made sure to pack for 2 weeks so that I wouldn't have to worry about laundry too much.  I also made sure to pack a lot of warm clothes, since Denmark is likely to be cold for at least most of when I'm there.  I even managed to pack my bike helmet since I hope to do a lot of biking in Copenhagen, particularly to and from work.  I might need to buy more stuff once I arrive, but that shouldn't be too much of a hassle since there is time during orientation to get      that taken care of.  Yes, during the first week of my stay, there will be orientation which will consist of Danish language classes in the morning and some sort of tour in the afternoon.  More details about the orientation will follow shortly, but I am particularly excited for Wednesday because I will get to see a ballet.  Ballets are amazingly awesome, but I was in middle school the last time I saw one, so I'm really excited to see another one after all these years.  In addition, it will be the first Danish ballet that I've seen, so things will definitely get interesting.

Anyways, tomorrow, I will be leaving Newark at 5:30 pm and arriving in Copenhagen at 7:10 am (yes, it's a direct overnight flight).  I will be the first of my group to arrive that day, so that means I will need to find my own way to where I will be staying.  I also think I'll need a lot of coffee in order to stay awake so that I can get used to the six-hour time difference.  Hopefully, I'll adjust in no time.  Anyways, I'm really looking forward to an awesome experience, and please look forward to more posts as well as pictures!  :)  

Say hello to: Scandinavia and the world

My sister sent me this link a while ago.  Very hilarious and quite relevant to this blog.  Feel free to check it out!  http://imgur.com/gallery/Km7Ri

Flying to Denmark in 1 week!

Hey everyone!  My name is Jenny and I am currently a junior at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI).  The reason why I am writing this blog is because I am going to Copenhagen, Denmark in about a week.  I will stay there for a period of about two months to complete a project that is a graduation requirement for my school.  This project is called the Interactive Qualifying Project, or IQP.  The goal of this project is to work in interdisciplinary teams to attack problems encountered in society today.  My project will deal with improving the plastic collection system from households in Denmark, and I will be working with two others for this project.  We have already submitted our project proposal to our sponsor, the Danish Waste Association. From the two interviews with our sponsor, it seems as though my group is making good progress so far with the project.  I am looking forward to the work that my group and I will do once we are actually in Denmark.

I hope to gain a lot from my time in Denmark.  First off, during the preparation stage for the project (ID 2050), which was last term, I was not always focused on my work.  Granted, I had other classes in addition to ID 2050, so it was understandable that sometimes I just absolutely needed to focus on stuff for my other classes, such as exams.  I hope that since the only academic thing I need to worry about is this project, I will be able to immerse myself more fully in the project and get to understand not only the project, but also the people I will work for.  This includes not only the sponsor, but also the stakeholders that will be affected by this project.

Second, it would be nice to experience a culture that is different from the culture here.  One of the reasons I wanted to go to Denmark was that I really wanted to visit Europe in general, and Europe has a great sports culture.  I am a big sports fan, so hopefully I will be able to see a soccer (err, I mean football) match, or a handball match, or any sports match, for that matter.  I'm not sure which sports are played from March to May, but I'll be sure to find out as soon as I can.  There are also great opportunities to see a play, or an orchestral performance, or even a ballet.  The first week of my time in Denmark is orientation week, and I believe we will get to see a ballet performance, which I am really looking forward to.  Third, I really want to try the food.  I am on the varsity swim team at WPI and one of the things I learned from being a swimmer is to eat.  A lot.  I know that herring is popular in Denmark.  I have only tried a few types of fish, with salmon being my favorite.  However, I think it would be a good idea to try it as well as other foods that I am not accustomed to having.  Some food may be pricey, but I sure hope it will be worth it.  Plus, the taxes and tips are included in the price of the food, which will be interesting to get used to.

The most important thing I want to gain from my experience in Denmark is happiness.  This term and last term in particular, I experienced many ups and downs.  I won't go into too much detail, but it involved someone who constantly kept breaking my heart.  We are still friends, and I'm starting to get used to this and  even starting to feel happy again, but sometimes, I feel like I cannot move on and I need to look back.  I hope Denmark will be a place where I will gain happier memories that will help me get over those feelings of sadness.  I know that I will have three awesome suitemates:  "Hannah" (my roommate), "Ian," and "Ryan."  The contact person from my sponsor, "Niels," seems very laid back, and I heard from last year's group that he gave each of them CDs of Danish music.  (Did I mention that I like listening to music?)  There will also be opportunities to travel to other countries during the third week of my stay, since it is Easter break and there is no work that week.  Switzerland and Italy are my two top choices for now, but I'll see where the rest of the group wants to go before making a final decision.  Perhaps I will also meet cute European guys, which would be great, although I can't count on it, haha :)

I hope to blog as often as I can while in Denmark, once a week at the very minimum.  I will also be sure to take as many pictures as I can, which is saying something, since I don't usually take pictures.  Feel free to comment or ask any questions along the way :)