Fire Season

The past few days in Copenhagen have been crazy and filled with a ridiculous mixture of schoolwork and fun. I saw the ballet "Giselle," and went clubbing in Copenhagen's up-and-coming meatpacking district. I saw Muse in concert, went to the Icebar, and sang karaoke. I also managed to write a midterm essay, take three exams, create two powerpoint presentations, and outline a research paper. It has been quite hectic, but thankfully, things are really great.

Daylight Saving Time in the EU occurs a week earlier than it does in the United States. The sun sets at around 4:30 p.m. So I wake up in the dark, go to school in the dark, come home from school in the dark on some days, and obviously go to sleep in the dark. Cue seasonal affective disorder?

And so tomorrow night, I fly out to London for a few days, followed by a trip to Rome and a week in Russia. The madness of midterms means that fall travel break is here. So two weeks sans classes means two weeks of travel, fun, and games.

Icebar

We love karaoke!

Muse in concert at Parken

Allie and me during Muse!

Life in Plastic, It's Fantastic

When I first made the decision to study abroad in Copenhagen, it did not occur to me that things would actually happen here. And yet, Copenhagen is the home of environmental conferences, enormous cultural events, and other sorts of activities that lend to my countless adventures. Most recently, Copenhagen was host to the 121st IOC session, and the XIII Olympic Congress, where host city for the 2016 summer Olympics was announced. The four contenders were Chicago, Tokyo, Madrid, and Rio de Janeiro, and people from all of these locales made their way to Copenhagen to voice their support. Oprah and the Obamas were among the big names in town - I did not see them, though I certainly grumbled about how they disrupted public transportation and made me rather late to class, despite leaving early.

The true highlight of the entire Olympic event was the announcement ceremony, where popular music acts performed, and the host city was officially announced. I arrived at Rådhuspladsen in time to hear a live performance by the Danish band Aqua, of "Barbie Girl" fame. They are indeed reunited, back and ready to perform with more crazy costumes and hilarious songs laden with pop culture references.

When Aqua performed, it was actually a dream come true. Well, a dream of my 10-year-old self. And lived out in a way I never imagined. But still. I saw Aqua perform "Barbie Girl" live, in Copenhagen. For free.

I was still hanging out when the time came for the announcement of the host city. Chicago was the first to be eliminated. As cool as it would have been to see Chicago win, not to mention the United States, announced as a winner while standing in a sea of foreigners, I was not heartbroken. The other host cities had good bid presentations, and it seemed like the economic push that comes hand in hand with hosting something as big as the Olympics could be put to good use in other countries as well. Tokyo was next to be taken out, leaving Madrid and Rio de Janeiro as the final contestants. With great ceremony, the winners were announced:

Winning the bid is actually quite an accomplishment for Brazil. South America has never hosted an Olympics. Though there were people who doubt the city's ability to be ready for the games in 2016, but it is already slated to host the 2014 World Cup, so everything has to be in place (not to mention the Rio hosted the Pan American Games in 2007). Plus there are perks - almost all of the events will be held within city limits. Past Olympic games have involved locations far outside of city limits. During the 1980 Olympics in Moscow, events were held as far away as Tallinn in Estonia. But regardless, this is an excellent opportunity for Brazil, and it was very exciting to be in Copenhagen for the energy and excitement of the Olympic announcements.

Many Mansions

Here in Copenhagen, I live in a housing option called kollegium - a Danish dormitory. This is where many students, both Danish and international, opt to live during their time as university students. There are about 40 Americans from DIS living here, as well as international exchange students and young Danes.

My building, Keops, is basically a complex of studio apartments. Each room has a single occupant. We get a bed, a desk, two chairs, a kitchenette, and our own bathrooms. There are larger communal kitchens in each block, which are equipped with ovens and a more suitable space for cooking, but each room has two burners and a small refrigerator/freezer. It is really not a bad deal, and with some creativity, you can practically host a gourmet meal (if you are willing to use the term very loosely).

My room has a a large window and a smoking porch (though if you want to help me feel classy, we can call it a balcony). My view is of a bus station, a train station, and a field where the gangs in my neighborhood have their drug war. The trains come frequently, but I've gotten used to the noise. And thanks to my view of the street, I can always tell if I'm about to miss the bus in the morning.

My desk is decently large, and offers plenty of space to store my books in the lack of shelving. I have a cute little chair in the corner, which is good for curling up on and reading/pretending to read and just looking out the window.

My bed is not its usual green hue, since I could only bring so much with me, and sheets were provided. But The person who lived here before me did leave a pretty cool and convenient mirror decoration, so it makes my room look a little more exciting and carefully put together.

In general, my room is pretty hygge. It feels like home, with my shoes all over the place and a makeshift nightstand. Soon enough I'll add some more color and personal flavor, maybe something more than this Danish beige color.

Black Coffee in Bed

The Danes have a concept known as "hygge," which lies central to their entire culture. I'd heard the word defined (coziness, as well as the absence of things that are annoying and the presence of comforting, gentle, and soothing things) and thrown around at various points. I think that today, I finally began to understand it.

After classes were over, I wanted to go somewhere to do some reading. I know that if I get into the habit of reading in my room, two things will happen. I will:

1. be unable to sleep because my bedroom (and probably my bed) will have become a place of work; or
2. be unable to focus, and thereby stop doing my school work.

While I have been trying to forget that I actually have classes this semester, I do have to get things done and not let my grades suffer. And this was a good excuse to do some exploring on my own. So I embarked on a journey to find a quiet cafe where I could sip a relatively inexpensive beverage and read some of my class assignments.

I decided that I would take the bus towards Trianglen, an area where I had gone last week to get my Danish equivalent of a social security number. I walked for awhile, trying to find the perfect place. I settled on a cafe table in an open square. I read successfully for awhile, but it was uncomfortable. The chairs were a strange plasticky wicker of sorts, and the table wobbled ever so slightly. The wind kept sweeping through the open space, and I got a bit fed up. So I walked around a bit more until I found a different coffee shop.

When I walked in the door and felt the warm aroma of coffee fill the air, I had a feeling that I had entered the correct establishment. I ordered a mug of hot chocolate with whipped cream, and climbed up a set of winding stairs to find big, black leather couches waiting for me. As I settled in and cracked open my book (about plagues and pestilence, no less), I realized that this place was really hygge. I had never been to this cafe before, and I definitely did not want to be doing school work when the calendar still read August. But I was cozy. All I could think was, "I totally get it now." I got why this is so important to Danish people. When it is windy and drizzling and the skies are gray, you just want to sit somewhere nice, somewhere without distractions, and without anything to make you feel anything less than comfortable. All you need is some hygge and good company, and you are good to go.