London Calling: Travel Break 1

As I write this post from Copenhagen, it is hard to believe many things: that today was my first day in class since the end of October, that I spent the past two weeks traveling around Europe, and that my semester is over in a little over a month. I visited London, Rome, Vatican, St. Petersburg, Novgorod, and Moscow. Today at DIS everybody was so excited to see each other, to catch up, and to trade tales of our time out of the country. There is so much to share about my two week eurotrip adventure, the best way to do so is probably just to share stories in installments.

The Millenium Bridge, as seen from the Tate Modern side

I spent my first few days in London with my childhood friends Dani and Jen. We were the best of friends when we were 10 and still going to Usdan, and were loosely in touch over the course of high school. But when we reunited in London, it was like no time had passed at all. We spent our time walking around, seeing touristy things, and reminiscing about the good old days. It seems like we hit every touristy spot in the city: Shakespeare's Globe, the Millenium Bridge (which gets destroyed in one of the Harry Potter movies), Big Ben, Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Whitehall, Downing Street, Trafalgar Square, the National Gallery, Portobello Road, and Oxford Street.

We saw the show "We Will Rock You," which is a musical with a questionable plot, illuminated by music from Queen. Though some of the characters were annoying, the songs were amazing and the entire show was a lot of fun. We spent the evenings hanging out with Dani's flatmates and friends from her study abroad program. We even ventured out to a Halloween party at a random club in London.

Trafalgar Square: It took such a long time to get up on this statue. We only made it because a random Italian girl literally grabbed me by the butt and pushed me up. Strangers took photos of our inability to climb, and somewhere on the internet there is probably a video.

After parting with Dani and Jen, I headed toward King's Cross (made famous by Harry Potter) to meet up with my friend Josh from NYU. I almost cried of joy, because seeing him reminded me about how much I missed school in New York. But we went for a long walk around the city, caught up on each other's news, and just enjoyed having a familiar face nearby. We cooked a luxurious hot dog dinner in his room. Not the classiest cuisine, but it was really exciting to have kosher meat since I'm a vegetarian in Denmark.

Josh was leaving for a week's break in Scotland and Ireland early in the morning, so I woke up, got out, and did some walking. I went to Temple and Fleet Street, and took a stroll around the London School of Economics. I met up with my friend Ben, and so began the craziest part of my stay. Ben invited two guys (Rich and Cody) who go to DIS but I did not know at the time, and they joined us at a random pub near Victoria Station. Then my friend Lana and her roommate came to meet us. After having a grand time, Rich, Cody, and I decided that we would stick together for awhile. We visited the Tate Modern, had dinner, and saw "Sister Act" in live musical form, and eventually headed back to Lana's flat for the evening.

Fleet Street, with St. Paul's Cathedral in the distance

Tuesday was a fairly quiet day. Ben, Rich, Cody, and I met up with another guy from DIS and went to the Cabinet War Room/Churchill Museum. We tried to get tickets to see "Inherit the Wind" with Kevin Spacey, but the show is sold out for months. We went to Leicester Square to see the Christmas tree lighting, to break the world record of most people singing Christmas carols, and for the premiere of the new movie "A Christmas Carol."

Ben and Rich being goofy

Since "Inherit the Wind" was out of the picture, we instead opted to see a play called "The Woman in Black," which I highly recommend. It was a gothic style horror play with just two actors. Unfortunately a school group was there, which made the audience a bit raucous. But I still really enjoyed the evening.

In a series of remarkable coincidences, Rich and Cody were also flying to Rome from London on Wednesday morning. We met up with Lana and her roommates at a sports cafe, then returned to pick up our bags, and headed off to Stansted airport for the next leg of our adventure. We took a bus to the airport so we could take naps, but I had no hope at a decent night's sleep since my flight was at 6:10 a.m. I flew on Ryanair, which was a little bit sketchy. But it was very early in the morning and I just wanted to get some sleep, especially since my trip had thus far been a series of late nights and early mornings.

Overall, being in London was very exciting - English was music to my ears, though it took awhile for me to understand that I was listening to a language that I actually understand, and not just Danish. It was nice to be in a big city again, though navigating public transportation was a bit daunting at first. I loved being a tourist for a short while, and seeing all of the sites that we hear about or see on postcards. But most importantly, it was lovely to see familiar faces and to spend time with my friends from home.

Good Citizens

Our last days in Helsinki were filled with Finnish culture and art. On Thursday morning we went to our academic visit at the Institute for Health and Welfare. We had a lecture, but had to leave early because employees of the Institute were staging a walk-out to protest governmental budget cuts. They were all wearing black and holding signs, and were preparing to walk to the parliament as we left.

That afternoon we went to another sauna - this time, it was the oldest wood-burning sauna left in Helsinki. All of the girls in the group piled in together to sweat it out. After about 45 minutes in the 100 degrees Celsius room, I called it quits. I went back to the hotel, took a shower, then primped before going out again.

Allie, Caitlin, and Me: Outside of the Finlandia Opera House

Our evening activity was a trip to the symphony, to watch the Helsinki Philharmonic perform. The show was lovely, and set everyone in the mood for a night out. After the show we found a restaurant where the hungry crowd could eat, and where we could sit at a big table and enjoy each other's company.

After lasting the last metro and getting impatient waiting for the bus, we decided to walk back to the hotel. On our way we passed by what seemed to be a hopping bar - there was a lot of noise, and a ton of people outside. As we walked, some fellows said, "Americanos? English?" Of course we said yes, and it turns out that they were with another DIS group. The bar was a karaoke place, and the best find of the entire trip.

Finnish people love slow songs for karaoke. My friends and I signed up to sing a Backstreet Boys song. While we waited, we witnessed a ton of odd choices. Some random Finnish man sand "Space Oddity," which turned out to be pretty good. There was also a rousing rendition of "Bohemian Rhapsody," plus some Finnish songs. But we were easily the best performance of the night. My friend Allie gave her camera to some locals in the bar so they could photograph our rousing rendition of "I Want It That Way," but I guess they got distracted since they ended up taking pictures of themselves. But we did get a few winners out of the night.

Our last day was pretty quiet. We paid a visit to the Chiasma Art Museum, where we saw the exhibit Elixer. It was pretty trippy, but the museum as a whole was very interesting. In the book store, I saw a book that I had worked with when I was an intern at HNA. That was a really cool feeling. But the day was quiet, and after a short lunch we went to the airport and flew back to Copenhagen after a wonderful week in the Baltic states.

As a whole, the trip was pretty incredible. It was a great opportunity to get to know my classmates and to bond with friends. But aside from the socializing and having fun, our group did some amazing things. We went to two countries that I would never have visited on my own. We immersed ourselves in culture, and got to know the feeling and flavor of each locale. We learned about healthcare, and the plight of real people in the post-Soviet era. We had a unique experience, a gratifying experience, and an enlightening experience - but most of all, it was a positive experience.

Architecture in Helsinki

Our first day in Helsinki was disgusting - there is no way around it. It was cold and rainy, and the wind would gust by and make you feel like you'd been slapped in the face by a giant. I considered taking Mary Poppins pictures, with me blowing away with an umbrella, but the umbrella kept flipping inside out, and I just wanted to go find a warm cafe corner.

Our first stop was the Temppeliaukion Kirkko, a church in Helsinki carved entirely out of rock. It was impressive to see, and it was nice to just sit inside quietly without and wind or rain.

After the church we went to the University Helsinki Museum Arrpeanum, a museum about the University of Helsinki and the medical school there. There was an enormous collection of old medical equipment and other medical oddities. It was really interesting to see what medical school, tools, and techniques were like a long time ago. There was a wall with models of babies with various illness that were used as teaching tools to help identify symptoms of different conditions. The building itself was beautiful inside and out, with a giant wrought-iron staircase and old-fashioned exterior. It was situated on the side of a square with a huge cathedral, sculpture, and fountain. The entire area was beautiful and the museum was interesting, but I would have enjoyed them more if I hadn't been soaking wet and and the weather hasn't been so dreadful.

We had free time, but the unanimous group decision was to hide in a cafe or some other warm place to avoid the horrible weather. After some free time for lunch and coffee, we jumped on a train to the Health Center of Kirkkonummi for another academic session about Finnish healthcare.

In the United States, we go to general practices with a few doctors and nurses who make up your primary healthcare. We see separate specialists at our own discretion, sometimes with a doctor referral and sometimes without. We jump around, and access healthcare in many different ways. In Finland, you would be a patient at a health center, a unit designed to meet widespread medical needs. In the office there would be dentists, ophthalmologists, and physical therapists, in addition to general practitioners. There is also a small hospital wing, with beds and nurses. All of these things are located in one building that is fairly close to your place of residence. The idea is that by making primary access to these services available, patients will be able to access care more easily, and prices will be kept down for everyone involved. The idea seems brilliant - make these treatments convenient and cheap with little to no red tape, and keep everyone happy. There are obviously going to be downsides, and the Finnish health system is far from perfect, but it was interesting and impressive to see how many services people could access at such a low cost.

The rest of the night was relaxed. Our group went out to dinner in what was aptly described as the Applebee's of Finland. We were slated for a "traditional Finnish meal," which consists of cream of mushroom soup, fresh salmon, and then a blueberry dessert. The place looked like it catered to American tourists, and the atmosphere was ruined by the jackhammering from construction next door, but we still shared a pleasant meal together.

After dinner the initial plan was to go out to a roof top bar. But I was cold and tired. SO some of my friends and I opted to use the sauna in our hotel. Saunas are an enormous part of Finnish culture - for five million residents, there are close to two million saunas. There are saunas everywhere - in even the Parliament building. We wanted to experience true culture, so we put on our bathing suits and went it.

Saunas are hot, usually kept between 60 and 100 degrees Celsius (between 140 and 210 degrees Fahrenheit). Our sauna was around 80 degrees Celsius. There were hot stones, upon which we poured water to create more steam. We took turns pouring the water and the stones and saying silly things (it felt like we were introducing an episode of Iron Chef). After about 15 minutes, you are supposed to get out, jump in cool water, then come back inside for a second round. By the time you're ready to get out, you are happy for the relief - you sweat like crazy inside. I have never been so sweaty from just sitting around in a towel (though I suppose that is good considering how often I do that).

Even though it was torturous at points, I felt incredible after going in the sauna. It felt like I had just exercised, and I felt like the toxins in my body had just melted out and evaporated. I went to bed that night feeling refreshed and much warmer than I had been earlier that day.

Farewell to the Enchanted City

It was with great fortune that my group was treated by sun (and considerably less wind) on our second morning in Tallinn. With some early free time, my friends and I went around the city, searching for cool things to purchase since Estonia is so cheap (10 Estonian Krooni to a dollar), and retaking some of out photos from the previous day so that they would look nicer. This is what Tallinn actually looks like, perfect clouds and all.

Later that morning we visited the Occupation Museum, which described the process by which Estonia became part of the Soviet Union, what the 50 year occupation was like, and how Estonia became an independent state once more. There were pictures showing Estonians rejoicing when the Nazis entered the country, and there are stories of Estonians joining the German army. At first, this seemed absolutely horrifying. But placed in context of the Russian occupation of the Baltic states, it makes sense. Which is worse - Nazis or Russians? People were so opposed to the Soviet occupation that they were fighting it in many different ways. For some men, that meant in a German uniform. After World War II ended, the Soviets remained in control until the collapse of the union in 1991. For a country that is younger than I am, Estonia still has an impressive structure, an active economy, and a unique sense of pride and joy in their recently obtained freedom.

The picture to the left is of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedrall in Tallinn. The church is Russian Orthodox, and it is like nothing that I have ever seen before. As beautiful as the building is on the outside, it is even more so on the interior. The main sanctuary was dark, and services were occurring so the room was filled with an eerie and beautiful chanting. The walls were decorated with elaborate gold moldings, and beautiful icons. I found one that depicted the last of the Romanov dynasty, among many other images of the Virgin Mary, Jesus, and the saints of Orthodoxy.

This church is located in the Old Town of Tallinn, directly across the street from parliament. Our tour guide on the previous day's walking tour explained that it makes an interesting juxtaposition, with Russia still looming over the Estonian government. This seems to reflect Estonia's place in the greater framework of Europe. As one of our previous guest lecturers explained, Estonia is a middle man. It is stuffed between Europe and Russia, and it is a point that connects the north of Scandinavia to the rest of southern Europe. It is the center point in drug trafficking and human trafficking routes. It is also a locus in the rising HIV epidemic in Eastern Europe and Eurasia. It seems like Estonia is still coming into its own as a country, feeling the pressures of nationhood from every direction.

After a second lecture on Tuesday, our group left the hotel and caught a ferry to Helsinki, the capitol of Finland. The ferry ride was smooth. I wanted to go outside on deck, but it was very cold, and windy, and the sea salt breeze was not as poetic as I hoped it would be.

Once we reached Helsinki, our group checked in to the Holiday Inn (which is much nicer in Finland than in the United States). We had a night on our own, so my friends and I wandered around, exploring the city and finding our way around. The architecture was interesting, a strange mix of modern and old-fashioned, with a splash of art noveau. It was pretty cold, so we found a bar/cafe (or baari as the Finnish like to call them) where we could sit, get drinks, and embrace local culture. We did not get a chance to mingle with any Finnish people since normal people are not out late on Tuesday nights, but we we did figure out the Metro, get to know the city center a bit, and figure out how to walk back to our hotel. Everyone was excited to explore the city further in the morning, and to see what makes Helsinki such a unique locale in Northern Europe.

Of Castles and Legends

It has been a long week, but indeed an incredible one. As part of my core class, Healthcare in Northern Europe, the 27 students in my track traveled to Estonia and Finland for 6 days. Our trip was a mixture of academic visits and sight-seeing, as well as plenty of free time for exploring on our own.

We arrived in Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, on Sunday night after a short but shaky flight. The plane was wobbling for awhile before take-off, which was not a great start considering how much I hate flying. But the flight was smooth, and I took a great nap. After checking in to our hotel, the group ventured out to Olde Hansa, a medieval-style restaurant. The decor was exactly how you would imagine an old castle to be - long wooden tables, lots of candles, and intricate tapestries. The waiters and waitresses wore medieval costumes (pointy elf shoes and all), and even the bathrooms had old style sinks and toilets. My food choices were a bit limited, but the point of the meal was the atmosphere, to introduce us to the culture of old Tallinn, and to allow the group to bond and relax together on the first night of our long study tour.

Jonelle and me with a waitress from Olde Hansa

Estonia is the farthest north I had ever been (though later this trip Helsinki would claim that title). At a latitude of 59°22'N, Tallinn is on a close line with Alaska. The weather promised to be colder than Copenhagen, but we did not expect to walk out of our hotel on Monday morning and into icy rain and gusts of wind, just in time for our walking tour of the Old Town. We walked through the cobblestone streets of the oldest portion of the city, taking in the view and learning about different sites.

As you can see, it was rather gray outside. This picture was taken at a dry point. But the wind was whipping around so strongly, picture-taking got a bit difficult. This was a particular problem for girls - half of the group pictures made everyone look like Cousin Itt. But despite the unfortunate cloud coverage, it was easy to see that Tallinn is beautiful.

The rest of our day was taken up by two academic visits. We went to the Terve Eesti Sihtasutus (Estonian Health Foundation) to hear about their work with the rising HIV epidemic in Estonia. According to the WHO, Estonia has one of the highest prevalence of HIV in Europe, with an estimated 1% of the entire adult population being infected. Though the epidemic is still concentrated in the Russian-speaking injecting drug-using population, the numbers are enormous when compared to the total population of Estonia. The Health Foundation that we visited targeted programs at employers and various companies, since an HIV-positive workforce is rising. We are not quite sure what the organization does or how it is financed since our guest speaker did not reach that point in her presentation, but it definitely got the group thinking about the consequences of infectious disease in Estonia and the rest of Eastern Europe.

Our second academic visit was to a general practitioner's office in Tallinn. Though our group got the feeling that the doctor did not particularly want to lecture to us, we tried to be open-minded and listen to her insights to the Estonian healthcare system. There is a shortage of doctors in Estonia, as well as a shortage of nurses. There is an increasing trend of medical workers leaving the country to seek higher wages (Finland is a popular choice of destination). However, the remaining doctors do what they can to provide adequate service and keep costs down. The clinic that we visited served 10,000 patients in the Tallinn area. There were exam rooms, a conference room, and a lab, as well as a salt chamber for respiratory ailments. Though there was no evidence, common belief in the area was that salty air was good for the respiratory tract when your illness was acute enough. Some members of the group were doubtful of the salt room's effectiveness, while others were captivated by the taste of it. (Yes, one student scooped up a small amount of salt to sample.)

The rest of the evening was free. Unable to bear the thought (or the price) or another medieval Estonian dinner, I went to dinner with my friends Caitlin and Allie. After dinner we wanted to go somewhere cozy, so we met up with a few of our other friends at a restaurant called "Peppersack." We sat for awhile in comfy chairs at wooden tables, sipping warm drinks.

After we finally left Peppersack, we tried to find a bar or pub so we could mingle with Estonians, but alas it was Monday night and normal people were in bed since they had class and school in the morning. We walked past the White Bar, which might have been trendy, but looked rather tacky without anyone in it. We also passed a bar devoted to Depeche Mode, but it was already closed at midnight. After failing to find any place that actually had people in it, we ventured back to the hotel, happy to have found some hygge and simply thrilled to be in Estonia.

Girls of the Golden West

This past weekend I traveled to Western Denmark with my program and core class. We did a lot of driving, some touring, and some academic activities. I'll write about the academic aspects of my visit in the near future, since most of the time was spent learning about the Danish healthcare system and I have plenty to say about that. We visited a hospital, a general practitioner's clinic, and the regional headquarters for southern Denmark. And while this was certainly an example of vast differences between America and Denmark, the non-academic parts of the trip brought to light the enormous differences between rural and urban Denmark.

Going into the trip, I thought that Western Denmark would be dreadfully boring, just farmland and not much else. To be brutally honest, the other cities that our group visited were not exactly bustling metropolises. Playing the New York City snob, I would call them quaint towns. But this difference in idea is part of what makes Denmark such a unique country, when considered in comparison to the United States, as well as when examined by itself.

Our first cultural visit was to the Rødding Højskole in the small town of Rødding. A højskole, (pronounced like high school), is a very unique institution, originally intended to prepare the uneducated rural youth to be active members of the rising democracy of Denmark. It was a way of communicating Danish culture, and preparing young people to be fine and upstanding citizens in the larger framework of Danish society.

Today, højskole is for students who are not sure what they want to study at university, and who want time to explore different areas and to really find themselves. These are boarding schools, which is a big part of the experience. Students live together with their teachers, which fosters a close knit and safe environment for learning and growth. There are no tests and no homework assignments - students are there only to learn.

The DIS group joined the students in Rødding for dinner and games - nothing fosters international bonding like a good game of dodgeball. We had dessert and some singing time, where all the students sang English and Danish songs. The favorites seemed to be selections from the Beatles, and other retro hits. After our activities were over, one of the Danish students begged to take us to Napoleon, the local bar. It turned out to be the only bar in Rødding, and it was on one of the two streets in the town. When we got there, it was a tiny, smoky joint. The only other people in there were three old people, who looked like they had been in the bar for awhile, and probably did this every night.

Our other cultural visits included a visit to a science museum, where I rode a segway (!). We visited a city called Sønderborg in southern Denmark. We had dinner at a restaurant on the harbor, and went to a huge outdoor concert in town. It seemed like everyone in Sønderborg was at that festival, rocking out to a band that is apparently very famous in Denmark.

After the music was over, a large group of American students headed over to local hotspot "Maybe Not Bob." Yes, that was the name of the bar. I don't get it either. But I had an amazing time. The place seemed like it was a scene for the underage crowd - there was a sign on the wall boasting an after-school special. It was a bit of a dive, with wood tables soaked in beer, walls covered in graffiti, and air so smoky you could hardly see the people next to you. But it was great music and great company. The DJ played some great choices (everything from the most current radio hits, to favorites from the 90s, to God Bless America - yes that really was played in a bar). But my friends and I danced all night, and all I could think was, "I really freaking love Denmark."

This entire experience was an experiment in nightlife in small towns. I am very used to being in a big city, so to me , Copenhagen is small. But for the people that we met this weekend, Copenhagen is the big city. There was something really nice about the way that people appreciate the small towns that they are from, and make the most out of what any city dweller might dub "limited resources." Though I do love the city, I am surprised to say that I had an amazing time in Denmark's south and west.

After a long weekend in Western Denmark, I was absolutely thrilled to return to my Kollegium and to be back in the city. Copenhagen is officially home, and I like it.

I Bought a Toothbrush, Some Toothpaste

I cannot tell a lie. Doing laundry here was a bit of a nightmare. One of the driers in my building does not work, but it was not labeled and it let you pay for use anyway. That was annoying. But there is of course one saving grace - great detergent.

On a separate note, I'm off to western Denmark for a long weekend. It is integrated with my program, so I will not be missing any classes. It should be really interesting to see what the countryside is like - the places that we are visiting are supposed to be very rural, and nothing like Copenhagen.

Run, River

My first weekend (not to mention my first full week) in Copenhagen is drawing to a close on this breezy, sunny Sunday evening. I spent my weekend socializing, touring the city, and exploring what it is to live like a Dane.

On Friday afternoon I went on a boat tour of the canals. I felt like a huge tourist, but I have to admit that the view of the city from the water, glowing softly in afternoon sunlight was really lovely. We saw a lot of tourist sites, including the famous Little Mermaid statue. Which, by the way, was not as large as you would think. It is actually tiny. And you can basically walk up to it and touch is (or decapitate it like has happened before). There were a bunch of spots on the tour where I had already been, and a lot more that I did not even know existed. I got a lot of good ideas for future photo ops and excursions for when I feel like being a tourist again.

The rest of my weekend involved exploring Copenhagen nightlife. DIS (the program that I'm on) rented out a club for a big "end-of-orientation" party. It was surprisingly entertaining. They played Michael Jackson songs, and bad music from the '90s. People were blasting music in the streets, but the most popular selections were by ABBA. A lot of the people wandering about were American, and very obvious about it ("OMG in America they totally don't have places like Viking Bar!"). And yet there was such a charm about it. Blasting old Swedish pop music is really endearing. And the '90s throwbacks weren't too awful. There were plenty of Danes. Maybe next time we'll go places that are a bit less touristy. All in good time.

Today was a very quiet day. Most things are closed on Sundays in Copenhagen, thanks to old laws that mandate which businesses can open and close at what times. It was quiet and much like a New York Sunday, though I could not go shopping and spend my hard-earned money. Even though there was not a lot to do, it was the kind of quiet day, perfect for walking and wandering, that you need every so often.