Friday, May 28, 2010

Amazing Møn


The fields are alive with the color yellow on the island of Møn. Raps or Rapeseed is in full bloom and it is a beautiful sight to see. Fields of yellow and green, with a blue sky backdrop. It almost doesn't look real but then again, this is the land of fairy tales and Hans Christian Andersen.

Every year on Pinse Sunday my husband's family gathers for breakfast in the woods at a place called called Fanefjord Skovpavilion and every year I am grateful to be a part of this brilliant tradition and fantastic family. Not to mention, given an excuse to visit the exquisite island they are from.

Just an hour and a half from the city, Møn is a world away from anything else I have ever seen. If I had to describe how it looks I would say Door County and Cape Cod combined. I am instantly at ease when we cross over the bridge. Similar to how I used to feel living and working in Chicago and escaping to Wisconsin for the weekend.

The common denominator in both scenarios is family, and I believe the Danish expression for the feeling that brings would be 'hyggeligt.'

Monday, May 24, 2010

Cykel Style

The entire month of May has been dedicated to my daily commute to Danish class "på cykel" and it feels great. When the weather cooperates there is no better mode of personal transportation or way to see Copenhagen at its best.

It takes me the same amount of time to get into the center of the city from where we live by bike as it does by train, so unless I have an appointment or meeting after class I would much rather go by bike. You're saving the planet AND getting some exercise!

Of course your sense of personal style may suffer for the sake of the journey. I see many women on bikes with dresses and heels and I admire them. Unfortunately for me, I am not able to do a leisurely bike ride. Partly because my daily round trip is ten miles and secondly, because my brain still registers the bike as a form of exercise equipment.

My habitual race to make the green light, has just been transferred to another form of transportation. Not to mention the fact that all those spinning classes start to register in my brain and I cycle way harder than I need to, but I don't know any other way to do it. It's in my DNA. I come from a family of fast walkers. If you need to get somewhere, you put a little gas in your step, pedal to the metal, or in this case wind in your spokes!

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Holiday Season

Holiday season has arrived in Denmark and I'm not talking about Christmas and New Years. Easter kicks it off with a 4-5 day weekend and the rest of the public holidays follow suit.

It starts with Store Bededag or General Prayer Day the 4th Friday after Easter. A day that consolidates a bunch of holy days into one big (or store) day of reflection. Also known as a day when a lot of Danes get confirmed.

40 days after Easter there is Kristi Himmelfartsdag or Ascension Day, which typically turns into two days. I have to be honest, anything with 'fart' in the middle of the name is sort of hard to take seriously as a native English speaker.

The Spring holiday bonanza stops 7 weeks after Easter when the Danes celebrate Pinsedag or Whit Sunday, recognized on Monday. To sum up, there are approximately 6 public holidays between May 1st and June 5th, the last being Constitution Day in Denmark.

For a country that has proclaimed themselves as people to not be very religious, they sure have a lot of publicly recognized holidays that are based around church holidays. No judgment, just a reflection. How apropos!

Saturday, May 8, 2010

Feels like Home

Last night my American girlfriends, otherwise known as "the book club girls", and I had dinner at one of the best Mexican restaurants in Copenhagen, luckily enough just minutes from where I live.

The restaurant is called Que Pasa and it's located on a little side street in Vanløse, just blocks from where Van Morrison was inspired to write the song "Vanløse Stairway" about his Danish girlfriend back in the 80's.

The owner is from the US, grew up in Southern California, and was raised on Mexican food, just like one of our fellow book club members. Needless to say, the food was authentic, the service refreshingly American, and we found a new place to frequent whenever we get homesick.

The Beach Boys were playing on the radio, the food was delicious, and everywhere we turned we seemed to run into a another native American also living in Denmark. In fact, the woman who took this picture!

It was one of those nights when you wake up smiling the morning after. That's when you know it is starting to feel like home.
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