Heading Home Soon

It is crazy for me to think that I am going home next week.  This semester has sped by.  With a week left I can't help but think, what do I still need to do before I leave?  When will I be back here next?  What did I gain from my experience abroad?

Going into this semester, I honestly did not know what to expect.  I wasn't sure if I would feel integrated into Danish culture, enjoy living in Copenhagen, or learn anything from the "studying" part of my study abroad experience.  But this semester has more than met my expectations, especially academically.  Many of the courses I took focused on a subject within a European context, which tremendously enhanced my learning experience.  For example, my Business class focused on the financial industry within the EU, my Art History class focused on european art, and my Criminology class focused on crime in Scandinavia.  

Another highlight of living here has been the traveling.  By the time I leave Denmark I will have been to: Denmark (hahah), United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Czech Republic....so many more countries than I ever imagined being able to visit!  

Tomorrow I am taking my last final exam and then I am off to Prague for 2 days with some of my friends.  I hope to write another post before I leave Denmark for good, but for now...it has been amazing living in Copenhagen!

Oh, and here are some fun photos from recent trips around Copenhagen:

Tivoli at Christmas Time

FC Copenhagen vs. Arhus Soccer Game (Final Score 0-0)

My Visiting Family

Throughout the semester, I have been spending time with a Danish family.  I have gone to there house for dinner on a few occasions and we have had conversations about differences that exist between American and Danish culture.  Recently, we discussed the differences in the school systems.  In Denmark, children stay with the same class from the time they start school until the end of middle school. As an American, it is hard for me to relate to this concept, almost 10 years of schooling with the same group of kids?!?  Thinking about this idea more, it can really go either way: a class can be super tight and have amazing dynamics or a class can dislike each other and be stuck together for years.  I am curious about others opinions on this, do you think having the same class for most of your schooling is positive?

On a slightly different note, yesterday, I had to say goodbye to my visiting family.  We went ice skating together.  It was strange to say goodbye to them because I don't know when and if we will ever see each other again, but it has definitely been a valuable experience to have the opportunity to get to know a Danish Family!

Here are some pictures of us ice skating:

Eating Out In Copenhagen

Its been a while since I have blogged, and seeing as I am heading off to Amsterdam tomorrow, I thought now would be a good time for a quick post.  Due to my mom visiting me, my birthday, and a friend visiting me, I have recently been eating out quite a bit in Copenhagen.  As the true Hill that I am, I figured it was time for me to blog a bit about my favorite places to grab a bite in Copenhagen:

- Dalle Valle: My favorite restaurant in Copenhagen is Dalle Valle located on Fiolstraede.  I first ate at this restaurant with my mother and we were able to enjoy a glass of red wine and snack on some nachos.  The nachos at this place are incredible, and the portion is big.  It is the perfect snack to accompany a drink.  Then, on my birthday, I decided to eat at this restaurant again with some friends.  This time I had the Dalle Valle burger, it was incredible.  If Copenhagen can make one thing well, its a burger, and this restaurant is very generous about toppings on the burgers.  Plus, Dalle Valle has half price on all food Saturday-Tuesday nights, there is no way anyone can go wrong by eating here.

- Tandoori Masala: My friend visited last weekend and we decided to go out for Indian food.  We are both Indian food lovers and have been missing the cuisine a lot since being abroad.  After doing some research online, we decided to go to Tandoori Masala located on Sankt Peders Straede.  I have walked by this restaurant several times and never even noticed.  To find the restaurant, one needs to walk up a little staircase and open the door located in a graffiti covered hallway.  We decided to split two dishes: saag paneer and chicken tikki masala.  We also ordered some naan.  All the food was excellent and very reasonably priced for Copenhagen.  I would highly recommend this as a cheap and delicious Indian meal in Copenhagen.

- Paludan Bogcafe: Paludan Bogcafe is also located on Fiolstraede.  I am a frequent visitor to this cafe, which in my opinion makes one of the best cups of coffee in Copenhagen.  Every cup contains freshly ground coffee beans.  I sometimes eat at this cafe and I am never disappointed.  I have had a sandwiches and the tomato soup at Paludan, however, last night we went there for dinner and I had split the warm goat cheese salad and a burger with the friend.  The burger was good, not as good as Dalle Valle, but I would still give it a solid B+.  The goat cheese salad was awesome, but didn't come with any dressing on it and i would have loved a little balsamic on top of it.  Overall, reasonably priced, and very consistent, have never had a bad meal here.

-Tight: On my mom's last night in Copenhagen, she took me to Tight located on Hyskenstraede.  Tight is a highly rated and slightly more pricy restaurant.  The menu is fairly limited, but the food is great.  Each of us had two courses.  My mom had mussels followed by duck for the main course and I had mushroom and truffle soup followed by a burger for the main course.  The highlight of the meal was probably the burger that came on fresh bread with a multitude of toppings.  The atmosphere of the restaurant was also a big plus, it was very cozy.  I recommend this place, but be prepared to spend a little bit more money on your meal.

-RizRaz: And finally there is RizRaz located on Store Kannikestraede.  Riz Raz is an okay restaurant. I went with a friend to the all you can eat lunch time vegetarian buffet, which I think cost around 70 DKK.  The food was decent, but didn't blow me away.  Some of the Mediterranean dips and side dishes were very good, but the pastas and pizzas were only mediocre.  I am not going to eat at this place again too soon, but the lunch buffet is a decent deal if that is what you are in the mood for.

I think that sums up my restaurant recommendations in Copenhagen.  Other than the restaurants mentioned above, I have had my fare share of street hotdogs, falafels, shwarmas, and meals from the market at Israel Plads.  If I do dare venture out to eat again, I will be sure to post my findings.

Barcelona, Rome, and Paris

After spending time traveling to Barcelona, Rome, and Paris, I have finally returned to Copenhagen.  The trip was spectacular.  I saw everything the three cities had to offer through exploring the streets, eating the food, and visiting cultural centers.  Here are some pictures from my trip:

Sagrada Familia

Tapas

Colosseum

Trevi Fountain

Arc de Triomphe

Eiffel Tower

 

Travel Break!

At the crack of dawn on Saturday, I am off to Barcelona.  And thus begins my two week travel break.  I am spending the first week in Barcelona and Rome and the second week with my mom in Paris and Copenhagen.  I have never been to any of the cities I am visiting, except for Copenhagen obviously because I live here, so this will be an all around new adventure for me.  New food, new language, new culture....can't wait!  I will probably have limited to no Internet access while on my trip, so this will be the last blog post for a while.  Expect pictures and a long post upon my return!

I think its nap time...

Hello to all my readers out there, sorry if I have let you down this last week with my posts.  Truth be told, I haven't been doing much.  I was in New York last weekend for my cousin's wedding and I spent this week being jet lag and catching up on work.  I did have the pleasure of having a home cooked Danish meal last night in the countryside.  But besides that I have been studying, reading, writing, and sleeping.  Hopefully, I will be able to enjoy this weekend in Copenhagen because next weekend I begin my 2 week Europe travel extravaganza.  I will report again at the end of the weekend, but until then I am going to relax and nap and enjoy some down time. 

Occupy Wall Street

I wasn't assigned to write a blog post on this topic, nor does it have anything to do with living in Copenhagen, but Occupy Wall Street is a powerful new movement that I want to spread awareness about.  Occupy Wall Street was recently started, when a Vancouver company encouraged people to occupy Wall Street and protest the economic inequalities in the United States.  Since mid-September, the Occupy Wall Street movement, now referred to as Occupy, as spread to over seventy cities across the nation.  People are gathering to show that they disagree with the governments economic actions, giving tax breaks to the wealthy and bailing out the banking industry, to name a couple.

Occupy has sparked interest in me because it is the first time I can remember in my lifetime seeing the American people come together to peacefully show that we are done with inequality and are ready to see some change.  I have been thinking a lot about the way the Arab Spring has impacted recent social movements, and I believe that we are only beginning to see the ways that social media (e.g., Facebook and Twitter) can be used to organize change.  These tools are crucial in connecting people that care about similar political initiatives and actually want to do something about them.

I am living in Copenhagen, thousands of miles away from where the streets are being occupied.  I don't know where that leaves me in the realm of this movement, but for now I will continue to read articles, follow blogs, engage in discussions, and hope to see some positive change.