christmas baking and other christmas traditions

A lot of people have told me that Danes eat a lot at christmas time. I suppose people would say that about us Aussies too, because who doesn't over induldge on fresh prawns by the pool on christmas day. But when this was told to me, I never actually thought it meant eating for the whole december month. But I'm not complaining because it tastes really good, and I will defiantley be bringing some tasty recipies home for you all to try!

So last Friday night, I had a break from the christmas stuff and had a hygge night with some of the girls in my class. After school, we all went christmas shopping in Roskilde which was really nice, and I am now finished with my shopping, for both my Australian family and Danish families!  We then caught the bus together out to where my friend lives, which is about 30 minuets out of town. I suppose it is the equivolent of living in Warragamba and going to Elderslie every day. She lives on a farm with horses which was cool to see. We all made dinner together, sat around painting nails for 2 hours and before we knew it, it was 11pm and we hadn't even put on a movie yet. We ended up watching My best friends girl, which was surprisingly good and then crashing at 1am in the morning. We were all a little tired the next day as we didnt really sleep much, but it was a really nice and fun evening!

I went home quite early for a Saturday morning and got a message that my friend Beth who lives in Horsens was in town, so I quickly got on my bike, and rode in to see her. This was just a quick little catchup, but I am so glad that I got to see her. I met her host family and we drank hot chocolate on the cold morning in Roskilde. After our little catch up, I rode home and began to bake christmas cakes with my host sisters. This was the preparation day, so we just made all the dough that we needed, as it had to set over night.

The next morning, we had a big day in the kitchen and I think in total we made around 7 or 8 different styles of cakes. My favourite are pebber nodder and brun cage which translates to brown cookies. They taste like christmas and I will defiantley be taking the recipies home with me so that I can make them every single christmas! We also made a gingerbread house, which was different for me as I am always used to just buying it in a box and decorating it so that was also really cool. We were all exhausted after baking so much and went to bed pretty early.

Then Monday came round and I began my last well not really official whole week of school here in Denmark. This is pretty scary to think about. After the christmas holidays (which start tomorrow), I have a week left of school but that is my last week in Denmark so I think that I will only go for the first 3 days or so. It is really strange to think that I will never go to Danish gymnasium again, when it has become just like normal for me now!

Anyways, as well as school, I have also been so busy with other things throughout the week.

On Monday, after school, I went into Copenhagen to see my friends from Odense who were there for the day. They were in Tivoli, and since I have a Tivoli card, I decided that I could just meet them in there. That was so much fun although I felt kinda ill after going on the plane 3 times. One of which was backwards and since it was so cold you couldn't really breath. My aussie friends Kate, Kathleen and Tristain were there with their language school, so i also got to meet a French exchange student who they were with. He loved tivoli as much as me, i think he is my new best friend.

On Tuesday, I had my last ever danish language school lesson. Its so crazy and I am slowly coming to a blog post that will detail 'this was my last.....'. This party was so much fun and hyggelit. Everyone bought a dish from their own country to share. I made lamingtons and the other aussie girl in my class made ANZAC cookies which i loved so much. The latin americans also loved her anzac cookies and asked me for the recipie of laming tons- cant beat aussie food!
There was also sushi, and a range of south american dishes that tasted SO amazing. It was really fun to have everyone introduce a special dish from their country and everything tasted amazing!
At this party I also gave a presentation on Australia in Danish. I was quite proud of myself as 11 months ago I never thought that was possible. yes by the way today i have been in denmark for 11 months! whatttt?!?!?! 

On Wednesday, which was yesterday, my Rotary club had their julefrokost (christmas lunch) You may have to become farmiliar with that word if you are an active reader as I am going to be attending a lot of these in the coming week! Before the lunch, my councilor and his wife picked me and my host sister up. She was also invited as she will be going on exchange next year, and be sponsored by my club. Anyways, before the lunch we attended a church service, which is something that I have ALWAYS wanted to do in Denmark. This was really cool, and the church was so beautiful. We sang traditional songs that apparently i have to learn by christmas eve, and then we went to Hotel Prinsden (where our meetings are usually held) for our christmas lunch. This lunch was HUGE and I ate so much. There were 4 courses and it was a very traditional lunch.
The first course was herring and rye bread (not too keen on the herring but ate it anyways)
The second was a crumbed fish on rye bread that tastes SO good
The third was a pork sasuage and potato dish thing with apple that is very traditional
and the fourth was rice-ala-mand (cant spell it, but thats what it sounds like)
This dessert is one of the BEST things about Danish christmas and I love it so much. It is basically this goey sweet rice stuff with a cherry sauce on top and throughout it you find chopped up almonds. In this dish, there is one whole almond, and the winner of that gets a prize. But if you get the almond, you have to keep it quiet and not tell anyone before everyone has eaten the whole bowl. It is a fun tradition and I can not imagine christmas without rice-ala-mand! So family, be prepared to taste it when I get home.
It was really nice to meet some more Rotarians at the christmas lunch also. It was very hyggelit and I had a fun time.
This was the final rotary meeting for 2013, and the first for 2014 is me making my presentation on my year in Denmark. This will go for around 30 minuets and will be in total danish. A little nervous, but it is a good thing that I have almost finished it!

And today is the last official day of school for 2013. Then 2 weeks holiday and then one more week in Denmark and exchange. WHAT!

As my year comes to an end, I find that my social calendar is very full and hard to squeeze last minuet things into.

Tonight, I have a jule frokost with my class which should be fun. I have heard SO much about last years, so I am really looking forward to it.
On Friday, I have to go to school to have a little meeting with all the exchange students at my school as a little farewell thing.
On Saturday, I have a julefrokost with my host famalies friends
Sunday is a little up in the air as I dont know what I am doing at this stage
Monday is the day before christmas, so who knows what will be happening
and Tuesday is christmas eve. WHATTTTTTT!
Wednesday is christmas in Australia and i imagine that your preperations are fully under way. I just wanted to thank everyone who has sent me a package or a card. I have appreciated it so much and am looking forward to opening them all on the 25th!

Time is flying! But I am continuing to enjoy my stay.

Can't believe it has been 11 months since I have been home, and only another 24 until I am back there again! Two people from my winter team have already departed Denmark, and my time will come soon. I am looking forward to seeing everyone home, but am not really looking forward to saying goodbye to all the friends and families here.

Hygge

Hygge; the danish word that I can no longer just translate to 'cozy'
It means SO much more to me than that.... here is a little video explaining its true definition

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLFUgEiEzs8&sns=fb

It is one of the things that I will miss about Denmark.

another weekend another adventure

Today is the 11th of December 2013... An insignificant day to most, but to me the 11th will always be of some importance. For the past nine months, it has been a date that is approaching too quickly... Australia is getting closer and closer everyday. 

When people ask me how I feel about going home, and I reply that I am not really sure, they seem confused and don't really understand my point of view. "Don't you want to see your family?" some say and when I reply "of course", they seem even more confused. I think that my feelings towards my home date are something that only exchange students can understand, and relate too. Of course you want to go home, but at the same time you will never have this life again. I won't just be able to go into Copenhagen whenever I want, or be with my class throughout those 8am-4pm school days. Life is going to be completely different, because I am no longer the 17 year old girl who left Australia. I always wonder if people will remember me, and if the friendships I shared with many before I left will remain the same.  Only time will tell... and the waiting game is down to a month.

But before I bore you with my sentimental and pointless thought stream, I promise you that this blog has a purpose. Like always, my weekend was jam packed with christmas related activities. I was even lucky enough to enjoy a little snow.

On Friday night, I headed into Copenhagen with two of my best australian girlfriends, Laura and Georgia. This may of been the last time that we were in Copenhagen together. We met two other exchange students in Copenhagen, from America and one from Canada. We had a really nice night together, buying our last souviners, and admiring the damage that storm Bodil caused in Nyhavn (check out my pictures!) crazyyyyyy. It felt like christmas as we strolled through the christmas market, and drank hot chocolate and ate danish gingerbread. It was magical, especially when it began snowing. Unfortunately, this wasn't really snow, but rather hail but to us Aussies, it didn't matter at all. It was a wonderful night in Copenhagen :) That night, Georgia slept over and we watched Mean Girls. It was really nice to catch up with her one last time before we head home!

The next morning, after eating breakfast Georgia headed home, and I got ready to go into Copenhagen again with my councillor and his wife. We went into Copenhagen to see the Danish Royal Ballet present the Nutcracker. I was so excited, as I love the nutcracker so much! It was held in the old theatre in Copenhagen, where I saw Romeo and Juliette earlier in the year. It was such a magical ballet. The costumes were amazing, the dancers phenomenal and the overall concept that the director and art designer had taken on were truly magnificent. The overall props were amazing. In the centre there was a huge christmas tree, and then when the room went into growing mode, it appeared as if it had grown 100 feet. It was a wonderful production and I wish i could see it again and again!

After seeing the nutcracker, we walked through the shopping street to Tivoli, where we ate dinner. It was so hyggelit to be in Tivoli again, and we walked around the park for a little bit looking at the lights and christmas decorations. There was still a little bit of snow left over from the night before, which adde to the magic of the setting! At one point, it was announced that there would be a show and it was on the nutcracker, and the water fountains came to life with lights and music from the Nutcracker. It was really cool to see.
We ate a feast for dinner at a restaurant that overlooked the Moscow tower in the middle of Tivoli. We ate entrée, main course and dessert, so I was very full by the time we caught the train home! It was a wonderful night, and I would like to thank Esben and Anita once more. I had a wonderful time. 

The next morning, I helped get ready for some of my host famalies friends to come over for the day. Every year they have a tradition where they are together for christmas to eat some danish christmas treats. It wasn't a lunch nor a dinner... more like an afternoon tea or in Danish 'hygge'. It was nice, and it was the first time that i tasted many of the traditional christmas sweets. The first one was Æbleskiver.. can't really describe it so here is a picture. Æbleskiver translates to Apple skewer in English.. Not really sure why since they don't resemble a skewer at all.

They taste AMAZING especially when they are freshly made. Æbleskiver's are traditionally served with a special danish christmas drink called Glogg kinda pronounced like 'Gluk'. I have heard a lot about this drink as there are some people who do not like it at all. Traditionally, it is made with hot red wine, and a whole range of mixed fruits but time time, my host parents used a different recipie and i LOVED it! I am even taking it home with me to Australia! Glogg looks like this: 

                   

So it was a really good weekend! This week, I have been watching Tvilinger og Julemand every night

Don't actually know what i will do with myself when the program comes to an end. I really like the idea of the christmas calendar, and think that it is something that we could defiantly introduce in Australia! I have also been watching Denmark play in the handball tournament that is in Serbia at the moment. I was also pretty proud to say that Australia had a team... until I saw them play. If Australia and Denmark ever verse each other, I come from Denmark! Sorry Australia! 

And now today is Thursday, and I am in the last two peroids of the day. Pretty strange to think that I only have a week of school left forever in Denmark. Its strange to think that I wont be in my class every day.... I really can not understand that at all! 

Anyways, this weekend I am quite busy. Tomorrow night I am having a movie night with some girls in my class which should be fun, then Saturday and Sunday is totally dedicated to christmas, and the making of christmas cakes! I am looking forward to that and will hopefully pick up some recipies so that I can create a danish christmas next year. 

Then next week will be a total blur with all the plans I have

Tuesday- christmas afternoon with language class (last class ever)

Wednesday- Rotary club christmas lunch

Thursday- christmas dinner with my class

Friday- official last school day

Saturday- christmas lunch

Sunday- prehaps another christmas lunch

And this resembles my social calendar for the rest of my time left here. So many people to see, so many things to do, NOT ENOUGH TIME

Seriously Denmark I just want time to slow down. and a little bit of snow. Is that too much to ask for?! 

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas

Having a European christmas is something that I have always wanted to experience. I have only ever seen what it would be like in movies as the snowy covered christmas trees, the magical lights and the concept of a cold christmas is very very far away from the Australian christmas that I enjoy every year around a swimming pool. Whilst I am yet to see a real snow covered christmas tree, European christmas is everything I thought it would be, and so so much more. 

In Denmark, I think December would have to be one of the biggest months of the year. Christmas is in full swing, and they do not hold back to show their love of the festive season. Around almost every town, there are special lights that light up at night, well rather afternoon because it is dark now at 4 30pm. There are also other decorations that add to the feel and get everyone in the festival season. At 7 30 every night, a show called 'julekalendar' (christmas calendar) comes on and famalies all around Denmark tune in to see it. I am actually enjoying it. Here is a short add, sorry its in danish

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CiO8SUUb7E

In my town now, there is are two REAL christmas trees that are yet to be decorated with decorations.  There are people wearing santa hats, and I have an excuse to wear cute christmas socks and sweaters. Quite a change from the Aussie attire of thongs and a singlet!! There are christmas lunches in nearly every weekend, and time is now dedicated to making decorations, christmas cakes, staying warm and counting down the days til the 24th, not the 25th! 

Some traditions mirror those in Australia. For example, most kids have an advent calendar which for those who have been deprived throughout their childhood, is a calendar where every day in December, you get a chocolate, like a countdown. This year, I received one as a gift from my host family on the first day of advent which is something that we do not have in Australia. In Denmark, it is actually a tradition to get a christmas present every Sunday in December. Why, I have no idea, but it is a tradition that I think Australia would like a lot! It is called 'advents gaver' which translates to an advent present. Pretty cool tradition! 

I have also enjoyed seeing Copenhagen at christmas. Last Tuesday, I had an early day from school so I met my friend Lauren in there. We had some souvenirs to buy, and we admired Copenhagen in the festive season. Along the shopping street, there were decorations that were really magical, and made the dark day seem okay. We strolled along strøget (shopping street) and came across a christmas market that had stalls made out of wooden houses. It was something quite special and I really hope it snows before I go home so that I can see it in the snow!

Shopping street in Copenhagen 

Lauren at the christmas markets we found 

WITH A SNOW MAN! 

One of the fanciest hotels in Copenhagen. The stage is set up to look like the nutcracker. really beautiful! 

After collecting what we needed, and feeling more like tourists than we ever have before, we headed for Tivoli. How do I even begin to explain Tivoli's beautifulness or magicalness. It truly was soooo wonderful and I thought that it couldn't get any better! The theme was Russian, so in the middle of the park, there is a tower that resembles Moscow. The colours are so wonderful. Lauren and I arrived there in the late afternoon, to see the lights being turned on at night. Amazing doesn't quite cut it. Hopefully these pictures will do it justice.

TIVOLI! Hard to believe that just 2 weeks before, it was decked out in so many pumpkins! 

The main entrance 

MOSCOW tower! 

During the day 

and during the night 

TIVOLI! so magical 

Tivoli om aften

How can you not love this?! 

Lauren and I enjoyed some christmas food from the little market stalls that are set up around Tivoli, we also visited Santa Clause and admired the reindeers that were nearby where he was sitting (ACTUAL REINDEERS!) It was a really wonderful day that totally got me into the Christmas spirit and ready for the days that would follow. 

On Wednesday after school, my host family and I drove the 6 hours to Berlin! If someone asks me if i have ever been there, I can say that I have been there 3 times, in the space of one year. Pretty crazy! The three times i have been there though, I have traveled there a different way. In April when I met chris and sal, i flew, for Euro tour back in May, we drove through Jutland (an island of denmark) andddd for this tour, we drove to the border, caught the ferry and drove the rest of the way. It was my first time on a ferry of that kind... where you drive your car on and sit on the top deck. It was around a 45 minuet tour, and the sea was pretty rocky! There was a border shop on board, where you can buy things like makeup and perfume cheap. Then we finally reached land- in the space of just under two hours I was in a different country. Europe's geography continues to amaze me. We arrived, and drove straight to the border shop which is something that I have always wanted to see. This is basically a four leveled store, where you can buy cheap food, fizzy drink and alcohol. It was HUGE! 

After this, we continued to drive the rest of the way which was about 3-4 hours. We arrived quite late at night and went to bed, ready for our first day in Berlin!

We woke up the next morning and after eating breakfast, we walked down the shopping street in Berlin which was close to where we were staying. Along the way we came across what would be the first of many christmas markets. It was so beautiful with all the lights that lined the streets and the little wooden houses. It was like from a scene out from a movie. The first day consisted of christmas markets and a lot of walking. We saw some of Berlins sights along the way.

The next three days that followed continued in a similar pattern.

We managed to tick off some of Berlin's major attractions- Brandenburg gate, the Reichstag, berlin tower, berlin wall (but a part that I have never been to before), berlin dome and Charlottenburg Palace (which I had also never been in before). Another attraction was of the restaurant kind. Being on euro tour, I only ever ate fried chicken served by our hostels.... and never managed to try one of Berlin's famous curry wursts- which i found out actually taste okay! On one of the nights in Berlin, my host family and I ate out at a blind restaurant. This was really cool, as it is a restaurant where blind people are the waiters. It is completely black inside so you literally can not see anything at all! It is quite difficult to eat, and you actually have no idea what you are eating, you just pick a type of meat you want to eat before you go in. We were guided to our table by our waitress, through the pitch black. We had no idea what the restaurant looked like on the inside, and it was so strange and quite funny to sit in the dark eating your dinner. It was a really cool experience. Another place we visited was called 'Das klo' which translates to the loo'. This place had so much character, there was a toilet at the end of our table and when you opened the lid, there was a little surprise that looked real. The dj of the night found out I was from Australia, and played 'down under' as we sat down. He then proceeded to ask me if i had tried german tomato sauce, and then squirted a bottle in my face that looked like ketchup but was actually just red string. It was a really fun night, and I recommend the place to anyone in Berlin. You are guaranteed to have a fun night that you won't forget in a hurry!

I really love snowmen 

Everything is dedicated to christmas in berlin- even buildings... 

Display in a shop similiar to Myer or DJs

At night! 

Check point Charlie 

Brandenburg Gate- for the third time ;) 

Beautiful Christmas tree at a christmas market 

Palace exploring 

Berlin Tower 

Beautiful Christmas market in Berlin! 

The main reason we were in Berlin though was for the christmas markets and they were really something special. The whole of Berlin seemed to be dedicated to christmas. We went to a shopping centre and the whole place was lined with christmas trees and christmas lights. It was quite a sight!

It was a really nice tour to Berlin and I had a wonderful time exploring the city for the third time! 

And now December is in full swing- where has this year gone?! Before I know it it will be new years! Just 38 days to go, and I plan on making the most of them. This week, I don't have too many plans,  except for Rotary, then maybe just a trip to Copenhagen to buy some last minuet things and then on Saturday a trip to the Ballet with my councilor and his wife which I am very much looking forward to and on Sunday, I have a christmas thing with my host family. The rest of my time here is just going to pass by before i know it! But I did manage to achieve one of my biggest aims for the school year;  a 12 in English! (which is the equivalent to over 90 )

For anyone having a bad day, check out this link.... another reason why I love Denmark so much 

http://www.upworthy.com/see-how-a-bunch-of-awesome-danish-people-made-an-immigrant-bus-drivers-day?g=2

stamina of a viking

I think that this weekend would have had to be one of the busiest, craziest and best weekends of my exchange. To say that I am exhausted is an understatement, but it was so worth it!

On Friday night, I had a hygge night with some of my friends from my class. I ate dinner out with two of my Danish friends at a place called Jensens Bøfhus in Roskilde which is Danish chain restaurant that is quite popular. Being a beef house, I ate beef of course. It was really hyggelit to eat dinner with the girls in my class! Roskilde was also really hyggelit at night, as the christmas decorations have been set up. The lights haven't been turned on yet, but there are little christmas decorations hanging off the lamp posts, similiar to the one in Camden. I am really looking forward to when the lights are turned on!

Anyways after eating dinner we caught the bus back to school (school on a friday night?!) for a thing called Råhygge. This is a special thing in Denmark that we do NOT have in Australia. It was really nice though, and had a chilled atmosphere. There was just some music playing and my class played cards. After, we went into Roskilde. It was a really fun night. 

On Saturday, I went to Holbæk, which is the neighbouring big town to Roskilde to have a hygge night/day with my four Australian girls who I was with on Euro tour. This was the last official time that we would be together. We arrived at around midday, and we ate lunch, reminisced about Euro tour (of course) and talked about what we had been up to lately. It is strange to think that we won't be able to do this next year. We watched a movie, ate junk food, and just had a really chilled afternoon. Lauren and I had a little surprise for the girls though. In the weeks before, we had made a little sash for each of them. We decided that it would be a good idea to award tiltes to the five of us and what we will be remembered for. I was awarded Miss Tivoli, Lauren was Miss Common Sense, Laura was Miss Rural and Kathleen was Miss Selfie. Each award suited us perfectly and there were a lot of laughter and tears when we all sat around opening them. After the movie finished, we all got ready to go out for dinner. We had chosen to eat at Jensens (again) hahaha but it was a really nice night. Kate somehow managed to fall in the water fountain before we even entered the restaurant, so she sat there freezing and pretty soaked. It was a good way to start the night. I think we sat in Jensens talking for three hours, and we even stayed there til almost closing time. It was such a nice dinner! After, we went out in Holbæk, came home and crashed!

MISS TIVOLI! 

The five of us with our sashes 

The opening of our sashes 

The next morning, we had bacon and eggs for breakfast, and then I headed home to Roskilde so that I could get ready for my first official Jule Frokost (christmas lunch) with some of the girls in my class. I carpooled with a girl in my class, and we arrived at around 3 and talked about Friday night, and then waited for the other girls to arrive. We then hoped in the car, drove to Netto (Danish equivlent of woolies) and walked around for a while getting together a few ingredients... But that was kinda an epic fail because we all stood there and were like "who knows how to make this danish christmas food" or "what ingredients do we need". It was rather funny. So we just ended up getting 'christmas pizza' which is just normal pizza with a christmas title so we didnt feel too dumb for not sticking to our traditional christmas theme. There were signs of christmas though. We bought a countdown candle and had that on our table, and made marzipan and nougat christmas confectionary. This is apparently traditional in Denmark, where you make like little animals. We then made pizza, talked and played a danish christmas game called 'pakkelige' where everyone buys some cheap fun gifts, and puts them in the middle... then you roll a dice, and if you get a 6 you get a gift.. then the next round if you get a 6 you get to pick someone elses gift, and if you roll a 3 you have to pass a gift on. Then the final round, all the gifts are open so you can see what you are taking and giving away. It was really fun and I have never played this game before! So the food wasn't traditional but the Danish idea of a christmas hygge sure was. I drove home with a girl in my class, then crashed pretty tired after the weekend!

This week is also pretty booked! Tomorrow I have an early day at school, so Lauren and I have planned to go into Copenhagen to finally buy our souvineers, and then on Wednesday I am off to Berlin with my host family and get back sunday where I have another christmas lunch. 

One things for sure, this busy schedule means that the remaining 48 days are going to fly by! 

oh and ps it snowed last night ;) YAY! 

what am i going to do without remoulade?!

weekend shenanigans

Another weekend has been and gone, December is creeping around the corner, and I now only have 54 days left in Denmark. WHAT! This timeframe is strange and scary... because before I know it is will be Vi ses Danmark og G'day Australia. 

This weekend was a pretty quiet one. It was actually the only weekend that I had free before I went home. Pretty crazy. 

On Friday night, I made some christmas decorations with my host family. These were hand made, and different to the decorations that I am used to in Australia, as they are more hyggelit, and are designed for the cold winter days that surrounds christmas time in Denmark. Actually, it is a little weird to think that christmas is just around the corner, as the weather is everything that I dont associate with christmas. It is cold, dark and rainy.... total opposite to Australia! 

I am really looking forward to experiancing a Danish christmas. Singing the song "let it snow" this year will make sense. I get my first taste of a christmas lunch or 'julefrokost' in Danish on Sunday, with the girls in my class :) I think it will be really fun. There we will play games, and eat traditional danish food. I am really looking forward to it. 

On Saturday, we had a quiet day in, except for a little tour to the summer house which, I was scared for my life for as this tour was not in a car, it was on a motorbike. I wasn't really too keen on this, as I am quite scared of motorbikes, having witnessed many accidents on the highway to Stuarts. So I was basically scared for my life on the back of the motorcycle..... But it was actually fun and I found myself enjoying it. I'm glad I experienced it, and am glad that I made it out alive however I think it will be my last tour on a motorbike!

On Sunday, it was just a quiet day around the house, but in the evening, my host family and I went into Copenhagen to see Stomp the Musical, which was really really cool. It isn't on the same scale as Grease, or Legally Blonde, but Stomp is in its own element. There is no singing, and hardly any talking throughout, it is purely through dance and rhythm that makes these characters and the musical worth seeing. The cast of 9 basically made sounds and music out of every day things... such as plastic bags, rubbish bins, brooms and kitchen sinks. There was a lot of humour throughout and it was a very clever musical- recommend seeing it to anyone who heads over to London's West End. 

Today I am back at school and so I will be for the rest of the week. Nothing really exciting is happening this week, weekday wise.... but On Friday, I am hoping to do something with the girls in my class, on Saturday I am having a day with my four australian best friends as the last time we will all be together and on Sunday I have a christmas lunch with the girls in my class. Booked schedule, but undoubtedly a great weekend and week ahead. 

A-Z of My Exchange

A: is for Autumn leaves because I have never experienced an Autumn so beautiful 
B: is for biking because I bike nearly everywhere now
C: is for cake because Danes love it so much
D: is for darkness because it gets dark at 4:30pm in Winter
E: is for Euro tour because it was the best 18 days of my life 
F: is for frikadeller because they taste so good 
G is for guff because it also tastes so good. similar to the inside of a pavlova that you put on ice cream
H: is for hygge, possibly the most important word in the Danish language  
I: is for ice cream because I ate so much of it during summer
K: is for København because i love the city so much  
L: is for liquorice and liver paste because they are some Danish food that takes a little getting used too
M: is for Mary because she is Australian 
N: is for nik and jay because they are a danish band that i love ;) 
O: is for the size of my mouth when I first saw snow  
P: is for Paradis is the best ice cream in the world 
Q: is for quarantine & Customs because in Europe it doesn't exist 
R: is for rødgrød med fløde and røg brød they are words that I can not sayS: is for snow because I hope that it comes really soon 
T: is for TIVOLI!!!!!! because it is my favourite place in the world
U: is for understanding because I understood nothing when I first arrived
V: is for very…very…VERY cold winter.... I mean I thought 10 degrees was cold! 
W: is for WEEKEND!!!!!! because today is Friday! X: is for x-hausted because sometimes I have nooo energy 
Y: is for youtube because sometimes in maths class it is my best friend 
Z: is for sleep  because I never seem to get enough of it 

made it to the front page of my school website

In history this morning the front page of the school website popped up. Turns out I made the homepage. This photo is taken of me and my fellow ring master from my schools party on Saturday night. Kinda funny as it is not the most flattering photo.... 

For those interested in my schools website to see what its all about, check it out :) http://www.roskildekatedralskole.dk 

humour

This is what I learnt at school today ;) 

For those not up to date with the scandanavian sterotypes, scroll down for my latest blog post!

Goodbyes

It seems that in between AT week, eating sushi, planning a party, attending a party, hygge, danish school and shopping in copenhagen I have fallen behind in my blogging adventures and am lacking a post about one of the most emotional, fun and saddest weekends of my exchange. Yes, Holbæk Get Together has been and gone. It was fun, it was exciting, it was sad and there were tears shed all over the place. My last ever Rotary get together. Where has my year and time gone in Denmark? Speaking of which, today there are exactly 2 months until I am home in Australia. It is now 11:15am in Denmark and I suspect that if we fast forward to this exact time in 2 months, I will be fighting back all the tears, giving my final hugs to the people who have become such an important part of my life. It will be weird not seeing my class everyday, not speaking danish everyday, not just being able to go to copenhagen whenever i want, or even just popping over to Sweden just to go shopping... A little thing called reality hit me at Holbæk when I reluctantly gave my final hugs to all of my exchange student friends from all over the world. For some, it may be the last time that I see them, which is weird to think about because each and every one of them have been an important part of my exchange. So many tears and hugs were shared and the weekend was just perfect. 

It all began on Friday night, with a 30 min car trip to holbæk. I was reunited with all the exchange students in Denmark, some of which i have not seen for 6 months and others that i have never met before (the newbies). There were so many newbies it was insane. The group of oldies isnt so big... there are around 44 of us, so we all know each other. It was so good to see them all again, and i was so happy to be reunited with my aussie girls from Jutland who I dont get to see as much as I would like. The first night consisted of dinner, and a disco with music until some ungodly hour of the morning. I think i went to bed at around 4:30am, and slept on the floor of a school which wasn't the most comftorable thing. But all of the oldies were together so it was so nice to 'hygge' together and be all together for the last time in our exchange.

The next morning everyone woke up a little tired and all nursed sore backs from that darn floor. Our day consisted of a little tour to Holbæk city, where we got to explore a little. Of course being Denmark, it just poured with rain all day, so the 2km walk into the city wasn't as pleasant as it would have been on a summers day. After becoming totally drenched, and purchasing a 30kr umbrella, me along with a group of aussies headed to a cafe to get some caffeen and recharge for what was going to be a very very long night. It was hyggelit to sit in the warm candle lit cafe and just talk about exchange and everything that we have all gotten up to. Catching up with all the beautiful Aussies reminded me how much I am going to miss all of them next year! We didn't really do much in the city, we basically tried to stay out of the rain and bought some supplies for the party. It was a nice tour though and Holbæk is a nice city even in the rain. 

We came back a little soaked and tired, but this did nothing to dampen our spirits! After eating lunch and changing clothes, we had some time to do some fun activities. You could choose from hockey, soccer or making a pumpkin cut out. But as oldies, we decided to make our own little activity and sign everyones flags, write in books and just hygge reminicing about all the wonderful memories we shared together. It is a tradition as an exchange student to have either a flag or a book signed by all of the people who have been important to you thoroughout the year. My danish flag is now covered in beautiful messages that I will have for the rest of my life. I did shed a few tears reading them later... The book however will remain untouched until I am back in Australia and have the emotional capacity to read it without breaking down.

Signing Flags 

Signing 

Aussie Hygge! 

After this little session, we had time to prepare for the Halloween Disco/party. This was a lot of fun, and there were costumes, makeup and texters going all over the place. Every person managed to dress up and some costumes were absoloutley awesome. Now that I think about it, this was actually my first Halloween, where I dressed up to celebrate the occassion. and believe me i will always remember it. My costume was a bunny, which I loaned from my host sister. But not the bunny from mean girls and not the bunny like a try hard with just the ears. This was the full shebang. I had a head, I had feet and of course I had hands. It was a lot of fun and everyone thought my costume was awesome ;)

So, to start the night off we had a formal dinner where every one sat down on round tables and in an ordered fashion went up and got food. It was a really hyggelit dinner and I sat on a table with some Aussie girls who I don't get to see too often.

After the dinner, there were some speeches from Rotarians, and then came the talent show where we were invited to put in some acts. Of course, the South Americans stole the show, so no one really wanted to dance after them.... their cultural dance was amazing, and i have said so many times that if i got the opportunity to do another exchange, I would do Brazil!

So, following the south americans, some americans got up and did a little fun rap, then more south americans danced and sung, then there was an amazing singer accompanied by my friend Beth on guitar, then the New Zeland boys took to the stage and totally blew everyone away with the Haka. It was awesome to see it live! Then.... it was my turn. Here is where the emotion for the night really began. It is a tradition as exchange students to have a farewell video that is shown on the last get together. I volunteered to make it and that was a good idea as it gave me something to do in class! Here is a link if you have 7 spare mins, i reccomend checking it out. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4c4fe-vhYA

This video was a success, and I made many cry. It was so fun to look back on our exchange year, and reflect on how far we have all come as people. I think that all of the people I came with in January 2013 have changed in more ways than one. We are now young adults, ready to dominate the world!

So the talent quest ended with a few tears, but that didn't stop the oldies from having one of the funnest nights of our exchange. There was a disco, with really high music and it had a party atmosphere. We all danced until the ungodly hours of the morning again. A band came along and played some live music, and of course there was a DJ, with coloured lights. It was so fun dancing all night long.

The next morning, everyone woke up tired, exhausted and emotionally drained. The final goodbye came, and songs from our exchange were played which only made us cry even more. I hugged all my beautiful exchange friends for what may be the last time, and wish the all the best with the future. It was a wonderful weekend.

I was picked up on Sunday morning, and slept for an hour when I got home because I was just so exhausted. Then, we celebrated my host dads birthday! It was a lot of fun but a very very very tiring weekend. 

Back to school monday for a week that is called AT. I had a similiar week to this when I first came to Denmark, but this time I actually participated and help (a little) with the final project. My class had this project based in Physics and English (yay for me). It was different to the last one, as it was a lot more pratical and it involved nearly the entire second year. It was based around the idea of making my school more green. My group worked with the idea of solar pannels, and installing them into the school. Obviously there is not a lot of sun in Denmark, so we had to think pratically about this. Our project ended really well and it was a hyggelit week. 

On Wednesday however, we were free from school as in Denmark it was a day where people work and earn money to donate to the children in Africa. The girls in my class however didn't participate and instead used the time to go shopping in Copenhagen. Very dangerous for my already overflowing collection of clothes. We actually went to a place that I have never been before- a place called Fields which is a thumping huge shopping centre! It was so nice to go shopping with them, and I only bought a little..... ;) we ate lunch together and just talked. We went home at about 4pm, and I stayed in Copenhagen to meet one of my Australian friends. The weather wasn't the greatest, and it gets dark now at around 4pm, so we got to see Copenhagen by lights. We stopped in Nyhavn for a coffee, then ventured further down the shopping street (our usual route). We finished the night off with a dinner in the shopping street, before crashing on the way home. It was a very fun day.

On Friday night, I ate dinner with one of my Danish friends and her Australian dad. It was so cool hearing an aussie living in Denmark and we talked about some cultural differences that we had both experianced.

The rest of the week was normal, however the weekend was not as I was at school on both Saturday and Sunday to hold a fete type thing with my class. This was to raise money for their study tour to Malga in Spain, that I will unfortuantley not be here for. It is a tradition for second year students to go some where in Europe, or even New York with their class. The purpose of this, I am not really sure, but I wish that i was there when my class goes. It would be a lot of fun, but I have been asked if i will buy a ticket to Spain from Australia, or even better have there study tour to Australia! Anyway, this  weekend was a thing called study fest, where every class in second year throws a little party for parents, and friends where they have some fun things to raise money. The theme of my class was Circus, so we set up our classroom like a circus. There were lights, coloured dots, bunting- the full thing. So we met early Saturday to set it up for the night. Everyone from my class dressed up like circus folk. There were clowns, dancers and a few ring masters (of which I was one). This was a lot of fun. We had a horse, and a cream throw thing where our history teacher was the one to cop the cream. I can now officially say I have thrown cream at a teacher something that not many people can ;). We ate some dinner and then partied the night away before getting kicked out at 11pm. It was a very very fun night and my friend Laura and her host sister came too.

Sunday, we were back at school cleaning up the mess that we made... it took about 3 hours. I went home, did an english assignment, read harry potter and just had a chill out day (something that I have not had in a very very long time). Then for dinner, we ate duck as it was a special day in Denmark where nearly half of denmark eat duck.. i am not really sure why, denmark has a lot of traditional days like this though. It was cool to experiance 

Today is Monday, and I have 2 peroids of school left... english and biology. Today has been a pretty normal day although I was quite proud of myself as I presented something in Danish to my whole class as part of group work. Never in my wildest dreams would I thought that possible! AND I GOT 7 FOR MY LAST DANISH ASSIGNMENT IN FULL DANISH! WOOOO HOOOOOO! 

Anyways, this week is pretty normal. Just school and hopefully will be sending a package home. On the weekend there are plans to make some christmas decorations and on sunday im seeing Stomp the musical! Should be a good week!

Love to everyone at home

See you in two months

xxx