The long awaited return

We'll I've talked about it, dreamt about it, saved for it and eagerly awaited it for a year and a half... And now it's finally here- my eagerly awaited, long anticipated return to Denmark. And let me tell you, it feels bloody good to be back 'home'...

So I arrived in Copenhagen at 6:25am on Saturday morning. 22 hours on a plane... Sitting, catching up on movies, trying to figure out how the Turkish woman sitting next to me was going to get her Australian lime tree all the way home,  running frantically through Singapores massive never ending airport, feared missing plane, arrived out of breath, catching up on lost breath whilst waiting one hour for plane, teaching old guy how to use wifi, waiting, sitting, stretching, boarding, not sleeping, making friends with the two stem cell scientists from Singapore,  eating, sleeping, anticipating, watching the map, cringing 8 hours...7.......6.......5.......4......3....2...1 

Note to self: be aware of the time in Singapore upon landing to save frantic running... 

Finally landing... And so my adventure began and with a quick stretch of the legs, I was ready for  more waiting, more sitting and bag collecting. But this time instead of running frantically, I could walk at ease... Being back in a country where I could understand the language, read the signs and enjoy the Carlsberg sponsored sign 'welcome to the worlds happiest nation'- I was finally 'hjem' 

And so I walked through the airport doors and was greeted with a sea of Danish flags from my third host parents and a little surprise.... Three of my danish friends were there too! It was soo nice to see them and a little surreal because maybe it was a little bit of jet lagged brain but it felt like a dream! Driving to roskilde also fels like this.. Driving on the wrong side of the road didn't even seem that strange!  I was surrounded by so much familiarity that it feels like I have never left.

Arriving so early in the morning meant that I had a full day in denmark. I resisted the temptation to sleep and instead hit the shops (surprise) and went to Rosilde Havn with Paige, th australian exchange student who is currently being hosted by my third host family. We got some Paradis, aka the worlds best ice cream and soaked up the sun  wearing teeshirt on an 18 degree day (i think it's actually warmer in Australia right now). Then we came home and celebrated my host sisters boyfriends birthday complete with games, cards and Tuborg. 

Yesterday was another sunny day spent at an old town kind of like Soverign Hill in a town called Lejre. People pay to live like the Vikings for a week and wear all th clothes from a time that is wayyyyyy older than Australia. It was interesting to see the houses and what life in denmark looked like in the old days. The history loving buff is baccccccccccccck. Then Paige and I walked through roskilde, bought some fresh strawberries and sat by the harbour listening to music and sharing exchange stories. It was hyggeligt. Frikadeller and of course potatoes was a good way to end my second day in Denmark. Yesterday was also the longest day of the year in demmark so the run set at about 11..... 

And so begins day number three. Depending on the weather a Copenhagen trip may be on the cards... We'll see! 

hej igen venner

So, I've been doing some serious i miss Denmark google stalking of all kinds, and amazingly my blog comes up in some of the search engines! Can not believe it.

So for the people who have randomly stumbled across my blog- welcome! And for those regulars who popped in weekly to see what was the latest from the land of the Danes, sorry for neglecting my blog. Rest assured that there will be diariesofadane#2 when I make my return next summer!

BUT ANYWAY

For those who are reading this blog that stumbled across it because they are thinking about going on exchange to Denmark, my advice to you is DO IT

and for those randoms out there... you should also read this article..

http://www.buzzfeed.com/ailbhemalone/45-reasons-everyone-should-live-abroad-once

As for me? Life is going splendidly and I'm loving my university degree. I think about my exchange every single day, and every time I see a photo, or get a message from an exchange friend, danish or international, my heart sinks. A recent easter package from my first host family totally made my year. Danish easter eggs and candy were very welcomed in my potato deprived australian diet.

But anyways, before I ramble away random thoughts, i'll say adios amigos

See you in July Roskilde 2015, here I come

much love

jeg savner Danmark

For dem det kan taler Dansk, og forstå det godt, jeg vil første siger at jeg savner din dejligt land SÅ meget. Min hjærte ligger i Danmark og altid vil (jeg tror at det er ikke helt rigtig, men håber at du vil hvad jeg mener). Danmark er mit andre land, og jeg savner det alt for meget. Det er så mærkligt at jeg kan ikke bare cykle mere, eller ikke bare tage en tur til kph eller spise rugbrød :( jeg savner dansk mad rigtig meget.

Hvis der er nogle fra min søde klasse, 2R, det laser min blog i Englesk timmer... eller mathma, venner altså jeg savner jer så meget! 

Men jeg tror at jeg skal skifte til englesk nu... så mest kan godt forstå hvad jeg skriver. 

So tomorrow officially marks three week since I have left Denmark... yes THREE! That is so scary, time is continuing to fly right before me and I honestly thought that it would slow down since leaving. but it really hasn't. I mean its only a matter of weeks before I am off to begin my university degree! That is kind of scary to think about! But anyway, things are good at home... its nice to be home in a familiar surrounding where not much has changed apart from the car my family own and the place of everything in the kitchen. Sometimes I find myself confused about what language to speak, and often think in Danish and say random words in sentences. I miss speaking it every day... a lot more than I thought I would. 

Another thing I miss is defiantley the weather. It is SO hot in Australia right now. Like in the high thirties most days.. and for a danish adapted weather person it is SO hard to come home and have to adapt to these conditions again. And yes Denmark I am so jealous of your snow right now... It came ONE DAY AFTER I LEFT. I mean seriously. Jeg vil gerne laver snemanden! 

So enjoy it for me! I also miss biking... and have often found myself saying it would just be so much easier if I could bike. I actually went to bike to my friends house today, before turing around after the bike failed... so I resorted to the aussie way of walking. And oh boy do I miss danish food, especially the rye bread- but the lack of potatos in my diet now is doing me the world of good! I also miss all my host famalies, Roskilde and my class... It is so weird just not being able to see them every day... and so hard being on the other side of the world. I really miss that! 

I just miss Denmark in general! And it was so so hard to say goodbye. The last week was a total blur... really. 

On Monday the 6th of January, I went back to school for a normal day. That was nice after the christmas holidays to see everyone again. It was really strange to be back, and think that I would be leaving at the end of the week. Now that I actually speak Danish it just felt like I was a normal student at RKS. I actually really miss gymnasium even though I did little work... maybe that is the part I miss? haha anyway. It was a hyggeligt day with my friends. 

On Tuesday, I didn't go to school because I went into Copenhagen for the last time with my roomie from intro camp, a girl called Jayanna who lives on the other side of Denmark. I don't get to see her very much so it was really nice to catch up and talk about our feelings on leaving. We did all the touristy things in Copenhagen... basically saw the whole city in one day! We started off at Rosenborg Slot which is where the queens jewles are. This castle is SO stunning and I love it so much. We just walked around the castle as we had both been in there before. We then walked through the Kogens Havn which is in my opinion one of the most beautiful parks in Copenhagen. It is STUNNING no matter what the season. This took us to our next stop- the big three; Nyhavn, Mary's Palace and the Little Mermaid. 

We spent AGES at the little mermaid, perfecting our last minuet tourist photos. I have to say that I have become so fond of this little lady. She really is so beautiful and I know its not much of an icon, but she suits Copenhagen perfectly. 

For me, it was probably the most difficult to say goodbye to Nyhavn. This place is home to some of my most favourite memories of exchange throughout every season. I fell in love with the little coloured houses, the cafes, the cannal tours and just the hyggeligt lighting at night. It is such a picturesque spot and I can hardly wait to go back there! 

Being exchange students,  Jayanna and I were SO excited to find out that the queen of Denmark was making a tour around Copenhagen on the royal carriage... So we basically stalked the heck out of any official looking person, until we stumbled across the royal guard of horses. I dont even know how, but somehow we took the biggest short cut ever and cut off about 1km of walking and an hours walking time... If only we had of stumbled upon that earlier on in our exchange! Anyway, we found the royal guard and were so excited because we thought that the queen was there.... but she wasn't we had JUST missed her- damn it! But it wasn't that bad. I mean, we were standing outside Danish parliment building witnessing the Royal guard on their horses all dressed up which only happens once a year so it was pretty special. and great to see especially on our last visit!

Tivoli was shut much to my disappointment, but we did buy our last minuet souviners and make the most of our last stroll along the longest shopping street in Europe.. So sad to say goodbye to this place as well! We ended the day by buying a danish pastry from Laugekage hus- a really REALY nice bakery with the most delicious cakes. Jayanna had a strawberry tart and I had a cinamon scroll which is  a Danish speciality. We then took the train home and as usual, I biked home from the station... 

Wednesday was devoted to packing and stressing over my final Rotary presentation which was that night. My presentation was done in front of my whole rotary club and all of my host famalies were invited and all attended which was so nice. My friend Cecilie from my class was also there, which was so nice and she helped me relax a little. I was allowed to speak for 20 mins and I did this ALL IN DANISH! Okay, so lets be honest... this time last year I thought I would NEVER be able to speak danish let alone speak in front of 50 people in danish!

I was so so nervous, but really happy with the way that things went. I spoke about my experience in Roskilde, travelling, what I had learnt on exchange, all about my class, what I had learnt from each host family and what I am going to do now that I am back home. I also showed a video that I had made about my year in Roskilde.  I got a lot of positive feedback also which I was so happy about! It was actually hard to say goodbye to my Rotary club. They have been so so good to me throughout the year and I was so glad that I was put in that club. They are all so sweet and all showed an interest in my year and what I was doing and how I was progressing with the language. It is strange that I won't ever go to one of their meetings at Hotel Prisden again.. I miss them! 

Thursday was spent at school. Just a regular day. I finished my packing so that I would be free on Friday to say my final goodbyes and to enjoy my last day in Denmark! 

Friday was one of the hardest most emotional days that I have EVER had to deal with in my life (and thats coming from someone who sat the HSC!) I went to school, and saw my Brazilian newbie Fernanda for the last time. We both had free time, so we went over to the supermarket, ate my last actual Danish pastry and talked. It was so nice but so hard to say goodbye to her! Then the goodbyes came in my class... Last lesson with my class was so strange.. It did not feel like it was happening at all!  My class all wanted to see the video that I had made and before putting it on I said a little speech to my class, but kind of failed to find the right words as I just burst into tears... and a lot of my class were crying when I showed my video IT WAS JUST TOO SAD. Then I hugged all of them, said tak for nu and vi ses. Then some of my friends stayed after school because it was Fredags Cafe- which would be my first and final one ever. Fredags cafe are really unique in Denmark. Some Fridays after school, beer is served for the price of just $1! WHAT! It was really nice that this Danish tradition was on my last day. So I stayed for a while, and just enjoyed the company of some of my nearest and dearest Danish friends. I then got home from school and helped my host family set up for a dinner with all of my host famalies and two councilors. This was SUCH a nice evening.. and again strange to say goodbye to them all. We had danish smørbrød with cheese and sat around talking. It was nice to be with all the people in Denmark who had made my year so special. I gave my final hugs then went to sleep in my bed for the last time in Denmark. 

Saturday was a blur. I flew from Copenhagen airport at 2pm.... The space in between that time involved eating Danish bolle for the last time, taking all the stuff out of my room, checking in, praying my baggage wasn't over weight, saying goodbye, crying a lot, a lot more crying and finally getting on the plane for the 23 hour plane trip home... What a day!

The airport was really hard, but a lot harder than I anticipated. I thought back to last year when I fought back the tears saying goodbye to my family at Sydney airport, and realised that it was a completly different thing to be saying goodbye to Denmark and my danish family and friends. because my family in Australia will ALWAYS be there and I was always going to go home back into their loving and caring arms. I know that i WILL go back to Denmark at some point in time (hopefully a year and a half) but I am not certain when i will see the people who have become such an important part of my life again. So fighting back so many years, I said goodbye to my third host family and my first host family who also came which was so so nice. I then had to say goodbye to some of my best danish friends- Karoline, Karoline, Simon, Kristine and Christina. It was so hard to hug them all one last time and I was pratically loud crying going up the elevators waving at their faces savouring those last moments! 

I was greeted by a similiar crowd of emotional aussies in their badge covered blazers, hugged it out and hopped on the plane. I held my breath as we departed and reality really hit... exchange was over. 

So now, I find myself home, missing Denmark a lot, and feeling that I should write one more blog post for old time sake. Rest assured that diaries of a dane will make a return, as I know that I will have many more adventures in Denmark to come in the future. 

Until then, tak for nu og vi ses igen snart 

The final Diary

This blog post is very overdue, my apologies but in between surviving the amount of food consumed at Danish christmas, trying to pack a year into my 20kg suitcase, setting off fireworks, cooking Australian food and saying goodbye to people I love, I seem to have neglected my little blog. So I can hopefully cram everything I have been up to in this blog post. A whole 2 weeks worth!

So christmas has been and gone. There are no longer christmas trees in the streets, no more christmas songs on the radio and all signs of christmas have been put away until next year. But the christmas I experienced this year was very different to those that I am used to, and it is one that I will always remember. 

As I have probably written in previous blogs, December in Denmark is totally devoted to christmas related activities. Wether it is picking a christmas tree from the forest (which i forgot to write about in my last blog post) attending a julefrokost, eating, christmas shopping, baking more cookies to eat, attending church, Tivoli tours or just hyggeing, December is a really special month in Denmark. And christmas was just the same. 

I have been to my fair share of julefrokosts, with my class (which was by far the funnest) held on our last day of school. We all slept over at my friends house and went to school together the next day. It is a night that I won't forget in a hurry. And I have also been to one with my Rotary club which was also really nice. Before hand, we went to church, sang some songs and then went to hotel prisden (where our meetings are held) to eat more food and hygge. It was a really fun morning. 

I have also been to church at christmas time both with my school and with my host dad. My school holds a christmas service on our last day of school in the big famous church in my town. It was really really special to be in there and so hyggeligt. The next church service i went too was on the 24th in the morning. It is so cool to sit in the domkirken. I love it so much. There were christmas trees (of the real kind) and it had such a nice atmosphere. My host sister from number two family also sang so it was nice to see her before christmas! 

I am so used to having christmas on the 25th.. Waking up in the morning to open presents with my siblings and then hoping in the car hoping to avoid traffic to drive an hour to my mum and dads parents. This year christmas felt completly strange, because it was held on the 24th... in the evening. This was weird, because when does Santa come? Well in Denmark, Danish kids actually enjoy a live santa visit! Pretty cool. So anyway, christmas this year was at my host famalies house so in the day, the kitchen smelt SO amazing as my host mum cooked all the danish christmas food. Then, after all showering, and decorating the christmas tree (A REAL LIVE ONE) we were ready for our guests. Juleaften was shared with my host mums brother , his three girls, his wife and their dad (so my host grandpa) It was a really hyggeligt night. We all sat around at the dinner table eating and eating and eating. My favourite Danish christmas good is brown potatoes which are sugar covered potatos. THEY TASTE SO AMAZING! and it is one of the many things that i will be bringing home with me. Nanna expect them to be on the table next christmas. After eating the main meal, we ate dessert which is one of the best things about danish christmas. It is called Ris-ala-mand. This is like rice porridge, but sweetened and throughout it are little almonds. There is one whole almond in the grol and the person who gets it wins a prize. But if you get the almond, you have to wait until the whole bowl is finished before you say anything, otherwise it is no fun! I didnt get the nut unfortuantley, but it was a lot of fun. Andddd so after eating our weight in food, we moved to the christmas tree. This was a whole new world for me because Danes have many traditions surrounding it. To start with, there are actual live candles on the christmas tree that are lit on christmas eve. This was so cool, although i was a little scared because its a live tree, with candles in the middle of a house. The second tradition is to hold hands and sing traditional christmas songs around the christmas tree. This was cool to be apart of! We sang songs like little child in bethlam and ones that we dont have in English. Then we danced around the house singing "nu det jule i gen" which means now it is christmas again. We danced around the whole house through bedrooms and even went outside. It was crazy! And finally after all that, we sit around the christmas tree and opened presents. I got some really nice things, from my family back home in Australia and my host famalies in Denmark. They are all things that will remind me of my magical danish christmas. After it was about midnight, and we sat around with tea and chocolate. Then, went to bed.

And that was danish christmas.... day one

Day two occurs on Australian christmas day with another jule frokost. Of course, there is a lot of food involved. A traditional danish jule frokost consists of: lots of rye bread, herring, prawns, more sea food, schnaps, liver paste and frikerdellers (meat ball things). It was interesting to try of course, but I am not the greatest fan of herring. We ate this traditional food on the 25th with my host mums dad. We held it together with the same people that we were with on christmas eve. It was really hyggeligt and once again we ate so much food. We went for a long walk, and then played a game called packalej, which i am not sure if i have explained before, but basically it is a game that involves some fun gifts and a dice. If you roll a 6, you can take a gift from the middle of the table until they have all gone. Then a watch is started and you continue to play but instead of taking a gift from the middle of the table, you take a gift from someone else. When the stopwatch stops, you get to open all of the presents that you have. It is a lot of fun, and is played to most julefrokosts. It was a hyggeligt day. 

And finally day three consisted of us sleeping a little longer and relaxing. Which is Australian boxing day.

When comparing Australian and Danish christmas, they are both very very different. I really love December in Denmark, but I love that christmas in australia is for the whole day. I suppose maybe it would have been different if there had of been snow. But Danish christmas is something that I will always remember. 

And the next few days followed by as normal went into Tivoli a lot to see the fireworks, and it is sad to say that I have now been there for my last time :( until next time we meet Tivoli! And then before I knew it it was NEW YEARS EVE. 

NEW YEARS EVE is also filled with many traditions that we do not have in Australia. New Years Eve was again held at my host famalie shouse, so the day was spent making food, cleaning and setting the table. and covering the house in confetti from head to toe which was a lot of fun. We got all dressed up in high heels and dresses and were ready for our guests. New Years Eve also consists of food (surprise) but it is really good food, of the three course kind. We had delicious food! After eating, we went outside to let off fireworks in the front garden NO KIDDING! This was so strange for me because it is illegal to do it in Australia. But it was so much fun and I wish that we could do it in Australia. I was a little worried at first, but i ended loving setting them off legally! Denmark has some pretty cool traditions. After fireworks, I went to a party with my host brother which was really fun. Safe to say that I have enjoyed a Danish new years.

The first few days of 2014 have been a blur. My life has consisted of packing, unpacking, taking things out, weighing, crying, taking more clothes out, putting more in the pile I have to wear home and repeat. Packing a life into a suitcase is by no means easy, and it is really difficult as there is so many things that I want to take home with me. So many memories, places, people that I wish I could take, actually I just wish that I could take the whole Denmark home with me. The countdown is now just 2 days!


I have had to say my fair share of goodbyes and the really hard ones began when I said goodbye to Lauren. We sat Frost på Dansk which i Frozen in English. It is based on a H C Anderson story and I really reccomend seeing it. Although I cant see it in English anymore, because it is just so good in Danish!
On the 3rd of January I also had a hard goodbye when I invited all of the girls from my class over for an Australian dinner. This was so hyggeligt. I made an aussie meat pie, damper and of course pavlova. We also ate tim tams and they tried vegiemite which was the funniest thing i have ever seen in my life. I gave them all a little koala and kangaroo so that they can remember me and all the strange animals living in the land down under. They also gave me a really nice ring, with a four leaf clover so that I can wear it for luck. It actually bought me to tears. Saying goodbye to some of them was really hard. But they liked aussie food and we all had a nice night sitting around talking and enjoying each others company.
After, we went into town with some of the boys from my class. This was also really fun.
Sade to say that I will miss my class so so so much! I have been so lucky to have been placed with them. They have been so welcoming and nice. I know that I have friends for life.

I am now back at school a little on and off. On Monday, I was there for the full day and in the afternoon, I went to Jensens Beefhouse with Simon and Karoline. This was a tradition we had when I first came and we bought all you can eat ice cream and sat there talking and laughing. We reminiced that last time we were here, I did not know a word of Danish... How is that only a year ago? It was so hyggeligt! and I will miss them both so so so much.

Tuesday I was in Copenhagen for my last time with my roomie from intro camp Jayanna. This trip was really fun and we managed to tick off all the touristy things in Copenhagen. Starting off at Rosenborgs Castle, taking a tour through to the Little Mermaide, having a mini photo shoot there and enjoying the lack of tourists, then on to say our final goodbye to Princess Mary, moving on to my little kebab shop in Nyhavn then doing stroget and picking up some final souvineers. We were pretty tired by the time we hopped on the train! We also managed to pick up some Danish pastries on the way, i Mean gotto make the most of them whilst we can! It was a really great day, but I have to admit, it was a little hard to say goodbye to the places that I have enjoyed so many wonderful memories. On Wednesday which is yesterday, I packed my room almost completely up, cancelled my bank account, and did some other things around town. During the evening though, I gave my final speech to Rotary. This was for around 15 minuets in Danish. I was a little nervous, and a year ago I though I could have never spoken danish infront of 50 people for 15 mins. But they seemed to like it and understand what I said. All of my host famalies were there which was really really nice, and one of my friends from school whose Dad is in Rotary was also there. It kinda made me feel a little nervous that she was also there, so that was really nice. So things went well and I am really happy with how it went. In my presentation, I spoke about my experiences in the year, what I have learnt from all my host famalies, my class, my travels and what I plan to do after. I will also have to do the same for my Rotary Club when I come home. It was a really hyggeligt night and I do really love my Rotary Club. They are all so so sweet and I have been so blessed to have been placed in the club.

And so today is Thursday. Tonights plans are final pack so that I can just enjoy my last day in Denmark with no stress. I plan on going to school tomorrow to say my final goodbyes to my class, then going to something that is called Fredags Cafe which is a special Danish thing. It should be fun. Then, I will go home and greet all of my host famalies who are coming over to say final goodbye.

Thennnn Saturday ill hold my breath as they weigh my suitcase and say vi ses to the country where I have enjoyed the greatest year of my life.

See you very soon Australia.
I can not believe it!

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?!