An update

It's been a very long time since I've blogged. In fact, I never even put the rest of those pictures from Iceland up. I swear, I'll get around to that. I have been keeping very very busy, flitting back and forth to Denmark for a few days when I can, getting started on preparation for my fieldwork, enjoying the beginnings of Spring after all the snow, rain and cold (although you wouldn't think it was Spring judging by today's weather, it was threatening to snow earlier and the rain has been lashing down all day).

Some snow from about a month ago

Life is a lot of things these days. I'm still coming to terms with my new Durham world, missing my old life a lot, getting to grips with my PhD. Being back in the UK is pretty strange, I honestly thought I had finished with all that, but this is life. I've been trying to get into a steady rhythm, getting up early (ish!), jogging and stretching, playing a lot of music (getting back into trad is hard, I've forgotten all my tunes, but rewarding), learning new things and being in a positive frame of mind.

I play in the ceili band at the college now, and we are pretty busy. It's a great way to meet people, learn new music (English folk music, who would have thought it?!), and go to events where, sometimes, you get treats (see below).

Nothing says 'It's Spring' like tulips, even if they only last two days before wiltage.

When Spring first came it was incredible. That Saturday afternoon, everyone was out and about, there was a noticeable shift in energy levels in the town. 

Yogi tea is incredible, not least of all because you get posi messages like this. 

Life is good. 

things i witnessed yesterday

Copenhagen can be a really quirky place when the sun comes out.

• An old man on a motorised wheelchair tearing up the path with a parakeet on his shoulder.
• An elderly lady, impeccably dressed, wearing a pair of Louboutins (the red soled, inappropriately high shoes usually the domain of fashion savvy young things).
• A young guy with knee high patent leather boots, smoking a joint that smelt vaguely of bacon.

 This was all in the space of 10 minutes. I don't know what to do with this information. I'll just leave it right here.

april is here

It's time for planning, writing applications, searching for jobs, learning Danish, rearranging the furniture, impromptu trips, and life-changing decisions.

Come one, come all!

I wish there were more hours in the day.

the week that's in it

This week I passed my modul 1 Danish test at Studieskolen. I don't think anyone expected to fail, but I take everything school related really seriously so I stressed myself out the past two weeks studying.

We had drinks after the test and it was so nice to bond with those I've spent the past 6 weeks with. Some of them are moving on to do other things, but the majority of us are continuing onto module 2 next week.

I'm applying for a college course. A big one. I'll say no more because I don't expect to get it, but this is a huge step for me.

I've been catching up with some really distant blasts from the past, it feels weird but it's very nice.

The weather today is beautiful, warm and only a fraction of the breeze there usually is. I'm writing my application and getting ready to go play some Irish music at Kennedy's pub later.

Have a nice weekend :)

Dragør

Dragør is a little seaside village a mere 12 kilometers from Copenhagen, but is an entirely different municipality, and so far from Copenhagen in terms of surroundings and atmosphere. It has a beautiful old town ('town' is a gross exaggeration, it's so tiny and quaint) with cobbled streets, and a marina that we like to sit at and discuss the merits of each boat.

We cycled there a few Sundays ago and spent a while getting to know the place. Spring was in the air but it was still definitely on the chilly side so coats were needed. That being said there was a queue out the door at the local ice cream parlour, and has been every time I've been there.  That must be some tasty ice cream.

 Did I mention that we had to go past the airport to get to Dragør? 

Amazing views of incoming and outgoing planes.

 

We rounded off the day with homemade meatballs and a movie. Idyllic Sunday: target achieved.

Since We Moved

We've been in the apartment for quite a long time now, and there's been a lot of hyggelig stuff happening, naturally. Today it went as far as lavender lemonade.

I haven't posted in so long, I know. Honestly, I've been very busy. Danish classes every day of the week, painting, and last week I went to Aarhus, North Sealand AND England.

An update is coming, I assure you.

weekend breakfasting | decorating (later came numerous paper cranes!) | planting | homemade burgers | my first glass of sweet martini | a salad of organic leaves from the window | coriander which is coming alive | spring on the windowledge

Malmö

Malmö is a short train ride away from Copenhagen. Until last week I honestly thought there were alternative ways to get to Sweden from Denmark, but turns out there's quite a bit of water separating them. My geographical skills are somewhat sub-par.

This is the view from the train- lots of wind mills, actually in neat little rows

To celebrate Leo's no-longer-birthday we went to Malmö on Sunday, not being content with one outing in the weekend. 

We found a row of huts that sell freshly caught fish, open from 8am to 2pm every day. After we meandered a little (and of course had coffee at a nice folksy cafe), we headed to the Sauna in the Sea, which we had heard a lot about and which was the real reason for the trip.

The image was found at this blog 

We paid 50 SEK and entered two separate changing and bathing areas, segregated by gender. The aim is to swim in the salty sea water (I only dipped up to my chest, while it wasn't as cold as it looks in the picture above, it wasn't more than 6 degrees IN the water that day!!), have a sauna in one of the saunas of varying heat, and then plunge into the cold sea water after. The decks you see above are meant for lying out on, catching some vitamin D and generally relaxing.

To use the sauna you must be naked, and generally everyone sunning themselves was naked too. Since I've been to the spa town of Baden Baden in Germany, the no-clothes spa experience is old rope for me. I generally think everyone could do with being a little more chilled out about their bodies, and this is the ideal way to do so while also getting some much needed r & r. 

I really enjoyed the experience, I was surprised how quickly I aclimatised and didn't even feel cold. My only negative was that it was a bit lonely being there all on my own. The whole point was to go as a two-some, to enjoy the experience together, but the gender segregation meant that, while all the ladies that went in twos and threes got to enjoy their chatting and relaxation time, I had to sit on my lonesome just because my partner was not a she-girl. I wish I'd known before hand, as I would have brought a book, or paid some woman to come with me. 

Malmö is a much nicer city than I had realised, it's full of beautiful old architecture, has a really pleasant town square with cafes and restaurants, and has lots of small parks, a central graveyard that is nice to sit in (they don't seem to have the same formality in graveyards here as we do in Ireland) and cobbled streets.

This cafe served cheesecake exclusively

To conclude, I'm a little sad that I'm living in Denmark and not Sweden. Swedes have gorgeous, lilting accents and are a pleasant bunch generally speaking. I might stand a chance of ever integrating and learning the language if I lived but a few miles across the sea, but alas. Alas. All is lost.

Somewhat tired (actually from that morning)

Hellerup, Bakken Amusement Park, and a Birthday

Last Saturday was Leo's 27th birthday, and, as we're not big birthday celebration people (well, he isn't big birthday celebration people, I love celebrations, but there we go), we kept it low-key.

I'm really relishing having weekends off, I can't emphasise it enough. The whole time I was in London I didn't get any free time to enjoy like a normal person, so it's such a novelty to sleep in on a Saturday and then lounge around.

For Leo's birthday we went on a trip to Hellerup, a beautiful suburban part of Copenhagen that's on the sea. We brought our bikes on the S-Bahn and then cycled up the coastal road, enjoying the fading sun and stopping at a few little beaches along the way.

We found the most famous petrol station in Denmark, design by the architect Arne Jacobsen. Architecture students flock from all over Scandinavia (well, Denmark, in any case), to marvel in the design of this gas station. I don't know if I share their enthusiasm, but then again maybe I'm just a philistine.

 

Bakken is home to the oldest amusements in the world. Entry is free, it's kitschy, colourful, and hosts a huge array of Danish people, many carrying giant chocolate bars or stuffed animals they won.

 It is surrounded by a huge wooded area, and I have been told that it's better in winter, when the amusements are closed and you can wandered around the shut down park like its part of a ghost town.

I didn't buy a birthday cake, because I'm a bad girlfriend, so when we got home from the cinema (we saw Stories We Tell, a documentary by Sarah Polley, it was really good) I stuck a birthday candle in an orange.

Happy belated birthday, mi querido.