February is already almost over, and it’s insane for me to think that I am only a few weeks out from my class study tour to Brussels. Even though the days are passing by so fast, there are still plenty of fun and notable experiences in each week. This week’s highlights include the Danish holiday Fastelavn, more exploring of the city, and a spontaneous trip to Aarhus!
Fastelavn
On Saturday, my kollegium celebrated Fastelavn, a Danish holiday that American’s equate to Halloween. Traditionally, you dress up, eat good pastries, and hit a barrel with a black cat on it (meant to ward off witches). However, this is 2018 so instead the barrel is full of candy with a picture of a black cat on the outside of it. For the costumes, I dressed up as my friend Mac, and he dressed up as cheese. Together, we made mac and cheese. A bad pun, but a good time.
Exploring Copenhagen
This week, I was too busy on Tuesday to have a “to-do Tuesday,” but I still wanted to make sure that I got to explore Copenhagen. So, on Sunday I went to the Rundetaarn, a circular tower that has a beautiful view of the city on the top. It was originally made for horses, so the entire building is a giant circular ramp, instead of stairs (I’m still a little bit confused why there was a tower with the sole purpose of walking horses up, but I just repeat what the Danes tell me). After that, my roommates and I decided to hop on a new bus and get off at a random stop to see part of the city we hadn’t yet explored (the one downside to being so close to school is that it’s hard to force myself to get away from the central area). We ended up finding a Thai supermarket and buying ingredients to make spring rolls for dinner. Even though I have been here for five weeks, I love that there are constantly new things to discover!
Aarhus
As soon as I found out that my study tour for Wednesday was cancelled, my roommate Olivia and I decided to make the four hour trek to Aarhus. So, after class on Tuesday we took the bus there. Although it was night when we arrived, we walked around to see the city and ended up in an Irish pub to watch a bit of a soccer match, before we headed to our temporary home for the night. We stayed at the apartment of a nice Hungarian couple, aka my first real couch surfing experience. It was really cool to talk to them about living in Denmark, and the best part was that it was totally free! In the morning, we headed straight to the amazing ARoS modern art museum (the entire point of us going to Aarhus, honestly) and geeked out there the entire day. The museum is a must-see if you are in Denmark for more than a few days. Afterwards, we checked out the famous Aarhus library and grabbed some street food before heading on the bus home. During these types of days, you have to do homework as you go, so the entire bus ride back was spent hunched over, attempting to do my readings and take notes with the small amount of light that the bus provides. However, it was definitely worth it, and a good way to force myself to do homework (when the bus wifi doesn’t work, eventually you run out of excuses to procrastinate).
That was all for this week! This weekend, I am going to Berlin, so until then! Hej hej.
This week, I was too busy on Tuesday to have a “to-do Tuesday,” but I still wanted to make sure that I got to explore Copenhagen. So, on Sunday I went to the Rundetaarn, a circular tower that has a beautiful view of the city on the top. It was originally made for horses, so the entire building is a giant circular ramp, instead of stairs (I’m still a little bit confused why there was a tower with the sole purpose of walking horses up, but I just repeat what the Danes tell me). After that, my roommates and I decided to hop on a new bus and get off at a random stop to see part of the city we hadn’t yet explored (the one downside to being so close to school is that it’s hard to force myself to get away from the central area). We ended up finding a Thai supermarket and buying ingredients to make spring rolls for dinner. Even though I have been here for five weeks, I love that there are constantly new things to discover!
Aarhus
As soon as I found out that my study tour for Wednesday was cancelled, my roommate Olivia and I decided to make the four hour trek to Aarhus. So, after class on Tuesday we took the bus there. Although it was night when we arrived, we walked around to see the city and ended up in an Irish pub to watch a bit of a soccer match, before we headed to our temporary home for the night. We stayed at the apartment of a nice Hungarian couple, aka my first real couch surfing experience. It was really cool to talk to them about living in Denmark, and the best part was that it was totally free! In the morning, we headed straight to the amazing ARoS modern art museum (the entire point of us going to Aarhus, honestly) and geeked out there the entire day. The museum is a must-see if you are in Denmark for more than a few days. Afterwards, we checked out the famous Aarhus library and grabbed some street food before heading on the bus home. During these types of days, you have to do homework as you go, so the entire bus ride back was spent hunched over, attempting to do my readings and take notes with the small amount of light that the bus provides. However, it was definitely worth it, and a good way to force myself to do homework (when the bus wifi doesn’t work, eventually you run out of excuses to procrastinate).
That was all for this week! This weekend, I am going to Berlin, so until then! Hej hej.
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Maya is a senior International Studies major, spending the spring 2018 semester in Denmark through DIS Study Abroad in Scandinavia.
Read more from Maya at travelingpapaya.wordpress.com
Don't miss your opportunity to study abroad! Start your search at http://studyabroad.uark.edu/search/.
Maya is a senior International Studies major, spending the spring 2018 semester in Denmark through DIS Study Abroad in Scandinavia.
Read more from Maya at travelingpapaya.wordpress.com
Don't miss your opportunity to study abroad! Start your search at http://studyabroad.uark.edu/search/.
