Danmark Skal Videre

Denmark must continue was the rallying cry of Social Democratic party supporters who successfully elected Denmark's first female Prime Minister, Helle Thorning-Schmidt, on Thursday. In the 2007 parliamentary election, 86.6% (!) of voters turned out to the polls; 87.7% voted last week. There were nine parties running: 4 left-wing and 5 right-wing. Thus coalitions are necessary and many Danes anticipate another election before the proscribed 4 years because consensus will be hard to reach among the parties. Lisbeth told me anyone can start a political party with enough signatures, so I asked her what party she would start. She said the party for the good food. I'd vote for her. News channels broadcast not only the vote count but scenes from each political group's respective election parties. Helle's party played Beyonce's "Run the World." Listen here, I promise it's worth it.

Don't you hate when the internet figures out where you are and translates your webpages into Danish?

Also on Thursday Alexis and I visited the Rundetaarn, or Round Tower, a typical CPH tourist attraction. It was built in 1642 as an observatory (still operating), attached to a church. Like most things in Copenhagen it was ravaged by a fire and rebuilt. Unfortunately the day was seriously windy and slightly overcast.

 

Friday I volunteered at the SKC, again in the cafe. I was in the recovery stages of a cold and figured I should stay out of the kitchen, so I just sat around smiling like an idiot (which Mia's Argentinian husband Anico said we foreigners tend to do), looking at the pictures in Danish newspapers. I spoke with one man who has family in the DC area. It was hard to understand his accent but we talked about cooking, his family, and his daughter, over pita. Other users acknowledged my presence and even said hi but most couldn't speak english well enough to carry on a conversation. But I think at the end I'll have some great revelation of what my time there is teaching me. The following weekend was just great.

On Sunday afternoon Lisbeth and I joined Fin and Annette to go to their daughters Mia's and Sarah's birthday party in Copenhagen. Lisbeth's daughter grew up with Mia, Sarah, and their other sister Laeger, and the families have remained close friends. Mia works for DIS and is actually the one who chose me to live with Lisbeth (it feels good to be hand picked!). Everyone was so welcoming and friendly that I didn't even feel like a stranger. I was so grateful to meet them and their families (husbands and children included) and for their hospitality. And we ate a lot of great food. But that goes without saying.

Copenhagen's streets are currently tied up with the UCI 2011 Road Race World Championship = Bike racing to the extreme. For once my mode of public transportation is not the one affected (even though the entire mass of riders on my morning commute had to exit our train to get on  a new one). It's symbolic to Danes that the championship is being held here because bicycling is so central to their culture. It's an honor for sure. Quick update on my own biking skills: I begin and stop with no problems, and no longer get nervous when small children are within 20 feet of me.

Tonight I toured Norrebro Bryghus, a trendy little microbrewery, with a DIS group. Let's be real here, I didn't even know what beer was actually made of until tonight. We learned about that, and about the basic process of brewing and how beers differ. We sampled 4 kinds and I wish I could tell you what they were, but I didn't want to be that nerd taking notes on a beer tour. But trust me, they were good, and the one featured in the pictures is a dark ale with hints of coffee and maybe also chocolate. Yes, please.

Skål! (pronounced skol, translated: cheers!)

And last but not least, scumfydoozas. That's how you say marshmallows in Danish. Certainly not how you spell it, but at least sort of how you might pronounce it. As it happens approximately 3 per year, I got an intense craving for glucose syrup, sugar, starch, water, pork gelatine, flavourings, and stabilizer E450 all rolled into one irresistible treat. Lisbeth found them for me at Netto last week. They were better than Jet Puffed and possibly laced with addictive drugs (besides sugar). Just a little taste of home.

Legal

That's right. I'm a Danish resident...for another 3 months and 4 days, anyway.

And after last week I'm a cultural resident, too.
Tuesday was my first day actually volunteering at the SKC. We started at the Town Hall where artwork from the program's users was on display. Their talent, mediums, and subjects vary, but they're all surely more talented than I am. Check their stuff out here.

The picture to the left is the work of a man diagnosed with bipolar disorder (I think). The pages are from his planner/calender. The ones at the top with a lot of scribbing were during his manic stages, when he was socializing, travelling, and feeling energetic. The figure on the left depicts these periods. The nearly blank pages toward the bottom were during his depressive stages when he was withdrawn, anti-social, and - as the figure on the right depicts - spiraling downard. The remaining 2 hours of my shift were spent sitting in the cafe, smiling at people and trying to make small talk about the upcoming election (taking nplace tomorrow). As I spend more time there I hope to find things to discuss with the users because at the outlook we really don't have much in common.





Wednesday is "field study" day, as I've probably told you, which means no classes. My positive psychology class took to the streets of central CPH to ask the Danes why their nation is consistently rated the happiest in the world. We asked questions like: "What makes you happy and why," "What is your job and why did you choose it," "How much time do you spend with friends," "Do you feel safe," "Can you trust your neighbors and your government," among others. We didn't make any breakthrough discoveries. But I think it's a cultural difference in expectations that affects happiness, particularly in respect to comparing the US and Denmark. For example, rain sucks. The other day I said to Lisbeth, "I didn't know it was supposed to rain today. But I guess I should just expect it by now." So when you expect the rain and make preparations for it, you learn to live with it. Also we have different expectations about life in general, like what success is, why one should choose a field of study or career, the importance of meaningful social relationships, etc. However, Lisbeth thinks the Danes might be lying.

On Thursday, DIS sent over 900 students to western Denmark, northern Germany, and Sweden on short study tours. We travelled with our 'core course' groups, which for me was positive psychology section A. See some of their beautiful faces below (we have 27 students total).

DIS knows what it's doing by making us travel together so early on.
We began our journey began in Copenhagen (far right on the map below - on Zealand) and our first stop was in Esbjerg (far left on the map below - on Jutland). We drove across the entire country which took 4 hours. We crossed the Great Belt Fixed Link (aka East Bridge) which is a big deal because upon its completion in 1998 it reduced traveling time by 1 hour on ferry to 10 minutes by car.  But convenience is expensive - it cost 1050 DKK ($210) for our bus to cross one way.

In Esbjerg we went to hear about "The Skills Project" - an 8 week program designed to teach teens and young adults from troubled backgrounds about how to live physically and psychologically healthy lives. 83% of program graduates have returned to school or found jobs. Students actually learn psychology theories and how to apply them to understanding their childhoods, who they are now, and what they can become by focusing on their personal strengths. For example, one girl lived in 15 places and attended 13 schools in 9 years. Others became 'parents to their parents' at ages 9 and 10 due to drug addiction and mental illness. It's hard not to think that programs like this should be studied carefully and implemented more widely in regular schools.

We continued on south to Ribe, the oldest town in Denmark. Its cathedral dates back to 1100 and its monestary to 1220. We toured the Viking Museum which was slow paced but necessary. And a little disappointing. We didn't hear any elaborate Viking tales and we found out they didn't even wear horned helmets.



Props to David Gwynn for this idyllic picture of Ribe.



That night some of us embarked on the Night Watchman's walk, a practice in Ribe since..forever. Historically, the Watchman had the duty of a policeman, security guard, and alarm system. He traversed the streets at night looking out for trouble of any kind. Today it's pretty much the only source of late night entertainment in Ribe, especially if you speak Danish and can understand the witty remarks he makes at the end of each stop on the tour to the chagrin of obnoxious American students. Some highlights: there are buildings which have no 90 degree corners. If the street curves, the buildings curve with it. If you buy a house in Ribe you are required to live there. We saw the house of Jacob Riis who was a social reformed in the United States and published the prolific How the Other Half Lives.

Friday we traveled to Århus, the second largest city in Denmark, to hear an economist present his findings on happiness and the good life from various cultures. For shock value, I'll tease you with some of his conclusions: not having children at home makes people happier, Republicans/right-wingers are happier, religion doesn't make people happier, having money matters and the welfare state has no influence on general happiness, and happy people tend to have lower life expentencies. He also found that Colombia (!) ranked second in terms of happiness and Mexico ranked seventh. The class did some seriously critical evaluation of these claims.

Also in Århus we visited the KaosPilots, an alternative professional school for young adults. It's a 3 year program that doesn't offer a degree, but teaches/develops leadership and management skills. Students work in teams to develop projects, some of which turn into for-profit entities. We did some team building within our class, such as "checking in" to share our best experiences abroad so far, and shouting out our passions, angers, and personal strengths. I loved that the goal of the program wasn't to get a prestigious piece of paper with a school emblem and academic concentration noted, but to create something tangible and develop oneself professionally and mentally. I need to keep these things in mind even while I pursue traditional forms of higher education.

We spent the night in Haderslev because DIS booked all the hostels in Århus and we had to go somewhere. The town was quaint and we hit the bar for some live music.

Saturday was dedicated to cultural sight-seeing in Kolding. I saw my first castle, Koldinghus. Again, slightly disappointing, but for good reason. It was founded in the 11th century but burnt to the ground in 1808. It was in ruins for nearly 200 years until a modern renovation turned it into a museum of 1500-present furniture and art, Roman and Gothic church culture, old-ish Danish paintings and crafts, especially ceramics and silver. It hosts design competitions and has a restaurant inside. But the view of the town was great and they fed us tart, so how can I complain?

And for your viewing pleasure...

...a parade of beliebers.

We got back to CPH after that whirlwind of adventure around 19:00 (7p) Saturday night. It really was a great time and I can't wait to get to Scotland with these people. This Sunday surpassed last Sunday in terms of glorious weather and I actually got into a bathsuit on the beach. Lone, Lisbeth, Chelsea and I had dinner and discussed travel and sight-seeing plans for the four of us. Lone made (Danish) goulash and crepes for dessert. Lisbeth was laughing at how much I was laughing, which was probably induced by the combination of wine, lack of sleep, and lots of hygge. But on the way home she agreed that we had had a good time and stated thoughtfully "Maybe that's why we're so happy."

Celebrating Labor Day

Although I still have the privilege of getting up at 6:30am tomorrow for class (I feel like I'm in high school), I decided to celebrate the holiday weekend but taking a relaxing day in Køge. It's the first day since I've been here that I haven't had to sacrifice upwards of an hour and a half commuting to the city and one of the nicest days as far as the weather goes. 70 degrees with 68% humidity and sunny..we can still go swimming, right?

Last Sunday night after I updated, I sat for a few hours and watched TV and chatted with Lisbeth. We watched a British version of what I know as Lockup on MSNBC. Danish culture is both outrageously and subtly different from that of the U.S. and I'm constantly noticing how. For example, the "f word" and other curse words aren't censored on TV. Nor is nudity.

Tuesday night I had my first trip to the Support and Contact Centre (SKC), a municipal social-psychiatric service that targets withdrawn and socially isolated mentally ill people. Schizophrenia is a little more common in Denmark and I think many of their 'users' are affected by it. According to the SKC brochure, the goal is that users "can solve personal and social problems and receive specific help in order to move on in life." No appointment is necessary to stop in for a cup of tea, for counseling, to buy a cheap meal at the cafe, to paint or do ceramics in the studio, or just to sit alone. Their services are anonymous. They also provide activities outside of the center for their users including boat trips, museum trips, hiking, etc. I was so excited when I was accepted to volunteer there, but even my first night proved that it will be challenging to work face-to-face with people who may be dirty, difficult to work with, and perhaps delusional.

That night, 4 other girls and I met two Danish students at a trendy bar called Bang og Jensen on Istedgade. Any Copenhagener knows Istedgade = red light district. I don't have any pictures, so you'll have to use your imagination (don't worry- we weren't in any danger). As you may be aware, crime is less frequent in Denmark and my Psychology and Criminal Behavior class is teaching me why. Part of it is because of the huge welfare state, part of it is that knives and guns are illegal and harder to get, and another part is perhaps because of the difference in sentencing and rehabilitation. Only 35% of ex-inmates re-offend within two years of release. Maximum sentences are generally 16 years, even for homicide, which is treated less harshly in some respects due to the cultural belief that homicide is a "once in a lifetime" type of crime for most, and killers aren't likely to strike again the way a thieves or drug users are. A field trip with that class to Cafe Exit (off of Istedgade) gave us some insight into challenges Danish prisoners face because though prison is "easier" here, they are responsible for paying all of their legal fees and mandatory child support, and have a lot of trouble finding housing and jobs. Cafe Exit is designed to help prisoners get educated and find jobs and apartments before release.

That afternoon my Holocaust and Genocide class visited Kastellum (military fort) and the Museum of Danish Resistance. Denmark borders Germany so naturally the Nazis had to have it. They landed stealthily in Copenhagen in the middle of the night on April 9, 1940, and kidnapped the King, holding him ransom until they had Denmark's compliance. But while the official police force supported the Third Reich, vigilante justice arose against German soldiers, the police force, and other compliant Danes. Teenage boys were put to death by Nazi tribunals for their role in resistance. Over half of all Danish Jews were carried off to safety in Sweden or other European countries.

Thursday in Positive Psychology we were prepared for our short study tour next weekend (9/8-9/10) to Western Denmark. The trip is half-educational, half-cultural. I'll do a whole post on it then.

Last night, Chelsea, Alexis and I went to the Taste the World International Cooking Festival in Norrebro. It's mainly an immigrant neighborhood so while it's poorer it's also ethnically diverse and a great place to get food. Lex and I had ox meat and pita with spicy red sauce for only 30 DKK. Unbelievably delicious. Speaking of food, I have to post a picture of Wednesday night's meal, because my mom probably won't believe I ate it and loved it.

This morning was the first leisurely one I've had since arriving. I met Chelsea at Føtex (their version of Walmart) at the train station for a pastry. It might sound weird that we met at walmart for breakfast but trust me, it was worth it. Their "danishes" are a little different than ours, and cinnamon rolls are common. Oh and don't call it a Danish -- that's awkward.

Afterward I scoured over my receipts and tried to come up with some sort of budget (ah, the life of a student) to sustain me through the next four months. Kroner saved from fewer midnight hot dog or mcflurry runs will definitely help with paying for our weekend trip to Oslo or our two week travel break to Italy, Greece, and hopefully Spain. I was able to book a plane from CPH to Milan and then one from Rome to Athens for $114 incl. tax! I took an hour and a half bike ride and went over to the beach this afternoon. I felt like my soul was free. I only saw one nude person, and he was about 7 years old so it wasn't too awkward.

Although I'm still enchanted by my new home, Ulrich, a Danish student who had studied in L.A. and Hong Kong, was right -- there comes a time when little nuances become annoyances and it makes you miss home. But more than anything I think I miss the people at home because I wish they were here to see the sights and share the experiences with me, even if that sounds terribly cheesy.

Thanks again for reading and I also appreciate those comments, Bethany and Line! Have a nice labor day everyone!



Cara, Chelsea, Duyen, and Jaci