Today, I write to you having just completed my junior year aka it's summer break aka I'M A SENIOR...?! WHAT??? Papers turned in, finals completed, tearful goodbyes exchanged.. the end of an era, one might say. These past 2 weeks have been positively bittersweet, filled with laughs and "lasts" - the last train ride into the city for class, the last walk to the Bispebjerg Hospital, the last Classy Friday Dinner with Julia, etc. Saying goodbye to all the friends I've made over the last 4 months was hard enough, I'm just glad I still have a week to cherish with my family after my backpacking trip before I finally return to the motherland. Last I wrote, I had quarantined myself in my room in an attempt to avoid whatever sickness Michael, Susanne, and Sebastian had contracted. I'm henceforth calling it the Danish Disease, because it passed right over me, and thank
Valhalla because I had a busy two weeks coming up.
Friday night marked the end of the Classy Friday Dinners that Julia and I had made tradition (and will of course continue in our apartment next year). Christie came home with us and we made pizzas and salad and ate out on the patio with Susanne, Michael, Niklas, and his girlfriend Emilie. After dinner, Julia, Christie and I trained into the city to meet up with Julia's friend Freya (from a few weeks ago). Went to her apartment and then to a few bars/clubs before calling it a night.
The next day I spent studying for finals until Susanne, Michael and I drove up to Hornbaek for a walk on the beach and dinner at their friends, Jens and Anne's house. Holy freaking gourmet chef. The food was unreal (veggie pie, strawberry and carmelized cashew salad, creamcheese and mango chutney tortillas, potatoes, hummus, and more) and the company was even better. We spent the evening and night talking, playing legos with their little boy, Mads (second fav Danish name after Nikolaj), and eating nonstop. It was hyggeligt! I'm so fortunate to have met so many wonderful people during my time here, even though it makes goodbye that much harder.
Monday and Tuesday were the last two days of classes, which apparently translates into professors use the rest of their class funds to buy excessive amounts of pastries and treats for their students. And who am I to say no? Nana, you'll be happy to know I (inadvertently) followed your advice and the effects of the Kenya parasite could not withstand the sugary goodness of the Danish pastries. Neither could my will power, apparently. At any rate, two a days at the gym will be an absolute must this summer and I don't even care because it was SO worth it. Two days of class wrap ups, youtube videos, and extended sugar highs concluded my semester at DIS. Oh, and a dinner out on DIS funds for our core course Monday night. JA TAK. Tuesday morning, I woke up at 4:30 am and rode my bike down to the harbor to watch the sunrise. I find myself taking advantage of every second I have to think back to and reflect on all of the incredible opportunities I have been able to take advantage of in the last four months.. of which I will lay out in my final blog when I return from my Eurotrip. It was so quiet and peaceful on the beach by myself. There is nothing quite like watching the sun peak and cross the horizon in the serenity of the early morning. After class, Susanne, Michael and I had a picnic at the harbor to celebrate the last day of class and take advantage of the beautiful weather. We ate bread, cheese, hummus, and "finish salad," aka pre-made salad.. another translational, you-had-to-be-there, joke.
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| just as the sun started to come up |
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| susanne saluting the sun for shining for us<3 |
Thursday afternoon, Michael, Magnus, Andreas, Susanne and I hopped in the Old Opel (Michael's zillion year old car nearing its death) and made the 2 hour trip to
Møn, the most beautiful place I have ever been in my life. So beautiful, in fact, that had I been crushed by a chalk avalanche on one of our walks, I would have wanted my ashes spread off the cliffs into the blue-green water. Call me dramatic, but just wait until you see the pictures. Anyway, when we arrived, we stopped at Stege, the market town nearby for groceries and then to a butcher's market so I could see with my own eyes, the zebra, kangaroo, and crocodile steaks they sold. The boys got the croc.. AND ATE IT. After we got to the beach house (also incredibly beautiful), we went down to the water and Michael and Magnus took the kayaks out while Susanne, Andreas and I went for walk through the rolling hills and down to the cliffs (
Møns Klint). You'll just have to see for yourself, words don't do the beauty justice. After dinner by the warmth of the fire place and a minor spider eradication (thanks bros), we got hygge in front of the tv and went to bed.
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| what did I tell you? |
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| the rare blue monkey |
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| the deerrabbit |
On Friday, we went to the
GeoCenter for tree climbing/ziplining through the forest and then a long walk along the cliffs, down the 494 steps, and across the rocky shore for a picnic in the sun. As the sun fell behind the cliffs, we made our way back to the house in the fading light of the most incredible sunset, my brothers and I discussing various monkey breeds (green vs. blue vs. red... obviously. these crazy boys), recreating James Bond scenes, and arguing over whether the animal in the field was a giant rabbit or a small deer. It was a deer. I seriously never want to have to say goodbye:'( When we got back, Magnus and Michael went out in the kayaks again and Susanne, Andreas and I made dinner.. taco night. I'm turning them all into Americans.. I even got Andreas eating peanut butter and jelly now! After dinner we watched my second James Bond movie ever; the first, you may recall, was back in my first week here with the boys after they were appalled to learn of my "deprivation."
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| we did it! |
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| i always wanted brothers. now i have the best i could ever ask for<3 |
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| here we have the even rarer gray monkey |
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| left my mark |
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| lol, close |
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| our little scottish dancers |
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| lololol, after andreas nailed magnus in the leg |
On Saturday, we went HAM cleaning the house for our departure and then went back to the GeoCenter for mountain biking and 3D dinosaur films. Laugh if you must, but dinosaurs are the sheeet. Lol, but actually.. the geological history of the cliffs is super fascinating; they're filled with fossils from the Triassic Period, as 70 million years ago, they were actually the seabed before glaciers from the Ice Age pushed the entire terrain upwards, forming the fossil ridden cliffs. Just the most wonderful place, I loved every bit of it, to the point where I was literally at a loss for words. There's something about the combination of blues and greens and whites and grays reflecting the sunlight that just can't be put into words. Unreal. Perfect last weekend with the family.
Sunday was of course, Mother's Day. Hated not being home, but so happy to be able to spend it with Susanne.. apparently it's a fairly disregarded holiday here. Sad. I met her and Michael and Magnus down at the harbor and we had breakfast together and then, after a day of studying, girls-dinner-and-a-movie night. Monday was my first final; Human Health and Disease, my core course. It went really well I think, and afterward, the group went out for frozen yogurt and said our final goodbyes.
Yesterday (Tuesday) was my last final; Psychology of Human Sexuality. Nailed it (I think). Julia and I had our own celebration after that.. pastries from St. Peter's Bakery in the park to end the semester the way we started it, and then sitting in the sun at Nyhavn (the colorful building harbor) until Susanne got off work, when the 3 of us sat on a bridge by the English Church and popped a bottle of champagne. Then, we went home to cook and prepare for our dinner party with Michael and the boys, Andreas' friend, and Karen. I literally could not have asked for a more perfect way to celebrate the end of the semester. Tons of food and wine, wonderful friends and family, and of course, my favorite Danish music trivia game to end the night (I am in no way being sarcastic..). AHHH so much love for my life here! The only thing that could bring me down was having to say goodbye to Julia. This semester wouldn't have been the same without her and we have both grown so much, independently and in our friendship. S/O to you Jules, love you so much and can't wait to see you at SLU (but hopefully sooner!). After a crazy hat themed skype date with my one and only 18th century-esque penpal (with a conveniently Danish alter ego... s/o to you too, Sven), I went to sleep feeling very happy and fortunate, but also very sad knowing that my time here is limited and this most wonderful and exciting chapter of my life is coming to a close. These next couple of days before my adventure will be filled with packing, preparing, and reflecting, and I will be counting down the days until I am home again. Bittersweet. Love and miss you all! Until next time (June 5-ish). Hej hej.
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| found yer boat sven |
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| love you jules |
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| tag team. can't touch this |
