The First Week of Summer Weather

Original Post Date: June 08, 2019

Original Post Location: AMAGER, COPENHAGEN, DENMARK

---

It seems crazy to think that this was the last week of Session 1. On one hand I feel like I have been in Copenhagen for months, but on the other it feels like just yesterday that we started class. I was very impressed with the professor and the class. I learned an incredible amount and found so much renewed passion for my photography!

I am excited to begin Session 2 next week. I will be taking a class called Nordic Culinary Culture where I will be learning about the history of the food here in Scandinavia. For this class we will also be going on a study tour to the Faroe Islands.

6.03.19

This was the first day that the weather started out nice in the morning. On my way to class it was a beautiful 62 degrees and by the afternoon it was 74, which made it the warmest day since being here. On my way home from class I was really hungry so I stopped at the fancy 7-Eleven for my favorite pastry, a chocolate croissant. Once the rest of my friends got out of class, we all went to the Round Tower. This tower was beautiful and at the top gave a great view of the city. After walking up the Round Tower I headed home to finish up my Photo Series on the Dogs of Copenhagen. I chose to take the photos at the canal near my apartment to hopefully find people hanging out with their dogs and not necessarily in a hurry. I was able to meet quite a few cool people as I photographed their dogs. One of the people that I met was also into photography and had the same lens that I was shooting with. This was a great way to break the ice and we were able to chat about our photography for a while. When I finished up with the photos it started to rain so I quickly rode my bike home and headed over to my neighbor’s apartment for dinner. As I was working on submitting my assignment later, I decided that I wanted to continue this photo series throughout my time in Copenhagen. I really enjoyed the opportunities it gave me to meet new Danish people as well as play with their dogs!

6.04.19

We were presenting our photo series in class this day and it was a lot of fun when I laid out my work and the whole class got excited for the dog photos! After class I met Maura at the Nørreport Station to ride the bus to the Assistens Cemetery. It sounds weird to say that we went to a cemetery to hang out but the cemeteries here are gorgeous and filled with lots of beautiful trees and flowers. This is also the cemetery where Hans Christian Anderson is buried, the famous fairytale author. Maura and I hung out here within a cute patch of miniature daisies and underneath a willow tree for a while. We spent our time chatting about how the summer is going so far and relaxing in the warm sun, and after a couple hours we headed home. Later in the evening Natalie, Raechel, Meredith, and I went to the nearby canal to sit, eat bread, drink cider, and watch the sunset.

6.05.19

It was another gorgeous day! It got up to 76 degrees, which with the humidity here made it feel a lot hotter. For class we went to the King’s garden to complete some photo challenges. With the nice weather and the national holiday, Constitution Day, there were a lot of people out and about and in the parks. Later in the afternoon I wanted to get out and enjoy the day along with all of the locals, so I decided to go on a 7-mile bike ride to the beach and back. I had yet to actually visit the beach and I was curious as to what it was like and how busy it would be. When I arrived at the beach, I was not surprised to see that it was completely packed. I was not planning on swimming so I simply walked around and took in all the views. The ocean was beautiful and crystal clear. Shortly after I got home, Natalie and I decided to go to Reffen, a large area along one of the canals with over 40 street food vendors. Reffen is an amazing experience, even though it is a bit pricey. I had a large pulled pork sandwich and an ice cream cone for 116 dkk. Once we were finished eating we walked around the pier and thoroughly enjoyed the sunset, along with all of the amazing views. The bike ride home was just about as perfect as it could get and made me want to go on another bike journey.

6.06.19

It was a really nice day again weather wise and the second to last day of the first session. During class we spent the time working on our final projects. For my final project I decided to continue my photo series on the Dogs of Copenhagen. After class I rode home and began working on my project. Sadly, I had a lot of homework to do and plenty of other things on my to do list, so I did not end up going back out to explore. Although spending the day at home was not as bad as I thought it was going to be. I got to see how people move out of an apartment in a building with tiny halls and narrow stairways and I also go to see an ice cream truck.

What I learned about moving out of an apartment here: a moving truck pulls up on the street with a large ladder similar to that on a fire truck and extends the ladder to the window of the apartment. Once it has reached the window of the apartment it attaches to the frame and the mover on the ground sends up a wooden platform, kind of like a chair lift but with a flat platform. Then the mover in the apartment loads it with boxes and sends it back down to be unloaded and put in the truck. I thought this was innovative and prevented the movers from going up and down the stairs a thousand times.

The ice cream truck was really fun to see, and instead of child like music playing when it rolled up, it just loudly rang a cow bell to let all of the people know that it was there. This was the first day that I did not go out and explore the city, but I still learned some new things about the culture.

6.07.19

After having a chill day, this was a very crazy day. It was the last day of Session 1 and my photography class. In class we submitted our final project and had a small exhibition of our work so we could look over each other’s projects. Shortly after our regular class time we met at Reffen for our last field study to attend the first day of the Copenhagen Photo Festival. Reffen is the main location for the photo festival this year and we were able to walk around as a class and look at exhibits done by photographers all of Denmark. For lunch we got a 100 dkk voucher to eat at any of the food stands. We all got our food from different vendors and then sat together as a group and chatted about our next classes and where everyone was traveling to for the break. After we ate, we visited one more exhibit and said our goodbyes. Once this was finished, I rode my bike back to DIS for a fika with the marketing and communications team as part of my student photographer gig. Fika comes from the Swedish language and is an afternoon break spent with friends relaxing and eating desserts or pastries. I was the first one to show, even though I thought I was going to be late, so I got to pick out all the pastries for the meeting! We then went to the H.C. Ørstedsparken where we met the others and chatted about how the summer was going and about what we can expect in the sessions to come regarding photo assignments. Afterwards I rode my bike home and went up to the roof to hang out with my neighbors who were leaving the next day because they were only here for session one. I then went back to my room to write my final paper for class and do laundry. At this time my family had been traveling for a whole day on their way to visit me.

6.08.19

This was the day that my family arrived in Copenhagen. Once they arrived, they had been traveling for a total of 23 hours. I met them at the airport around 10 AM. When we were able to buy all of our tickets, we headed the Airbnb. We are staying in the area of Amager, which is south of the City Center. We are technically in the same area as my apartment but about 4 miles south. Our Airbnb is near the beach as well as three grocery stores. The Airbnb is a small house with three levels and two patios and only one room wide, to allow for the best airflow through the house. The overall design is very Scandinavian with white walls and minimalist décor. The neighborhood is peaceful and quaint. When we first arrived at the Airbnb my family napped while I tried to figure out our transportation to and from the city as well as what we should do that day. Once everyone was awake, we headed to the city center and I showed them around the neighborhood I live in as well as where the buildings I have classes in are located. For dinner we chose to eat at Friends & BRGRS, which ended up being better and cheaper than I expected. On our way home we stopped at one of the three grocery stores to pick up food for the week. By the end of the day I ended up going to the store three times to pick up various items that everyone needed.

6.09.19

Since it was Sunday, and I had really talked up my church, my family wanted to attend while they were here. On our way to church I forgot that the buses run on a different schedule on Sundays so the bus that we needed blew right past our stop. Thankfully all the stops are fairly close together so we were able to walk to the next major stop and get on the bus there. Once we got to the city we stopped for danishes at Emmery’s on our walk to church. Everyone was really excited to eat their first pastry in Denmark, and they were not disappointed! We then went to church and I am happy to say that they all really enjoyed it! It helps that the Pastor is one of the best speakers that I have ever listened to. After church we headed back to the Airbnb to eat lunch and plan out the rest of our day. We then headed back to the city center. We had plans to climb to the top of the Church of Our Savior but there was an incredibly long line, so we decided to save this for a weekday when there would be less people. Instead we went on a canal tour, which ended up being incredible and informative, as well as helped my family orient them selves in the city because they were able to see a lot of things in a short time. On our walk to the canal tours we stopped at Confecture Copenhagen, a chocolatier store, and got Flødebollers. These are classic Danish chocolates with flavored meringue on top of a thin wafer covered in a thin layer of chocolate. (Google it, they were delicious!) For dinner we walked along the famous canal in Nyhavn and chose one of the small cafés with seating outside next to the water. We chose to eat at Skipperkroen, which I would highly recommend. It was more expensive than most restaurants, but that is to be expected when you are on the canal. It was a lot of fun and very relaxing to sit along the canal, listen to street musicians play, and eating dinner. Once we finished dinner it was already 8 PM so we decided to call it a day and head home. Thankfully we had no problems with the bus and were able to make it back in a decent amount of time.

Weekly Overview – Copenhagen Week 3:

1. Places Visited

• The Round Tower

• Assistens Cemetery

• The King’s Garden

• Amager Beach

• Reffen

• The Little Mermaid

• Nyhavn

2. Favorite Moment

Relaxing on the canal and eating bread with my roommate and neighbors.

3. The Best Food I Ate

The “Snack Box” I got at one of the street food vendors at Reffen. It was french fries topped with pulled pork, barbeque sauce, and cheese.

4. A Helpful Tip

If you travel to Copenhagen, purchase the Copenhagen Card. It covers all of your transportation on the bus, train, or metro and gives you access to over 80 attractions.

5. The Best View

Overlooking the canal from the pier at Reffen.