Travel Break Planning OVERLOAD

Its mid-February and everybody is consumed with making their travel plans for our 2 week break at the end of March/beginning of April. Its all anyone can talk about, and its all I can think about. So far I have the first 11 days planned...but that's it. Here is the plan as it stands right now:

• Depart Copenhagen at 11 pm on March 30th with Jessica Van Hattem & Bryant Estrada, arrive in Prague at noon on March 31st.
• Spend 2 full days & 2 half days roaming the streets of Prague.

      

 

• Leave Prague and Bryant for Budapest on the morning of April 3rd, arrive mid-afternoon.

•  Myself & Jessica tour Budapest and chill in the bath houses until April 6th.
• Head to Zagreb, Croatia on April 6th. =]

 

• We will then head to the Plitvice Lakes, where I will die in happiness.

•  On April 9th, Jessica will catch a plane back to Copenhagen...and I have no idea what I will be doing after that. Ireland, maybe? Spain, Portugal, or Morocco perhaps? 

 My plans after Croatia are still very much up in the air. All I know is that there are several key places I would like to hit before my time in Denmark is over. Whether it be during the travel break or on a weekend trip, or even during finals week, I must go to these places:

• Ireland
• Amsterdam
• Holland (Tulip Gardens)
• Northern Lights (in whichever country is cheapest)
• London
• Spain/Portugal
• Morocco

Greece would have been on this list, but given the political unrest and the sheer cost of going, it looks like I'll have to save this one for another time spent in Europe.

This is my plan for the first half of the travel break. Hopefully within the next week or so I will have an idea planned about what the second half will look like. =]

On another note, Istanbul in 12 days! =D

 

♪ Istanbul was Constantinople
Now it's Istanbul, not Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Now it's Turkish delight on a moonlit night;

...Every gal in Constantinople
Lives in Istanbul, not Constantinople
So if you've a date in Constantinople
She'll be waiting in Istanbul;

...So take me back to Constantinople
No, you can't go back to Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Why did Constantinople get the works?
That's nobody's business but the Turks ♫

Luxuries

So here in Denmark everything is extremely expensive, even more so when you are living in the heart of Copenhagen. Everything is so expensive, that you get to the point where a $10 bowl of soup seems like the best deal in the world (or at the very least, a reasonable price). I call this phenomenon 'copenhagenization.' Whatever you call it, it is ridiculous by any other country's standards (except maybe Great Britain).

Because of the relative expensiveness of literally everything here, I have come up with my very own list of  luxury items while I am here. These are items that are somewhat unique to Denmark, if not at least unique in the experience of purchasing them. As no surprise to those who know me best, these items are all food-related (insert foodie joke here). My luxury items are as follows:

• Pastries from Lagkagehuset
• Organic soup from Soupanatural
• Fresh, organic imported European cheeses from the cutest little cheese shop near Nørreport Station
• Fresh meat from the butcher shop that I walk past every day (namely, Filet Mignon)

Literally all I can think about is the different types of cheeses I saw in the case today and the countries they hailed from. I already have so many ideas in mind...

Cheese wishlist:

• Feta from Greece

This one I'd crumble and toss it with some fresh tomatoes, homemade croutons from Lagkagehuset, and olive oil. Either that or I'd just take chunks off the block and eat it plain. lol

• Pesto Gouda

I would LOVE to make mac n' cheese with this pesto Gouda. I think that sounds amazing, tossing in a little bit of red chili flakes...yummm!

• Spanish Camembert

No idea, but the nice shop keeper gave me a sample to try today and it was delicious!

• Cheddar

Cheese & crackers. Simple as that. Really I just want to see how it differs from Cheddar in the States.

• Fresh Mozzarella

Fresh basil, sliced tomatoes, drizzled with a Balsamic reduction...enough said.

• Danish Blue Cheese (Danablu)

Pan-seared Filet Mignon topped with the Danablu and garlic-sautéed asparagus on the side.

Needless to say, I have a lot of wants when it comes to this list. lol. But considering the cheese ranges in price from 30-100 DKK...I must pace myself. There's a reason that these items are on the luxury list: either they're high in fat content or high in price, or both. I must limit my indulgences of each type of item that I have listed.

Good thing I'm still here for another 3 months! ;)

Short Study Tours...Already?!

So now that I have finally caught you up on the happenings of the last week of my life, I feel it is important to tell you all that tomorrow I leave for my short study tour to Western Denmark.

...at the ungodly hour of 7:30 am (which means I need to be up by at least 6 am). We'll be traveling to Odense and Aarhus, both located in the southern Jutland area of Denmark. Its going to be a crazy jam-packed three days, and I'll be sure to update you all on my journeys.

It is currently 1 am here, and do you think I have packed anything? ....Nope! I've been too busy doing laundry since we only JUST got money on our laundry cards this morning! Craziness...

Beer Is A Wonderful Thing

Beer is cheap. It tastes better than wine, and its easier to order because there aren't 7 million different varieties with names that tell you absolutely NOTHING about how it might taste. I like beer. At least...I'm learning to like it. Mixed drinks are still my favorite. But beer is a close second! lol

Way back in December I signed up to do Beer Tasting: Culture Through a Beer Mug. Well last night was our first session, and we went to the Nørrebro Bryghus, which is a small microbrewery in the center of Copenhagen. We tasted four different types of beer over the course of an hour and a half & got a lesson in the history of beer, as well as how to brew it.

Chicas IPA: Indian Pale Ale, obv.

Lil' Granja Stout: smells & tastes EXACTLY like coffee

Ravnsborg Rød: malt beer

New York Lager











So that was our first lesson in beer. I learned lots of cool things that I definitely didn't know before. lol. Can't wait til our next session, we're doing a pub crawl!

After that, my friends & I checked out the first BLUS meeting of the semester (Copenhagen's GSA), then proceeded to make our way to The Living Room and The Happy Pig for more drinks. In total, I had 4 beers, 2 shots, & 2 mixed drinks. And yet I didn't even have a buzz going. But at least I found two new places to go! =]

CrazyAmazingLuckyOnceInALifetimeFashionMayhem!!!

Back in like November I signed up with CPH Volunteers to work 3 shifts during Fashion Week. My first shift I had to bail on because I had class. Second shift I was deathly ill. Third shift....made it! (Its about time). I volunteered on Tuesday afternoon, then on Friday my friend Sam & I went back in the office to see if they needed any help. They did, and she told us to come back at 5 and she'd give us invites to a party that night.

So once again we stood out in the cold, handing out fliers...while also going to some store's goodie bag events trying to get freebies. There was free beer, free champagne, and we got to watch an outdoor fashion show. Poor girls!

At 5 when our shift was over we went back to the office to drop off our canvas bags with another one of our friends. When we got there, not only did she give us invites to a VIP fashion party that night, but she also gave us invites for another VIP fashion party the next night, a pair of designer jeans (worth 699 dkk!) AND a designer jacket! AND she gave all of those things to our friend who was with us too! Absolutely crazy amazing awesome-making.

And since Friday night was Fashion's Night Out, tons of stores were giving out freebies & doing promotional events. So we decided that since we were going to be attending a party with Copenhagen's beautiful people, we should get our makeup done (for free) at one of the store events. We wound up at this really nice spa, where they served us champagne smoothies while they did our makeup for us. It was AMAZING!

 The party that night was great. We invited three friends along, took lots of pictures, and met a famous Danish dj/model named Nicoline Toft, who is on a reality show here & asked us to dance in front of her booth while the cameramen filmed!

Mixed drinks were 80 dkk, but what else would you expect from an exclusive fashion party? Some of the girls even found Danish men to buy their drinks for them. lol













The second night we went with a smaller group of girls, and the place was a lot swankier. lol. THIS time we met a famous group of Danish bloggers called Lady Entourage who go around making appearances at exclusive events. But these girls were so gorgeous that they must also be models. (Pictures to come)

All in all, an epic memory-making weekend. Living the dream here in Copenhagen. <3

And I Thought the T was Bad...

Seriously. Everyone in Boston complains about the T and how its never on time/breaks down/stops you in the middle of a tunnel for 20 minutes, etc...

Well let me tell you that the S-tog in Copenhagen is not much better (at least not in winter). Denmark prides itself on having efficient, timely transportation. And usually, they do. My first two weeks here I relied on the S-tog to get me to my classes on time. But temperatures are at a record low right now. And apparently this is having an effect on the tracks. Example:

My journey to class at 7:50 am last Thursday morning. My roommate & I both have 8:30 classes on Monday/Thursdays, so we usually leave for the train together around quarter to eight. This particular Thursday, her class was meeting half an hour earlier than usual, so I was on my own and I ended up leaving 5 minutes later than normal. I got on the train a few minutes before 8 (no problem). But then halfway between Nørhavn and Østerport the train stranded us for 10 minutes! THEN they made us get off at Østerport, (which mind you is only ONE stop away from where I usually get off) and wait for another train. This other train was packed so full that it made me understand how sardines in a can must feel...not good for someone who is claustrophobic. Even worse, some reporter chick was holding a camera above my head the whole time trying to film the situation unfolding on the train!

Finally making it to my stop, I still had a 5-10 minute walk to campus. When all was said & done, I was 20 minutes late to class. Lucky for me, nearly everyone else in my class that takes the trains to campus had similar problems. Girls were still walking in 40 minutes after the start of class.

Needless to say, I learned how to take the bus instead. Much more reliable.