Long overdue update

Hi little creepy stalkers out there on the internet :)

As always, bunches has happened since my last post, but I'll start from the beginning and work my way to now!

Christmas:

My Danish Christmas was, unquestionably, the best Christmas I have ever had in my life. Nothing could have made it better.... okay if there was snow that day it would have been perfect.... but I can overlook that fact!

My host parents had all the family come over for Christmas and so we celebrated with a large group and we followed all the Danish traditions. We watched the adorable Christmas Disney special on the 24th (the day they celebrate), ate a huge meal, opened gifts, and danced around the Christmas tree while singing carols and it was light with real candles! Don't believe that they are crazy enough to put real candles on their tree? Proof:

The only way I can describe my Christmas was absolutely perfect. I was afraid that I would be homesick or feel disconnected, but I have never felt more in place here in Denmark than that night. My host family made such a good job of making sure I felt like a part of the family and I was so busy that I couldn't miss my family back home.

New Years Eve:

One holiday celebrated here probably more so than in America is New Years. New Years eve is a huge deal in Denmark. The queen gave her large speech about the previous and upcoming years on television, we had a huge meal, and watched an old film that everyone watches every year in Denmark. Then, once it was midnight, we watched the clock tower on the Rådhus in Copenhagen ring in the new year. We celebrated with fireworks at home (not the crappy small ones, but the fun ones that are probably illegal in the USA) and champagne! 

My Oldies going Away:

One thing that I love about exchange with Rotary is the concept of oldies and newbies. There are exchange students (mostly from Australia) who come January-January. The 2011 group are my "oldies" and the 2012 group that just arrived are my "newbies". Anyways..... My amazing oldie went home in January so I must give a tribute to her. I went to her going away party. Amy got me through plenty of tough times and I love her bunches so I just thought I should mention that(she's the one in the middle):

Host family switch:

Last weekend, I switched host families. I am now living with my 3rd host family. I won't lie- moving from my 2nd family was hard. I cried. A lot. But, I'm happy with my new family, and I know that it was time for me to get to know another family. As hard as it was leaving my awesome family there, I honestly think the worst part about that weekend was packing. I realized that I probably have a slight addiction to Danish clothing. And shoes. I honestly have no idea how I will get my stuff home in July (REASON TO STAY IN DENMARK? I think yes!!!!!). I mean seriously, how the heck did I get all THIS:

IN MY DEFENCE: one bag is full of all of my Danish books that won't be coming home, one bag is full of gifts for people in Denmark that won't be coming home, and my backpack is full of my school books..... as for the rest- I sware little Danish "nisse" (elves) must be secretly adding to my collection of clothes/shoes/random crap.

School:

I love school here! After New Years the class groups switched up a little. I loved my new class, but it was a little hard. Due to my schedule, I only spent about half the classes with them, which made forming relationships VERY hard. I worked it out so I switched to a different class. My new class is mostly people from my class before New Years and a few new people. This class is PERFECT! I not only get to have a normal schedule, but I honestly love my classmates. They are all super sweet :)

Danish:

I AM FINALLY DONE WITH MY LANGUAGE CLASSES!!!!!!! I took a test on Tuesday and passed so I am now officially finished with attending Danish classes on Tuesday and Thursday classes. 

My overall Danish is alright. Given that I've only been here under 6 months, most Danes are amazed by how good it is. I am proud of how much I know, but I still wish I knew more. As much as I complain about it at times, I want to learn this language as much as I can.

Sne!:

(google translate the title and you'll understand how happy I am right now). Lately, we have had actual snow! It is basically beautiful and I still haven't found anything against the snow. It is basically amazing. The Danes haven't been able to find a way to make me hate the snow yet.... and believe me, they've tried. I've been hit with snow, picked up and rolled in the snow, and had it thrown at me in every way possible.... I still love the snow :)

^ This would be my reaction to sitting in a HUGE pile of snow

^ And this would be the view from my bedroom window. No big deal, right?

Life:

Overall, I honestly LOVE IT HERE! I don't think I've ever been so happy in my life. I have everything I have ever dreamed of, and I recently realized I am living out some people's dream! I am pretty sure I have had a constant smile on my face for at least the past 3-4 months. I still can't bring myself to think that I'll actually have to go back to Florida in just a few months. One thing I have decided for sure, is that one year in this country isn't enough for me, and I will come back. I don't know when or for how long, but it will happen. I have fallen in love with this amazing country and it's people and it's language. Before I came here, I felt absolutely 100% American and never doubted anything about that. Now, I know I am American, but I also feel Danish. I honestly feel a stronger bond to Denmark and it's culture. I will always be American at heart and that can never be changed or taken away from me, but I also feel Danish and will always be affected by the Danish culture.

So there you go little creepers :) Until next time,

McKenzie

I don't know what to call this so here ya go: Another Blog!

Why hello everyone,

So I have basically been having a blast the past few weeks and my exchange has definitely gone up on the happy- scale (is there such a thing? I don't really know, but for now we'll pretend!).

I spent a weekend in Copenhagen (which by the way is my favorite city! It is so beautiful! It's a great mixture of new and old- marked with history everywhere and yet modern at the same time.) I went with my club president and his wife. We had a great time, just walking around the city for a while. We also stopped by the National museum (which by the way has a great brunch saturday morning for anyone interested.,.. and it also has some really cool viking artifacts).

We also did a little creeping and found the USA ambassadors house and, of course, being the American I am I couldn't help but take a photo:

The best part about visiting Copenhagen was Tivoli! For everyone who doesn't know what Tivoli is- it is one of the most magical theme parks! It is smack in the middle of Copenhagen and at Christmas time it is beautiful! That weekend was amazing and definitely won't be my last weekend in Copenhagen (I love that city too much- I definitely reccomend it to every traveler!).

Aside from visiting Copenhagen, I've just been busy living life. I still go to language classes every tuesday and thursday. I go to the gym mondays (which unfortunately hasn't been doing too much to fight my rotary fat.... well at least I have a good excuse for buying cute clothes here?).

On Monday my 3rd host parents took me to Århus for a few hours to see "Den Gamle By" which was fun! It was interesting to see houses from over a hundered years ago! Heres one pic:

Another fun thing I did was learn how to shoot a gun [insert the screaming and fearful faces from my family and friends back home here]. I was surprisingly good given it was my first time!

^photographic proof



Since some people have asked me about the Christmas traditions here in Denmark I figure I should share them here:

~ They eat Æbleskiver and drink Gløgg (both pure deliciousness.... just use google and educate yourself). Oh and they eat pebernødder which are delicious little cookies and eat Ølkage which is basically the same thing as gingerbread, but made with Danish Christmas beer instead. These four things are basically the reasons why I am fat!

~ They have a Kalendarlys (advent candle) which you burn a little from every day in December which are amazing.

~ They actually celebrate the 4 sundays before Christmas which my family never did back home.

~ They always have real trees and wait until like a week before to decorate them!

~ They put these cute things around the house called nisser and they are basically little elves and they're adorable!

~ They have advent shows! The classic one is hilarious because it's half in english and the english is so terrible and they speak my language- Danglish! It's hilarious!

~ They celebrate the 24th not the 25th!

~ They put real candles on the christmas tree and dance around it on Christmas.

 Basically Danish Christmas is amazing! It is so beautiful and I can say that this Christmas is sure to be one I will never forget!

Last weekend I made a "Thanksgiving meal" for my host family. It wasn't a full legitimate Thanksgiving meal like I had hoped, but it was nice nontheless. It was just the 4 of us so there was no need to make a giant meal and they don't have a lot of things I needed to make some things I love (sweet potatoes aren't in Denmark along with canned pumpkin and we couldn't find a real pumpkin in December so no pumpkin pie or sweet potatoe casserole for me this year). It was great and my family liked the meal (although they probably thought I was attempting to give them diabetes with the amount of butter I put in the stuffing).

Aside from that I have just been making friends and having a great time here! I love my host family and the thought of leaving them scares me! I love my 3rd host family already, but this family now is so amazing and leaving them will crush me!

Wednesday is my last day in school before 2012. That day we are just having a few hours of activities and then that evening we are having the gymfest which should be lots of fun!

Until next time, I want to wish you all a Glædelig jul og Godt Nytår!

-McKenzie

Pictures I promised ages ago :)

So I suppose I finally should get around to posting some pictures of me here! I'll start from the beginning and work my way through 3.5 months!

Leaving Florida: Me and my little brother at the airport August 5th, 2011

West coast trip: One of the amazing sandsculptures I saw when I visited the west coast.

My birthday: Me with my birthday cake

Intro camp: A picture of me in front of ARoS museum in Århus while at intro camp

District Get- together: Me and Misaki (Japan) after we hiked Himmelbjerg!

Random: Pretty Danish sunrise

Me right before my first take off:

Viking: Me dressed as a Viking in "Roskilde Viking Skib Museet"

Roskilde kirke: Me standing in the church in Roskilde

Unpictured: below my feet are dozens of dead ancient kings, queens, and other royalty

Me and my "friend" the guard in Copenhagen (this is as close as he let me get to him):

Den Lille Havefrue: The epitome of Denmark!

Me and My new boyfriend: JOKING! He's way too old for me! (it's the bog man in Silkeborg!)

National G2G: On the train ride home after our get-together (this picture doesn't even come close to showing how tired we were)

Kolding huset: Me in the courtyard of the castle in Kolding!

Obviously I've done much more than shown in these pictures but I just thought I'd attempt to keep my word!

Much love!

-McKenzie

Værts familie skift!

So.... I have officially switched host families! Oh and I've gone to a Rotary weekend on Sjælland (the island where København is), gave a 20 minute presentation for my Rotary club (in full Danish!), and today I visited a castle and mall with my new host parents.

Here's what's happening:

Host family switch-
On Sunday 30. October, I switched families. I spent the weekend packing and relaxing for the most part. That day my old host mom took me to Silkeborg and we saw the Bog man (google it!), but other than that I stayed home. That night, my new host parents came and we all had some coffee and then they took me home! I was absolutely amazed to discover all of my junk I've aquired already fit into their car. The next day I unpacked (and realized how many of my clothes don't fit anymore :/ stupid Rotary fat!) and I have felt at home here ever since. My new host family (my host mom Vivian, host dad Bjarne, brother Morten, and their adorable dog Sofie!) is wonderful and I feel so comfortable with them. I already joke around with my host brother and we all agree it feels like we've known eachother a lot longer than just a few months! My host mom is a hairdresser (and she gave me the cutest haircut which I LOVE!) and my host dad is a postman. I find it hard to believe I've only lived here just shy of two weeks because I already have found a routine and feel completely comfortable with them.

Rotary presentation- på Dansk!!!!!-
On 2. November, I actually got up the courage (I still don't know how- I was scared to death about the speech!) and gave my speech to my Rotary club. Now, if you ask anyone that knows me, they'll tell you I am not a shy person and so public speaking doesn't bother me (heck I've done acting on and off for years!) but this was one of only 2 speeches I've ever given that I was afraid for (the other one being the speech I gave at my Rotary district interview just last year). The whole car ride down I sat in the back silently and for the first time since I arrived here I actually couldn't finish my meal at the meeting! It was finally my time. I stood up and within one second of facing my club, all of my nerves calmed. It was insane, but just looking at their faces I realized they were supporting me and were proud of me and so I gave my speech without fear. I may have flubbed a few words, but overall it went well and I must admit I never expected to be giving a speech in Danish, but I did it! The night turned out to be a success and I was so proud of myself!

G2G in Holbæk-
Last weekend we had a national get together weekend for all of the inbounds in Denmark in Holbæk (on Sjælland). It was from friday to Sunday and it was the craziest 3 days! It was amazing to see some of my really good friends again. I got to see my old roommate from intro camp (love ya Kelsea if you're reading this!), my oldie, the other two people from Florida, and so many other people! We spent most of the weekend doing nothing, but we did go into town for a few hours to shop (where I only bought food... hahah I'm such an exchange student!), and we were given a huge party! On Saturday night we had a huge halloween costume party (where I borrowed a friends sailor costume). That party basically lasted all night (literally I got one hour of sleep that night, well actually Sunday morning from 7-8 am) and it was crazy but so much fun! Exchange students are the best people to party with! That entire weekend was exhausting (not just because of lack of sleep but spending a weekend catching up with them was draining) but it was amazing. It was almost theraputic because you realize that you aren't the only one experiencing the things that happen on exchange. Unfortunately it was our last g2g as a group because our oldies (the people from Aussie land and the kiwis!) will be leaving in January :( As much fun as the weekend was, I was so happy to go home to my bed and be back with my host family (... and sleep!!!).

Today, my host parents and I went to Kolding (about an hour drive). We spent the morning at the giant mall there! It was fun spending time with them and just relaxing. Then we went to Kolding huset (which translates to the Kolding house), which is one of Danmarks many castles. It was so beautiful and when we climbed the tour we had a great view.

My new project:
Tomorrow will be my last day speaking english! I have decided that starting Monday I will speak ONLY DANISH 100% of the time (unless I am in English class or talking with a non-dane, since my American family and friends and fellow exchange students won't quite be able to do that! Don't worry mom and dad I will still speak english with you!) for a full month! I have already warned everyone and they are all excited (which scares me a little.... I think they'll find this way more entertaining than me. Although I have tried to speak Danish most of the time, I have slacked a little at school and figured this might give me some motivation. I am hoping to be much more fluent after 4 weeks of this!

That's about it for now. I could babble on and on about how I've changed this year so far and everything I've learned, but you would probably be bored. I will say that I have grown as a person, learned more than I knew was possible, and experienced so many wonderful things. Oh and now I can say I've been here for 3 months! I am super excited about that but sad as well since it means my exchange is that much closer to ending :( and to make that reminder even stronger, I just discovered that this weekend my District back home is holding interviews! It feels insane knowing that just last year I was in their shoes and I still can't believe it.... but enough of my tear fest of how quickly this year has gone on, I'm going to go back to living my happy (short) life here in Denmark! To everyone in America, happy Thanksgiving since it will be in just a few weeks! I love you all!

-McKenzie

Efterårsferie!

So I thought I should tell you all what I did during my “efterårsferie” which literally translates to be autumn holiday (In Denmark, you get a random week long vacation from school and often times adults get out of work as well).

I’ll start at the beginning and work my way through:

Friday:

My last day of school before the holiday my class all had to take their final exam for their intensive Danish grammar class, which meant I got to come in late (yay!). Then we had a biology class and were free. Some of my friends and I went out to lunch and then I took the bus home where I relaxed for a few hours.

That evening I went to the “efterskole” (it’s like a Danish boarding school that many teens go to for a school year when they’re anywhere from 15-17) that my current host mom works at. The students were putting on a circus styled play with Beetles music. I got to watch that with my host mom, afterwards I ran into a friend, then they had a reception which I helped with, and then my host mom and I went to her bosses house for a small gathering/party with all of the schools employees. I went home and slept.

Saturday and Sunday:

I mostly stayed around the house and relaxed. My host mom and I went to a very small museum in a nearby town. I also took what I am quite certain was at least a 10km walk with my host mom (she says it was 5-6 km, but I have run 5k’s before and this was definitely longer!). She had just asked if I wanted to go for a walk, which I stupidly agreed to and put on my fall boots that I was still breaking in- note to self: Don’t do it ever again: wear sneakers on all walks! I had blisters!

Monday:

First, I went over to my third host family’s house. I got to have breakfast with them and get to know them as well as see the house (the house is adorable, they even have a beethingy- can’t think of the word because I’m losing all English this year- since my host dad makes honey! I didn’t get to see my room because it isn’t finished yet, but I saw where it will be and I can tell I’ll love it!). We discussed what it will be like when I live there and got to know eachother better. They live in a different town than my other host families (only 8km away), so we walked around the town and I got to see the school they both worked at (they are both retired teachers). We also discussed what I would be interested in visiting while I live with them and they seem like such a sweet family. I am very excited to live with them eventually and I think they will be a good family for me.

Then, my host mom walked me to the cookie factory in their town (that’s right there’s a cookie factory IN MY TOWN!!!!). For all of you Americans, every heard of Royal Dansk Butter cookies (they come in the round blue tin with a Danish farmhouse pictured on the front)? Well here they go by the name Kjeldsens  (they have a different name for the USA because the average American who doesn’t know how the Danish alphabet works pronounces the J and D when it should be pronounced like “Kyelsens” or “Kelsens”)… well anyways, the main factory is in my town. The plant manager is a Rotarian in my club who gave me and my host mom a tour! It was like a dream come true- I mean who hasn’t dreamed of touring a cookie factory (especially since here things like that are top secret- my host mom who toured it with me has lived in that town for quite a while and says she’s never been in!)! We got to eat a few cookies fresh off of the line (still warm and oh so good) and I learned more than I ever knew there was to know about those lovely cookies! Did you know they make the paper cups the cookies go in at the factory? Or that the butter comes from New Zealand? Now you do! And of course no Rotarian in my club would miss an opportunity to donate to much weight gain here- I was sent home with too many cookies to count (seriously, I got 3 normal sized cookie tins, one jumbo tin of chocolate chips, and a box of a new cookie type)- My Rotary Club is determined to make me jump a few clothing sizes this year!

After that, I went and spent a few hours with my second host family (well only the parents and their sweet dog Sofie because my brother was out of town for his holiday). We had a snack, I got the tour of the BEAUTIFUL house and my AMAZING room! (seriously I don’t know how but my host mom designed the most amazing room- simple, sophisticated, and perfect in every way!). My host mom doesn’t speak much English, but she can understand quite a bit, which is good because I am sure it will help my Danish improve!  We had dinner and just got to know eachother! They seem so sweet and in just those few hours, every fear I could have had was completely gone because I felt right at home! That evening I went to the gym with my future host mom because every Monday night she works there! Then I went home and got ready for the next day (I’m a busy girl- gotta get some sleep eventually!)

Tuesday:

I woke up bright and early (5:30 AM) in order to go to work with my club counselors wife at “Børnehaven” (the daycare that the government provides for all children- but unlike in America, the govt. daycare is so nice and way more classy!). It was a tiring day but overall fun. I actually read some books (all in Danish) to little kids, played games, did some arts and crafts, etc. and the best part was that I HAD to speak Danish because although Danes are crazy language robots that have almost perfect English (seriously- how do they do it?) the little 4 and 5 year old don’t!

Wednesday:

That day was my “resting day”. I had been very busy for the past few days and definitely needed some rest. I slept in late and caught up on some online tv! Then that afternoon, I hopped in the car for the “long” (less than 3 hours!) drive to none other than: KØBENHAVN!!!!!! (for those of you who can’t recognize the name it’s Copenhagen- Denmark’s most amazing city!) Their son lives there and so we stayed in his apartment! That night we didn’t go into town because we got there after dark, but just knowing I was less than 10 minutes away from one of the most amazing cities thrilled me!

Thursday:

That morning we woke up early and prepared to go into the city. We took the short bus ride into town and I was in awe right from the start! First we walked down the famous harbor and I took the ever so popular picture of myself with the harbor in the background! Then we took a 60 minute boat tour of the harbor and it’s areas! We saw lots of amazing places from the water and I recommend this to all visitors (only 40kr - $8 USD for an hour long fun informational tour!). Then we got off and walked over to the queens castle (castle? Palace? No American knows the difference since we don’t have them but you know what I mean!) to see the changing of the guard! By looking at the flags, we knew the Queen wasn’t home but the Crown Prince was home in his castle right next door! I took a picture with a guard (funny story- I knew to not stand too close so I stood a few inches away, my host dad holding the camera motioned for me to inch a little closer so I stupidly listened…. The guard gave me a look that was half scared, half ticked off and then motioned for me to move closer- I didn’t smell I promise so he just must not have liked me L ). Then we walked over to Christiansborg Slot (slot means castle in Danish) to tour the Folketing (parliament). I saw the group of seats where the royal family sits when they come to watch the parliament! It had a red rug and all! After that we walked around outside and then went into where the Kings horses for the carriages are kept! The horses were sweet and I saw carriages for the Royal family! Then we toured the castle portion of Christiansborg slot. Then we walked down the main shopping street and then returned to the apartment.

Friday:

That morning we started in Copenhagen by touring Rosenborg Slot. This castle was built before the USA existed (1624 to be exact)! The castle and insides were amazingly stunning and I even took a picture in front of a really old throne (legitimate royal butts sat on that thing! Ahh so cool). It’s also there that the royal jewels and riches are held. Denmark actually happens to have the worlds 3^rd largest set of Regalia (if it’s wrong my host dad said it not me! Haha google hasn’t been helpful in my search for the truth and world listing). I was absolutely speechless (ask anyone who knows me well- it takes a miracle for that to happen) when I saw the crowns and jewels! But we had to eventually leave L After that we went to lunch. We then went and saw none other than DEN LILLE HAVEFRUE (the little mermaid for those of you unfamiliar with the Danish language)! It felt so weird to be taking a picture with this statue because it was the first thing I found out about Denmark officially after being chosen to come here! It was a moment I won’t forget and it was amazing! Then we went to Christiania (best described by my host parents son as “a place for people who want to be free”). It is almost like a hippie-homeland! It is an area in Copenhagen that basically doesn’t belong to Denmark (technically it does, but in some ways it doesn’t). It is very interesting to walk through. There is graffiti EVERYWHERE! I mean when we drove up there were 4 people painting graffiti on the walls to the town. We walked through and saw everything. I think most Americans would be taken aback by Christiania but I am now at the point where nothing shocks me. We even walked down pusher street (google it for info….) and it was an oddly amazing experience! After that we walked across the street to the church that has the Round tower on top of it. We then had the experience of walking up the tower! It was really scary at some points because its so old and the stairs were very narrow and people were walking up and down at the same time! It’s a good thing I’m not afraid of hights though- because the view was phenominal and worth every step! That night we walked around and saw Copenhagen by night which was beautiful!

Saturday:

That morning we drove to some town on Zealand and I got to ride in an old car (sorry Grandpa I wish I could tell you what type since you are probably wondering, but we all know how big my interest and knowledge of cars is). Then we went to Roskilde! While there we went into Denmark’s largest church (according to the desk employee it is Scandinavia’s 2^nd largest)! It was amazing and giant…. But of course that’s not all- It’s also the gravesite for all of the Kings and Queens of Denmark! The one currently standing is from the early 1200’s and made of brick but there was one before that from hundreds of years earlier made of wood. It was creepy yet awe inspiring! Columbus hadn’t even sailed the “ocean blue” yet and that giant church was already built! And seeing some of the coffins for the Royalty and knowing a dead king was in there was a bit freaky but nothing compared to WALKING ON THE GROUND THEY’RE BURIED IN! I literally stood just feet above where Kings and Queens older than I could imagine were buried! It was oddly spectacular and awe-inspiring! Then we went to “Roskilde Vikingskib Museet”  (The Roskilde Viking ship museum). I saw 5 viking ships that were discovered just a  few decades ago in Roskildes waters. Given my extreme fascination with Vikings I was in love with the museum! That afternoon we drove home, a bittersweet moment for me!

Sunday: Of course I had to end my amazing holiday with more fun! That morning my second host moms brother and his family came by to pick me up to go to North Jylland to visit with my entire 2^nd host family (my host family left Saturday so they couldn’t drive me). The whole car ride down I bonded with my host cousin who is really nice and easy to get along with as well as her whole family! Then I spent the day meeting the family that will all be coming over for Christmas! It was odd how quickly I felt comfortable with everyone! I instantly felt like a member of the family! After a few hours of fun and getting to know everyone, it was time for another “long” (only 2 hrs this time) ride home with my future host mom, dad, and brother. I spent the car ride bonding with my brother and can tell this family will be perfect. Eventually I got home and prepared for this week of school.

My autumn holiday was amazing and full of memories! Since then I’ve just been busy with school, Danish, and life! This Sunday I will move host families and I am so excited! I already love my next family and can’t wait to live with them! The one sad thing about it is that moving means that I will have finished 1/4^th of my exchange! I still can’t believe 3 months are almost gone and I am already having to think about when I’ll come home. I have started to make a life here, a life that I love and don’t know how to leave. I have friends and family, am finally being able to understand the language and communicate somewhat effectively, and have changed as a person! My outlook on life is different and I now see things as a Dane. I know that this is the point of my exchange, but I can’t help but feel sad about if because I don’t know if I’ll be ready to leave Denmark in 8 months or how I’ll find my way back into my Florida life. As much as I miss my friends and family back in Florida now, I already know it will be just as hard when I have to leave this beautiful place in only a few months!

Today I am finding it even harder to believe that I will be leaving so soon since my Danish is finally getting good! It has been steadily improving and for a few weeks now I have had random thoughts or words be in Danish, not English, when I think. Then, last night, I had my first dream in Danish! I remember it was this time last year almost down to the week that I was being told by Mrs. Paula from RYE FL that I would eventually dream in Danish and now I am having that happen! The dream was very short and basic but in Danish nonetheless! I was so excited and it’s safe to say it made learning this hard language a lot more rewarding!

Until next time,

McKenzie

Recent happenings

Okay I think I officially win the award for being the worst blogger in the world and I apologize for that! I honestly didn't realize it's been a full month since my last update! Time has never moved so fast in my life!

I honestly can't even remember all of the fun things I've done since my last post. I'll do my best to cover the important things:

• I went to a sommerhus (summerhouse- it is basically a smaller vacation house in a more remote area where families go to relax for the weekend or during one of their holiday breaks. Most Danish families own one.) My Rotary club president and his wife have one in an area about 1 hour away. I went with them along with my friend Nanna (it was her family I lived with for the week my host family was gone. She has now been chosen as my club's future outbound and she is hoping to go to the USA). We had an amazing time just relaxing. I also made rice krispy treats for everyone (they sell marshmallows and rice krispies and yet no one here has ever heard of rice krispy treats).
• My town had their annual "Due dag" (and no, for once google translate isn't lying- it does actually mean pigeon day!) It is a long standing tradition in my town. It originated as a day where people would bring prized pigeons to show and/or sell. Then it eventually branched out. They still sell birds, but they aslo sell cats, dogs, bunnies, chickens, mice, etc. (Don't worry mom and dad- I won't be coming home with a new pet, although I was very tempted). They also sell lots of other random things and it's almost like an outdoor market mixed with a flea market mixed with a garage sale. It was definitely an experience!
• My Danish is improving by leaps and bounds! I have actually caught myself thinking in danish a little. Now in my head, instead of saying but, I say "men" and instead of saying if, I say "hvis" and a few other things. For about a month, my host family has spoken mostly all danish to me and lately I have spoken almost all danish to them. I still have a longggg way to go though!
• My french class won a contest so we got to spend a day in Aarhus (one of my new favorite places in the world- it's DK's 2nd largest city) and we went to a french rap concert. My french teacher lives in Aarhus, so before the concert, we went to her house for brunch (I found this odd that a teacher would actually invite students to there house, but everyone in my class acted as if nothing was weird about it).
• My music class took a field trip to the Aarhus concert hall and listened to some classical music.... not going to lie- It was just as boring as any other symphony, but we were allowed to go shopping for 30 mins after (my friends and I went to McDonalds, I actually remembered where it was from the other time I went while at intro camp). It was nice to have a day off from school as well.
• I can now say I have seen a handball game! For all of you reading who are unfamiliar with this quite strange sport, I will attempt to explain it. The average number of scores (goals? I don't quite know the lingo) and the pace is similar to basketball. There are 6 people playing at a time (basketball has 5, so pretty similar), but I forget whether that number includes the goalie or not. It is almost a mixture of soccer and basketball actually, except that all the players (aside from the goalie) play both offense and defence. It was actually interesting (which is more than I can say about basketball or soccer, sorry...). Oh and I would like to add here that forgive me if I said something wrong about any of the sports I listed, don't even bother emailing me to tell me, first off- I don't care, second off- I'm sure my little brother will set me straight!
• I have seen more farms than I thought imaginable. I have been to multiple cow farms (one of which had a cow milking robot- not going to lie, I was amazed), seen a pig farm, and a mink farm (that one was not very amazing for me, although the pig farm was also one where the animals would be killed, at least it was for meat, I honestly couldn't look the poor little minks in the eye without seeing a fur coat... I guess you'll never be able to take the animal lover out of me!) I always knew the area around me was full of farms, but holy cow there's a lot!
• I have now been to a danish movie theater! On monday night, I went to have dinner with my Rotary club president and his wife and after we went to see the movie "One day" (which is a very good movie and I highly reccomend it!).
• I got lost on the bus system! I guess now I can scratch off the ultimate bad experience that all exchange students are bound to have. I was taking the bus to go to my exercise class. I had only been once and that time my host mom drove me, I didn't know what town it was in. I get to the bus stop and there are two busses, so I ask which one goes to the Ungdomskole (the place it's held at), someone directs me to a bus, I sit down and after a short drive, the bus driver stops and says "this is it". I look out and realize it was the wrong place, and just my luck that was the last stop and there wouldn't be another bus going back to my town for like 5 hours! I got out, sat down, and called my host mother only to remember she was at the Rotary meeting. Long story short (well... shorter), she eventually came and picked me up and I survived to tell the tale!

Other than that, I've been busy with school, friends, and language classes. Next week I will have a school holiday. I will get to spend some time with my next two host families, tour a cookie factory (Kjeldsons which is known as "Royal Dansk butter cookies" in the states), and my host family will be taking me to Copenhagen! I am so excited about that!

Also, I figure I should try and remember all of the differences I've noticed from DK and the USA:

• You call your teachers by their first name, if you try and say Mr./Mrs./Ms. then you're wierd
• It is actually allowed to have computers in class and you can do whatever you want. If you feel like taking a nap, that's cool. Rather go on facebook than do your chem work, that's cool too! Heck, don't wanna go to class, see ya later! Students here are allowed to do what they want in class, but they rarely ever skip and usually pay attention, even though they're allowed to do otherwise.
• There are way less police officers/ambulances/firetrucks around here. I was probably here for aver a month before I saw a cop, only saw an ambulance when I was at the big festival in Silkeborg, and saw my first fire truck last week! I'm sure the low crime rate helps (seriously crime is almost nonexistant here! My classmates will all leave class and just leave their computers lying around and come back a few hours later and they'd be untouched.... I have a feeling I will have problems coming back to America after being used to virtually no crime).
• When the stop light goes from red to green, it goes red, red and yellow, green.
• They don't have a lot of intersections with stoplights, they have a lot more round-abouts here!
• Teens drinking is quite common here. The schools will throw parties with alcohol and on fridays after school, they have something called a "fredags cafe" where they sell beer and soda and students just relax together for a few hours. Denmark actually has the highest number of teens who drink in the world (when the teens tell me this, they are proud of it, but when adults say it, they same "it's such a shame", but yet they go along with letting their teens to drink! I suppose it isn't as bad though, because they don't have serious problems like drinking and driving).
• The weather here is the most bi-polar thing I've met in my entire life! On any given day, you can walk around and see people wearing shorts and a tee shirt or a sweater and boots. What they're wearing depends solely on how the weather was when they left the house, because it changes so often.
• Potatoes (or "Kartoffler" in danish) are a constant at dinner. Almsot every dinner here, I've had potatoes. And they actually have dishes depending on the season, because the potatoes do better with certain things at certain times. Summer is boiled potatoes (tasty, but since it's "special" to have a sauce on them, it gets boring at times) and winter is mashed potatoes (can't wait! yummm).

There are lots of other things but I can't remember them now, so I'll add more some other time. I'll try and update soon!

Vi ses,

McKenzie

Intro camp.... and a ton of other stuff!

Wow! It has been a really really really long time since I did a blog last. I'll try and keep it brief (but I say that everytime and fail epicly everytime... so- No promises!).

Week before intro camp:
The week before intro camp, I stayed with a temporary host family that lived just a few houses away. My host parents went to Greenlang on vacation, so I got to spend a week with the sweetest family in all of Denmark! The family I stayed with has kids (I was probably too excited about this- but oh well!). They have a daughter who goes to school with me and a 14 year old son (same age as my brother, Grant, back home- but way less annoying!). The mom spoke no english, which was hard at times, but helped me learn danish and always worked out since everyone else knows english. The family was amazingly sweet to me and I loved every minute of my week there! The day before I left for intro camp, a Rotarian in my club, Hanne, took me to a Medieval festival in a nearby town (Horsens). It was amazing! I ate some really good food (that's how you know I am an exchange student- every place I go is judged by the food!), spent some time with her family, and just had fun.

Intro Camp!!!!!:
On that Sunday, I was picked up by my club counselor and driven to my week long intro camp! For everyone reading this who has no clue what intro camp is, it's basically where the country puts on a language/culture crash course for the inbound exchange students! I got to meet all of the summer students and we spent the week getting to know eachother. I made so many friends (and became very good friends with my roommate- Kelsea from Washington state!). We did so many fun things, so I'll just rattle off the best: private concert with an amazing Danish band, spending the day in the 3rd largest city in Denmark- Aarhus where we visited an amazing art museum- ARoS, watching the danish film "In a Better World" (which won an Academy Award in the USA last year!). We also spent 6 hrs a day learning Danish- insanely hard, boring, fun, awesome, and everything all at the same time! I had a blast at intro camp and now I am even more excited to meet with the other exchange students soon!

District G2G:
This past Sunday, my district held a get-together for the inbounds in my district. We hiked 6 km (almost all uphill, and one part of that was climbing the tallest hill in Denmark, which everyone says is jokingly small, but when you are climbing it, it doesn't feel that small- even though it's only 170.86 m tall!) We also canoed 5-6 km. I think it's safe to say that I have finally worked off all of the Kjeldsons cookies I got for my birthday! I also got the chance to meet some oldies (exchange students from Australia, New Zealand, and a few from S. American countries come during January so they have been here longer and are called oldies, and once they leave, I become an oldie to the newbies that will come).

9/11:
I was going back and forth on whether I should write about this, but it was something very important to me, and something that many people reading this would never understand if I don't write it. Yesterday was the 10 year anniversary of the 9/11 tragedy. I knew that day would be hard on me, but I didn't know how hard. Although the attacks changed the entire world, no one felt it like Americans. It was very odd not being in America on that day. Everyone here constantly asked me how I felt about it and kept asking me questions. I suppose it was because they wanted an American's view, but it seemed odd. Of course I was upset, and of course it affected me- what else do they expect! I guess it was weird going from America where people don't ask that question (because everyone knows how you feel- and they feel it too) and then arriving here where I kept getting asked about it. There is no way to explain what it felt like to me on the day the attacks occured, and I have never had to explain it until now. There is also no way to explain how it felt living through the 10 year mark in Denmark. It felt weird, spending a day where Americans come together, out of America. I did realize that the whole world truly does feel affected by it, but I also realized how much more it affecting America. I guess now I am just babbling on and making no sense, so I will stop, but I just thought that 9/11 needed to be mentioned, because it was very significant to me and showed me a lot about the world.

Other than that:
I might be taking a 60 km biking trip later this month. I would go with other teens into a nearby town (Silkeborg) and back, it would be a weekend trip. My blazer is now full of pins! After all of my rotary events, my blazer is completely full (and I have almost no pins left- I will need to make more!). My language is coming on a little bit better. I can now understand a lot more, but finding the words to talk is still tough. Tomorrow, I will be tested at my language class to move into the next class level (I hope I pass!!!!). Denmark is tough at times and I finally realize how much I love Florida, but I love it here! The language is hard, but so rewarding when you learn something! I am starting to feel like I fit in, but I still know I have a long way to go.

Vi ses!

Knus fra Danmark!

<3 McKenzie