What a day! I was out of the house from 8am until 9pm, running around the city and exploring.

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During the DIScover Copenhagen scavenger hunt-like event:

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Grabrødretorv

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A hidden little square!

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Bikes, of course

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Den Sorte Diamant, or “The Black Diamond,” which is a nickname for Denmark’s national library

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Christiansborg, where Danish parliament resides

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And finally, the marble church near Amalienborg, the home of Denmark’s queen

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And then the other explorations!

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Swans (: I’ve never seen one before in person… They were huge!

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A shot from the water taxi

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(Nyhavn, the famous street that is on most Danish tourism paraphernalia!)

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And then there were my greatest triumphs for the day: wandering by myself, learning how to read a map, navigating the scarcely-labeled and impossible-to-pronounce streets, attempting to pronounce said impossible-to-pronounce streets, and ORDERING A PASTRY WITHOUT USING A WORD OF ENGLISH.

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To be fair, I only had to use two words of Danish, but hey. The guy gave me the right thing, and I thanked him, so that’s all that matters! (Even though he could definitely tell I was not actually Danish, as he said everything to me in English. Eh. Baby steps.) I ordered a Klobenbollen, if you’re curious. My host family believes it is a made-up word, because they don’t recognize it, but it was a croissant with almonds, apricots, and raisins. Yum.

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I also tried to go swing dancing, but there ended up being no actual floor space to do so, and I only managed to stand on the stairs and listen for a few songs before heading out to apply for Danish residency. The band was the Chris Tanner Trio (from Australia), and they play at Charlie Scott’s every Tuesday night. I recorded a really nice snippet of What it Means to Miss New Orleans, but it isn’t the right file type to upload. ): I’ll figure it out later.

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My view!

So yes. I am making progress, here in Denmark. I even managed to snooze a bit on the train ride back. Oh, and the reminders that I am in fact here to study have begun to pour in. Presenting, MY TEXTBOOKS: (dun, Dun, DUUUUUUNNNN….!)

(There are twelve of them. For five classes and a seminar… I suppose this week will bring an end to my reading-for-pleasure on the train.) The one I am most looking forward to is my Danish book! Here’s hoping it will help me survive the semester in Copenhagen.

Until next time,

Venlig hilsen/ best regards,

Lizzy-wa