Rotary Weekend in Holbæk

From Friday night to Sunday morning we had a Rotary weekend in a city called Holbæk. Almost all of the Rotary students in Denmark were there, which is around 200 students. It was so nice to see everyone again and meet new people.

We had a bunch of activities like carving pumpkins, soccer games, and we even got to walk into the town for a couple hours and go shopping. On Saturday night we had a little party where there was a pumpkin carving contest, costume contest, and talent show. My friend Payton and I made a pumpkin (the BEST pumpkin), however, we didn't end up winning the contest.

Me, Payton, and the rightful winner

They decorated the whole room for the party with lights, smoke machines, and Halloween decorations. They even flew in an artist from London to preform for us.

Sunday was a bittersweet morning. For a lot of students, that was the last time they were going to see each other. (Some of the students are from the winter team, which means they arrived in January of 2017, so they are leaving in a few months. This was the last time all of the Districts in Denmark were together)

A lot of pictures were taken and hugs were given. It's such an amazing feeling to be in such a loving community with people from all over the world. We're really like a family. I wish everyone the best of luck, both the summer and winter teams. I love you all so much.

I will miss you all, and hope to see you again someday.

Now it's time to thank one of my GoFundMe Donors: Jan Cuneo, thank you so much for donating to my fundraiser. Thanks to you, I got to meet all of these wonderful people and create memories I'll never forget. (Much love, miss you lots!)

Danish Word of the Day:

familie- family

Copenhagen

This weekend we had a Rotary event in a city called Holbæk, which required us to take a train to Copenhagen. On Friday a few other exchange students and I decided to make a day out of it, so we got up really early and took a bus to the train station in Aarhus, and were on our way.

It takes about three hours to get to Copenhagen from Aarhus, so we were able to catch up on some sleep on the train.

Once in Copenhagen, we got off the train and we found a bus tour. So, we bought some tickets and boarded the bus.

We rode on the bus for maybe 20 minutes, and got off at the Amalienborg Castle, which is where the royal family resides. Everyday at noon the guards do a little march in the square, and we made it just in time to see it.

It was a bit cold, so we went looking for some shelter. After the march we went into the church just behind the castle. It was very large and beautiful and had an amazing painted ceiling. It was so quiet and peaceful inside (and warm). There was beautiful organ music playing as we walked around.

After this we walked to the beautiful Nyhavn, which might be my favorite part of Copenhagen I've seen so far. We were a bit hungry, so we made a pit stop in a little waffle shop we found. It was my first time eating waffles since coming to Denmark! (and they were SO good)

Once we fueled up, we walked around Nyhavn and took lots of pictures.

We made our way to Holbæk but on Sunday Andrea and I came back to Copenhagen and finished the bus tour. We got to see a lot of cool buildings and monuments and even got to see the famous Little Mermaid statue! She's very small, but I'm glad we got to see her. (On our tour we learned that since she was made she's lost her head three times!)

It was a really nice trip and I'm really glad we decided to get up early and use the day in Copenhagen.

Now it's time to thank one of my GoFundMe donors: Thank you so much to Jeannine Mead for donating! Without you, this trip wouldn't have been possible.

Danish Word of the Day:
havfrue- mermaid

Halloween Prep

Today my friend Ellen came over after school and we carved pumpkins together! We bought them at the grocery store in town and carried them back home (they were quite heavy). Halloween is not celebrated very much in Denmark, so I decided to bring it with me. I decorated the house so it would be the right atmosphere.

I also made my family a pumpkin roll!

Ellen and I got home and carved our pumpkins. She made a skeleton face, and I made a little mouse. We also roasted some pumpkin seeds for a snack.

Ellen with our pumpkins

A little later, I carved another pumpkin with my host mom. She made a face and I made a cat in honor of my little black kitty Malcolm who I had to leave at home.

I love Halloween so much and I'm so glad I get to share it with my host family.

Now I'd like to say thank you to one of the donors to my GoFundMe: Daniel Lee, thank you so so much for donating! You made it possible for me to come study here and share one of my favorite holidays with this wonderful family. Thank you so much!

Danish Word of the Day:

uhyggelig- creepy

Rømø, Tønder, og Sønderborg

Yesterday morning my host parents and I packed up the car, and set out to visit my host father's parents in Tønder, a town near the border to Germany. We hopped in the car and started driving, and along the way we stopped at the highest natural point in Denmark!

They built a monument on top so you can go to the top and see out across Denmark. Unfortunately, it was rather a gloomy day, so you couldn't see very far.

After visiting the monument, we jumped back in the car and drove to an island called Rømø. It was a beautiful little island and we parked on the beach and ate lunch there.

Driving to Rømø

Rømø Beach

After we ate we took a long walk down the beach. There weren't that many people out, maybe because it was a bit cloudy, but it was very beautiful.

My Host Parents on Rømø

After a nice lunch on Rømø we hopped back in the car and drove to Tønder, where my host father's parents live.

For dinner, we drove across the border and ate in Germany! I had wiener schnitzel, and it was really good!

We drove back to my host grandparents' house and spent the night there. In the morning my host parents took me out to show me the town. My host father grew up here, so he knew a lot about it. It's a very old, beautiful city. Cars are not allowed to drive down a lot of the streets because they're the original cobblestone that was put in hundreds of years ago. My host father also told me there's laws that don't allow big alterations to the houses, so it all looks as it did when the town was first built- it's one of the oldest in Denmark.

The houses are situated very closely together, and they look very small. However, my host dad told me that all the houses have the narrowest side facing the street, because you had to pay more taxes if the front of your house was very wide. 

We went into one very old building, that's now a Christmas store, but was once a pharmacy. They still have the pharmacy sign hanging outside, and all of the architecture is still original, as well as some of the furniture.

It was a very beautiful building, and it's amazing to be inside a building that has so much history.

Tønder is also very famous for their viewing spot of a phenomena called "murmuration," in which a flock of starlings fly together in a mesmerizing, fluid pattern. There are often hundreds of thousands of birds flying together, and the Danes call it "sort sol," or "the black sun" because there are so many birds that you can't see the sun through them. Unfortunately, the day we went there were not so many birds. :( However, here are some pictures of "sort sol" in Tønder:

I really wish that I had been able to see it in person, I've always wanted to see a murmuration, but it nature had a different plan. Although we didn't see any that night we saw some on our drive and it wasn't as big of a flock, but it was still very beautiful.

After lunch we said goodbye to my host father's parents, and started driving to my host mother's father's house in Sønderborg, which is the town that she grew up in. It was really cool to see where my host parents grew up and have them tell me about their hometowns.

Sønderborg is also a very beautiful, old town. It's famous for its rich history regarding the war between Denmark and Germany. There are museums and battle sights that you're able to visit. The town itself was very beautiful, and I hope to go back to visit the actually city. The buildings are brightly colored and are right on the water, and it reminds me a little of pictures I've seen of Nyhavn in Copenhagen.

All in all it was a busy few days for me, but it was a great trip. I'm so grateful that I'm here and have such a great host family that takes me to see such beautiful, historic places like their hometowns.

Special thank you to Nicole Lee for donating to my GoFundMe. Without you, I would not have been able to experience what I did over the past few days. Thank you so much for your donation, it means the world to me.

Danish Word of the Day:

apotek- pharmacy