copenhappenings

Below are a smattering of assorted things that have been happening around town.
Katie and I went to a James Taylor concert at Tivoli and we sat 8th row directly in front of the legend himself. It was amazing and we were definitely the youngest people in the room. But I must say, going to a concert in Denmark was certainly an experience. Danes are known for being reserved and not excessively expressive so it was surprising to us Americans that there was no standing ovation when James came out, just a polite round of applause. We also were happy to realize that everyone sat during the entire concert, increasing the intimacy of the whole affair. Only by the last few songs, when James did three encores, did the old hippies start grooving and clapping and singing along. It was a hilarious and very memorable night.

katie and me

sir James

aquarium in tivoli

The following Tuesday was the Danish Labor Day, a day when all Danes take a day off from work to day-drink in Faelledparken and can enjoy the company of their friends, different music and food stands, and just take time to enjoy the day. Unfortunately, DIS still had classes (didn't make sense) but we went to the park after class and sat out and had a few ciders to contribute to the holiday. My core class actually got a tour of Rigshospital by one of the other section's teachers and one of the students even had an EEG (electroencephalogram) performed on him to measure his brain wavelengths - it was awesome.

Danish port-a-potty

The next day it was high 60s (tropical) and so I spent the day sitting out in the sun in the park right near my kollegium, reading the Hunger Games and enjoying the scenery. The scenery I was seeing included swans and ducks and geese and some families barbequing out in the sun. It was really enjoyable and I definitely got a lot of color and gave me hope for this summer of being really really tan. (I originally wanted to study abroad in Sydney, Australia and had been dreaming for years about how tan I would be after two summers, the reversed seasons in the southern hemisphere being my advantage)

Thursday, I ventured over to the Little Mermaid by myself in order to snap a picture with the statue and to continue working on my tan and spending as much time outside as I could. I got lost in Kastellet, the star-shaped fortress right near there so I definitely increased my vitamin D intake that day. I wandered back towards DIS, had a class, and then headed to the Panum Institute for a really cool afternoon. Every friday, Danish medical students go to a fredagsbar, a friday's bar, and just drink with each other and with faculty into the night. There are bigger events scheduled during the semester that are basically fredagsbars on larger scale. So for this specific day, thousands of people were expected, and we were warned by our med student TA that we would be waiting on line for a while so bring beers to pass the time. After class, like 10 of us went to netto and picked up ciders, beers, and snacks and headed to Panum. We only waited like 45 minutes but we had a lot of fun talking to Danes and anticipating the elusive Panum. Basically the student lounge had been converted into a bar, and there was a whole outdoor section with djs, bartenders, and hot dog stands. I stayed for a few hours talking to friends and admiring the casualness of the drinking culture in Denmark, before I headed back to the dorm with my friend Christina to pick up shawarma and so I could pack for my weekend trip to Paris.

ducks in kastellet

emily, christina, me, andrea at panum

den lille havfrue og mig

I'll write about Paris in the next post but I want to include some more stuff I've been doing here in Copenhagen. This past thursday I made sure to go to the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, the museum where the opening ceremony was held back in January, just to say I've been there. I also stumbled upon the Lego store and actually it was awesome. There were a bunch of mini models and there was even a huge representation of Nyhavn. See below for the really cool nerdiness of it all.

tropics

the thinker

classic cope

sushi!

farming culture

sometimes swim

bah bah black sheep

nyhavn

up close

ok yum

Classes ended Friday and I've been trying to muster up the energy to concentrate and study. I have two cumulative finals that are back to back on Tuesday yet I haven't been able to focus on anything except sitting in bed and watching tv shows and relaxing. To prove this point, I am currently sitting in bed, watching Friends, and snacking. I did get a free bottle of champagne out at a club last night!

skål!