København

Today Fie and I went to Copenhagen. We took the bus from our Herfølge to Køge and then a train from Køge to Copenhagen. At the train station we met one of Fie's friends from school, Laura. She lives west of Copenhagen and we live south, so it is a good meeting point.

From the station we walked through Copenhagen's streets. There is so many stores and SO MANY BIKES! There are bikes that sell water and ice cream, some that carry children and there are even bike taxis. There are just so many different kinds of bikes!

Our first excursion was to the Rundetaarn (Round Tower). It is a 114 foot tower that King Christian IV ordered be built in 1588. It has a spiral ramp that winds a total of 685 feet and winds 7.5 turns. It is located in the middle of Copenhagen and the top offers some spectacular views. You can even see the bridge the connects Denmark to Sweden. Fie, Laura and I sat on the top and had some apple juice and plums.

After the Rundetaarn, we did a little a shopping which resulted in wasted time. I was looking for a pair of shoes because I only brought 2 pair. We found a bunch of shoes at a fair price; the only problem was that they were all 45 (US 12), and I wear a 48 (US 14). Laura, however, went into a children's bookstore and bought me a book about a boy who gets a dog. I can't wait to read it! After that, we gave up on shopping.

From there we walked to the Nyhavn, which is the older part of Copenhagen. It is the area with beautiful multi-colored buildings on the water. It was really great to see such a beautiful place. We kept walking and walking until we reached a place called Christiania. It is a "hippie city" with a great deal of history. In the 70's, people who lived there wanted a more self-governant government. The government wanted to move them and they fought the police and all this stuff happened, blah, blah. Anyway, the people of Christiania won and so today the people who live there do not have housing laws and they don't pay taxes. They also sell and use drugs openly. It was really interesting to visit and see how they live. It is not very clean and there are definitely some sketchy people there, but it was fun to see. I believe tomorrow we are going to an amusement park that was described to me by Elise as "small, small, small, small Disney World". I will see how it goes.

My Danish is still in pretty non-existant, but I am starting to somewhat understand the conversations at the dinner table. Jesper always asks me if I understand what they are talking about and then fills me in. Usually after we are done eating there is a quiz for me of all the items on the table. I am getting better! School starts next Wednesday and I am hoping to start language school soon. I cannot wait until I can start talking to my family in Danish. Oh, the thrill!

Andy E