Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Looking outside our flat...

Being a Texan, I have never really experienced snow. So, I have to say, I was SUPER excited to see Sweden and Denmark's first snow of the year! It was very unexpected because Denmark is on the Gulf jet stream, so we tend to not have as much snow. But, Mike had taken the day off on Friday and we headed up to Malmo, Sweden (I know, I love that place!) for the day. We were walking around the city center, getting some cute things for our little tree and it just started coming down! I mean, big 'ole flakes, too! Here are some picture with me at the first flakes of snow. Luckily, Mike didn't get one of me trying to catch the snowflakes in my mouth (although, there were several failed attempts).

In Malmo, we also ate at one of the best Tapas restaurants! The lady at Peter Beier Chokolade (http://www.peterbeierchokolade.dk/) recommended it and since she was from Spain, we took her word on it! It was so

good... here is a picture from what we ate at La Roche. There is a platter with serrano ham, marinated manchego, olives, chorizo & caper berries. Then, we had the marinated tomato salad and shrimp with garlic. What isn't shown is the mussels (probably one of my most fav foods) and the Spanish omelet. It really didn't get much better than this!

We headed off for some more shopping and snow. Mike loved this shower cap at LaegerHaus and he looked so cute in it! Haha... And, the next pic is from standing at the entrance of Zara (LOVE this store!) and looking out at my rendition of a blizzard! Mike said that this wasn't a blizzard, but I think that it was!

We got our first Scandic Christmas Tree, too! We had to get one.. and it is so cute! I made Mike take a picture with the tree, he was... oh, a little embarrased! But, seriously, when are we ever going to have a Christmas Tree in Denmark, again?! Here he is.. thrilled for me to be taking his photo (and I am sure even more thrilled that I have it on the blog!)** Oh and the snow was free of charge! ;)

We had such a great time in Sweden and it was time to head back to snowy Denmark. We had to decorate our flat & our little tree. I know, I know... it is mid-November. But, since we don't have Thanksgiving we wanted to focus on Christmas! So, here is our decorated, little tree and our little decorations. I wanted to get as Scandinavian as possible!

Later that weekend, we had Eric (Mike's Boss) in town, as he finished up his European Tour here. We were fortunate that the weather was nice and there was the International Food Festival going one on Gammeltorv, the downtown square. We also went to Tivoli and it was lit up just beautifully for Christmas. And, with the snow, it was just amazing. Here is a picture of me with the snow in front of Nimb.

And, I had to show my proud, lil Frosty that I made on someone's hood of their car! I know, he is too cute... I think that I will name him Fredrico.

Well, guys.. that is all for now. With Thanksgiving this week, I am looking forward to spending time with new friends here, although I will miss my family and friends back home. Either way, it makes me think of how thankful we am to have all of you in our lives. We are so fortunate to have so many great friends & an amazing family. I will all of you a very Happy Thanksgiving, no matter where you are from!

No Thanksgiving... What?!

So, I am so saddened to hear that Thanksgiving isn't celebrated by the Danes. I mean, conceptually, I knew they didn't have the Pilgrims, the Nina, Pinta & Santa Maria and... for that matter, Cristbol Colombus! But, darn it if I didn't really want a big celebration here full on with the days off, turkey and ample amounts of football ("American-style"). We are planning on celebrating with some American (and French!) friends on Saturday after. But, you know, it will be really hard not being with the family and our absolutely crazy zoo! I mean, what is Thanksgiving without dad falling asleep before, after and during Thanksgiving... Mom making an amazing meal... Lisa & Lindsey picking from the big vat of mashed potatoes and pre-deciding that they would get all the leftover potatoes... Raul playing video games... Leo & Maria coloring... Mike watching football... Craig & Maria enjoying & always bringing a few bottles of wine... and, well the list goes on at our house!

So, instead of focusing on the Thanksgiving that I won't get to attend in Houston (it just makes me sad to miss the family), we have started focusing on Christmas here in Denmark. I am working really hard to understand the Danish traditions and such. First off, we went to the Kongens Nytorv Julemarked (Christmas Market) on Sunday. Despite a little rain, Mike and I had a great time! They sell all kinds of things from very heavy fleece to caramel apples. They also sell soup, Abelskivers candied nuts.

Here they are making caramel apple with homemade caramel and coated in coconut! YUM!

And, I am not sure who this is supposed to be, but these ladies were singing and handing out candy to the kids. Sadly, I didn't recieve a piece.

Here are some other Christmas Traditions here:

1- Merry Christmas = God Jul (literally translated to Good Christmas)

2- Christmas elves are not the same as in the U.S. (sorry, Will Ferrell). The elves here are called Nisser and they are quite mischievious. They live in old farmhouses, wear grey clothing with a red bonnet & stockings. You usually leave a bowl of rice pudding for him on Christmas Eve so that Nisser will be friendly and keep the pranks at bay.

3- Christmas is really celebrated Christmas Eve. Christmas dinner is usually duck or goose with potatoes and red cabbage. Usually followed by a lot of singing and dancing. Oh, and lets not forget the aquavit, which is for the adults! Dessert is another kind of lighter, rice pudding. It is made with whipped cream and chopped almonds. There is a whole almond in the pudding and if you find it, you get a prize (usually chocolate or marizpan).

4- Christmas day is celebrated with gathering with family and friends and enjoying a meal of cold cuts, different types of fish and, well more aquavit & ol (beer)!

I am sure that we will learn much more, as it gets closer!

Things I am learning about Danish everyday life

Well, I have been holding off to do this blog. It is a blog of my observations. What I mean is, when I travel, one of my favorite things is observing different cultures. And, I felt compelled to wait so that I can get a "good understanding" of what I was writing about. That being said, I do still feel "ignorant", as I do continue to learn about these different cultures. But, I am trying to be objective... this list will, no doubt grow.

Free Health Care
So, I went to the doctor for the first time yesterday. Once I got my CPR (which is equivalent to my SSN) and was made legal, I am now able to take advantage of free health care. So, I called to make an appointment and found that no appointment was necessary. But, my "assigned" doctors hours were from 10-11:30am, nice hours, huh? I had to wait about 20 minutes, which in the States, is actually not a long time.

Fashion
So, I am loving the fashion here... for the most part. I mean, it is H&M-inspired, is the best way to really put it. However, there are some intense 80's influences, which is fine... in small amounts, not all at one time. I have seen a literal Madonna video walking down the street. And, not Hard Candy Madonna-era, think Material Girl Madonna-era. Kinda interesting. Here are some things that are very popular with women's fashion: leggings, Chuck Norris high tops, scarfs, cute dresses- 80's inspired, ballet shoes (gold & silver), light makeup (except for the Goth-types), lots of tats, jellies, capris.

Taxes
Well, that "free" health care has to get paid for somehow, right? Oh and did I mention, you get free schooling here...all the way through college. And, in college you can even get a stipend for living. A lot of people here have Master's degrees, well... because they can. The Danes are taxed 43%-65% of their salaries. Which, by most standards, is pretty high. If you wanted to get a car, which would be imported, expect to pay 180% of the cost of the car. Anything imported is highly taxed. For example, a 75ml bottle of Bacardi set me back $35! Are you kidding me?! So, the key to the food is to buy Danish products. They are very proud of them, which is cool. Just look for something with the Danish flag on it.

Relationships
The views on relationships are very progressive & liberal here. It is actually, very refreshing, in most cases. The coolest thing is that everything really does revolve around the family. Family is the most important thing and family/friend time is what people here really live for. On any given day, you see families at the park, going for walks, grabbing a bite to eat. You don't work past 5pm (most people) because it takes away from family time.
It is VERY common to have babies young. A lot of people forgo getting married and just start their family. The women would get a 1 year (in Sweden, it is 2 years) leave and the husband 6 months (in Sweden it is 1year). So, it is very common to have couples with more than 1 kid, who aren't married and do not intend to marry. Marriage isn't really a big deal to them. We have one friend whose parents have been together over 30 years and they JUST got married!

The Gym
The gym here is interesting. I mean, it is a nice gym... very gray & red. It kind of reminds me of the Dodgeball gym... the one from Ben Stiller's camp. But, not quite as shiny and without the use of the cup. A lot of people wear flip flops & jeans to work out...which, is different than the US. The Danes are very big into getting their exercise and do make sure that they hit the gym on top of walking/biking everywhere. It is also very common to see a mother, with her baby in the stroller next to her, working out. They provide several pregnancy classes & post-pregnancy classes.
Oh and for spinning, the provide the spinning shoes for you. Gross! I have my own... no thank you to sharing other people's feet sweat. And, the particular gym we go to have a boxing ring. I finally got my nerve to go to a class and they stopped them for the summer, because everyone goes on Holiday for about 6 weeks.

Alcohol
Ok, this might be one of the most shocking ones for me. You can drink any where, any time, any place. Yesterday, I was coming home from the market, 10am... there were two construction workers taking a break, on the street, beer in hand. But, it is nice... yesterday the weather was amazing, so we went to the park & had a bottle of wine. It is just weird to go to a concert (John Mayer) and people walking up with 6 packs of beer to drink before they head into the concert. It is very casual. And, the drinking age is 18, but they don't really check.

Food
So, of course I HAVE to talk about food. There is really so much to say, so I will try and keep it as concise as possible. So, as I mentioned before, the best fruits & vegetables are those from Denmark. They do have an organic mark, called okologisk. However, even on their "conventional" items a lot less pesticides are used. Things that they grow here: Strawberries (the BEST I have ever had in my life), tomatoes, peppers (although, not hot), herbs, POTATOES (especially small, new), lettuces, onion, berries, apples.
As for protein... they eat a lot of chicken. However, the do not allow pesticides and such in their meats. And, the taste proves it. I know it is weird, but the chicken tastes so much better, no sulfurous after taste. They also do eat a lot of pork with pork farming as one of their industries. I did, yesterday, find this little gourmet store around the corner. It serves Danish wild boar meat, the only place in Denmark to do so. So, I bought some Danish, wild boar bacon. This place is really cool and I am thinking of staging there. They process & butcher all their own products. Everything in the store is organic & the cater.
Of course, there is fish or fisk. Since we are in the nordic region of the country and basically surrounded by water, fish is a staple. From pickled herring, which some prepartions aren't too bad. To squeezable fish paste you eat on crackers (I did try it, but no thank you!), fish is everywhere. Of course, salmon is huge & shrimp.
Bakeries are on every corner. We go to the organic bakery about 2-3 times a week. It is kind of ironic, as I ride my bike to the gym, I pass no less than 5 bakeries. And, in the morning, you can smell it... hmmm.
Finally, they do eat a lot of butter, eggs, milk. Of course, a lot of coffee & wine. Usually, dinner or a meal is finished with a cigarette. Every public place is smoke free. However, right outside the door is not, so you do smell it a lot more.

The People & Language
The people are generally a very beautiful people. They are very tall. And, yes, a lot of blonde hair and blue eyed beauties. But, there is also some diversity here, which is always good.. in my book. An interesting pheonomenon, is there is quite a few Thai women who marry Danish men. The men fancy the Thai women, but I don't yet know the history on that. So, it is very common to see that combination.
The nice thing is that most people do speak English. Danish is an odd language and has some weird pronunciations. If I read something and pronounce it the way that I would with English, they don't understand it because their pronunciation is very different. So, when they talk to you in Danish, just answer in English. That being said, I am slowly picking up the language and hope to start a class (which, is free!) soon!

Well, there will be more observations. And, keep in mind, that is what they are...just observations. I don't claim to know this culture yet, but being submersed has definitely made me open my eyes to new things. It is a constant sensory stimulus with new sights, sounds and experiences every day. Most days, it is a good thing... but, there are days (esp. when it rains) when I long for more convience of the US.
However, I am learning with that convience, comes a price... and, it is appearing to be a price on our waistlines, health and earth. I hope that I bring back with me the learnings of how non-wasteful they are here. I love how don't HAVE to use a car everywhere I go.. in fact, I don't at all. That being said, in Austin, it really ISN'T bike friendly so that we can ride our bikes everywhere..yet. We are getting better with public transporation, but we aren't there yet. It is refreshing to see a society who practices what they preach and not because it is the trendy thing to do. I still have a lot to learn on that subject, but what I am learning is eye opening. They do have a direct interest in learning about the environment, because it is currently affecting them. There are no air conditioners here and with temperature continuing to rise over the past 10 years, due to global warming, it is a major concern.
Anywhoo.. no 4th of July here... So, I wish you all a HAPPY 4th of July! I wish I could be there with my friends and family and pues con unos fiestas y cervezas! I miss you all terribly and I can't wait to see you at the end of July!

Mid Summer's Night- Burning of the Witches

So, last night, we went out to the coast to observe a most interesting "holiday" here in Denmark. It is called Mid-Summer Nights. It is the time of the year that is longest day of sunlight... so, just to let you know, the sun isn't down here until about 10:30pm and rises at about 4-4:30am. So, this is the time of the year that the sun is out the longest. It was out until about 11pm (ish). Bierger and his family were kind enough to have us over for a traditional Danish meal and wine. We all headed out to the beach, which was just a few kilometers away. Here is a witch, pre-burn, mind you it is about 10:30pm (and you can see Sweden off in the distance!).

This is for the summer, the winter tells a completely different story with about 4-6 hrs of sunlight. Dating back to the days of the witch hunt, they would burn the witches that they found on this day. They would burn them at the beach and out on the water. While the witches were burning (and, their souls going to some mountain in Germany), they would sing and make a lot of noise so as to scare off their souls. This tradition has turned into burning bonfires on the beach, have drinks & celebrating with friends and family.

It is said that Sweden & Finland also celebrate this holiday much differently. They start drinking, very heavily and basically don't stop all weekend. It has gotten quite dangerous, with many deaths to due alcohol poisoning and fights. So, I am kind of glad that we can just hang on the beach and chill.
Well, kids...more to come! ;)