Halfway through my Exchange!

Last week, the world saw the beginning of a new year, and so did I, from the perspective of another country. I wouldn't say it was very different from New Year's in any other place. A little party with friends, fireworks lighting the sky and counting down till 12; that's what usually defines New Year's everywhere. In Denmark, it is also almost a tradition to watch the Queen's speech in the evening. Overlooking the fact that it was a little bit messy this year, I quite enjoyed hearing the carols played after it. In short, it was a 'hyggelit' (lovely) evening, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Slight changes have also been made to our classes in school, and we have many people who left our class, and many new people who joined it, It's interesting having new people in the class, but also a little odd. Also, my course is going to be focused on Math, Physics and Chemistry now, so I guess that makes thing a little easier.
On a more sad note, however, I am already halfway through my exchange. I have lived in Denmark for 5 MONTHS now! Although it makes my heart weep out of despair, I can't help but start thinking about how it's going to be like to go home again. It's such a difficult part of your exchange - you love your host country like crazy but you also begin to miss your home country and start appreciating a thousand times more than you did before. In any case, time flies, and I can't help but think back to my first night in Denmark:

The last time I saw my family

"My friend and I said goodbye to our families at the airport in Mumbai and boarded the flight to Frankfurt airport. She didn't cry a bit; I cried a river and caused everyone at the airport to stare at me in curiosity. Our reached about half an hour late, and we missed the first flight to Denmark. After a long hassle and asking for help from a lot of people at the airport, we finally managed to rebook our flight and we waited for about three hours before boarding the next flight to Denmark. At the airport, we figured out that our luggage had been left behind at Frankfurt airport, and that it would be delivered to us a day or two later. Meanwhile, my counsellor and his wife, who were supposed to pick me up three hours back, had to wait near the airport which was about 1 or 2 hours away from their house. I recognised my counsellor as soon as I stepped out of the airport, and he greeted me with a warm hug that erased all my frustration about the flight and luggage. They drove me to my new house, and on the way, they talked to me about Denmark. I had heard a lot of it before, since my mother had taken up reading about Denmark as a hobby, and she kept popping random facts at me sometimes. When we reached home, my host parents had to go somewhere else, so I spent the evening with my host mom's parents. They were lovely people, and I had one of my best dinner's ever at that time - spring onion pie. Reading that, you'd think it was nothing special, but at that time, it was the most delicious thing I had ever tasted. They talked to me about India and Denmark, and at about 9, when the sun had yet not set, I retreated to my bed, and tired as I was, I was asleep immediately."

The first time I met my counsellor

Every day of my life in Denmark, I picture myself virtually walking through my house, remembering where every room, every sofa, even every picture frame lies. I'm too afraid of forgetting how my life used to be before I came here. Everything seems so vivid, it's like no time has passed. I think I will hold the memory of the day I arrived in Denmark. for the rest of my life. I thank everyone I met in Denmark, and everyone in India who helped me go on this exchange; thanks to them, I happened to be one of the 25 people to represent my district in India.

Language check: I guess I'm getting pretty good at Danish, because everyone person I meet tells me that I am great at Danish; it feels amazing!

2 days to Christmas: Weekend Get2Gether & Christmas markets

There's about two days left for Christmas, and the celebrations are full fledged. There are many 'Julefrokoster' (christmas lunches/dinners) and the decorations are out. Christmas trees have been bought and every house is lighted up with Christmas lights. Danish people associate the Danish flag with celebration, so basically, it looks like a HUGE political party rally. It's snowed only once till now, and although the weather forecasters may deny it, I still wish for the miracle of a white Christmas. It's the perfect possible Christmas I could imagine - sitting in the living room watching television or playing cards with my family, while fire burns in the fireplace and the trees are covered with snow outside.


Rotary Weekend Get2Gether

Our Rotary District

Rotary arranged a little weekend for all the exchange students in our district to meet and have some fun. We toured Odense, H.C Andersen's house and a Christmas market. Christmas markets are the most crowded places I can find in Denmark. Of course, it's not the most pleasant thing, but it reminds me of home. Some of these market are unaffordable, and others are relatively cheap. I haven't found a place as cheap as the dear, sweet, crowded markets of Mumbai, but Denmark is not very expensive if you look in the right places. We spent the weekend in a little camping cabin. On the first day, we got Christmas food from all of our countries and made a little buffet. India doesn't have any Christmas food, so I simply carried samosas. I was pretty lucky since a lot of people brought vegetarian food, but I wish sometimes, that I could taste all the food people offered me. We played pakkelej (a Danish Christmas tradition in which everyone has a gift and you can steal gifts from others if you roll a six on your dice). We also had a little part (without alcohol, of course) and we danced till late at night. I still haven't caught up on any sleep since that weekend, because that's how less I slept. It was great fun, and I can't wait till the next District Event.

Christmas spirit in Odense

Christmas Shopping
Shopping for Christmas gifts is one of the most confusing things that I have ever done. You want to be a bit humorous, but not offensive, you want to spend money, but not too much, and so on. I haven't bought all my gifts just yet, but it is so difficult to choose what to buy for everyone. There are Christmas sales in a few places, but Denmark is expensive even after sales!

My fitness took a little turn since the beginning of December, when I started gaining weight instead of my customary loss of weight. Maybe, it's because of my chocolate calendar (a Christmas calendar with one candy for each day of the month), or maybe it's just the many Christmas feasts and fatty food, but Christmas is sure a month when even vegetarians gain weight. It's so difficult to control your temptations and keep track when you have an array of candy and cakes lying in front of you.

Language check: I'm on a rollercoaster that only goes up!

Santa Claus is coming... to town!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the world!

4 weeks to Christmas: Hygge

Hygge

When most of you read the title of this blog post, you're gonna wonder what it means. Hygge (hyu-guh) is an untranslatable Danish word. Imagine yourself sitting in your living room with your friends and family, huddled up in a blanket, watching television or playing cards in the warmth of your house, while it snows outside. The feeling you get is cozy or hyggelit. That's what hygge is.
Winter is a time of hygge for the Danes. They love lighting up the fireplace (or switching on the heaters), and sitting with their family. Even small things could be hyggelit; for example, a dinner with  a friend, or a movie outing, or a birthday. Hygge may seem good enough by itself, but it is often partnered with cake and candy, and that makes it absolutely great. I wouldn't be surprised if hygge was the reason behind Denmark being amongst the happiest countries in the world. Other
countries have been recently trying to adopt the practice of hygge as it results in inner happiness.

Early morning snow

First Snow

I experienced the first snowfall of my life last weekend, when temperatures reached -3^oC (the lowest temperature I have ever known), and the snow lasted for two days. Ideally, it doesn't snow before December where I live, and sometimes, it snows only after New Year. However, this year, the fields were covered in white, and the snowmen were out in everyone's backyards. It doesn't seem likely to snow again anytime soon, because the temperatures have increased again, but the feeling of holding a snowball in my hand was beautiful. There was just something amazing about waking up in the morning and seeing the streets covered with s

Snowman!

now, or the glow of the snow as the sun set, or having a snow fight with your siblings, or putting a carrot into the snowman to complete it. However, biking to school with frost all over the streets is not nearly as amazing; it's pretty annoying, as a matter of fact.

Almost all the trees have lost their leaves by now, and the landscape looks really bare and dry. Winter is obviously setting in, and the sudden snowfall made that more clear than ever. It is so great the finally know a real autumn and winter.

Language check: I'm beginning to speak fluently now, and my vocabulary increases by one or two worlds each day. I can understand much of what people say, and my friends at school have also started talking to me in Danish. My Danish writing is also steadily improving. It is a bit grammatically incorrect, but understandable. At least my use of Google Translate has tremendously reduced.

I'd like to thank all my readers for staying on and reading my blog every single time. I have a total of exactly 1160 page views on my blog now!

6 weeks to Christmas: First Presentation

Christmas is HUGE in Denmark. There's about 6 weeks left for Christmas, and everybody is already preparing for Christmas. Coming from a country where Christmas is hardly celebrated, I'm completely stoked!

Christmas play

Egeskov Castle

I also went shopping to the Egeskov Julemarked (Christmas market). It was in the premises of the Egeskov castle. There were countless amazing Christmas related things; from clothes, decorations and toys, to dry fruits, jams and drinks. However, it was extremely expensive, more expensive than Denmark already is. Coincidentally, we found a shop for spices, where I bought some Indian spices for a pretty decent price. One could feel the Christmas spirit in the middle of November at that Christmas market. There was a Christmas play going on, and the whole place was lined with hundreds of Christmas trees. It was simply beautiful, and I couldn't help but feel the Christmas spirit too.

We have been singing a lot of Danish Christmas carols in the school choir lately, and I think they are beautiful. Of course, I don't understand much, but they sound really nice and I thoroughly enjoy singing them. The songs are almost always stuck in my head.

First Presentation

Speaking at the school about India

I had to give the presentation on India for the first time on Friday at a school in front of three classes. Despite being really nervous, I reckon it went quite smoothly, and the students seemed to like and understand what I put in front of them. By the end of the year, I am expected to do it in Danish, but I did it in English at the school. It's really shocking how little I knew about Denmark before I came here and how little they know about India here. It was a great experience overall, and I realised, that the exchange program has helped me overcome my stage fright. I don't feel scared in front of large crowds any longer; I have changed a lot without realising it, in only three months.


Language check: I'm able to fluently read Danish aloud (I don't understand all of it, though) and I can also speak faster Danish now. I can type messages in Danish with ease and understand messages with a little effort. I am improving at Danish at a fast pace, and needless to say, everyone is quite impressed.

P.S. For people in my sponsor district (India - 3140) interested in the Rotary Youth Exchange Program - the last date to submit the application form is the 21st of November. You can find it here: Preliminary Form.

Month 3: New family

Adjusting into Denmark was never very hard, with really warm and helpful people everywhere around me. They made Denmark feel like a home to me. But after 3 months of living in this amazing country, I'm not gonna hesitate to say, "It's not like my home, it is my home." There are so many times when I miss India; my family, my house, my friends, the food... but leaving all that for a year is just a small sacrifice compared to what I've experienced in Denmark.

Shifting Host Families

Saying goodbye to my first family

My host families tried to make my shift as easy as possible. I packed everything into 4 bags, and we (my first host family and I) went to my second host family's house for dinner. Later, they left, and we went to sleep. When I woke up the next day, the realisation came upon me that I had really shifted. I live about a 15 minute bike ride away from school. My host family is really nice; they try to talk to me as much in Danish as possible so that I can learn the language quickly. I think that the most difficult thing about the first one week with a host family is that you don't know what to touch, what to use, or what to do. All in all, I'm really happy that I have such wonderful people as host families.

Ice skating!

Choir weekend
A day after I shifted to my second host family, we had a sleepover weekend at school for all the choir members! After school, we met in the choir room and sang some songs (including some Danish Christmas songs). We ate dinner together, later, and played some fun games. I was really tired by the end of the day, and we went to sleep in the school hall. The next morning, we ate breakfast, and resumed singing songs. We went back home at noon, after which I unpacked my bags.

Change of time
The Sunday before the last, the time on all the clocks was shifted back by an hour. It's something that's done every year. I think the reason behind it is that it is usually extremely dark when people leave home early for school or work. When I left for school today, the sun was already out, hence, it was brighter than usual.

Trick or treat?

I tried ice-skating for the first time yesterday. I reckon I was alright at it, although, I fell four times. I also carved a pumpkin (with plenty of help).

Language(s) check: I started French lessons a week back at school, and I realised, that it's even more difficult than I thought it would be, to learn two different languages at once, both of which have pronunciations very different from how they are written; while Danish words are pronounced sharply, French words are pronounced softly. While my Danish is improving at a steady pace, I have a feeling that my English is deteriorating. Kudos to my brain for thinking in 3 different languages!

I can speak English.
Jeg kan tale Dansk.
Je parle Français (not really).

Autumn Break

Students in Denmark have a week off from school. I assumed, before my autumn break began, that I would relax during those 9 days, and that I didn't have many plans. By the end, however, there was not a single uneventful day that went by. It's amazing how many exciting things I did in a week.

-> I found out about three weeks back that I would be shifting to my second host family in the last week of this month. It was a wonderful day that I spent with my host family.

Denmark Open finals

-> The Yonex Denmark Badminton Open was being held during the autumn break, and as my host family had such great interest in badminton, we went to watch a match. My host father and host sister were selected to play in different categories, but my host sister couldn't play because of a sprained ankle. We saw a lot of matches that day, including two matches with Indians (Saina Nehwal and P.V. Sindhu) playing. It was the first time I had seen a professional badminton match in person and it's an experience I will never be able to forget. My host mom won three 'best seat tickets for the Denmark open finals. She gave me her ticket so I could watch the finals, and that's how I got to see the Denmark Open finals sitting as close to the court as possible. It was such a great day.

Harry Potter festival
The Forbidden Library

-> On Friday, I attended the HARRY POTTER FESTIVAL in Odense. I am a complete Potterhead, so this festival, was a dream come true for me. It was probably more fun for children, than teenagers, but there were a few things for people my age. The organisers arranged for so many things, and recreated a lot of the Harry Potter scenes. There were people dressed as Harry Potter characters walking all over the city. They had some really delicious candy at the Honeydukes shop. In short, I had an amazing day.

Harry Potter festival

-> I also went for a Harry Potter concert on Saturday. It was an orchestral concert, but I never expected it to be that great. They involved the orchestra in a little play that they had prepared with six main characters from the Harry Potter series.

A statue of H.C. Andersen

A room that brought H.C. Andersen's
most famous stories to life

-> On Tuesday, I visited the house of Hans Christian Andersen in Odense. H.C. Andersen was a famous author born in Odense, who wrote many popular children's tales, including The Ugly Duckling, The Princess and the Pea, The King's New Clothes and The Nightingale. It was a strange feeling, knowing that the storybooks that I had read as a child, were originally written in Danish.

I had an amazing week, and for some reason, that one week felt like so much time. I did so much more in this one week than I did in a month.

It's beginning to get dark earlier and the sun rises and the first light in my area is at around 7:15 in the morning. It's steadily getting colder, and there is a chance of the temperature reaching freezing point at night this month. Next week, the people in Denmark will set their clocks back an hour (I don't understand why) so it's probably going to be quite dark when I leave home.

Language check: I could understand about the first 10 sentences that the teacher said today. That counts as something, right? I can also speak slowly but fluently now, and reading and writing is becoming easier by the day.

Anyone living in my sponsor district in India (Dist. 3140), who wants to apply for the Rotary Youth Exchange Program, can follow this link to the preliminary form: Click here! People living in any other district or country can contact their local Rotary Club.

Have a nice autumn!

Month 2: Danish food!

Week 6, 7 & 8

The highlight of my sixth week in Denmark was the Rotary 1461 District Conference held in the town of Middelfart in Fyn on Saturday (19th September). District 1461 consists of Southern Jutland, Fyn and some surrounding islands. I am the only Indian in my district. It started early in the morning. We were instructed about the regular Exchange related problems and rules after breakfast. Later, we entered the conference room with our flags and banners, to the applause of the audience. We went onto the stage and held our flags and banners while a Winter 2015 Exchange student delivered a speech. We placed our flags on a stand on the stage and left. We went bridgewalking in the afternoon (yes, second time within one week for me). However, the weather was better this time and it was a different kind of fun doing the same thing with friends, so I didn't find it boring. We went back to the hotel after bridgewalking, entered the conference room again, but collected our flags this time, and exited. I felt really proud to be holding my country's flag. It oddly made me feel like I was really significant in the world. It was great fun meeting my friends again. Dinner was as 'normal' as it gets - burger and french fries.

District Conference

My seventh and eighth weeks in Denmark were nothing out of the ordinary. I joined the school choir, which was pretty fun, because I experienced learning a kind of music that I have never learned before. I made a few Indian dishes for my host family during this period of time.

An Indian dish - Chhole

Danish Food

Who doesn't like tasting food from a different country? Of course, being a vegetarian, I'm not able to taste a majority of the dishes, but they have a lot of vegetarian food as well!

1. Æbleskiver: It literally means 'apple slices'. They're basically mini pancake balls, but sometimes, they don't have apples in them.

2. Flødeboller: Just like the name suggests, they are 'cream balls', but with a slight twist. It's basically really soft cream, put on a thin biscuit, and coated with chocolate on the outside, which results in pure bliss when you bite into it.

How tempting does that look?

3. Rødgrød med fløde: It literally means 'red porridge with cream'. But before you move on to the next item, know, that it is much more delicious than porridge. You basically take some sstrawberry crush, and then pour cream into it. Lækker! (Delicious!) Rødgrød med fløde is also a very popular Danish tongue twister.

4. Tzatziki: It is actually a Greek dish, but it's eaten a lot in Denmark. It's quite similar to the Indian raita. Basically you put shredded or cubed cucumber and shredded garlic in yogurt and voila! Tzatziki is basically the spiciest thing I've tasted in Denmark.

5. Brunsviger: It's a special kind of cake eaten almost only on my Island (Fyn). It's a coffee cake with a layer of sugar coating on the top.

6. Remoulade: It is not a dish, but a sauce/Salad dressing. It's like a cross between mayonaise and mustard sauce and it's absolutely delicious.

6. Risengrød: It is a 'rice pudding' that people eat mostly during Christmas. I don't particularly like it, but it is a sweet rice pudding with cinnamonpowder sprinkled on top.

7. RUGBRØD: There is no way I could forget this Danish 'rye-bread'. It is the nightmare of every Exchange student in the beginning, but the Danes live on it, and apparently, Exchange student like it in the end as well.

Last but not the least...


8. Lakrids: Lakrids or 'liquorice' is a candy that every Danish person loves. Most Exchange student dislike it, but I love the taste! They have so many different kinds of lakrids - salty lakrids, sugar lakrids, lakrids tea...

That was almost all the Dansish food I have tasted till now (there are some things that I can't remember the names of). The Danish food is vastly different from Indian food but amazing in it's own way. In India, I thought that meat, rice and mashed potatoes defined Danish food, but it is so much more than that!



Language check: I'm able to read and frame quite a few whole sentances now. I can understand some things that people speak.