copen’ with new places

Hello!!!

The past few days have been a whirlwind. I thought I would have time to write in the airport… WRONG… my study abroad experience began immediately as I stepped into Logan Airport in Boston and met some girls that were also in DIS that were on my flight. They were all super nice and it was comforting to be traveling with others that would be going to the same place.

I had never been on an international flight before, and my first flight that went from Boston to Iceland went smoothly I was able to squeeze in a few hours of sleep curled up in my isle seat. I was VERY jealous of the little boy sitting next to me that seemed to be able to sleep soundly the entirety of the five hours. None the less when I arrived in Iceland I was still riding on the excitement of arriving in Copenhagen. I met up with a friend from Bates at the airport and seeing a friendly face definitely calmed some of the nerves that were still in the back of my mind. When boarding the plane in Iceland we got bussed to the airplane and I was excited to be able to say I was in Iceland for a quick second(maybe Ill even go back to visit!!)

The next flight unfortunately did not go as smoothly, I was in a middle seat and basically the entire flight was my head nodding forward as I was trying not to fall asleep on either person next to me. When I finally arrived and got my ONE (yes ONE to all the people out there who doubt my packing abilities) checked bag, I was happy to have a short walk across the street to the Hotel where DIS met us with snacks and our welcome packets.

As I was waiting for the bus that would take me to Nimbus (the Kollegium I will be staying in) I thought I would set up my new Sim Card for my phone. I managed to do it but in the process I also bought myself a new sim card(thats what you get for not clicking the translate button on google chrome I guess), but all said and done by the end of the day I had a working phone number and my Danish flat mates greeted me with Thai food that was much needed.

I slept amazing that night and began my next morning with a run to clear my head (they also say that working out in the morning helps with jet lag) and explored Frederiksberg Palace a park that is super close to my house. You could see the elephants from the Copenhagen Zoo and I think it is going to be a great place for me to clear my head as it has some beautiful trails for running. That night we went to Dina a local cafe and tried a Danish beer! It was delicious and a perfect way to end the first full day in Copenhagen.

Monday started orientation, and although 7am was a rude awakening, the Welcoming Ceremony was great and we got to enjoy some amazing opera in the Royal Danish Music Academy as well as listen to advice on how to best approach abroad. After that I walked with some new friends to get juice at a local cafe. Then I walked with some other new friends to Buzz Cafe, a local cafe to get some coffee(there are so many amazing cafes in Copenhagen I don’t know how I am going to try them all, they all seem amazing!) I also picked up all my books for my classes (not going to lie there were a lot) I am so excited for my classes, I get to explore topics I would not be able to take classes on at Bates such as Sports Economics and European Financial Case Studies!

Tuesday night I explored the night life with my roommate and some friends, it was a young crowd in downtown Copenhagen as there are also organized events for the students starting college here. I saw some friends from Bates and met some new people.

Wednesday I started the day bright and early with my Core Course orientation. I am excited to study Globalization and European Economies. I think studying globalization abroad will provide me with an angle I might not have gotten in America. I also cannot wait to travel to Vienna and Bratislava as that will give me even more opportunities to travel and explore the economics of Europe while I am here.

On simpler notes I figured out how to do my laundry and I have settled into my kollegium nicely, it feels like home. We even planned bi-weekly family dinners so I am excited for the Danish students to cook for us and I am excited to plan a dinner for them…I’m still deciding what I am going to cook! I have also figured out how to get from the metro to class without google maps! … just as soon as I got my bike… but that will be a whole other learning curve as the bike lanes here have looked pretty intimidating…but I cannot wait to give it a try!

xoxo a girl copen’ with new places