Jack Barkhurst - Blog Abroad

Hej,

I arrived in Copenhagen on Sunday and I was greeted at the airport by DIS staff who helped me book transportation to my apartment in Amager, the southern island of Copenhagen. Once I entered my apartment, I was greeted by all of my new friends in the Green LLC, a living space for those interested in sustainable living. After we ate brunch together, we went on a walk in the nearby Amager Fælled, a landfill-turned nature preserve which locals have fought for protection for. I didn't come completely prepared for that walk, without my beanie or gloves. The 30 degree weather with wind chill felt more like 15 but I've now learned it's a necessity for every trip in these first few months. Later that day I explored parts of Copenhagen with my new roommates. I went to IKEA for the first time where I got meal prep containers, command strips, and my first danish pastry in Denmark. The next day I went to the Student Hub to get my eSIM sorted out and my commuter card set up. Then, I picked up my books for my classes and got to see the area where they're held. Around sunset I got to go on a canal tour around Copenhagen and it was so cool getting to see the city from the water and all of the famous landmarks, including CopenHill, the Little Mermaid, and the Royal Residences, among others. Yesterday, I checked out the gym in my apartment and we have a steam room which is very cool, I think I'll have to go in there after my runs to loosen up. Then, I went to "Living Like a Local" talks to learn about biking and food budgeting in Copenhagen! They taught us about all of the bike laws and etiquette and then informed us about the best grocery stores and meals to plan out for budgeting with our 6,000 Danish Kroner grocery card which is about $600 USD for the semester. Today I went to my orientation for my core course "European Urban Experience" and we were told that this will be one of the last times we meet in the physical classroom and the professor's goal by the end of the semester is for us to completely forget where our classroom was once held. This is because we'll be using the city as our classroom through visiting sites via biking, walking, and using the metro/buses. Afterwards, we were taken to a book cafe/restaurant and they provided us with chicken sandwiches and tea. Then later in the day, we took a boat bus over to Nyhavn, a famous waterfront in Copenhagen. So far my experience here has been lovely. Despite the cold, the Danes light up the whole city with warm lights so it feels very cozy even when it's dark out, and here it gets dark from 4pm to 8am. The language barrier has not been too difficult either as most Danes speak English, I've only struggled with some labels in the grocery store (I accidentally bought sour cream instead of yogurt). I hope to soon rent a bike once the next winter storm passes through but for now I'll be using the metro and buses to get to my classes which continue throughout this week. Until next time!

Farvel,

Jack