'Muricah!

I didn't cry when I said goodbye to my host parents one last time at the airport, but it was definitely one of the most bittersweet moments of my life. I couldn't wait to come home to Virginia but I also didn't want to leave the charmed life I was living in Denmark.

The flight back was mostly uneventful. I had a stopover in Iceland and then then a 6 hour flight to DC where I sat next to this middle aged lady who was super sweet but kinda weird. She had been working/vacationing in Europe for the past two months and we talked about her kids (also in college) and she even bought me some food because she felt bad for ordering food and eating next to me without me having anything. Also, while it was probably just her being endearing, she kept calling me "baby" which made me slightly uncomfortable since she was also a big "toucher" when talking. I just tried to smile along the entire time. I ended up catching up on a bunch of movies during the flight too - Prometheus (meh, not very memorable), The Dark Knight (So awesome), and Independence Day (A bit long, but pretty good). Passport check was a huge pain in the ass and took about an hour to get through but after I got my luggage, my mom was there waiting at the arrivals area which made me really happy.

The past few days have been me basically reintegrating back into American society. I've been eating at all my favorite restaurants, falling asleep on the couch, putting up Christmas lights, and of course driving. Some other things I've missed about America:

1. Everything is SO cheap - People complain about how everything is getting more and more expensive, but four months in Denmark and Europe has shown me we have a VERY low price point compared to the rest of the world. Paying $2 for a cup of regular coffee is never going to be something I will complain about again.

2. People walk faster - I'm a city guy in this respect. I cannot stand when people walk slowly and I often got really frustrated when everyone was walking so slowly in Europe, even in downtown.

3. Forced-air heating - Sounds silly, but radiator-based heating sucks ass. It's inefficient at actually heating up a room and I don't see how it is any cheaper, especially the natural gas heating I have in my house.

4. Big portions - fun fact, I actually lost a few pounds abroad. I attribute this to the amount of walking/commuting I did but also the fact that I felt awkward going in for my regular 3rd and 4th servings at dinner. I was sated at dinner, but I like feeling full. Late night snacking helped somewhat, but yeah, returning to the land of two pound Chipotle burrito bowls makes me very happy.

5. I'm one of the best dressed again - One way my gay shows is how I dress. I don't wear tight clothes or anything, but I dress well. Even my jeans and zip hoodie days leave me looking better and more put together than the majority of how people dress (it's all about the fit dudes). In Denmark, people really cared about how they looked which was nice, but I wasn't a stand out anymore as cocky and haughty as that sounds.

6. Family/Friends/Dog - So happy to see them, like, elated-I'm-walking-on-air happy.

7. Brandon - Let's just say he was as excited to see me as I was to see him last night - meaning a lot. We chilled at his place for a while, chatted with one of his roommates, and just cuddled on the couch again. I spent the night at his place and it was that magical night in August all over again. I really like the guy, and I hope, really, really hope this will become something more.

I'll probably start my summer internship search in the next few days and also start prepping for move-in for my apartment back on campus which won't be until January but whatever. For now though, I'm just enjoying life and everything home has to offer.

Take it easy guys,

JP

The End of Study Abroad: Vi Ses Denmark

I can still remember clearly as day the first time I walked into this house. I still can feel the warm sun on my skin, the light breeze, and the perfect 70 degree temperature. I still remember starting to unpack everything, unsure of what to expect out of the next four months of my life and the people I would meet, the classes I would be taking, and whether I would love my time here or hate it. Today, exactly four months to the day, I sit in my room with it looking like it did the first day I arrived: the desks are clear, my suitcases on the ground full of clothes, and me wondering if everything around me was reality or just a dream.

Where did the last four months go? Did they even happen?

Four months ago I was excited, scared, and nervous; today I am conflicted. I'm ready to go home. I miss my family, my friends, my dog, my car, but I also feel like I'm leaving my family all over again. I cannot even begin to describe my gratitude to my host family and everything they have done for me. They took me, a complete stranger, into their home, their family, and their culture with a level of warmth and openness I have never experienced before. I was their first host child so I can only imagine what their expectations were when they picked me up from the airport. I can only hope I lived up them.

Looking back at everything I did and saw in the span of a semester makes me dizzy. I saw a nation from head to toe, travelled to Paris, to Hungary, and to Austria. I made dozens of new friends, tried new things, and even did a little learning along the way. Even with all the photos on Facebook and the stories in my head I can now tell, it still all feels like I was in some dream, some massive, beautiful, surreal dream, and I don't want to wake up.

Angels, both of them

I can only hope I won't cry when I say good bye at the airport tomorrow. 

JP

Please, Just Give a Sh*t

Well I'm back....again. That was fast. I'm just in a sour mood because I'm just really annoyed at people right now. Tomorrow is my final presentation for my Danish class and to say that my group's presentation looks like crap would be an understatement. Our topic is immigration in Denmark which is actually a pretty interesting and complex thing to talk about, but right now, I can only imagine how our actual presentation is going to go. Two out of five members in my group have literally gone AWOL and the slides they made for the presentation have nearly three paragraphs worth of text on them. Rule 1 of Powerpoint is to not have too much text. They teach you that all through HS and college, c'mon guys. Problem is, me and the other people can't edit the slides because at least for me, I'm sure they haven't bothered trying to memorize one bit of what they are going to present. I know it's the end of the semester as people really just don't give a crap anymore, but it's still 10% of our grade, which, when I last checked, is still important.

What's also frustrating is that I also just caught literally what could have been the most blatantly in your face BS statement I've ever read in over a month. I'm not going to delve into what exactly happened, but sometimes people are so bad at hiding they they are bold-faced lying, that it just makes me want to punch a baby deer (okay, fine, maybe a stuffed one so I don't go to jail or whatever). If you're going to lie, at least be good at it.

Back to he point, the most I can do now is to basically just go in to class tomorrow and try and present my slides well and be professional about it and just let my other group members do their bit. At least I can try and come across as prepared. I seriously can't wait to be back home and with people who actually care about doing work even if they are studying abroad.

*                    *                    *

In a related note, can I mention that I'm kinda annoyed about the grading structure in one of my classes? In my Nordic mythology class, the professor who teaches isn't the one who is grading the assignments. This is something I find fundamentally wrong in my head. Now, this isn't like the whole teaching assistant grading quizzes type stuff; I mean a completely different professor, one who is never there, is grading our exams and papers. How on earth does that make sense? In addition, out of gut instinct and based on how she has graded some quizzes, the grading professor is a pretty picky to begin with. Coupled with the fact that she isn't there to witness how the material is being taught, the level of engagement, or is available to talk to after class, I don't see how our grades can accurately reflect how well we actually are doing in that class. Just yet another frustration of study abroad life.

Alright, I've gotten most of what I wanted to say off my chest. Sorry about ranting, but like I've said a thousand times before, this blog is one of the few places where I can actually rant relatively openly so thanks for being patient with me.

G'night,

JP

Internships, Growing Up, and Geek Stuff

So the deed has been done. I've decided to go ahead and change my finance major to a marketing major. While it isn't official on my transcript and I still need to get a good deal of paperwork done when I get back to school, the classes I signed up for basically put on the marketing track and off the finance track (track being the series of courses I would need to take to complete the major). Basically everyone I asked about this said to do what I would be most happy with, passionate about, and would enjoy doing, rather than what would make me the most money. It makes sense though it was still a difficult pill to swallow. Nevertheless, I'm glad I did it.

My focus now, well, apart from preparing for the arrival of my mom, aunt, and some friends, is figuring out what I need to do when I get back to the US. Mostly, I need to figure out whether or not I want an internship in the Spring when I get back. My gut tells me I should, but many of the internships require a level of time commitment which I'm worried would eat into time I would be spending on classes otherwise. Unlike my senior year, where I will basically be taking 3 classes a semester (maybe 4 if I have to for credit requirements), I have 15 credits (aka 5 classes) this semester. Combine that with the work I will be doing as Publicity Director for the theatre group I work with, the grilling club, and any other activities, it may be a tight squeeze. I'm thinking I might try and find a job on campus right now so I can earn a little extra spending money on the side but doesn't require overly high time commitments instead. Then in the Spring, I will work my ass off to find an internship for the Summer which can potentially continue on into senior year. With most deadlines for Spring internships being this week or within the next two weeks, I also don't know/think I want to dive into this without preparing as much as I think I should. Stressful stressful...

Gah, this growing up thing sucks.

*                      *                        *

In other news, I am still focusing on finishing the semester here in Denmark strong. One of my classes is already done so I only have four to worry about. I'm not too concerned with two of my classes: I-Marketing and Danish, but I am more worried about I-Finance and my Nordic Mythology classes. My finance course is simply difficult but my Nordic Mythology class is more a struggle to stay interested and up to date. You'd think Vikings and Norse gods would be cool....wrong. It's surprisingly boring, especially after having the preconception of it being epic painted in your mind because of Hollywood movies and comics. A paper I wrote and turned in for the class really wasn't the best in all honesty and I'm kinda worried about how that's going to turn out. I had the option to pick a topic which was most interesting to me, but once I started writing, I realized that picking a more conceptual and abstract topic was much more challenging than a simple research topic based one. Plus, what seemed very interesting on the surface didn't have enough substance I felt for a full 8-10 page paper. That paper in addition to a final exam are the two main causes of stress for me in that class.

Finally, beyond class stuff, I've also been reconnecting with my geeky side lately. I've been obsessed with this Youtube Channel:

 

http://www.youtube.com/user/scishow

 

 

Basically, this channel is hosted by Hank Green who I recognized from this:

 



In the SciShow, he discusses a variety of topics, all science/history/math related which I absolutely LOVE. Basically, as I've mentioned before, I'm a huge geek for anything car, science, or tech related. This channel, along with a few others I won't mention, has been eating up so much of my time the past few weeks it's unhealthy. But anyways, if you like that kind of stuff too, check out SciShow for sure.

Also, I really want this:

http://www.amazon.com/Pokemon-Rocket-Symbol-Black-T-shirt/dp/B0058L7TGY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352933283&sr=8-1&keywords=team+rocket

I might actually ask for this for Christmas.

Yeah, judge me all you want.

All the best,

JP

Vienna and Budapest

So here's the delayed Vienna/Budapest post. My friend still hasn't posted her pictures which is a shame since she had some amazing ones but mine aren't too shabby either (at least I think so....)

So starting out with Vienna....It's a very nice, clean, modern European city. Given that, it was also disappointingly boring. Yea, it's the home of Mozart, classical music, and all sorts of classy things, but one they they never mention is how much it costs to actually get in and see these things. 40 Euro for a lacklustre seat to see an opera performance isn't something that a student's budgets can really afford. Nevertheless, Jackie and I found things to do in the city and enjoyed our visit. Everything is pretty much in walking distance which is pretty cool and our Hostel was in the Chinatown/Nachsmarkt flea market area which was a fun surprise. We actually had some of the best Chinese food in Europe so far there so props to them. I will never forget hearing an Asian woman speak fluent German though...seeing someone else do it made me realize how creepy Asians speaking "European" languages can be, me included. Beyond that, we did notice is that the city can, essentially, be done in about 2 days. We stayed 3 and got really bored so if you ever decide to go to Vienna, keep that in mind. Nightlife in Vienna was also lacklustre. We went to a gay bar which the hostel recommended and it was crap. No dance floor, tiny, expensive, and dead. I feel sorry for the Viennese gays....For all its downsides though, Vienna did hold a few surprises which I will now show....

It rained alot when we got there



Parliament

Our buddy Johann Strauss

Mermaids did exist at one point....they were all executed by angry little children though

Schonbrunn Palace, where I learned of the "jumping photo"

 

It had some wtf statues

 So Vienna was good, if a bit bland. Budapest...well that's another story. If Vienna is the good child in the family that is Europe, the one who did all his homework, ate his vegetables, and went to an elite school, then Budapest was the party boy who went to state college to drink, fuck, and have a blast. Budapest was insanely fun. It was the polar opposite of Vienna: lively, cheap, exciting, and a little rough around the edges. We arrived on a national holiday and what was going on? Protests of course. A labour union from what I could figure was having a protest which ended up blocking many of the streets. However, because it was a national holiday, lots of he museums were open so Jackie and I ended up hitting those up. One of my friends was also staying in the same hostel as us and we ended up hanging out alot at night. They found a bunch of bars and places to go at night. During the day we wandered about and visited the Hungarian royal palace and both the Buda and Pest areas of the city. Overall, lots of fun and we spent next to nothing while there.

Protests

Hungarian National Museum

The Royal Palace

Buda is much more rural

Parliament still decked out for Hungarian Revolution Day

Best book ever.

The grand central market - lots of food and souvenirs.

 Funny to think that now that my day is almost done, my second week-long break is starting haha. Yeah, I have another week off already. I decided against travelling this break for a few reasons in the end. First, cost; I didn't want to go through another $500 to visit Germany. It would have been nice, but I feel I will have plenty of opportunities to visit later on when I actually have the money. Second, I have visitors coming, mainly my friend Kelsey, who is coming in from London, and my mom and my aunt. Both are coming next week and I want to prepare for their arrival. Finally, I miss having alone time and having a house to myself. Since both my host parents work, I figured that I can take the chance to just sleep in, relax, watch some movies, and cook which I haven't been able to do very often. So, it may not be the most exciting break ever, but I'm still really looking forward to it.

Hope everything is well in your neck of the woods.

All the best,

JP



Update on the Home Front

Vienna and Budapest post still on hold, but I do have a few updates on the home front back in the US.

I'm not surprised that I still will always refer to Virginia as "home" and not Roskilde when I talk to my friends. I do like it here. My host family is great; they're doing a better job than me as a host student quite honestly. I've returned to my bad habit of taking after dinner naps and working late, late at night. Basically, I see them at dinner and I don't see them again until the next dinner. I feel like a horrible host student, especially considering how much work they are putting in to have me stay at their home. I'm going to try and change this though. Coffee, adjusting my work schedule, whatever - I'll find some way of spending more time with them. Going back to the topic though, I still will always be most comfortable back in my townhouse with my mom and dog.

Back at home, a few surprises have come up. Maria is now going to be studying abroad in the Spring semester. She's headed back to Spain where she was this past summer - also for study abroad. We both really miss each other and having each other's company, so seeing her go abroad after barely seeing her this summer and now only for a few weeks this winter is going to be tough but I'm sure she's going to have a blast. In more friend study abroad news, my fellow Francophile and actually the first friend I made at my home university, Allie, is no longer going to be studying in Paris in the Spring. It came as a shock to my entire group of friends since it was so sudden. She was so adament about going to Paris and was so excited about being accepting to the program that when she suddenly called it off last week, none of us were really prepared. From what I was told by her housemates, she is really unhappy with her current French class and that she also feels "she is a new woman"....whatever that means...and "that was her old self, and she no longer is reflective of that". Yeah, yeah, mysterious, confusing, and kinda annoying that explanation. Well, considering I am very close with her, I'll probably try and figure things out when I get back. Hey, at least I will be able to see her during the year now?

Back at home, my mom and my aunt are preparing for their week long visit to Denmark. They're coming for a week mid-November and are staying in Copenhagen. They're both really excited and I can't wait to introduce them to my host family. We also plan to have a Thanksgiving dinner while they're here which I'm really excited about. Renovations of my house are also underway soon. I think I mentioned this before, but my mom is gutting the Kitchen, replacing all the floors on the main level, replacing all the windows, and redoing the bathrooms in the house. Basically I won't really recognize the house when I get back apart from some furniture. Mom also said that Hurricane Sandy wasn't too horrible. The storm we had this summer, which knocked out power for 3 days in 90 degree weather and 85% humidity, did more damage. She didn't even lose power which was surprising.

Next comes the situation with Brandon. I've tried contacting him a few days ago, and he didn't really respond. I didn't want to make too much of a fuss so I just sent him a greeting and a "stay safe" sort of message before the hurricane hit. This was over Facebook and granted he doesn't use Facebook too much anyway so I don't want to keep trying to reach him and appear desperate. I hope once I get back to the US and I can start texting and calling him again that we can see each other since I do still miss him and this lack of communication is kinda annoying.

I think that's all the major stuff that is going on at home. Seeing November on the calendar keeps reminding me that my stay here in Denmark is actually going to be done much earlier than I expect. I still remember arriving here in August, settling into my room, meeting people for the first time, and especially the warm weather. I only have a little over a month here now. My mom visiting - something that felt like ages away when I first arrived, is just around the corner. It's crazy.

Finally, unrelated to home but included anyway - in my goal of intoducing people to new music, here's a popular Danish pop song a the moment. It's a Danish band made up of  Dane and an Italian dude named Muri & Mario (guess which is the Dane and which the Italian...). Anyways, it's pretty catchy. I think I also heard it at some point in the US but I can't put my finger on where.


Muri & Mario - Hun Tog Min Guitar (She Took My Guitar)

All the best,

JP

Sour Mood

To a certain someone: Sometimes I think I more tolerate you than am actually friends with you, and even more often you make even tolerating yourself very, very difficult. Here's a novel idea: keep your snarky ass comments to yourself and learn when to shut the eff up.

Jesus, some people...


Anyways, I got back from Budapest tonight and I gotta say, my trip to Vienna and Budapest was absolutely amazing. Recap and some photos coming up soon. I just wish my good mood wasn't spoiled this evening by some asshole who still can't figure out when they really just need to keep their opinions to themselves - hence the mini-rant at the start of this post.

Well, I'm exhausted so I'm off to bed.

JP

Traveling in Europe. Suggestions?

Soll ich nach Deutschland gehen, oder nicht? Das ist die Frage....

I'm leaving on my first official travel break this weekend. I'll be flying to Vienna, Austria Saturday morning with Jacqui and staying there for 3 days. Afterwards, we will be taking the train to Budapest, Hungary and staying there for 3 days before flying home. It looks like it will be lots of fun, especially since I have never been to those areas of Europe before. We'll be staying in hostels during the trip and doing the whole "wander around and find something cool" thing while in these cities so there's also a little bit of mystery in all of this. No matter what, I'm going to approach all of this with an open mind and see what this trip has to deal to me.

Now, back to my original question: Literally two weeks after I get back from Budapest, I have another week-long travel break which I have yet to work out. Some friends want to go to Madrid for the week, but I have some friends coming in to Copenhagen who I have to meet. Plus, I'm looking for more of a short break since I miss just being able to stay home and relax in the silence of an empty house. So, instead of going for an entire week, I'm considering going somewhere on my own for a few days and spending the rest back here in Denmark. Berlin is currently my top choice - I can currently get some very cheap flight to and from Berlin (about $80 round trip) and a very nice hotel for about $200 for 4 nights, leaving me plenty of extra for food and any shopping/sightseeing I want to do. But I still am not sure about anything. Does anyone have any suggestions for some relatively affordable places to go to in Europe?

I'm looking to do 11/10/12 until 11/14/12 which is a Saturday to Wednesday. Most of Europe is in their off-season so hotels are cheap in general and flying is decent on Easyjet and the like. My budget is around $400-$500 in total, flight, hotel, and food and such included.

A city where I can understand (or at least somewhat understand) what's going on would be preferable, though I'm open to anything. I speak French and English fluently and my German can get me by in a pinch.

So, any suggestions or even advice would be greatly appreciated.

Vielen Danke/Merci Mille Fois/Thanks a Bunch/Tusind Tak!

JP

Homesick

Well here's a flash of surprise for a change: I'm actually horribly homesick right now. Not so much homesick for my home home in Virginia, but homesick for my university.

I came to this realization a few days ago after realizing just how few shits some professors give here. It might sound strange, but I really miss the rigor, structure, and challenge of classes back at my home Uni. I miss having professors who are actually interested in teaching and want to help their students succeed. I miss being able to ask questions and expect a reasonably prompt response. I miss being pushed to my limits and having others around me feel the same way about the work we're doing.

I miss actual work and I miss being surrounded by people who care about work.

I also miss my campus. I miss being able to roll out of bed and be surrounded by other students. I miss having my little corners of campus where I can hide out and work by myself or with some close friends or just enjoy some coffee and listen to some music. I miss the gym, the classrooms, and the feeling of community. I even kinda miss the dining hall (even though it has gone to crap...again).

Don't get me wrong, I love Denmark. My host family is wonderful, the trip to their holiday home was brilliant, and meeting my host-grandma actually put one of the biggest smiles on my face since coming here, but I really, really want to fly back for some reason.

Not only do I miss my friends, but I also really miss Brandon. We haven't talked in a while but that whole summer really left an impact on me. I didn't expect that this would happen as forcefully as it has; it really came out of left field quite honestly. I just wonder if he's feeling the same way.

It's weird that of all times for homesickness to strike it would be now, nearly two months after arriving.




JP

Paris

Gather round children and you shall hear, of the story of my study tour in many photos so dear. Paris so grand and shiny she was, so we Danish students did did many French things, as one in Paris does as a Parisian does.

So we arrived last Monday and started off doing a bike tour like this

and saw lots of this

and we even decided to pose in a roundabout like this

then fancypants tour guide decided to do this

but I much preferred our hot Portuguese guide, so I snuck a photo like this

we rode around and saw this

and later we ate some of these.
(Photo credit Amy)

Later in the trip me and some of the guys went to this

and saw cars like this. It looked like an angry Cockatoo



And for not causing an international relations crisis, being the loud Americans we are,
we celebrated with drinks like this.

The last day we went to this little place

and saw this famous little lady

and that night we went to the oldest restaurant in Paris and ate food like this

 

And afterwards went up the Eiffel Tower to see Paris all lit up like this

and finally admired her beauty one last time before departing home to Copenhagen.
 (Photo credit James)

 

 What you didn't get to see was the tiny hotel rooms three of us had to share and the sometimes bland-sometimes interesting business visits we did, but who needs to know about that? I did get to use more French in that one week than I had in the previous now three years since I stopped taking French though. I did surprisingly well actually and really impressed myself. You also didn't get to see our 17-hour bur ride back home where I also got to play rough-translator when we stopped for lunch in Germany and I was the only one who had taken any German which was....fun/painful...I guess. The same ride also involved angry German women at rest stops, gummy bears, vending machine sex toys, and Rambo, not all together though. Anyways, now I'm home.

Unfortunately, I did get a little sick during the trip. It's most likely because one night we spent a night out in the rain and I ended up with a slight cold. In addition, I now also have a stomach bug which makes me wonder why my body is waging war on my now of all times. I'm hoping all things mend themselves soon enough. I think the medicine for my cold made my stomach flu symptoms worse and gave me some freaky dreams though so I can't wait until I'm done with that.

In the school world, classes are rolling along which I guess is the best way to put things. Nothing terribly interesting, nothing out of the ordinary. I did pretty well on my I-finance quiz though which makes me feel better about freaking about whether or not I should/want to be a finance major. I'll be getting back my other midterms soon enough. I do have a case in that class due next week which my group got a good chunk of done today, and I've been relatively on top of things so I'm not too frazzled.

 

This weekend I'm going to my heading down to my host family's summer/vacation home in Southern Denmark which should be pretty sweet. It's close to the German border so we're going on a light booze cruise before going to the house though. The week after that I actually have off from classes as part of a travel break (rough life, I know). So... my friend Jacqui and I will be traveling to Vienna, Austria and Budapest, Hungary over the course of that week. We've booked our hostels and flights to and from Denmark and just need to work out the train between the two cities now. It looks like it's going to be so awesome.

So yeah, that's life in Denmark right now. It's getting colder, I'm still being kept busy, and I'm still searching for my hot Danish man to bring home.

Just over two months until I head back to the USA....

Take it easy guys,

JP

 

The Guys

It's been a while since I dedicated a post to talking about guys, especially since I arrived in Denmark over a month ago, but better late than never.

I haven't gotten with any guys since I've arrived here but there have been a few occasions where I probably could have but decided against it. Two guys have shown interest in me but I wasn't really into them. Oddly, both guys are in my Nordic mythology class and were trying a little too hard during our last field study to talk me up. One guy is shorter than me, has short brown hair, and is sweet enough, but I'm a huge fan of guys who are at least my height or taller, which isn't too demanding since I'm 5'10". He was almost glued to my side the entire trip (and now walking with me after class ends too) and is doing the puppy dog thing. I'd totally be friends with him since he has a pretty good sense of humour, but nothing more. The other guy is taller than me is a mixed half white/half Vietnamese. He kept passing off complements to me during the trip which is always nice, but he was almost too direct if you know what I mean. It felt like he was trying too hard which I'm not a fan of either. Also, something about his personality and attitude put me off. He came across as kinda pretentious and haughty which are two things which are huge turn offs for me.

So yeah, two options presented to me but no go.

So what about being proactive and chatting some guys up? Well, I'm honestly too shy to talk to Danes which is a shame since they are effing gorgeous, but there are some lookers in my study abroad Uni as well. Of all my classes, my European Business Course has provided the most instances of good looking guys who I'd be interested in, but there is one in particular.This guy, we'll call him Lax, because obviously he is/was a lacrosse player, is especially attention grabbing. He's tall, about 6'1 or so, has really nice arms, broad shoulders, blond hair, and is hot to boot. Physically, he's almost perfect in my book. Though he's a lacrosse player, he isn't a lax bro. He's still bro-y which is nice, but also adorable as many of his mannerisms make him seem like a 15 year old trapped in a 21 year old's body. He's not childish, but the fact that he's so easily amused and often has his head in the clouds just makes him come across as younger than he actually is. The main fault I have with him is that he isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer if you know what I mean. He's not dumb, but he isn't the most clever guy ever either. That aside, he's a cool guy to hang out with. We're not super close but we've gotten food and had many a conversation together. He has a girlfriend at home which is a bummer, but who knows what can happen while in Europe...

In that same class there are a number of other good looking guys though there are things about them which turns me off to them that Lax thankfully doesn't possess. They are either douchey, too bro-y, or just have horrible or bland personalities. Yeah, with all this talk about guys and what I like, I probably sound like I'm picky as hell, which I am sorta, but honestly I don't think I'm that terrible. I'm big on personality and also on looks, but more so on the first.

I need to be more proactive and actually talk to guys while here. Now that the post-arrival jitters have pretty much disappeared, I should probably get working on it.

Yeah, if anything comes up, I'll be sure to write about it. I'm heading to Paris for a week on Monday with my Euro Business class which I'm so stoked for. It's been a few years since I went to Paris with my family but from what I remember it was awesome and I can't wait to return. Plus, being one of only 2 or maybe 3 people who can speak French fluently in my class of 25 has its perks :P

Later guys,

JP

Sidenote: I've started following a number of new blogs recently so I'd thought I would post a few finds from time to time. One I just found today is Brotastic and College Guy which is a two-author blog covering the antics of these two guys and the crazy stuff they've been up to. While I wouldn't call myself a bro, considering that's what they describe their target audience to be, it's still a good read. It's been entertaining to read what they have down so far so I definitely recommend checking it out.

Sweden, Vikings, and Boners

Midterm hell week is basically eating up all my time nowadays; nevertheless, lots of stuff has happened in the past week so here we go:

 

Once upon a time, I went to a museum named Louisiana



There was an exhibit on self portraits and a lot of saggy boobs in said portaits, but I was more excited by the mirror room.



Bonus points: The museum backs into the sea!



Then my host parents and I went to Kronborg Castle in Helsingør, the setting for Hamlet.



Elsinor it was called, and it was huge



It even had a stone guardian said to come to life if Denmark were to ever be threatened.



Then we went to Sweden!



Helsingborg, Sweden, like Helsingør, also likes their castles...



...and walking streets. How pretty the Swedes are!



Yet I still found this Swedish bacon flavoured cheese in a tube rather odd. Still bought it though



Later in the week, my Nordic Mythology class went to the Viking Ship Museum. They had ships...



...and statues of Freyr. He was the Nordic god of pleasure and always had a boner. How fitting.



After, we saw some burial mounds and did outdoorsy stuff...

 

...but it was cold, so we brought out the "Viking Blood" aka mead



And we all took shots and were merry

The End.

JP

Tivoli, Coming Out to a Friend, and Trippy Jesus

The weather is getting colder and the amount of daylight is getting shorter, but that doesn't mean I haven't found plenty of things to do while here. The last has been pretty relaxed for the most part. I'm still not used to getting up at 6 for classes and probably never will quite honestly. Overall, the slower pace of school work here is a nice enough change from what I'm used to back home, but I don't know if I'm a fan of that quite yet. I've found myself to be stressed out when I don't have anything to do. Weird, I know.

Monday after my birthday dinner, I ended up going to Tivoli with some friends and my host family. The place is freaking beautiful, especially at night with all the lights on. It isn't like a theme park in the US where everything is focused on the rides, but instead the atmosphere and way everything is laid out is much more relaxing in a sense. There are gardens, restaurants everywhere, rides of course, carnival games, and a concert venue. My friends and I have dubbed Tivoli as Wonderland and The Happiest Place on Earth (sorry Disney) because it was that cool.

The rest of the week has been classes - pretty bland stuff quite honestly. Many of my business classes are still covering things I have already learned and are taught at a much less rigorous level than my home university. My Nordic Mythology class has also turned out to be rather boring, at least more than I expected it to be. The professor is cool, he's fun to listen to and would do great as a professor of a more interesting subject. Danish has been a little bit of a struggle still. Some of the sounds they make are actually impossible, I swear. I also have a bad problem of saying words with a German or French accent or actually using German words because that was the most recent language I took. The professor is very fun and laid back though so I'm not too worried.

Last night was one of the most fun nights since getting here. I went out with my friends Jackie and Kate first and ended up an Australian themed bar that was a combo pool hall, beer pong hall, and dance club. Cover was waived for us for whatever reason and the music they played was amazing. I stayed there and danced my ass off for hours. Afterwards, we walked around a bit and we stumbled upon what was the trippiest sight of my life. A church was holding a late Friday night "connect with Jesus" service where they lit up the place like a 70s disco and had a DJ playing weird mood techno music you'd expect to hear at some modern art exhibit. The statue of Jesus was all lit up and lights and patterns were projected on the ceiling. It kind of freaked me out honestly but it definitely was something I had never seen before anywhere.

Around 2, I ended up meeting with with some other friends at a different bar and we chilled there for a while before heading home. On the train back, we met a group of Danish guys who had studied abroad in the US during their high school years which I've noticed is becoming an increasingly common occurrence amoung Danes my age. One guy studied in Seattle for 10 months and only had good things to say about his experience. On the train ride back, I also ended up coming out to my close friend Amy who I met on my first day in Denmark. I think I had told her once in the past during a social for one of my classes but she thought I was kidding. It was actually kind of funny and we laughed about it afterwards. Continuing with the theme of all things gay, my friend Ben who also came back on the same train as us had a funny incident happen to him involving the LGBT group at the activities and club fair earlier in the semester. In Copenhagen there is a LGBT student group called BLUS which my friend thought was a Blues Music club. Well, he obviously didn't look very closely at the signs because when he got the email from HQ about upcoming LGBT themed events, he got the surprise of his life haha. He was a good sport about it though and laughed. I ended up coming home around 4:30 which is a record for me in terms of a night out.

Anyways, photo time:



Birthday Traditions - raising the Danish flag



Sunrise over my hometown - Roskilde



TIVOLI!!!



Restaurants



Chinese Pantomime Theatre



Pirate Ship! - It's a restaurant/bar

Trippy Jesus

My ipod is being a dick and not wanting to upload any photos I try to send off of it so pictures from the football game might be forever stuck on it unfortunately. I'll keep trying though since there were some pretty awesome shots on that thing.

All the best,

JP