Best of Denmark

At 4 AM on the day after Thanksgiving, some people are standing in line to buy flat-screen TVs.  E was in our living room, sitting in the new rocking chair with C.  Here's what she thought:

Thanksgiving isn't a holiday in Denmark.  And for dinner we had leftover pizza.  But in the last two days I went to mothergroup and chatted in Danish with five new friends and their babies.  With the magic of the Internet, I spoke to my whole family in real time and "talked" with three of my dearest women friends.  A sweet Danish friend borrowed a carseat, drove us all to IKEA, and watched C while B and I played Goldilocks and tried out every chair in the store.  Now I'm snug under the quilt my mother-in-law made, in the chair my husband built, with my tiny girl sleeping on my chest. 

So it doesn't get much better than that (unless of course we had all of you here with us too)!  And in that spirit of thanksgiving, here's the best of Denmark according to E and me.  Enjoy.

Music academy, Aarhus

Looking south towards downtown Aarhus

Aarhus Bay

Thy National Park

Tangkrogen

The Aarhus Botanical Garden

Folkeoplysningshus

From our first apartment

Cafe Vestergade, near downtown

View from Aros Museum

View towards Sweden from Louisiana Museum

Svinekløv Hotel

Aarhus Bay from Risskov

Støget at Christmastime

Marselisskov

Near the Egtvedpigegrav

The Egtvedpigegrav

The view from Egtvedpigegrav

A typical Danish farm, near Egtved

Mindeparken

Old-fashioned train near Risskov

Aarhus Bay

European Soccer Championship game, Bispetorvet

Downtown along the Aarhus River

Summer evening at Tivoli

The Royal Guard

View along Frederiksalle, Summer evening

Moesgård Strand

Near City Hall

The First Month

Little C is one month old now, so we thought we'd share some our favorite pictures so far. A more texty post about it all will be coming soon, but for now, enjoy the pictures! 

  

J-Day! (or J-Dag, for the Purists)

In case you're not intimately acquainted with Danish holiday customs, we're going to fill you in on an important one--with a little help from NPR.

Christmas beer.

Yes, special beer to drink only at Christmastime, flavored with extra licorice and sold in festive holiday cans and bottles.  In Danish, "Julebryg."

You can start drinking in on J-day, which is the first Friday in November, and that means it's time, as the Danes say, to be festy.  I have to admit that although I'm not a beer drinker, I do like the smell of this one.  And if I'm recommending licorice-flavored seasonal beer, I must be feeling super-Danish!

For more on the topic, check out this informative piece on NPR.

Uncharted Territory

She's here!  The Daring Duo is proud to present our tiny daughter, C!  She is two weeks old, and already a real pipperoo.

C was born on October 17th at 2:36 AM, weighing in at 3.2 kilos, and 50 cm long.  By now she's picked up a little extra length and a few extra grams to go with that.  B and I think she's pretty great--and we're excited for the biggest adventure we've ever had together.

The Daring Duo heads off to the hospital, childless for the last time.

There she is!  Feisty already.

But sleepy too.

B is the best.

Gearing up for C's first outdoor adventure!

B takes the pram out for a spin

Funny

Sometimes Danes are funny.  This is a post about that.

1.  You may recall that Danes are really into "coziness," or hygge, as it's known in Danish.  Anything can be cozy, from a dinner party to an apartment to a cafe or market or neighborhood.  Blockbuster (yes, the American video rental store) has caught on to this.  Every day we walk past the Blockbuster store on the way to work, and we get to see all the posters with their Danish slogan:

Blockbuster: Vildt hyggeligt!

or,

Blockbuster:  Wildly cozy!

2.We've written before about how Danes love bikes.  Here's a (totally not comprehensive) list of things we have seen Danes do on bikes.

    carry 2x4s home

    carry floor lamps home

    hold open umbrellas over their heads

    hold hands with other bicyclists

    talk on cell phones

    text on cell phones

    drag rolling suitcases

    drive another bike at the same time

    eat an ice cream cone

    ignore traffic signs  (it's the only time!  God help you if you do it on foot!)

 3.  We've also mentioned before how Danes love scarves.  And weird haircuts.  Well, turns out we're not the only ones who've noticed this.  Check out the link below, "How to Look Like a Dane."  Completely accurate and verified by actual Danes.

Break for Berlin

This is just a quick post today, to share some pictures from my recent trip to Berlin. After an excellent two weeks in the US (stay tuned for a future post!), I had a weekend trip to Berlin to see my brother, who was there for a conference.

On Saturday, we went to Sanssouci, one of E and my favorite spots in the world. Here's my brother (let's call him A) in front of the big fountain.

We also walked up to the Orangerie at Sanssouci. There was a small chamber ensemble playing classical music here, which definitely added to the overall highly classy feel.

We spent Sunday morning walking through the Tiergarten and through downtown Berlin. At one point, we happened across this very interesting scene. I posted a picture of the Berliner Dom with the Fernsehturm together last year, but I really think it makes for cool pictures and deserves another angle. Thanks to A for encouraging me to pull my camera out for this one!

That's it for now - just a few of my favorite pictures. The Scandinavegan asks me to assure you that she will be back soon with her regularly scheduled food updates, and we'll also get some stuff about our recent trips to Portland and the Bay Area up soon!