Long Study Tour to Scotland

I spent Monday - Saturday of last week in various parts of Scotland (Edinburg, St. Andrews, and Glasgow) with my Positive Psychology class for our Long Study Tour. The long study tours, similar to the shorter trip to Western Denmark that I previously wrote about, allows each core class to travel to a different country in Europe for a week for a mixture of academic and cultural visits. My class was lucky enough to go to Scotland, a country I'd always hoped to visit someday. The cultural aspects were much more fun than the academic visits, and as I suspect that they're also more fun to read about, I'll stick to those for now (if you're absolutely dying to find out what we did in terms of academics, you can ask me separately). 

We began in Edinburgh, a beautiful old city full of history and Harry Potter references (as you'll see below). On our first day, we walked up Calton Hill, home to many historical buildings and monuments, and from which there are great views of the city. 

Arthur's Seat is part of the mountain range in the background (see pictures below)

Some of the historic buildings and monuments on the hill 

Edinburgh at sunset 

That night, we had dinner in the city as a class before going on a Ghost Walk (not sure why my professor loves them so much). Edinburgh is supposed to be haunted city and Ghost Tours seem to be a popular tourist activity, judging from the amount of tour guides I saw handing out flyers during the day.  We got a bit of a tour of Princes Street (the main shopping street) before going into 18th century vaults beneath the city streets which weren't all that scary but interesting to see nonetheless. 

Arthur's Seat from below 

The next day we had a really boring academic visit in the morning before walking over to Arthur's Seat, the main peak at Holyrood Park, a nature preserve of sorts at the edge of the city. Apparently named so because of a rumor that the mythical Camelot was located on the top of the peak, the hike to the top was made nearly impossible by the incredibly strong winds that attempted to blow us off the mountain at any moment. The view from the top, however, was worth the risk. 

Panorama of the city

This picture doesn't really do the view justice, but it was so windy that it wasn't possible to stay long enough to get a better one 

Attempting to not get blown over! 

After making it off of Arthur's Seat alive, we trekked over to Edinburgh Castle, of which I unfortunately didn't get any great pictures because I was too tired! 

On Tuesday night, I met up with my friend Claire, who is studying at the University of Edinburgh. We went out to eat at this great vegetarian restaurant before enjoying chocolate fondue and white wine at a nearby bar. The next day there was an optional hike that I opted out of so I could see more of the city and spend more time with Claire. 

The Balmoral 

 In the morning, Emilia and I walked around the city a bit on our own, and found what I later found out was the Balmoral Hotel, where J.K. Rowling finished writing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows as well as Victoria Street, a cute little winding street with lots of cute shops, including multiple that are painted purple, a joke shop, and an old book store. Sound familiar? Apparently this street was Rowling's inspiration for Diagon Ally.

Victoria Street

The Harry Potter tour continued when Claire and I went to lunch at the Elephant House, the cafe where J.K. Rowling wrote the beginnings of the Harry Potter series. 

How often do you see a toilet dedicated to Harry Potter? I didn't think so...

 After lunch, Claire gave me a fantastic tour of the city, including the university campus and her flat, a fantastic second-hand store, a great cupcake shop, a chocolate shop, and an art museum. We even had time to do some shopping at H&M and see a movie!

Here we are near the art museum, just as it was beginning to rain

After my fantastic few days in Edinburg, it was off to St. Andrews and Glasgow! At St. Andrews we met with a Psychology professor and briefly heard a 4th year student talk about her Positive Psychology related project before getting a tour of the university and the town by a very enthusiastic tour guide. 

The ruins of St. Andrew's cathedral 

The ruins of St. Andrews castle and the North Sea 

Our time in Glasgow was mostly spent in academic lectures and as the city itself is much more industrial and less beautiful that either Edinburgh or St. Andrews, I didn't take any pictures. All in all, despite the stress of being with the same group of people for a week and listening to mostly boring academic lectures, my time in Scotland was amazing and I'm so incredibly grateful that I got to go! 

Where I live

Well, it looks like you're going to get two blog posts from me today. (Lucky you!) Before I post pictures, etc. from my week in Scotland, I wanted to show you a few shots from the area where I'm actually living most of the time.  My kollegium is on the campus of Roskilde University (RUC), which is unfortunately rather ugly. However, there are a few not-so-unappealing aspects of the area, so I've decided to show you a few of these and spare you the rest!

The pond and the hundred of birds that I can see (and hear) from my bedroom windows

Marshy area near the pond 

Goats! There's actually farmland not too far from my kollegium, which is nice because it reminds me of home 

Not really so different from Western Mass 

Exploring the City

Last weekend, I went into Copenhagen with some friends for a fabulous day of sightseeing. I really don't have many more weekends free (case in point, I am writing this post from the national Library, where I should be doing homework because I'm in the midst of midterms), so my friends and I have decided to see as much of the city as we can while we still have the time! The weather was beautiful (read SUNNY), despite the bitter cold that has become an ever-present part of my life.

Rosenborg Slot 

Our first visit was to Rosenborg Slot (Castle), originally built as a summer home for Christian IV in the 1600s. The castle was the official residence of the Danish Royal family until 1710, and is now a museum that houses the Crown Jewels, among other beautiful collections and exhibits. 

Us in front of the castle. From L-R, Megan, Becca, Emilia, Alana, Julia, me.
(thanks to Megan McPhillamy for the picture!)

Me in Nyhavn

After that, we walked to Nyhavn, the quintessential Danish street (if you search "Copenhagen" in google images, Nyhavn will be the first thing that pops up). The buildings mostly house cafes, restaurants and bars, and the whole street is incredibly beautiful. 

Nyhavn again 

(Photo courtesy of Julia Petraglia)

By the time we reached Nyhavn we were frozen solid, so we decided to stop at a bakery to warm up with some pastries and hot chocolate (two things that have factored heavily into my time here in Denmark)! 

Amalienborg

Next we went to Amalienborg Palace, the residential castle of the Royal Family, including Queen Margrethe II. Amalienborg was built in 1750, and in April the entire square fills with adoring Danes who come to see the Queen wave from a balcony on her birthday. 

Our final stop of the day was to the statue of the Little Mermaid in the Copenhagen harbor. The statue (which is smaller than you might think for such an important cultural landmark) honors Hans Christian Andersen, author of the original (and much darker than the Disney version) fairytale, and arguably the most famous Dane. 

Julia, Becca, me, and Alana in front of the Little Mermaid.
Notice the path through the ice for the harbor boats in the background. 

Two great things

This past week has been relatively uneventful, but two great things stood out: 

First of all, I (finally) have a visiting family! I was getting worried that I might never get a family, despite the fact that I signed up for the program ages ago, back in November or something crazy like that, but I was, and it was definitely worth the wait. My family consists of Tina and Johnny and their two daughters, Rebecca (12) and Theresa (11). They live in a town two stops west of Roskilde, so not too far from Trekroner. I went to their home this past Saturday and had a lovely day getting to know their family and participating in their daily activities. When I arrived in the morning, we had a wonderfully Danish breakfast of bread and various toppings (butter, cheese, jam, chocolate, etc) before going to Theresa's horseback riding lesson. Both girls ride, and they live in a more rural, really beautiful area so it was great to drive to the stables and see a bit more of the country side. 

While the girls rode, Tina and I walked behind the group, enjoying the sunshine and the beautiful country side and talking about absolutely everything, including the time she spent in America as an au pair. When we got back to the house she showed me her photo albums from her time in America - it was great to see pictures of New York City and Washington DC in the 1980s! We had a delicious (vegetarian!) lunch prepared by Johnny, whose first wife was a vegetarian and who knew lots about vegetarian cooking in Denmark. After bonding with Rebecca over decoding Harry Potter chapter names (a great way to learn Danish, I discovered!) we all packed into the car and drove even further into the country to a large forest surrounding the reservoir that holds the water for Copenhagen. It felt so good to be completely outside of the city and most of all just to be outside! I hadn't realized how much I missed nature and living in a rural area until then. 

After our walk, they decided they'd drive me home, but first we stopped in Roskilde to get some fastelavnsboller, a delicious pastry that looks something like this

(google images)

and is eaten around the Fastelavn holiday, a Scandinavian carnival of sorts that is celebrated the Sunday or Monday before Ash Wednesday. Children dress up and get treats, so it's sort of like Halloween in a way. Another tradition is basically a Danish version of a  piñata, only the thing being struck down is a large wooden barrel full of candy and fruits. Rebecca told me that the person who makes the first crack in the barrel is crowned the Cat Queen and the one who finally breaks it open is the Cat King. All in all, it was a wonderful day! 


The second great thing was my field study on Wednesday to the Carlsberg Breweries for my Danish Politics and Society class. We had a tour of the facility (which was huge, almost 100 acres!) and then had a beer tasting!

The brewery was founded in 1847 and is the 4th largest in the world

A copy of the little mermaid statue that sits on a rock by the harbor in Copenhagen. The original statue was commissioned by Carl Jacobsen, the son of the founder, and a huge supporter of the arts (there is a whole museum in Copenhagen full of his extensive art and sculpture collection) The house in the background is the founder's mansion. 

Two of the four Carlsberg elephants, built to symbolize the long lives of the four Jacobsen children who lived to adulthood (the other four died during childhood) 

Inside one of the old brew houses

The varieties

And the aftermath

Shiny copper brewing kettles in the visitors center

Carlsberg is one of the national symbols of Denmark, and there's a lot of rich family history behind the brewery (including life-long clashes between father and son, the former a lover of science and the latter a lover of art), so the whole trip was great! 

Short Study Tour to Western Denmark

On Thursday, I got up at 5:15 to take the train into Copenhagen and begin my Short Study Tour to Western Denmark with my Positive Psychology class. One of the (many) reasons I chose DIS was for it's Study Tours - traveling built into, and around, the academic curriculum. From what I gather, it's a pretty unique opportunity. Not only will I be traveling to Scotland for a week later on in the semester, this past weekend I got to see parts of Denmark that I definitely would not have to if it weren't built into my course. Below is a map of Denmark that shows all of the cities I traveled to (Åarhus, Esbjerg, and Ribe)

We drove first to Åarhus, the second largest city in Denmark where we visited the Åarhus University Hospital to hear about Mindfulness and it's effect on Bodily Distress Syndrome (from what I gather a hybrid of Somatic Disorders and Anxiety Disorders, among other things) from a researcher of the topic. The talk itself was kind of dry, and we didn't really explore Åarhus aside from this visit, so it definitely wasn't the highlight of the trip. 

On the drive to Åarhus, we crossed over a really long bridge that I don't remember the name of, and the sun came out for a moment! 

Next, we went to visit the Kaos Pilots, an "alternative professional school that provides leadership education" to see Positive Psychology theories in practice. According to my Study Tour handbook, "Students at Kaos Pilots spend two years working on developing their personal leadership skills through group work, stimulations, and projects. In their third and final year, they create a small business or organization using their strengths, competencies, and passions to fill a demand they see in the market." 

Whew. I know that was long, but I hope it was worth it, because the visit definitely was. Sara, our contact person, was really fun and engaging. With her Kaos Pilots training she has started an organization that helps kids who have moved internationally become acclimated to their new environments, something she felt passionate about as the child of diplomats. 

Positive Psychology is focused on, among other things, helping people flourish in life through discovering their passions and strengths. To give us a sense of how Kaos Pilots teach students to do this in the context of entrepreneurship, Sara had us write down the first 7 things that popped into our heads when we thought about our passions, what made us angry, and what our talents were. From those lists and with the help of friends, we came up with a unifying theme for each list (passion, anger, talent) to get an organic sense of where our potential strengths might lie. 

Walking street in Esbjerg 

On Friday, we drove to Esbjerg, where we got to walk around for a bit before our visit to the Esbjerg Business School. The Business School is really more of an education center for teenagers with troubled childhoods. Using theories from Positive Psychology, the students are taught about things like self-esteem, living in the present, and not letting their past negatively effect their present or future lives. We heard some of the students talk about their experiences at the school, and it was really inspiring to see Positive Psychology applied in such a great way. 

Viking man at the Ribe viking museum 

After our visit to the Esbjerg Business School, we drove to Ribe, the oldest town in Denmark. That night I walked around Ribe with some friends and got some dinner before going on a Ghost Tour of the town, which was really more of a walking history tour lead by this old man wearing what looked like a vicars outfit and told really excellent stories. Although the stories were good, it was incredibly windy and kind of rainy, so it was nice to go and sit in a pub afterwards just to get out of the weather! 

On Saturday, we visited the Viking Museum and then had a few hours to explore Ribe on our own (luckily the rain had stopped and the wind had died down). 

One of the many winding cobblestoned walking streets in Ribe 

You can't imagine how happy I was to find a Salvation Army, in the oldest town in Denmark no less. And yes, I did buy something (for 15 kroner - or about $2.70 - a great deal, in Denmark or in the States!)

Typical Danish scenery: gray sky, Danish flag, adorable buildings, water. 

Ribe Cathedral 

The building on the left is a public bathroom. Even the bathrooms are cuter in 1000 year old towns! 

Settling In

I've been in Denmark for almost two weeks now, as hard as I find that to believe! I didn't want to write again until I felt settled in, and I think that's finally beginning to happen. Classes have been in session for almost a week now, so I'm starting to get a feel for what my schedule will look like, and it's pretty great (aside from getting up at 6:30 for my 8:30 classes...gotta love commuting to school!). On the plus side, it definitely gets lighter earlier than it did when I first arrived, which makes getting up at that abysmal hour a bit more bearable. I still can't really wrap my head around the fact that come May it'll be light out for the majority of the day!

Every day, I drag myself out of bed in the darkness, eat breakfast and hop on the regional train into Copenhagen for classes. My core course is Positive Psychology, which is actually turning out to be my least favorite class, but we're going on some cool trips (hello, Scotland!), so overall it should be okay. In addition to that, I'm taking Human Trafficking in Europe, which is pretty fantastic so far; Danish Politics and Society, which I enjoy despite the fact that I'm not crazy about politics, mostly because the teacher is wonderful and it's helpful to have a basic working knowledge of the country I'm living in; Danish Language and Culture (difficult, but again, really nice teacher, and so, so useful); and Positive Psychology Practicum, which is a combination of learning about Positive Psychology and working at a practicum site...which means working with kids! 

And, oh my god, I had my first visit to my practicum site today, and I am in love! I don't even know where to begin. I'm "working" (for lack of a better term) at Bordings Friskole in Copenhagen, a independent (read private) school for children from preschool to 9th class (grade), 18-19 students per class, with about 375 students total. Parental involvement is vital to the school's philosophy, as is cultivating the children's social skills (this is seen as one of the primary focuses of early childhood education). The school building itself is huge and old and beautiful. The interior is painted wonderful bright colors, full of artwork, really well maintained (it's in a great neighborhood).  When I arrived, Jesper, my main contact person, gave me the grand tour which included a spectacular view of Copenhagen from what is a roof-top garden in the summertime. 

And the children...the school is everything I could hope to and probably never will see in the States. The kids have so much freedom and take it on so well, even the youngest ones. As just one example of many, while the teacher was reading a story during lunch in the kindergarten classroom (which Danish children enter when they're 6), a boy spilled his milk and without prompting from the teacher, left the classroom, came back with paper towels, cleaned up his mess and went back to eating, all without any disruption to the rest of the class. During the 4 hours that I was at Bordings, I also got to see a group of 6-year-old girls baking a cake with a teacher's supervision, a wonderful Danish birthday celebration and lots of free play time, all while trying my best to interact with the children despite my nonexistent Danish. When two boys came up to me and introduced themselves in English, I knew I had to at least attempt to return the favor in Danish! I could go on and on, but suffice it to say, I'm pretty sure that my practicum visits will become one of the highlights of my week. 

And finally, here's a quick run-down of some of the other things that I've been up to recently, aside from going to class and doing homework and falling in love with Danish culture more and more: 

- Going to an Irish pub with some friends to watch the Denmark vs. Sweden handball game (Denmark won!)

- Seeing my first snowfall in Copenhagen

- Exploring Roskilde for a second time, including a tour of the beautiful Roskilde Cathedral

And because you've been so kind as to read my ramblings about Bordings, here are some picture of the Cathedral, significant in part because it is the burial place of many members of the Danish royal family 

Inside the cathedral

Despite all of the ornate decorations inside the church, this wooden angel was one of my favorite things about the entire place

The ceiling in the Chapel of the Magi 

Pictures from the first few days

Here's (part of) my room! It's really big, and it has two nice, large windows that let in what little daylight is available 

Enjoying our fist proper dinner, with multiple courses and everything

My friend Emilia and I biked into Roskilde from our kollegium in Trekroner this afternoon. The ride isn't too long at all, and it was nice to get some exercise, even if it is cold! This is the main walking street in Roskilde. It's full of great shops and restaurants and cafes; the town will definitely be a nice place to hang out when I don't want to make the commute into Copenhagen to go out to eat or for drinks. 

More of the winding streets and beautifully colored buildings of Roskilde

In the distance, you can see water! I'll definitely be exploring this more once it warms up. 

Roskilde Cathedral, the first gothic cathedral to be built of brick, dates back to the 12th or 13th century 

The twin spires of the cathedral 

January 19: Today was cold and gray, but we walked around the city nevertheless, exploring some of the famous landmarks close to DIS. These pictures, while not of the landmarks themselves, should give you a pretty good sense of a typical Copenhagen landscape, including the architecture, weather, and BIKES

View from a canal near Christiansborg Palace

Bikes are everywhere, including in front of the Danish Royal Library