Never have I ever.... been soooo incredibly cold. Ha
I slept in a little late today because I stayed up to watch the little baby snow flakes dance in the street lights. When I awoke it was bright outside and soon I discovered that the snow had began to stick while I was sleeping.
Boy, I was soo excited, I felt like a kid again. I woke up and showered and began putting on layer after layer. That, supposedly, is the key to keeping warm. I think it is pretty much just a hopeless situation. Getting dressed to go outside is more than a 10 second routine of throwing on a sundress and flops now. Instead I try the best I can to put on several layers. Usually I start with a long sleeve shirt and a close fitting sweater.
Next I will add a fleece...
And finally boots, a scarf, ear muffs, pea coat, and huge warm Uggs.
Dawning a pair of leather gloves I venture outside into the snow. It isn't deep but the wind is what gets you. Behind my flat we have a little bike chalet. My bike is kept in here to keep it out of the elements when I am not using it.
I unlocked my bike and started on my first adventure via bike. Last night my roomie helped me lower the seat even more (as low as it goes) and raise the handle bars so that I could reach them better while sitting on the saddle. It is still a tiny bit big but at least now I don't have to jump onto it by standing on the peddle at every stoplight. Some streets in Copenhagen have bike lanes and some do not. The main streets that I live in are part of the latter. Here is a picture as I got started. You cannot see the snow very well, luckily the streets were dry!
I used my iPhone to navigate the streets the best that I could to find the Christinshavns Metro. This was there that I met up with a friend who I had met in the ESN program. (ESN- Erasmus Student Network is a program set up for students who are on their "Erasumus" in Europe. An Erasmus is basically a state-sponsored study abroad trip. Although I am not from Europe I am invited to participate in their activities as well) He just got back from his Erasmus in Italy (he is from Copenhagen) and wanted to continue evolvement with the group. He invited me on an adventure and one of my motos while I am here is to try as much as I can. We met at the metro and walked to a little commune called Christiania. On the way there we walked by this building. Niels told me that his family used to be in charge of decorating it for Christmas and for doing the iron casting in front. I cannot wait to climb up it; HOWEVER, I want it to be a bit warmer first, I fear the wind will be too much to handle now.
There is a long, long history behind Christiania and I don't feel as if I have a strong enough grasp on it to give it a thorough explanation on here so instead I will leave that to later and give you a quick run-down now. Christiania is a community where they create their own rules and live outside the norm. They are very artsy and extremely liberal. Some of the pictures will explain it a bit more. Additionally, this area is known for their liberal view on "soft" drugs. Similar Amsterdam you can find a main street with several stands selling substances, as if they were the coffee shops in Holland. Although this is present I did not spend any time interacting with these people as I was more interested in the history behind it being a kind of war bunker. There are walls surrounding the "commune" on all sides bordering the city, creating a type of fortress. These walls are covered with graffiti.
Along the walls there were little doorways that anyone is free to enter.
Inside there is also a large amount of graffiti as well. Here is a pic of me the Niels took, I love the vibrant colors.
The gate surrounds one side of the commune and a huge bunker-type mound of dirt surrounds the other. Niels is in this pic too.
On the far side of the bunker is a mote.
Here is a view from the very top looking across the way.
We took a walk on the path that you can see below as well. Before that, however, we ran into this cute little house looking at the water. This house is very typical of Christiania.
This is another picture looking out at the water. The pieces of extra wood and what I would consider "junk" are found everywhere. I think a hippie-type feeling would be an adequate description- or to you Washingtonians "Greener" type scene.
And then, just as I thought I might freeze to death. (by this point I had already had to borrow another scarf to wear and had a chill to my bones) A beautiful, beautiful creature appeared.
This glowing scene en captures the magic that I felt filling the air at the sight of a ginormous swan. I guess I might have seen a swan in a zoo before, I am not sure, but there is no comparison. This amazing creature was just sitting here on the edge of the ice. It appeared to be rather content even though it did not seem as if it could really move much seeing as it was surrounded by ice.
I am not sure if he had planned it or not but Niels brought some bread and we fed the very enthusiastic swan.
Sorry for all of the pictures but I just like the different shapes that the swan makes with his/her neck. By this point my fingers were frozen solid and I could barely break of anymore bread to feed the poor swan. You can see my frustration here.
We headed into a little pub/cafe and grabbed some tea before I decided to call it a night. I had gotten lost a bit on the bike ride out there and did not want to have to find my way home in the dark. It is dark by 4:30 here so I needed to get going soon. On the walk back to our bikes Niels took the picture perfect depicting both the beauty and frigidness of the day.
The bike ride home... well, hmm it was so cold. I had my scarf up over my mouth but had to keep one hand un-gloved so as to have the ability to use the touch-screen function of my phone. This was very problematic. My hand froze so that it was barely useable. I then tried to use my nose, which was already frozen, that did not work well. The temperature was only -3 but the wind was unbearable. Coming off of the water it went straight through all of my layers. When I finally made it home I curled up on the couch under another pea coat, put a huge hat on and got under a comforter and just shivered for about 45 minutes. Needless to day, I do not think that I am build for this weather. Oh yes and I took a shot of their "warming tonic," basically alcohol, to try and get warm, nope, I still froze. Rasmus just laughed when he got home and brought me more blankets. I will wear more and more layers next time I guess. But besides the snowman part I had a wonderful afternoon filled with beautiful scenery.
I had my first pizza last night and some wine later on to warm me up. Today I am headed to the gym and then Rasmus is making me pasta for dinner, yum! I also might be going out with my mentor or other friends for some drinks to celebrate their end of exams. I hope everyone is doing well in the states or wherever else you may be and I think of you all often. My mom sent me a package that I just received today and it brought a tear to my eye. I also received the "Save the Date" to Annelise and Johnny's wedding. :) that brought a smile to my face and, Lise, just so you know, the magnet is on our fridge! I do need to send out postcards but I have been weary of leaving my apartment because of the cold. I should try and venture out sometime this weekend. Please send me your addresses!! I will be writing more soon, until then, stay warm, cheerful and remember your freezing friend/family member in Denmark.
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