A Life in Denmark

Monsoon season....in Denmark

2009-09-04T20:02:00.004+02:00

A little sleepy now, sitting here typing this entry at 8pm I am not going to be up late due to the fact that I was woken 3 or 4 times in the night by the sound of rain battering the house! I know what you are thinking but I have lived in England, Denmark AND Hong Kong so I know my rain. It was LOUD. I considered ear plugs. But it was sooooooo cosy to be in bed under the warm duvet!

We braved the dreaded Storcentre on the way home from work. My number one item to buy? Pyjamas. Seriously! I wanted to get home, lock the doors, make the house cosy and wear pyjamas. Mission accomplished and I wont be resurfacing until Monday morning.

Life is good

Car, Plane, Bus, Plane, Plane, Car, Golf Buggy, Longtail Boat, TRACTOR....holiday:)

2009-08-29T09:26:00.006+02:00

So we are back from paradise. It's was such a fantastic location that we felt removed from the rest of the world and our life at home, in Denmark. It was hard to imagine our house and the weather, work and driving - that's what a good holiday is about right?

It has been so long since we had a 2 week holiday abroad at a 'resort' if you can call it that (and I hate that word). Our resort was amazing, we had a private cottage with a wall, outdoor jacuzzi, sun loungers and fish pond with resident frog. The decor was gorgeous - eastern style of course - with bamboo, wooden floors and silk. I like to see the correct decor in situ none of your Changing Rooms themes in Basingstoke thank you - thai style IN Thailand! Here, of course, it works beautifully.

I was astonished how many people took laptops on holiday, this in itself is of course understandable if you have work to do (!) want to blog etc etc, but a surprising amount of people had their laptops up and running through breakfast, lunch and dinner while family / significant other fidgeted around, gazing at the awesome panorama in front of them. Each to their own. On our last day we were in the reception area and one British man walked in to enquire about a room, he asked the ladies in reception at least 5 times about wifi, did they have it and how quick it was, he was almost in panic mode. Of course if gave me and Fraser the giggles as absurd situations like this normally do, he was oblivious to anything else of course. Maybe after two weeks he would be so chilled he wouldn't care any more (thai culture seeps in, osmosis like, after a few hours)

Anyway have loads of wonderful stories to relate so will keep it coming:)

Thai inspiration

2009-07-26T14:01:00.004+02:00

I made an great Thai curry yesterday and it was the first one I have made from scratch - no paste, no chemical additives and no cheating:) It was surprisingly easy and enjoyable to make. We are also going to Thailand next month so it's getting us in the mood;)

Living in Denmark, or more precisely Jutland/ Jylland - 'exotic' ingredients are not easy to come by and if you don't eat meat your produce options go down by around 75%!

I usually cook Indian curry, we just love it, but when looking around Bilka on Friday and with the Thai recipe in mind so many of the ingredients were there. Thai asparagus, lemongrass, hot green peppercorns in brine...that made up my mind Thai it is!

With this recipe you could substitute Thai basil with regular basil, galangal ginger with normal ginger etc BUT we have a brilliant Thai supermarket in town and I managed to get the exact ingredients needed. Thai basil has a more liquorice flavour and is absolutely delicious and they had frozen kaffir lime leaves (really fragrant!)and great coriander. This place is so good - it has many unidentifiable fruits and veg and dried goodies stacked on their shelves it really inspires me to experiment (and bring back tins of veg chops suey for the husband to try - he's a fan of mock duck I will have you know!)

Anyway back to the Thai curry - awesome and all thanks to......Delia would you believe. It packed a nice heat which built up but wasn't burning on contact and had a lovely complex taste. I made the green curry paste and boiled it in coconut milk then added the veg and viola. Yum will definitely be making that again.

Demark på ferie

2009-07-18T20:28:00.003+02:00

So July is upon us and the Danes are off on holiday. I don't think I was ever aware whilst living in England when the country was on vacation. Does the UK have June, July or August off? I realise when the school holidays arrive that is the main time for families to have some 'relaxing' weeks in Bournemouth, Scarborough or Spain but did the country ever close?

Here in Denmark they all go on holiday in July from one to four weeks. Shops close, businesses slow to a screeching halt and the roads are empty. Everyone is all a chatter about where, when and how long. I think France has June or July and Germany, as I found out last week, has August off.

What a strange little animal the human race has become. We are such creatures of habit; up, eat, work, eat, work, home, eat, sit, sleep or actions to that effect. We, as a rule, like a routine. We know where we are then don't we? Safe. No disorder here thank you!

I think even in societies of a perceived disorder there is an order in the chaos or chaos is the order.

Hmmmm anyway on that note our holiday is booked for August and may you all have a good one.

Rugbrød

2009-01-11T12:08:00.002+01:00

Happy New Year everyone!
I have had a few requests for the recipe of the rugbrød I made so here it is - remember its good old fashioned bread and not like the supermarket bread you can buy. Enjoy!

Starter Mix/ surdej
2.5dl kærnemilk (Buttermilk)
2.5dk rugmel (ryeflour)
1 teaspoon of salt
Mix ingredients and cover with clingfilm and leave for 2 days at room temp

Rugbrød
1.3L water
800g ryegrains
1 small can of beer of your choice
500g rugmel (ryeflour)
400g hvedemel (whiteflour)
2 dessertspoons salt
12g gær (fresh yeast)
400g solsikkerkerner (sunflower seeds/ pumkin seeds/ sesame or flax seeds of your choice - all are nice:)

1. Mix rugkærner and water together in a large pan and bring to boil - turn off heat and and leave to cool so its cool enough to handle.

2. Add can of beer and starter mix

3. Add salt, hvedemel, and rugmel

4. Take off enough starter mix for next time

5. Add yeast and seeds

6. Put in breadforms (makes 2 loaves)

7. Smooth top really well and add seeds to top

8. Leave for 4 hours in a warm place to prove

9. Bake for 1 3/4 hours in an prewarmed oven at 200c and leave for 24 hours to 'set'

Hope you lke the recipe and enjoy the yummy bread afterwards!

Cars Cars Cars

2008-09-27T14:01:00.007+02:00

So we bought a car. Ouch is all I can say. Buying a car in Demark costs about twice as much as buying one in the UK. It took 2 1/2 years of avoiding buying one until my new job meant we had to get one.

I mean its GREAT having freedom and being able to go where we want when we want really easily - and I love driving so its been well worth it so far.

But having a car has opened up alllll sorts of rants for me and seeing how some people drive (yes I have my moments but some drivers are shocking!) has frightened me a little.

Amongst other things I have to get used to the abundance of tractors that regularly idle along the roads in all their muddy goodness without a care in the world. For miles and miles they chug along not pulling over or feeling slightly under pressure that the whole of Jylland is crawling behind them in controlled frustration and rage. Good for them I say in my calmer moments - after all they were here before all the corporate commuters were rushing to their day jobs full of importance and superiority and they after all do provide us with potatoes. How can that be bad?? That is in my calmer moments of course. Otherwise its a tirade of swearing, tutting and satisfying putdowns.

I drive an hour each way to work and enjoy the drive as a whole but I do come across some idiots. Once I was driving back from work and there was an estate car in front of me weaving around the road, narrowly missing oncoming cars and then speeding up and slowing down. I kept my distance and watched with amazement as this driving behaviour went on for about 20 minutes. I seriously thought that maybe the driver had been drinking until I bravely drove closer to have a look - the woman driver was on the phone and passing drinks and sweets to her TWO SMALL CHILDREN in the back of the car. When we reached traffic lights she hung up the phone and dialled another number. Unbelievable.

I am back and more rants are to follow;-)

Rhubaphobic

2008-05-01T19:14:00.006+02:00

Yes you heard it right 'Rhubaphobic'. Still on the themes of gardens we have a gigantic rhubarb at the end of our garden. Its a bit scary.

I love rhubarb though so was very excited to see it when we bought our house. There is no end to what you can do - pies , crumbles, jams, chutneys mmmmmmm yum. So I ventured off with a big sharp knife to the end of the garden (discovering after the massacre that you should 'pull' it out not cut) and got myself some stalks. But then what? Some looked green, some pink, some red and I had no idea if underipe rhubarb was poisonous so had do some googling (ohh new word new verb). I was happy to learn that only the leaves are highly toxic (!!) and I could put the rest in some pastry.

Anyway Fraser is Rhubaphobic and after forcing him to taste my nice apple and rhubarb mix (with lots of sugar of course) he is still not convinced but I think pastry and custard will help.

Rhubarb facts:
During World War I rhubarb leaves were recommended as a substitute for other veggies that the war made unavailable. Apparently there were cases of acute poisoning and even some deaths. Some animals, including goats and swine, have also been poisoned by ingesting the leaves. Thanks for the info www.rhubarbinfo.com :-)

Spring has sprung

2008-05-01T18:52:00.006+02:00

Ahh so Spring seems to be finally here (although I am famous for tempting fate and Denmark will probably get snow tomorrow!) and we are adjusting to life with a garden. A great garden at that. But I have no idea about gardening and have been slightly scared of doing anything apart from the odd bit of weeding and tree pruning.

We bought an old lawnmower from our new neighbours last winter and I decided to dust it off last week to give the garden a much needed mow. Fraser showed me how it worked (its more complicated than you think guys!!) and off I went - literally. I was pulled down the garden leaving a very untidy stripe indeed - Fraser had to start and finish the job while I sat defeated on the decking. Ah well - cant win them all - and I lost this fight to an old, very very heavy Honda mower so its ok.

Denmark always seems to be a hive of industrious activity at weekends, bank holidays, Spring, Summer, Autumn etc (as long as its house/ garden orientated) and you never see a car without a trailer at these times. Streets are always drowning in the sound of mowers, hedge trimmers, strimmers and drills and more worringly grinders. Honestly we have a neighbour who backs onto our garden (who is obsessed with bird houses and windmills I might add) and they are always grinding something. I have seen them both recently so hopefully its nothing to worry about - but lets hope our cats dont annoy them too much this summer...

Long time no write..

2008-01-27T17:45:00.000+01:00

So it must be around 4 months since my last update. The shame.

But I have reasons and the reason is I have found work. I started in October and have been quite busy to say the least. New house, new job, two new cats - it all happens at once doesnt it!

So I have a lot of catching up to to and its hard to know where to start. I think the main things I would like to blog about are Christmas, New Year, the cats of course and a few other little observations!

I'm back!

Stanley and Fritz in paradise

2007-09-03T17:31:00.000+02:00

As you know we have been really, REALLY busy with the purchase of our wonderful 1950's house in Kolding. We have been here for a month now and after a few setbacks (namely the mattress being too big to get up the stairs) we are almost there!

I love it here and still can't get used to the fact that we have no-one above or below us and we dont have to keep the music level at 'sensible' - although we do.

We have our own lush garden with fruit trees and flowers and idlyllic though that may seem to the many Londoners that are reading this - it took Fraser 3 hours to mow the lawn yesterday and we have hundreds of apples to pick up of the lawn. There are only so many æblekages, apple crumbles, apples sauces and apple pies one can make. Though I will not complain really as it's paradise to us.

We are also the proud owners of two kittens - Stanley and Fritz. Stanley is 4 months and Fritz is 2 months. We got them from the same family (our new next door neighbours son) and was able to have Stanley a week before Fritz due to their ages. We knew they got on well as they grew up together (all of two months!) so it was perfect. I had to work on the Saturday Fritz arrived but from the phonecall I made home to my near- hysterical husband I gathered the cats were pleased to see each other. They were like two balls of fur spinning horizontally round the walls with the odd sqeak and hiss. Fraser had to leave the house for a few hours to have a breather - bless him.

Phew it's all go - but life is good.

Have you ever...

2007-07-10T19:36:00.000+02:00

..had one of those days where everyone looks wierd? After managing to get out of the house today (twice I left the flat and as soon as I stepped out the front door it chucked it down!) I cycled down to Kolding town centre and set about doing my chores.

I was pushing my bike through the pedestrian area (500dk fine here for cycling in pedestrian street so thats a no no..) and found that people were being very spatially unaware and just walking in front of me, into me and practically kicking my heels behind me. I HATE people invading my personal space - once is forgivable as we all do it but if they persist I take it personally and get mad - and very huffy.

Once in Kilburn High Road I was trawling the charity shops, my favourite past time, and a woman in her 70's walked infront of me as I was rifling through the shirts and stopped and grabbed the shirt I was looking at - picture the scene - this womans back was now practically touching my chest while giving my chosen shirt a thorough going over - while my jaw hit the ground not quite believing that this had just happened. I said 'EXCUSE ME!' to the muttering pensioner and she replied 'Thats okay' and carried on. I could do nothing but laugh and walk away. If I had wanted that shirt it would have been a different matter - pensioner or not.

Anyway apart from the slack-jawed pond dwellers there were people that just werent quite 'right'. Not being mean or anything.....and I am sure they all come out on the same days just to freak me out. It used to be when I had a hangover just to add to the joyous post party experience but seen as I dont drink that much anymore (and definitely not in the week) I cant blame it on that!

Today I found myself surveying the scene on entering our local supermarket to see if shopping without incident, staring and downright fear was possible. It was a close call. I have been known (only once I admit) to leave a pretty full trolley in an aisle in Sainsburys after coming to the conclusion that it was all too much and a bit too frightening that day (yes hangover from hell) - so I am well experienced in assessing them now.

Anyway I made it and cycled home as fast as my little legs could spin the wheels.

Not just me is it?

Vores nye hus..

2007-06-19T13:54:00.000+02:00

We have just bought a new house - hoooray!
I know I always have an excuse for not blogging regularly but hey this is a good one - we just have been so busy! We have bought a little 1950's house in Kolding and we LOVE IT. We move on the 1st August and it cannot come soon enough for us.

Our new (architect designed) house has all the original features - hallway tiles, in-built cupboards and wooden floorboards. And before you tell us they can easily be ripped out - they are lovely, quality originals not nasty ones thank god.

On one side of the house is a wall of windows and one door leading out onto one of our wooden terraces and then leading round to the other terrace which has french doors and a huge garden surrounds the house. It has a large front room/ diner new kitchen with gas and electric hob (gas is rare in Denmark but I much prefer it), three bedrooms, a small but sweet bathroom, a hems (small attic room), an office, pantry, utility room, and warm room (like an airing cupboard but a room).

We fell in love with the house straight away - it was so solid and well built with masses of light. There are so many flats and houses out there that are badly finished and we wanted to avoid them - I hate the feel of badly built living spaces!

After a few days of hellish waiting and negotiations we signed. The process has been really easy so far (touch wood) so well done to the danish system. We dont have pictures yet but will post some as soon as we move.

We have friends coming this week end so we are busy again but will post very soon...promise.

Firenze

2007-05-10T17:40:00.000+02:00

Pont Vecchio

We went to Florence last Friday for a long weekend as it was our paper wedding anniversary and we had a lovely time.

It's such a beautiful, beautiful city with so many 'things' to look at and eat!

Our journey started off with the obligatory 'being ripped off by Ryanair' scenario. This time it was because my name on the ticket was my married name and not the name on my passport - fair enough our mistake - but I had countless other id on me but it had to match my passport nothing else. I thought that in the EU we could use other photo id? Ah well 750 danish crowns later we went to departures to wait for our delayed flight.

On arrival we had a mad italian taxi driver who drove at speed of 120km + in zones of 60 and even 40 for one part - flying over dips in the tarmac like an expertly thrown stone skimmed across smooth water. Every now and again he would lean across the front seats to close the passenger door which would occasionally open in suprise.

The journey was just over after an hour or so - we made it - but only after a few stifled giggles (from me) brought on by fear, many butterflies in the stomach and my hand squeezing Frasers for the odd bit of reassurance when needed.

I love the atmosphere of Florence - the weather, smells, sounds and locals - its a heavenly mix. We had a great time and the only downer was the amount of tourists (ironic eh) - couch tourists mostly - there were hundreds of groups walking around in a zombie like state with earphones attached and matching caps, sandals and socks. They were mostly american, japanese, german and english and it was terrible - every sculpted street corner has a group attached like limpets - all looking at the same historic detail while a slightly bored 'i have done this a thousand times' guide robotically reeling off the important texts they were given when they started the job. And this was not peak season...

Rather them than me. And can you imagine trying to round them up?? I would ask for a sheep dog - definitely. A quick nip at the be-socked achille would soon get them in line.

We ate fantastic ice cream, pasta, polenta and I had the best steak I have ever had - but I will write more on all that in another entry. Ciao.

Neptune fountain, a work of Ammannati

Starbucks

2007-03-27T16:55:00.000+02:00

According to several sources there is a Starbucks opening in Copenhagen very soon. I was dismayed to say the least on hearing this news.

Starbucks are like McDonalds to me have spread like a nasty little rash through historic cities and countries. In London there seemed to be one every few hundred yards and was suprised to read there are only 12,440 worldwide in 30 or so countries as it felt like there were 12,000 in London alone.

A few+ years ago I was guilty of buying the odd, overpriced cup of froth but that was before I became aware of the damage they can do to a historic city, town and country and its unique coffee culture.

So many small, family run coffee shops are disappearing due to chains like Starbucks and not only coffee shops. A few years ago Fraser took me to Glasgow to show me where he used to live and hang out and was excited to show me the bookshop he worked in and cherished. We arrived at the location and to our dismay it was gone - not only gone but redesigned by and occupied by - Starbucks. It is a real loss.

Its not only the infestation that bothers me - its the fact that so many original shop facades are being replaced and the shops themselves gutted to be replaced by homogenised, plastic shop fittings according to the 'one size fits all' formula.

I am sure once upon a time Oxford Street was a lovely place before the uniformed glass and plastic fronts of Marks and Spencers, Next, McDonalds, Books etc, Boots and many, many more moved in. Its a hideous place now and only fit for an indigestion inducing sandwich on the run while running from shop to shop abusing your own bit of plastic.

The ironic thing is that when Howard Schulz (bigwig of Starbucks) was inspired by the espresso cafes of Milan surely he is now helping their demise? And not just italian coffee shops - coffee shops all over the world.

I personally could not think of anything worse than going to another country to go to Starbucks - lets use and help the local small businesses that have been making coffee for years and will die out unless we support them. Wheres the contest? A coffee shop full of atmosphere which you cannot fake or an american chain where (usually very nice from what I can remember) people in baseball caps ask what skinny, mocha, vanilla, frappuccino, cappuccino, soya, small, tall, impossibly gigantean coffee you would like. Lets use our imaginations a little and experience new, exciting local places with a local flavour - and if you live in Seattle by all means go to Starbucks.

Oh and leave Denmark alone - like most countries they know how to make a damn fine cup of coffee.

Chills, pills and definitely no thrills

2007-02-14T14:46:00.000+01:00

So I have succumbed to the yearly cold/ sore throat bug thing and have been feeling rather rubbish. I have had a sore throat since Monday - with a dash of fever last night and a sprinkle of head wierdness today (you know what I mean..).

I went to get some sort of wonder drug like 'Day and Night Nurse' today and was sorely disappointed. I explained my symptoms and the pharmacist came back with Strepsils - so I explained again what the sypmtoms were and asked if she had anything for the whole cold rather that just the throat and she came back with a herbal remedy for cold and sinus problems (I had explained there is no sinus problem), a different throat tablet and asked if I have headache tablets at home - I said I did but they were not effective. (and if they were effective I would not be here asking for help...!)

I felt desperate and just wanted to say 'give me the strongest drugs you possibly can' but didn't want her to think I was in it for the pleasure and would be immediately washing them down with a cool can of Special Brew on the bench by the river as soon as I could get the top off them.

I asked again if there were 'all in one' pills for colds, flu and sore throats and she said no - and asked which tablets did I want - the herbal sinus ones or the throat ones, so I asked if they could be taken together and she said no. I went for the herbal ones. And by the way there was not language barrier as I speak enough Danish to be understood now and she spoke a lot of English.

I do think that in England I relied on over the counter remedies a lot - ie Day nurse and Feminax aswell as Nurofen for headaches - but they did the job - quicky. In Denmark you dont get the choice - they have headache pills, a few cold remedies and that's your lot - if you want more you go to your doctor. I find it a little over the top but then again you (have to) think twice about the pain before you call the surgery, book an appointment with your doctor, see the doctor, get a prescription, queue up and get your prescription and finally pop a pill - thats for sure - maybe the pain isn't that bad..

A few weeks ago I was astounded that I came away with a huge jar of headache tablets (250) and felt very pleased with myself (am still not sure why!). I showed it proudly to Fraser and exclaimed how suprised I was that I could buy such a large number of painkillers - what if I was suicidal?? I was proud - until Fraser pointed out that you would probably have to eat a 1000 before you had any ill effects - that's how weak they are and then they would probably just give you a headache.....

Please excuse the rambling blog but I am ill.

Et År I Danmark

2007-01-26T11:04:00.000+01:00

It is really hard to believe that we have been here for a year already - hard in that the time has gone so quickly, scarily quickly, since we left London and so much has happened.

We now really feel that this is our home and we have adjusted to danish life very well. Coming from London where you can buy everything you could possible want anytime and do everything you could possibly think of whenever you wish to a small country with 5,2 million people where shops close at 1pm on a Saturday is a huge change.

For us a change for the better - of course we miss going for indian food, going to the Tate modern, for a stroll ground Greenwich Park and, naturally, seeing our friends but danmark is a fantastic place to live and we have adapted to laid back life very well! The country is safe and is all about comfort, lifestyle and hygge - the danes have a fantastic sense of humour i.e very similar to us brits and love socialing and holding parties! What more could we want? Okay maybe and Indian restaurant....;-)

Vi har sne!

2007-01-23T17:03:00.000+01:00

Hoooorayyyyy!

I awoke at 5.30am this morning to the sight of everything covered in a thick layer of lovely snow! I was so excited I couldn't get back to sleep - sad eh.
I will attempt to organise myself properly and get some pictures uploaded asap.

Hows England?

Duvet socks or as I call them - space boots!

2007-01-19T09:11:00.000+01:00

After my post yesterday on how warm it was in Denmark - the temperature today is a healthy 1/2 above zero. I am now hoping for snow - I already have my duvet socks on -these boots are the best invention ever!

I do look as though I am about to go for a moonwalk but I like that. They are what they say they are - they are down boots that keep your feet warm and cosy during the winter months. Highly recommended.

5 minutes to midnight....

2007-01-18T13:18:00.000+01:00

'The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (BAS) is moving the minute hand of the Doomsday Clock two minutes closer to midnight. It is now 5 minutes to midnight. Reflecting global failures to solve the problems posed by nuclear weapons and the climate crisis´.

Arrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh......

How scary is that - We should have snow in denmark but is +9 in mid januar and the flowers are blooming! I especially like it when the weather people on CNN comment on how lovely the weather is and 'lets hope the good weather continues...'! I mean they are the NEWS - they of all people should have a little understanding of the meaning and consequences of the unnaturally warm climate? Oh yes its CNN...

Filmarama

2006-12-29T17:09:00.000+01:00

So we have watched loads of things over the holidays and here they are in no particular order:

The Polar Express - what a load of rubbish! It was one of the worst things I have ever seen (apart from Moulin Rouge where I was physically biting my knuckles and curling my toes - I dont like to turn a film off even if I hate it as it leaves me feeling even more unsettled for some reason - so had to watch all of it!)
Fraser summed it up perfectly saying that it was like one long coca cola advert - 'holidays are coming'. It was boring, souless, irritating and had unsettling CG. It will be a while before I stop calling Tom Hanks names.

Its all Gone Pete Tong: Now who exactly is this film aimed at? I though it might be us ex-clubber types or maybe a bit younger :-/ but it was SO miserable - okay it had a happyish ending of sorts but god it was poo it really was. I like Paul Kaye and he just about saved it with his fantastic performance as a coked up DJ superstar that goes deaf (fun eh) a couple of good tracks aswell.

The Bourne Supremacy: Havent seen the first but enjoyed this - 'what you see is what you get' spy thriller type stuff but it was well done and easy to watch and enjoy.

Green Wing: I really, really wanted to like this when we borrowed this DVD set from Nigel. But I didnt. First of all it was painful and I just thought it was trying too hard and the camera angles were a bit wrong. But then it sneaked up on me and found myself asking if we could watch another and another. Funny british comedy that definitely has grown on me. Nigel can we borrow season 2? :-)

All New Battlestar Galatica: fantastic of course - absolutely hooked and need a weekly fix. Ohhh who are the last 5 cylons - WHO ARE THEY????

Cars: Whoohoo! Absolutely brilliant film from who else but Pixar. They never fail to come up with the goods do they. As someone who isnt exactly riveted by the thought of cartoon talking cars I loved it and would recommend it to everyone.

The Wedding Crashers: After I got over the suprise that I managed to get it out of Blockbusters without Fraser throwing it on the floor and and jumping up and down on it shouting 'No way on earth will I watch this' we actually quite enjoyed it. Its not Swingers but it has a few chuckles worth in it.

Clerks 2: Very good, very very good. Its always worrying when the first film is so fantastic but we were more than pleasantly suprised with this sequel - in fact its GREAT. Obligatory cameos from Ben Affleck and Jason 'My Name is Earl' Lee of course.

My Name is Earl: Brilliant american comedy about karma and trailer parks. I dont know what I can say about this that can do it justice. Genius writing, acting, directing and bloody funny. I hope Santa put this is your christmas stocking.

I think that is it so far. We have The Assassination of Richard Nixon with Sean Penn waiting for us tonight and I will be sure to let you know how we get on. Sean Penn is fast becoming a favourite actor of mine, suprisingly. I always thought he was a knob until I watched Mystic River - that and a few other films made me realise what a fantastic actor he is. I think the old 'Madonna' thing years ago put me off and and he has only got back on the radar.

And this years Christmas death is....

2006-12-27T18:26:00.000+01:00

..actually 'deaths' are - James Brown, Gerald Ford, Josef Barbera and soon to be Saddam amongst others.
We were wondering who the Christmas death(s) would be this year (not that we are morbid!) but theres usually a good one!

On that note (!) Christmas in Denmark has been GREAT! We had Lille Julfrokost with our neighbours on the 23rd (Danish Christmas eve) and had a fabulous time! We put our tree up, 10% of the price of a London tree of course, and dug out all our english decorations which are nothing like what the Danes use. They are OBSESSED with Nisser. Nisser are Julmands (santas) helpers and are mischevious. They will be especially naughty it they dont get their risgrød (rice pudding) in the loft - along with bottle of snaps no doubt. The Danes put Nisser decorations everywhere. I personally dont really like them too much but give it time....

When our neighbours came over they told us that for birthdays and weddings they will write a song for the person(s) which is done using a traditional tune - to demonstrate this Mette, very professionally as quickly I might say, wrote one for my birthday which was in December - I have never had a song written about me before so I have written it at the end of this blog for you :-)I hope all the words are spelt correctly!

We had a quiet Jul with lots of films and vegetarian fayre - not your namby pamby veggie food I will have you know but veggie filled pie with homemade cheesy pastry and yep more veg - yum! Mette made us Ris Alamande which apparently is THE christmas dessert to have and its definitely not christmas without it! Its risgrød with cream and sliced almonds all mixed together and then you put a hot black cherry sauce sauce over it. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm its gorgeous and on Christmas day the maker of the pudding will put a whole almond in the pudding - whoever gets it wins a prize. The adults will usually not tell if its been found until all the pudding has been eaten and everyone is about to die from overeating. I suppose its similar to our silver sixpence in the pudding.

Der kom en engelsk pige her
Kvitte vitte vit bom bom
Vi syntes straks at hun var kær
Kvitte vitte vit bom bom
Den 10. var hen's fødselsdag
Kvitte vitte vit bom bom
og da vi rejste vores flag
Kvitte vitte vit bom bom

Sesame er hendes navn
Kvitte vitte vit bom bom
af hende vi er meget gavn
Kvitte vitte vit bom bom
hun er helt fantastisk kok
Kvitte vitte vit bom bom
og skriver flot på hendes blog
Kvitte vitte vit bom bom!

Hooray - thanks Mette!

Dentists - ahhh dont you just love 'em.

2006-12-13T16:10:00.000+01:00

I went to the dentist today to get a filling. Yuk. I hate going to the dentist I really do. When I was about 11 my dentist and his nurse decided to hold me down in the chair when I didnt like the look of the big needle coming my way - and that was it. A fear set it.

Then there was the time I had to find an emergency dentist in London as my wisdom teeth were giving me problems and my face had swollen to the size of a basketball. The hospital could do nothing so they sent me off to a dentist in Notting Hill. My parents drove me as I couldnt think let alone see straight (I was in my late twenties) Sitting in the waiting room was like something from a black comedy - screams were coming from the examination room and when the dentist came out he had blood all over his overall - the patient left looking deathly. They took me to the basement for an XRay - it looked like an old student bedsit with rough, 70's carpets and a sofa - a sofa!! And it was clearly their smoking room, nice.

Too weak to do anything else I entered the examination room and waited. The dentist came in with my XRays and said I needed all four wisdom teeth out and he would take all four out at the same time with only a local anaesethic. Not only that there would be a risk he could break my jaw and that I would have permanent numbess of the lower lip and tongue. So not too bad then.

Walking out of there (naturally after making an appoinment to have the work done?!!!??**) All we could do was laugh and we never went back. A few years later I went to a good hospital and had them all taken out while I was sound asleep.

My dentist in Kolding, found through a recommendation, is great and has made me feel so much better about it all. She knows I am a nervous patient and is very kind to me. Except she is always 30 - 45 minutes late - I thought maybe it was a reverse psychology trick for nervous patients? This time, after 30 minutes waiting naturally, she gave me an injection and said she would see another patient while the injection got work and just hoped the next patient didnt need a filling. Well she did.

Anyway I paced, wondering it the drugs would work properly, and looked out of the window where there is a tree (the dentist is on the first floor looking out onto the high street) and saw a huge clump of womens brown hair in the branches! Well that is a way to escape the dentist I suppose and at that moment didnt seem too drastic.

All the 3333333333333´s

2006-12-13T10:28:00.000+01:00

Well I am 33 now! How time flies when you are having fun.

I have been quite busy these past weeks - I volunteered for an international handicap film festival in Kolding - which was really good. I was helping out with the tape library so people and judges could watch films they had missed or didnt have time to see on the big screen. I met some great people and watched some fantastically moving and funny films. The week certainly opened my eyes to a lot of things.

I have also been working very hard with Danish and will be going for exams next week. Probably. God i hate exams I really do I get so nervous! I am 33 and get nervous - stupid isnt it.

Bobalicious!

2006-11-17T17:29:00.000+01:00

I have finally had my hair cut! Jeg har en ny frisure!

I had hair past my shoulders in a style that was SO boring and decided to finally go for it and get it chopped off. It took me a few months to decide exactly what I wanted but when I decided I went straight to the hairdressers. I decided on the classic bob and am very pleased with the results although I am still getting used to having hair this short! Next I might go from blonde to chocolate/ golden brown - something I will have to think about for a bit - especially as I am a natural blonde.

When I went to my language class with my new haircut they all loved it and said I looked much younger - which was nice (they are all in their low twenties). I didnt feel old at all.....

Igen...

2006-11-09T16:59:00.000+01:00

...or 'again' as it means in English, is a charity shop near our house and is HUGE. I love charity shops and can browse for hours sifting through the tat looking for treasures. They are humorous places aswell as very often I will see something that makes me laugh or at the very least puts a smile on my face.

Igen is very big and they have made little 'stages' with the furniture they are selling so you can walk from 1970's living room to 1970's living room - its great. In one section really bad oil paintings with strange looking fishermen smoking pipes hang (which I secretly have started to want in our house...) and pictures of oddly shaped cows standing side by side peering over fences are placed next to really beautiful pen and watercolour pictures.

I went there today and noticed a display of fur coats (as its winter-time) and one was so heavy I came to the conclusion it must have once been a Buffalo - I am serious! It was a huge curly haired monster of a thing with no label to give clues and the only person who could have taken the size and weight (apart from a Buffalo of course) would have been a 7 foot, very strong woman or a man. There were many different types of furs in the shop and I wouldnt have been suprised if I had seen a panda skin (I may have bought that one;-) hanging up - as a rule Danes dont really have fur issues probably as its very cold in winter and had more of a necessity in olden days than say, LA or even London!

The one thing that is never good to see is second hand dog baskets - which I saw today. It always bring back memories of muched loved, dead pets which I am sure the last owner of the now redundant dog basket was!

Too Long

2006-11-08T14:29:00.000+01:00

It has been to long between blog entries again - I just dont know where the time goes I really dont. (I know, I know its a sure sign of getting old)

Denmark is now gearing up for Jule and all the decorations, food and other accessories are overcrowding the shelves and aisles in every store. I love it. Usually I am and old scrooge when it comes to over the top marketing campaigns and having Christmas shoved down ones throat from mid September - but this year I feel SO in the mood for a hygge Christmas in Denmark - our first Christmas here.
I have even bought our candle advent calender!

On a different subject have you seen the new Sony Bravia advert? Amazing and better than the coloured balls one I think - and that was incredible too. This one was made in Glasgow with environmentally sound paint. Check it out:
New Sony Bravia Advert

Party Time!

2006-10-30T10:01:00.000+01:00

We went to the halloween party on Saturday and it was amazing - one of the best parties I have been too. Everyone put so much effort into their costumes it was incredible.

I went as Bender from Futurama and Fraser went as Beetlejuice.

A man with a freaky old mask and hooded top (from Saw I think) won scariest costume prize, a couple who dressed as Tetras won best couple costume I won most humorous costume! The Lego designers whose house and party it was had amazing outfits and were not allowed to win any prizes - or they would have won them all!
The party was over 2 floors and was decorated to an amazing level - everything had been made by hand and looked like a film set - except it was better actually.

Anyway have a look at the pictures and see what you think!

The Burton Brothers
The Lamp Lady
Some people lost their heads....
Zoltar
'To Infinity and Beyond!
Are you sitting comfortably?
The Bathroom Ceiling!
Alex the DJ
Beetlejuice and Bender
Leia, Edward and Bender
The Master of Ceremonies
Tetrus and Bender
More of the incredible house decorations!
Silent Hilllll....amazing costume!
Skull Chandalier - all hand made...

Halloween

2006-10-20T11:03:00.001+02:00

At the moment I am busy trying to construct my halloween costume for a party next week. I had a good idea of what I wanted to do it was just a question of how - good old papier mache and chicken wire thats how. I have nearly completed the head and now to the rest. Its hard work but I will post pictures for you when completed!

This week I have been at home from school as there is an autumn holiday - sometimes called the potato holiday. In the old days children were needed to bring in the harvest and they would close the schools so all the potatoes could be brought in - just as we have harvest festival in schools in England - or I assume they still have them...

I used to love bringing in tins of soup or other food stuffs to be displayed on a huge table in our school hall and then to be distributed to the elderly by the pupils.

I clearly remember doing this and remember that there was always a short straw as in who would get the bird woman or mad old woman who shouts! I was relieved I never got these ladies but in retrospect feel slightly disappointed that I never got to meet them.

I suppose it would be seen as dangerous to do this in this day and age? And dont get me wrong I am not that old (33 nearly) but things seem to change so quickly these days.

I hope it still happens - following safety guidelines of course...

Ooh ooh oooh and corn dollies!! Do you remember corn dollies? A little scary for some reason.....

Ribe

2006-10-17T10:05:00.000+02:00

The day before my exam three classes from the Sprogskole went to Ribe (about 20 people).

Ribe is a very old, interesting place - and very pretty. It was a great day and only a few pupils got lost! Isnt it funny - whatever age people are when they go back to school they always revert to being 10 year olds again!

We went to the Ribe VikingeCenter, Sct. Catharinæ Kirke and the Domkirke.

DomkirkeDomkirke Murals
The Domkirke was beautiful with mosaics and murals adorning the dome.
After god knows how many steps we reached the top of the Domkirke and the view was amazing it really was - as you can see below.

Domkirke View

Walking around the old streets we came across a plaque dedicated to Maren Splids - she was burned at the Gallows Hill near Ribe on November 9th 1641 and was probably the most famous Danish victim of the persecution of witches.

Maren Splids

Dansk Module 1

2006-10-16T09:21:00.000+02:00

I and three others in our class took our first exam on Friday - Friday the 13th...

The exam was an oral exam and was our first of 5/6 modules that we learn at language school. Module 6 is University level Danish and it takes 2-ish years to get to that level. Lets hope I can study that far - our language course is available in the evening aswell so if I get a job (which I will hopefully!) I can continue to study.

I love learing Danish - I really love it. Its a very, very hard language to learn and its a real challenge for me. The grammar is not very difficult but the pronounciation and understanding the spoken word is a little tricky. We have started to go to a language lab at school every other week and its amazing how it helped me get an understanding of pronounciation. The teachers of course are all fantastic but to listen to tapes while reading the script, copying and recording the words and phrases and then playing back what you have said and comparing and correcting is great.

I find it very hard to understand Danish - mostly because I am not around many Danish speakers for any amount of time (ie work) but also because the speak very fast and tend to squish 2 - 4+ words into one long funny sound!

Anyway I passed! Woohoo. Module 2 here I come...

Smoking

2006-10-11T15:33:00.000+02:00

As an ex-smoker I understand the 'charms' and addictiveness of smoking and how hard it can be to give up. I tried many times to kick the habit but enjoyed it too much to really commmit - it eventually took getting married and caring about someone else as much as - and more than I did myself to have the strength.

I only smoked a few of an evening and the thought of a glass of wine and a cigarette was bliss. But I had to stop and I did immediately after our wedding - and that was it - no cutting down slowly or gradual plan. Now it repels me to smell smoke or have people near me who are smoking. Funny eh.

The thing that has suprised me in living in Denmark is the amount of smokers. Denmark is such a forward thinking health conscious country - the first to have laws about 'bad fats' in food and the McDonalds food here (although I still cannot stand McDonalds) has the lowest fat content in the world.

Now I am not one to preach (weeelll not that often anyway ;-) but I see every day, and considering this is a small town its a lot, at least one heavily pregnant woman smoking - and its not the same one!

Yesterday there were two women at a bus stop almost full term puffing away on fags. Its not a nice sight it really isnt. Smoking whilst pregnant is so frowned upon (and rightly so) in the UK its almost shocking to see - which you occasionally do. I would have thought the fact a new life was growing inside them would deter them from smoking!

Its not just the pregnant woman who are at fault - in cafes and restaurants the smoking Danes think nothing of lighting up next to a table of pregnant women and children as if it were harmless. I have left cafes, restaurant and bars because of the amount of smoke and believe me I am not bothered by the odd cigarette being smoked having done it myself. I wonder why the message isnt getting through - answers on a postcard please!

On Holiday

2006-10-04T11:06:00.000+02:00

We came back from a holiday in France at the end of last week - hence the lack of posts :-)

France was fantastic - we went to see my parents and stayed with them on their farm called Thamon which is located in the Lot region of France.

The weather was very rainy and stormy but it was great and we all had a fab time - and it included lots of cheese and wine.

On the way back we stayed a night in Paris where we ticked all the boxes - we went on a boat tour, Notre Dame, saw the Eiffel Tower at night, watched mad people walk by in St Germain while drinking a perfectly chilled bottle of Chablis and saw Juliette Binoche filming on the Pont Neuf. Cant get more parisian than that now can you (unless we smoked a few Gitanes and swore at tourists of course)

We try (and have so far succeeded) to visit Paris every year because its a fantastic city and we always come back full of good memories.

Jehovah Witnesses...

2006-09-08T15:15:00.000+02:00

I have just had our first Danish Jehovah Witness house call!!

They were going house to house to speak to the unconverted - you know usual stuff - and I said (in Danish) that I am from England and dont speak much Danish so she spoke in English - then her young, angelic daughter asked if I read Danish and held up her bible.

I went back to speaking what Danish I could (its easier to say no in a foreign language I find - wierd eh!) and after she asked what I did (apart from the Devils work of course) I said 'Nej, tak' to 'The Leaflet' which she helpfully had in English.

Its funny because in class today I was asked what religion I was and I was the only 'No Religion' in the class.

Girl Geek - Alan Moore Culture Show Part 1

2006-09-08T13:47:00.000+02:00

I am getting geekier by the minute apparently - to reinforce this view I am reading Watchmen, LOVE the new Battlestar Galactica, have cool Lego keyrings and watch documentaries about Alan Moore (click on blog title to see Alan Moore on the Culture show pt1 - embedding has been disabled by request) - the the rest of the show is on YouTube.

But dont worry I regularly lose all my geek points and get back to normal by making the most shocking mistakes with geek facts / films (usually Star Wars) / comics and characters.....and then I become am a regular girl again. Phew.

Bicycles and tings

2006-09-08T12:44:00.000+02:00

I have been wanting a bicycle for some time now and have yet to get one. For a country that has 1000 bikes per 1000 people I am having a little trouble. To be fair I am sure its just a question of being 'in the know' as bicycles are cheap in Denmark and you can buy one for 1000 Kroner new (c. 100 pounds)- but I would like a second hand run around for 200 - 500 kroner which is achievable but may take time.

The frustrating thing is the amount of perfectly good bikes that are scattered by roads, lamposts, shops, parks etc that are just left - Bikes in Denmark are almost never locked up however smart or expensive they are so it would be very easy to 'borrow' one on the way to school and put it back on the way back - in fact you could probably use a different one everyday! But my mother told me that is called stealing - so not such good idea however tempting.

Once I have a bike (and buy Englesk Sauce which is not English in any sense) I will be well on the way to becoming Danish - for example:

I can bake Rugbrød
I can sew cushion covers and will be learning how to sew other things soon..
Jeg kan taler, skriver og læser lidt dansk
I only like rundstykker for morgenmad now
We recycle
I go to charity shops and speak with the older ladies in Danish as they are not tempted to speak English to me.
I drink more coffee because its great here

It's great.

All this also means I am getting old - baking bread, shaking my head at youngsters, sewing - SEWING for gods sake what is all that about????

And I enjoy it all.....

Hej! Hvordan går det?

2006-09-06T12:44:00.000+02:00

Fraser, Jane, Neil and little Harry Reynolds at Koldinghus

(Hi! Hows it going?)

So language lessons are coming along swimmingly and I am really enjoying it. I have a long way to go but I am getting there I think - and soon I will be taking my Module 1 test. There are 6 modules altogether but the 6th module is for University level, which if I am able, I would like to do. Then Denmark will be my rundstykker.....

This weekend we had our friends - Neil, Jane and little Harry to stay - our first official guests! It was great - we went to the Trapholt, Koldinghus, Hans Christian Andersens Museum in Odense and around Kolding. We had a fantastic time and it was so good to see them - Harry is only 5 months old (nearly 6) and is such a joy - a real happy, smiley baby - thank God! And he has grown so much since we last saw him when he was only a month or so old, you can see his character forming its amazing.

I felt a bit useless at times and positively terrified when he cried but hopefully I was not a hinderance in anyway :-/

What was also funny was that when we were all together I forgot I was in Denmark because we hadnt had any of our English friends over to see us and it was like we were in London again - strange.

Right I have to 'læser and skriver min hjemmearbejder'

Vi ses!

Rugbrød

2006-08-24T12:50:00.000+02:00

Rugbrød is one of the hardest words to say in Danish but one of the tastiest (homemade) breads!

I used to think Rugbrød (Ryebread) was horrible - I have tried it many times in my life - including when we moved here and I always hoped it would taste as good as it sounds - but it never did! That is until our neighbours brought us some home made bread as a gift. My god it was delicious!

The Rye bread I have bought or tasted before promised a rich, malty, nutty, seedy flavour but delivered only disappointment with a dash of sour, dry nastyness. The bread our neighbour make is amazing - it has the full malty, seedy rich flavour one would expect and more.

I am now very lucky as yesterday Mette taught me how to Bake it. Wow! Its one of those recipes that you keep for years and pass onto your nearest and dearest - and you know they will cherish and pass it on too as its just so good - and so Danish.

Best served with a thin spread of butter, sliced boiled egg, onion, tomato and with a sprinkling of salt and pepper.

Its been sooo long...

2006-08-21T12:41:00.000+02:00

..since I posted! I started sprogskolen (language school) again on the 8/08 and its fantastic but all consuming so I havent really had time to sit down and post.

In my new class there is an American, Afghani, Latvian, Turk and Korean. The Sprogskolen have so may nationalities its great - a real mix as you can imagine. And the good thing is that not everyone speaks English as a first, second or other language so you are often forced to speak Danish the only common language.

I finally feel that I am getting a grasp of Danish - if just a small one! Its like coming out of a dense fog where you can just see the faint outlines of objects.

Woohoo.

Great Website

2006-08-03T09:53:00.000+02:00

As well as being a bit obsessed with You Tube at the moment I stumbled across a website that gathers popular music from blogs - its fantastic.

Favourites at the moment are Lily Allen (I think shes great despite who her dad is) and the track Sultans of Ping FC - Where's Me Jumper? tip off about this track courtesy of Belle Du Jour

Hype Websiste

I also found the track 'Too Drunk to F***' by Dead Kennedys which my parents had as a 45 and our young English Bullterrier, Nelson, decided it had too much swearing in and chewed it up!! A fantastic track and probably very collectable now....

Not wanting to be smug but...

2006-07-28T18:07:00.000+02:00

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/5224306.stm

And having lived here for 6 months now we have to agree - moving from country #41 to country #1 not bad eh :-)

Haircut 1.....

2006-07-25T13:35:00.000+02:00

We have had such difficulty finding a barber that will actually cut hair there and then we bought a book from Amazon on how to do it ourselves.

I went for a simple looking book - none of this 'for dummies' nonsense - from someone who had a lot of experience in the business and who first published the book in the 1940's (his dad was also a barber). Then it was on to buying hair cutting scissors and a comb.

I was terrified. I had all the theory, no practise and a very shaky hand!
Well it went quite well considering and now after making Fraser sit for quite a few hours while I 'looked over it one more time...' it looks quite good - not like a mental patient at all!

I highly recommend the DIY haircut.

A Good Fest

2006-07-21T08:12:00.000+02:00

Last Friday (sorry about the delay in writing but its been sooooo hot!) Fraser's colleagues asked if we wanted to go to the Grønkoncert which was in Seest - a 10 minute drive or so from our house. The weather was gorgeous and it was Friday so how could we resist?

Katja, Danny, Michael and Fraser

We walked through the gates, showed our tickets and stared at the people jumping off a crane attached only by a bit of elastic. I have always wondered 'why' but it seems its as popular here as anywhere and most people we have met have done it. We were told a great story of a guy who decided to do a bungee jump but had a really bad hangover - this did not put him off of course so he went up and the instructor asked if he was ready and ok etc and put the harness on him and the jumper said 'yes of course!' enthusiastically and moved quickly to the jumping spot but was pulled back by the instructor who said 'wait you have to attach this first' and showed him the bungee and the clip which need to be attached to his harness.... oops. Thats the kind of thing I would do.
I do not like heights and if I am near a steep drop I always think my body would decide to jump without telling my brain and I would be thrown off - irrational I know but apparently its quite a common fear (!) Fraser has insisted on taking me up several tall structures (I havent resisted too much ;-) like the Eiffel Tower, La Defence, the Empire State Building to name a few amazing locations - so I am getting a bit better.

The concert was busy but not too crowded with many tents and stands around the perimeter and two stages at either end of a double field. We followed the music (the acts would alternate between stages to allow set up) and Nephew were playing - who are a really good Danish band - and we found a perfect spot off to the side. The perfect spot was just near the beer stand and amazingly there was only one or two people buying beer so no queue. NO QUEUE. For someone who has been to many an English festival, music concert, gig, nightclub and pub they always have a horrible long, pushy, hot queues that by the time you get back to your spot juggling four or five plastic pints you have lost 50% of your beer and are thoroughly wound up. This was a luxury.

Sensible booze carrying device - no not my husband - the cardboard carrier!

Once Nephew had finished we moved to the other stage where a Danish rap band were playing. Not our thing but enjoyable especially as we had a good view of the bungee crane! One boy (who must have been about 15) went up and couldn't jump so he had to be brought down again - poor thing! How embarassing must that be? Not as embarassing as doing it twice...yep he had another go and yet again he had to be brought down - oh the shame. It almost seemed like the crowd had turned a few degrees and were watching him instead of the rap band who were on stage practising their cool English swear words (bless.

Last but not least there was a man called Thomas Helmig who is apparently a bit of a sex symbol in Denmark (ex model and all that) and he was the finale. The only way I can describe this man is that he is like a pikier, more tanned, slimier version of David Essex - if possible. I think if Thomas was a town he would be twinned with David. As a last ditch attempt to cause a bit of excitment he brought on a few ladies in stockings, basques and small pants to dance around the stage. Hmmm.

The festival was so civilised - the were no queues, a free water station, the toilets were CLEAN at the END of the evening, people danced and there was no trouble (apart from two slightly tipsy men being dragged away) and small children went around picking up litter.

God I sound old. Anyway I am now off to put my nylon, beige, elasticated waisted slacks on and my comfy, breathable walking shoes as I need to go to the post office to send a parcel.....

A quick trip across the border..

2006-07-12T09:52:00.000+02:00

A beautiful old sign in Flensburg which is a harbour city

On Sunday our neighbours took us to Germany - only 45 minutes by car we were soon in Flensburg - land of cheap booze. This journey is similar to the Dover - Calais booze cruises except there is no water (or customs) to cross! Apparently there used to be 10 kroner coach trips to Germany and back - which must have been lovely (not!)

We had often heard of the Danish custom of driving down to Germany and stocking up on alcohol, sweets, soft drinks and many more things - but never really thought we would experience it so soon as we dont have a car. We took the scenic route and it was really interesting to see how the landscape changed as we edged nearer Germany - we were also shown the many different borders between Denmark and Germany that have changed through the centuries - the highest the German / Danish border has been was in Kolding - where we live. Most people speak both Danish and German and stick to the language they were brought up with so its a real mingled area.

We had a lovely lunch by the harbour in a restaurant and brewery where they sold dishes with big knuckles of meat, sauer kraut and potatoes to be washed down with home made beer in tankards - usually by large men with bundesligahår (the Danish word for a mullet - a style very popular in Sweden apparently and not in a Hoxton ironic way either...) So after a great lunch (we had chicken breast and jacket potato and a veggie gratan dish so sorry to disappoint..) we went to the supermarket.

I am SO glad I didnt have a hangover - it was hell......the kind of hell you get when you come across hundreds of people determined to get cheap booze - this was their only reason to come here - just like us. We pushed our trolley round the place - wide eyed and slightly frightened after only just braving going alone and leaving our neighbours and safety zone to look for beer, gin and a nice rioja. In one aisle there was a man and a woman with their trolley blocking the aisle and blocking us - we asked nicely in Danish, German and English to get past - but no she would not move even after looking at us madly - she was checking the prices with ones that were in a free newspaper pullout from the local supermarket (you know the ones - 1000 sausages for a £1 - or 10 kroner as it would be here)

We eventually managed to get to check-out and to leave the scary place pleased with our booty of cheap booze. Well worth the trip - just get an early night before you go and make sure you are ready for the experience.......

Market Day

2006-07-04T14:02:00.000+02:00

I met up with a friend today and we went to market. Kolding has a market on Tuesdays and Thursdays which has fresh vegetables and fruits, cheese, fish and a sausage van (!) - its really good. I have decided to make the effort and go there whenever possible to get my fruit and vegetables as its so much better than the supermarkets - which is obvious really! I am so pleased we have one. We also have a great arabic store which can rival any london store for choice and price we love the flatbreads and spices aswell as speciality cheeses. Before moving to Denmark we were worried that we wouldnt be able to get our favourite foods - we neednt have.

The Witches of Kolding...

2006-06-27T08:46:00.000+02:00

Students hired horse and carts to circle the city after graduation.

Last Thursday was our last day of Sprogskole (for 5 weeks) and Friday was the day they gave out the diplomas to those who had passed their exams. We bought in cake we had made, drank coffee and played Banko! (Bingo) We also sang songs - traditional midsummer eve songs, the national anthem and a few other Danish favourites - it was great fun - until we all had to sing our own national anthems to the class.....if we didnt know it we could hum the tune thank God. Well I knew one verse, maybe one and a half of God Save the Queen - I have never been a royalist or anything really - all my life I have been dismissive of the anthem and all that goes with it so I wasnt embarassed when I had to start humming! (the other English person did the same). The funny part was when the American student wouldnt even hum the Star-Spangled Banner so a few of us did and afterwards said 'Jimi Hendrix - yeah!'. I didnt realise I even knew the tune - it must be so ingrained subconsciously that it just came out - now thats scary. It was great listening to everyone sing theirs though - there was no embarassment funnily enough - usually I would rather poke my eyes out with a sharp stick than have to do something like that but it was great. We heard the national anthems and songs for Italy (first few lines), England (just), Iran, USA (hummed), Thailand, China and Korea - it was amazing.

On Friday it was graduation day and the day to burn witches! In the 16th Century Denmark burnt around 1000 'witches' and to mark this event they makes witches (similar to Guy Fawkes in the UK) and then burn them while singing songs. We were invited to a barbeque where they had made a witch, then burnt it and sang a song for the kids - it was really nice to watch - and I am sure the women that were burnt alive would have been pleased that they were remembered in such a way....maybe?

Where not to shop!

2006-06-21T11:39:00.000+02:00

One of our favourite signs for a bookshop in Kolding - we like the eyes on the owl centre left above the door.

After sprogskole yesterday we took a walk around Kolding - we decided to go into the specialist wine shop as we hadnt been in there yet - there were fine wines, whiskies, port, pipe tobacco, rolling tobacco, cigars and a chocolate counter.
Fraser said 'its a headache shop! everything here gives you a headache!' and he was right - so we laughed and after a scornful look from the lady serving some serious customers - we left (its a bad habit we have of laughing in shops - but hey why not).

Cool sign

2006-06-19T14:42:00.000+02:00

On the way to sprogskole this morning I remembered to take a picture of the above sign that tells people where they can tie their dog(s) - I pass it every morning and it makes me smile.

Jeg Taler Dansk! (lidt!)

2006-06-16T12:30:00.000+02:00

Another picture from Odense - nothing to do with todays blog but a nice picture anyway - its a church window in sunlight.

I started my Danish lessons on Monday at the Sprogskole (language school)- I start at 8am and finish around 11.30 (9.30 on Fridays).
After my assessment I was put in a class far too advanced and it freaked me out a bit - well a lot actually. Because the term finishes next week they put me in that class to get me started until they can place me in a different class in August (after the summer holidays which are 5 weeks long). After Monday I did a lot of 'you cant give up after one class - they dont expect you to know anything..' etc etc and it was fine - today I read my homework to the class which was to describe a painting we were given by the teacher and tell them what I thought was going on in the picture - not bad after one week - it even made them laugh! I still need to understand what our teacher is saying though - she rattles off in Danish and never speaks English (which is good). The cost of my prized piece of homework was a sleepless night and when I did drift off for a few minutes I dreamt about Danish grammar - this weekend I need to chill!

Hans Christian Andersens town

2006-06-12T14:08:00.000+02:00

The Classic Fiat car rally in Odense.

We went to Odense on Saturday where Hans Christian Andersen lived - it only takes 45 minutes to get there and to our suprise we had to stand on the train as it was so busy. Everyone seemed to be having a jolly old time - groups of women, students, families and travellers were packed in drinking shots and beer - yes it was 10.30 in the morning and perfectly normal to be drinking like this apparently - it was very strange to see. We worked out that there must be a festival somewhere and when they all got off at Middlefart (yes you read it right) we knew the location! I picked up a festival guide in Odense and saw that it was a Rock Festival under a bridge (Rockparty Under Broen) and the likes of Deep Purple and Status Quo were playing (I think I would have been drinking well before 10.30am if I had the prospect of listening to Status Quo!) along with many Danish rock bands.
When we reached Odense we immediately loved the feel of the town, it was charming. There were cobbled streets, old houses, shops and buildings and of course Hans Christian Andersens house and street which was tiny - how small were they all? It could have been something out of Lord of the Rings - a Hobbit town. Once we had done the touristy thing we had a wander round the shops - we went down one street and we noticed a colourful line of old fiat cars so we had a nosy - they were also tiny (I see a theme developing here) and in fantastic condition. They were parked outside an Italian restaurant so there must have been a club organising an authentic rally. It made me want one but you do have to be around 4ft to be able to drive them.
The weather was glorious - and after a duck took a liking to Fraser we went home satisfied and fulfilled with our day out in Odense.

Stormy Weather

2006-06-01T13:29:00.000+02:00

The day started beautifully with the sun shining and the birds singing - I needed to go out and run a few errands so I closed the front door stepped out - then I heard a low, threatening rumble - I tried to figure out what it was but it only became clear when I stepped outside and looked over my shoulder - not an aeroplane flying low (we also get F16's in this area) or the earth being destroyed (yet) but a huge storm in the distance. Looking ahead there was only blue sky - looking back over my shoulder there was grey, opressing cloud. I decided to try and outrun the storm - if my calculations were correct I could make it into town at least - I suceeded. On the way back I had to take some pictures with my Palm Pilot as I saw the most amazing cloud formation I have seen for a long, long time - it was if God was kneading dough. The picture isnt perfect quality but you can hopefully see what I mean.
Later on that day we had hail the size of maltesers.

Summerhouse

2006-05-29T12:47:00.000+02:00

We rented a summerhouse in Denmark for our honeymoon - the place was beautiful and very big - it accomodated 9 people and had a jacuzzi, sauna and sunbed. Since moving to Denmark I have been really excited about exploring the country and in particular its marvellous coastline. We were going to go to Skagen which is a renound beauty spot but ended up a little further down the coast - which is just as scenic. We arrived before the holiday season had begun so it was really quiet and the summerhouses were all empty as were the beaches - the weather was perfect really warm and sunny. We went for drives along the coastlines and walks on the beautiful long, white sand beaches (not unlike a longer, empty version of Camber Sands). What a fantastic week - I really want to explore more of it now that I have had a taste of how truly beautiful Denmark is.

Wedding Pictures

2006-05-26T11:46:00.000+02:00

As you may have read in my other posts I am collating wedding pictures from our guest so we have a good variety from the day - here are the first batches!

OUR WEDDING PICTURES!

The Best Hangover Cure

2006-05-24T10:54:00.000+02:00

I didnt think I would feel different but I do! Its still a novelty to call each other husband and wife and when I had to write my name down for the first time I let out an excited squeak!!
The day after the wedding I had the most awful hangover - I didnt even drink that much but the mix of champagne, beer then more champagne was not good. Fraser had a difficult task trying to get me up and out of the hotel but he took very good care of me and took me to the ultimate hangover cure - The London Aquarium. The before and after photos would have been interesting - before entering the Aquarium I was nauseous, tired and probably green in colour and after I was calm, serene, laughing and a little hungry (although I swore to myself never to eat fish again and out of respect I didnt - that day)
I have never been there before and I LOVED it - it was so soothing and I had never laughed so much when the Archer fish sprayed the annoying 'Know It All But In Fact Really Stupid' visitor in the face - that was the best tonic. We also went to the touch tanks where you can touch the Rays - and as Fraser told me they like having their noses stroked. One Ray was a real showbiz tart and it kept flipping, waving and then splashing its adoring audience. I must be evil as I was wondering how many children fall into the tank each year and then willing some of the more annoying children to lean a little more into the water.....
There was one Japanese mother who was dipping her hysterical, screaming child into the water every few minutes - the child was obviously beside itself with fear - but no she didnt stop - she must have been training her child to go on 'Endurance'.

The Wedding

2006-05-15T13:08:00.000+02:00

It was strange being back in London as a tourist - we eased back into the madness and did the last minute shopping we needed to do before the wedding. In some ways it just didnt seem real - like a dream. I wonder when its all going to sink in - but I thought that about Denmark and there was no 'Oh My God' moments of the reality sinking in it just felt like it was meant to be and we feel that Denmark is our home now not London.

The wedding was so relaxed just how we wanted it and the only time I was nervous was when I was walking down the aisle and seeing everyone smiling at me - I did my best not to cry as it was such a happy, emotional moment. The ceremony was lovely and our registrar, Paula, was fantastic - really calming. I thought the most difficult part would be speaking (saying anything!) but I am pleased to say it all went really well and there were a few laughs (mostly nervous high pitched ones from me) and a big cheer at the end. How fantastic.

The reception was afternoon tea of Sandwiches, scones with cream and jam and, of course, the fabulous wedding cake! It was brilliant. Frasers best man, Kevin, made a speech as did Fraser and they were both really, really funny and touching. I was on the sidelines blubbing with joy - as is expected of the bride!

One thing we didnt want was a formal, stuffy ceremony so we asked everyone to wear what they wanted which I think they did and it really worked - everyone seemed really relaxed and having fun and after a few hours at the reception we all went down to The Trafalgar pub in Greenwich. The things that made the biggest differences were the personal touches and the contributions from family and friends. One of my bridesmaid, Lizzie, paid for a dark chocolate fudge, organic 2 tier wedding cake as a wedding gift to us both while her wonderful mum, Carol made the cake and fresh scones with jam and cream for the reception, my other bridesmaid, Simone, has a sister who is top florist and Simone and another friend Robyn paid for the flowers as a gift to us - they were the most exquisite peonies which are exactly what I wanted - my Uncle John took photos of the wedding for us as we didnt have an official photographer (and didnt really want a stranger taking pictures) - and all the guests took pictures aswell that we hope to collate and redistribute to everyone who came. My mum and dad bought up the wine and champagne from France after specially selecting it for us and made organic dark chocolate dipped walnuts (from their own walnut tree on their farm!) with gold leaf on - that were amazing. And even though the venue forgot to put out the red wine I dont think anyone really noticed as they were all tucking into the fabulous champagne, white wine and food on offer.

The mix of close friends and family was perfect (only about 45 guests in all) and each and everyone contributed to our perfect day. It really is impossible to put everything on this blog as so much happened and such a wonderful time was had by all.

Pictures to follow soon!

A Right Danish Send Off

2006-05-15T12:44:00.001+02:00

The night before our flight to London (Wednesday 3rd May) Fraser and I had a few drinks with his work friends and colleagues and our neighbours - we went to a really nice bar called Republikka in Kolding and quite a few people came along which was lovely. First of all we were given a bag full of the most beautifully wrapped presents and a card - we unwrapped two red glass, heart shaped candle holders, Trip Trap candy jar and photo frame and candles - they were fantastic and just to our taste - it was a complete suprise and we were really touched. Our neighbours also gave us a fantastic book on Denmark.
At Danish weddings they have quite a few traditions and as we werent getting married in Denmark they thought they would carry a few out there and then. First of all when Fraser went to the bathroom all the boys lined up in front of me and kissed me on the cheek - I was very suprised as I had no idea what was happening! When Fraser came back from the bathroom - non the wiser - they thanked him without saying why he was being thanked. There were only two girls present but when I went to the bathroom they did the same with Fraser.
After this they were all given teaspoons by the barmaid and started banging them on their glasses - we had to stand on a chair together (a strong one!) and kiss and then get under the table and kiss and last but not least the boys picked Fraser up, took his shoes off and cut the toes off of his socks! It was brilliant - a great night was had by all. We fell into bed at about 12.30 and set the alarm for 04.30 when our cab would be taking us to the airport.

2006-05-03T15:09:00.000+02:00

This will be my last blog entry as a single woman! On Saturday we are getting married in London - and I cant wait. It doesnt quite seem real yet but its slowly sinking in and I am getting more excited by the minute. We have drinks with some of Frasers colleagues tonight and then we are leaving for London tomorrow. I am really looking forward to it and hope it doesnt go too quickly.

A Danish Dinner

2006-04-27T16:48:00.000+02:00

Our garden is like youth club to a lot of the cats in the neighbourhood - we are not allowed to have pets in our house so its great having cats without having to feed them and empty the litter tray (although we have been known to give them treats and our whole garden is probably one HUGE litter tray!) There are two brothers who when we moved in were 4 months old and really shy - now when we go outside they come running down from the back of the garden (they live at the back) to greet us and hang out - its great.

We got to know our neighbours through these cats and were invited to dinner after saying 'hi' over the fence a few times. They decided to cook us a traditional Danish dinner as we haven't been properly introduced to it yet - definitely not home cooking. Their house was a typical 1930's house and had a lot of original features - it was really lovely - wooden floors staircases and doors. We had a lovely evening and the food was fabulous - we had a starter of stuffed tomatoes topped with mozzarella followed by a dish of mixed root vegetables roasted in the oven with balsamic vinegar and pork (on its own wrapped in bacon as Fraser is vegetarian), salad and freshly-baked homemade bread. It was a very Danish meal and it was very tasty - we then had a pudding which is very, very traditional it was apple and crumble in layers with a cream topping - its was so good Fraser had 3 helpings :-)

After a few bottles of wine, a few glasses of really good port, two shots of interesting liquorice vodka called GaJol (very hard to pronounce) and best of all the great company we were about done and we strolled all of 10 paces home. Perfect.

The thing about the Danes is that they are so laid back and have a great sense of humour - they make you feel instantly at home and are very straight forward. It doesnt matter if you make a fool of yourself or do not know something. You kow what - they are my kind of people.

The Storcentre

2006-04-25T16:38:00.000+02:00

Today I braved Kolding Storcentre which is a mall or shopping centre about 10 - 15 minutes away from our house by bus. It was a beautiful day and it really does feel like Spring is here (although anyone who regularly reads my blog knows how often I have got this wrong!) so I went to the bus stop with smile, a skip and a shopping list of random items that we needed and could not find in any of the shops in Kolding - I had high hopes for getting most of the things.

On entering the Storcentre I immediatly felt my spirits sink - I hate shopping centres and only go if I really need to or if common sense leaves me for a day. One of the items on my list was picture hooks which we had such trouble getting and which, I discovered today, were located only in garden centres (of course). By the time I had found them (not by the pictures or home furnishings and fittings aisles in the big supermarket) I was tired, drained, slightly stressed and near the aisle which was selling beautiful, shiny, sharp and BIG axes which seemed strangely appealing. I knew then my mission was accomplished and it was time to make a hasty exit! I rushed outside where the sunshine greeted me like and old friend, my spirits rose and my soul was out of danger again.

2006-04-24T08:08:00.000+02:00

Why oh why...

2006-04-18T20:05:00.000+02:00

Our first trip to the supermarket to recycle our beer bottles was interesting to say the least. We weren't hungover just slightly tired and looking forward to a breakfast of rundstykker (Danish breakfast rolls) and coffee. We hadnt recycled before and you get about 10p per beer bottle - which can add up you know :-)but we were unsure of how to operate the machine so we watched carefully.
There was a long queue as it was Saturday morning and everyone had obviously had the same idea - the man in the mobility shopper had had a good night thats for sure. In front of us there was a man in his twenties with - who I can only assume was his mother and they had a crate of beer bottles and a few bags. When it was their turn to bank he first tried to put the crate on the conveyor belt which initially took it away and all looked okay, then the crate came back, rejected. I looked closely at the crate because if all was okay it should not have come back but on closer inspection saw that there was at least 4 FULL, unopened bottles in the crate. Then he joined his mum and went to the hole where you put individual bottles in - he waited until she had finished, they chatted and then he attempted to put his full bottles in the hole, the alarm went off and we all waited for someone to come and unjam it. After about 10 minutes and still no-one had come to mend the machine the moron and his mum put the other full bottles on the floor and walked away.
Firstly it was a recycling bank where you get rid of an empty bottle or ten - not where you put full bottles of anything - it just didnt make sense. Our theory in the end (apart from that fact they were obviousy stupid) was that he had had a party at home (in his mums house) or got stupidly drunk and his mum had made him get rid of any booze left in the house, walked him down to the bank and made him dispose of the evil drink. He looked hungover and quiet but trying to recycle full bottles of beer is just insane - as the students behind us wholeheartedly agreed.

A Tourist in London

2006-04-13T17:50:00.000+02:00

Me and my lovely friends - who by the way forced me to pose for this picture...

We went to London last Thursday to do a few wedding admin things and to have our bachelor/ette parties. We bought our wedding rings which was fantastic - they are really beautiful classic platinum rings and of course I wanted to keep mine on - I think I was a magpie in my last life! In Denmark they have an engagement ring which when they marry moves from one hand to the other to become a wedding ring - they miss out on sparkliness (expensive sparkliness!!).

My hen night was fantastic - we went for posh afternoon tea at the Cadogan Hotel which was sooo good. We had a choice of teas followed by dainty finger sandwiches. We were then served freshly made scones still warm with jam and cream and after we said we 'couldn't possibly' eat anymore we asked to have a look at the pastries which were the last thing on our high tea menu. Oh my god - they were simply amazing - the tiniest choux buns filled with cream and topped with icing, the chocolatiest brownies ever tasted and minute swiss roll bites. How could we not taste them all? We had such a laugh and was the perfect start to an evening - we spent two hours there and only went because we had to go and have our nails done in South Molton Street (which was a great thing to do aswell - especially when the girls bring in a bottle of champagne :-)

My amazing bridesmaids had booked a turkish restaurant (along with all the fabulous day and eve events) the walls were silk, tables low and cushions on the floor. The food was so good. There was one other party of 20 occupying the downstairs room - they were all about 23 yrs old and obviously went to Uni together - but my god I cant remember being 23 let alone being THAT sensible at a birthday party. Bless them. The birthday boy stood up and did a speech which we all listened to and clapped to (room very snug) at which point my lovely friends shouted 'SPPPEEECH Sesame' and I would have refused if the room hadn't gone silent - and I would have looked more ridiculous saying no. It was short.

Being someone who is quite shy and doesn't like a lot of attention (unless I have had a drink then you cant shut me up) I loved the day and evening - even the questions for prizes which I was horrified to find out were planned for me - with the help of my fiance for personal and the internet for hard Danish history Q's. I was soon asking for more when I was unwrapping prizes and saw Chanel nail varnishes appearing - we all have our price you know...

By cocktails and clubbing time I was laughing and crying, dancing and singing - just as it should be. How could I not when I have nine of my closest friends celebrating the end of my debauched single life and welcoming in the - soon to be - beginning of my debauched married life...

And I have on thing to say to you all.....THANK YOU.

2006-04-05T17:44:00.000+02:00

The weather here today has been very varied to say the least, the temperature has gone up which is great and it was glorious and sunny after a week of rain. Mid-morning it started to rain again - then sleet and this afternoon there was hail - all while the sun was still shining. This year should (apparently) be a good year for the plants and blossoms as last year was dry - I cant wait for Spring and Summer to arrive I have a feeling it will be a real treat. The beaches in Denmark are amazing so I am reallly looking forward to exploring this lovely country.

Hen parties

2006-04-04T12:23:00.000+02:00

With my hen night looming this weekend I went to have my hair done for the first time in Denmark. I found a great hairdressers and my hairdresser was fantastic - we had a good chat about things as you do, I told her about my hen night (or bachelorette party) and she said 'you know when it is? How come you know?' This of course confused me quite a lot and I could see confusion over her face. Apparently in Denmark brides-to-be are kidnapped in the 3 - 4 week run up to the wedding and taken out to whatever has been organised - restaurant, bar, strip club etc. Apparently some women go as far to change the locks so they are not at anyones mercy - but they could be kidnapped anywhere - at home, in the street or at work. I think after looking over your shoulder for a few weeks it would be a relief to be kidnapped and forced to have a drink!

The Bells

2006-03-30T12:34:00.000+02:00

A few weeks ago I was waiting for Fraser and his colleagues to arrive when I heard a bell, like a school bell, ringing in the street. It reminded me of when I lived in Muswell Hill and a rag and bone man would come round in his open back transit van with a hand-held bell. I looked outside and saw a very large refrigerated van sat there waiting, I could not tell what it was to begin with as it was a little way up the street and I couldn't make out the words and pictures. Maybe it was selling meat, bread or alcohol - we also had all these vans coming round when we lived at Muswell Hill although we didn't trust the source enought to buy anything...it wasn't the posh end of the area! But it was actually selling ice-cream. It was so cold outside that I really don't think the refrigerated van was necessary though.

Universal Language

2006-03-28T10:12:00.000+02:00

I havent been to Danish lessons yet as we have been organising our apartment, moving and gaining our intial 5 year residency status. I am itching to learn as I hate being ignorant - and its the small things that get to you like a passing comment from a fellow shopper which you know is something funny or an observation - having to say 'Sorry I dont understand - I am English' feels extremely ignorant after being here for two months. I have a Learn Danish course which I am ploughing through but the essence is really in the pronounciation .

I was by the bread counter the other day choosing the right kind for Bruschetta when an elderly lady (not mad) commented on the french sticks - I apologised and said 'I dont understand blah blah' and she looked at me and carried on talking so I said 'I am English - I dont speak Danish yet......' still nothing. I moved to the other side of the counter and looked at some different rolls and she came over and carried on talking so I talked back to her in English and commented on what I assumed she was talking about (the price of rolls - some where still hot!) she seemed satisfied with this and laughed a friendly laugh while shaking the rolls in her hand - I laughed back and we went our seperate ways both satisfied with the conclusion. I wonder what her blog would say.

Red Man Syndrome

2006-03-24T08:43:00.000+01:00

Since moving to Denmark I have been wondering about the situation with the pedestrian crossings here. No-one (or very rarely) crosses the road unless the green man is flashing - even in there is clearly no traffic for miles and the green man is a bit feeling a bit shy and takes forever to appear. Coming from London we would charge across the road in a march that the army would be proud of and wonder why the Danes were staring at us as if we had just cart-wheeled across. Fraser spoke to a colleague and it transpires that its just not done - you wait for the green man - and you can and do get fined 500dk (£50) if you cross when its not green. I wondered why the Danes were so obedient.

It's been so long!

2006-03-13T12:48:00.000+01:00

It has been so long since I have written an entry. My excuses are that a) we moved into our apartment last week and b) we have no internet connection in our flat. Not bad excused really are they? Our apartment is looking very cosy indeed and we almost unpacked everything - and how did we get so much stuff that's what I want to know!! Most of it rubbish too - tat.

Some of Frasers' colleagues from the English and Danish office came over for a drink the other night and then we went out for dinner in Kolding - it was a lovely evening but more about that another time. It felt like a mini house warming and when it came to leaving for the restaurant I wanted to stay in and order pizza instead!

Houses in Denmark

2006-03-05T15:23:00.000+01:00

We have the keys to our new apartment, our new furniture has been delivered and assembled and we are waiting to take delivery of the rest of our possessions (which are arriving tomorrow. It will be strange seeing our things after 5 weeks - I am looking forward to it and also dreading it - our flat seems so spacious and clean without much furniture but saying that I am also missing a few things like my favourite rug, books and our duvet!

Phew - it's been a busy few days I must say - and so exciting!
The flat has a great feel to it with lovely wooden doors and big windows - the sun streams through the front windows (living room and bedroom) until late afternoon when it will reach our garden - perfect for long summer evenings out there relaxing. I love our garden - it has a few trees, different levels and is a nice size.
We also noticed today that our bathroom, which is small and all tiled, has a heated floor - fantastic! In Denmark they don't have baths - well I say 'don't' most don't have baths - I have viewed enough apartments to know that they aren't really into them. Out of all the places we viewed only one place had a bath and it was the same size as they have in Hong Kong - tiny. Anyone that knows me knows I love a good soak in a hot bath with a book or magazine and a glass of wine. They only have showers in Denmark and the bathrooms are tiny - this is something we will really have to get used to - it may take some time. Logically baths are all round bad for you - they are really bad for the skin and not very hygenic I suppose. The idea of steam rooms and saunas are very popular here and in Scandanavia - more a way of life here and much better for you - as with showers. I am sure I will be able to change my lifestyle to accomodate this - what hardship eh ;-)

The houses in Denmark all seem different unlike London where fashion, governments and big corporations have built identical housing in different pockets over the centuries - I seems that most houses are built privately by families and then sold on - there are purpose built apartments here aswell and a few 'standard' blueprints but they are all slightly different.

2006-03-02T13:55:00.000+01:00

I had a day of everthing seeming a bit strange today. I used to have them a lot in London - when everyone looked wierd - and that's not necessarily when I was hungover! I was walking to a shop this morning to sort out our internet connection and two men passed me - they looked odd - not normal. I find it's harder to suss out people in a different country - the clues are different, you don't understand what they are saying or the tone.

When I arrived at the shop one of the women there was such an unusual shade of mahogany that I had to stop myself from staring too hard. It was incredible - I have spent a good few hours trying to think how I can describe the colour and mahogany is the best I can do at the moment. They have a lot of tanning shops here and I have seen a few 'tanned' people - some who are obviously fake tanned - but none like this.

Last but not least a lady who was stationary, staring at snow for a long time - still staring when I rounded the corner. When I see people like this I sometimes wonder what must be going through their head but I conclude that it's always best not to know.

2006-03-01T12:28:00.000+01:00

We are moving from our temporary accomodation to our new apartment over the weekend and I can't wait. Where we are has been fantastic but it will be nice to settle and set up a home and it will be easier to get into a routine and to do so many more things. We have been living here for over a month now - without all our possessions and we have managed - how are we going to get used to having so much 'stuff' again??

Koldinghus

2006-02-28T12:24:00.000+01:00

We finally went to visit Koldinghus on Sunday and it was amazing. After feeding the family of pushy swans on the pond we made our way up the path to the old castle.

It was cold day and not many people where around - we went from room to room and marvelled at all the antiques and works of art. They have the most incredible silver collection dating from a few hundred years ago to modern day - Danish design is amazing and quite rightly renowned for its beauty and excellence.

The castle was partly destroyed by fire in 1808 by a very cold Spanish auxiliary guard, stationed during the Napoleonic Wars, who kept stoking the fire and putting more fuel on until the chimmney caught fire and destroyed a good part of the building - and they didn't start rebuilding until 1890. The newly restored wings of the castle are amazing - with blonde wood sculptured beams and elevated walkways they have become international attractions in themselves - architects were Inger and Johannes Exner. And well done - they serve good cake in the coffee shop too.

2006-02-26T08:35:00.000+01:00

We went to Aarhus on the train yesterday - it took about and hour and 40 minutes altogether - the main purpose of going was to visit Ikea and to buy some furniture for our new apartment. The train was big in size but only two or so carriages long and had a smoking section. We were about an hour into our journey when the guard came down the carriage handing something out to all the passengers - it was chocolate and we had a choice - nut or plain. Now I dont want to be one of these people that emigrate and then put down the country they have left - but - apart from the fact England has gone down the pan can you imagine BR giving out swiss chocolate on the trains?? We thought it was a one off thing - maybe the guard received a promotional box and was asked to give to customers to get them hooked much like drug dealers do - but on the return journey we received another bar.

I think the last time I took an overland train in London they hadn't cleaned out the toilet from the day before, fixed the door to it so it stank more than usual or taken any rubbish away (and I had to get a personal loan to buy a ticket - it's cheaper to have a weeks holiday in Europe) - oh and before I forget - never, ever have a sandwich off of the Stanstead Express - or any trains for that matter. Coming back from France we took the Express sitting right at the beginning of the train with one of the food trolley people. He had a big rucksack with him and he took out six packets of sandwiches - opened them all while grinning to himself like something out of 'One Flew over the Cuckoos Nest'- the Directors cut. He caught my eye and said while laughing - 'they are not all for me you understand'. He took out the sandwiches and looked at them and swapped them all around. God knows what little schemes he had in mind. He disappeared with the sandwiches and walked down the other carriages leaving his bag behind for us to worry about - he returned empty handed about 10 minutes later.
Hence when the food trolley arrived (with a different buffet man) we politely declined wondering if we had imagined it all.

I will never make it as a Weather Girl!

2006-02-23T12:11:00.000+01:00

Apart from the fact I can't sing ;-) I can't tell when the seasons are changing! Upon waking early this morning I looked out of the window and there was a blanket of snow over everything! Spring eh - well who cares - snow is brilliant too! I still can't help smiling when I wake up to snow - it's a childhood thing I think and I still haven't grown up.

I think I will take a walk down to the harbour today as I havent been down there yet. I will keep you posted :-)

Walked to the harbour and it's nearer than I thought. I didn't have a good walk around it though as its seemed quite industrial and difficult to get to, on a warmer day I will explore along the roads and coastline. There was a nice sail boat there though - as you can almost see from the picture below (taken with Palm and from a distance but you get the idea)

I went for a walk around Kolding via the harbour and found the BEST antique shop. It has fantastic mix of things and they aren't too pricey really - I supposed I am used to London prices although Denmark does has the ability to upstage in certain areas! When we settle into our new apartment I have a feeling I will be visiting the shop again :-) Fraser's lucky that the set of monkey candle holders I saw in there aren't sitting on our coffee table as I write. They were nicer than they sound - honest.

Spring is in the air!

2006-02-22T15:23:00.000+01:00

Ahhhhhhh what a glorious day today is - the sun in shining and Spring is definitely in the air. The lake is now completely thawed and the days are longer. We were woken this morning by a the cawing of Jackdaws and screeching of gulls - for some reason they were very full of energy and extremely vocal! Something had got them in a tizz that's for sure - it was quite Hitchcock-esque.

We went for beer last night at the local cafe - it was quieter than usual (still it was Tuesday night!) and at about 10.45pm a waiter who was off duty and drinking with his pals came over and said that they are closing at 11pm but we can carry on round the corner - and we would get a free beer at the other venue if we wanted to do this. How very civilised - and a fantastic way to get rid of people who are still around when closing - not that we were the last customers in the cafe or being a nuisance you understand...

2006-02-21T16:06:00.000+01:00

Hotel opposite train station in Kolding - I love the sign.

Even in Denmark they have charity workers with tunics and clipboards - I thought I might be able to escape their persistence by leaving England - no such luck.
I remember when I was living in Crouch End - one summer they suddenly invaded the high street, smiling, flirting, harrassing and then sarcastically saying 'have a nice day' when politely told 'no thank you'. This used to make my blood boil! I would try and avoid them by all means necessary - I tried all ways I really did. I resent being accosted in the street and in shops - once I was coming out of a small local supermarket and a woman (she was about 75) had placed herself on stool at the end of the checkouts near the exit so there was no escape. When she rattled her tin at me and stated her cause I respectfully and with a smile said 'no - thank you' - she shouted at me 'what about the children!?' I was furious - furious that she dared put me in that position as she didn't know anything about me and had no right to judge. She was extremely aggresive with her charity work and I found a good percentage of these people are. Apparently it's illegal to make a noise or rattle a tin when collecting - quite right - not that they abide by this law though.
When I was approached in Denmark I said 'I am English' - I don't help myself do I! I should just carry on or say no - instead I don't want to upset anyone or make their day worse - maybe one day I will learn. She was very polite and luckily she spoke English aswell so it didn't matter! Anyway she said 'look if you dont want to it's fine' wow what a difference - or maybe I didn't quite get the sarcastic undertones - who knows. So after about ten minutes we established that I do not have a Danish bank account yet and after politely nodding at the information she had I went on my way.

2006-02-20T17:12:00.000+01:00

There are seven swans on the pond at the moment - they are really beautiful and when we went to feed the ducks they joined in and waddled right up close wanting to take the bread from our hands. I was not that close - even though they are young and tame they are still quite imposing! They also make a sound like snoring - never heard a swan before (at least I dont remember if I have) it's funny.

The pond is now half thawed so hopefully spring is on its way!

We have have started watching The Sopranos again - from the beginning. We were a few series down the line but there was a big gap at one point and we got confused. It is brilliant - the acting, direction, casting, music - all of it is amazing. We missed quite a few things the first time around aswell - there is so much going on it's not difficult - and it's a pleasure to watch it again. James Gandolfini is an amazing actor - all of them are but he is fantastic.

When we went to New York we were going to go on a Sopranos tour but ran out of time - how funny would that have been. I hate tours with a passion but I think this had potential. Next time we are there I will defintely go!

Horseplay

2006-02-19T17:06:00.000+01:00

We went for a walk today up a long street were we are hoping to rent an apartment - down to the railway tracks and canal onto a well trodden pathway. It was really nice - when we came to the walkway underneath the railway tracks all of the traffic in Denmark seemed to be crossing there - dogwalkers, families, new parents pushing prams, a moped and a horse. The lady riding the horse waited for us to pass as I think the horse had just been spooked by something and was a little nervous - not as nervous as I was about to get though. It trotted along close behind us snorting and whinnying - it was clear that it was not happy and was prepared to rear up and charge if the mood took him. I walked faster and dared not look around incase my glancing annoyed him even further (they can tell you are scared you know) - at one point I heard a commotion and realised when a jogger ran past us he had been startled again. Not good really.

I dont know why horses worry me so much - it's not that I don't like them - the opposite in fact - I think they are amazing creatures with immense beauty. I haven't had any bad experiences and I am a Saggitarian - the Centaur starsign for gods sake!

When we were further along the path and the horse had dropped behind I had a sneaky peek and the horse had stopped, the rider was trying to get it to move to no avail. Poor thing (little bugger more like) had just had enough I think and I cant blame him really - all the stares, noise and trains going past is just too much excitement for a Sunday.

Pizza, raisin soup and a lot of cabbage

2006-02-18T16:14:00.000+01:00

We fancied a pizza last night so asked a few locals where they recommended and one place came up each time - it was just as an Italian restaurant should be - red checked table cloths, Chianti bottles covered in straw and copper 'things'. We hadn't booked so we were told we only had 45 minutes which was okay as we were hungry and hadn't planned a long evening supping beer - as it happens we was so worried about stealing someone elses table and them having to wait that we rushed and got indigestion. Fraser went for his usual - whatever (one) vegetarian item there was on the menu - and was presented with a pizza with lettuce on top which is different I must say. Mine was good though.

Through the years Fraser has always had interesting times trying to get vegetarian meals and usually ends up with an omlette, vegetables or salad on their own - and a side of sympathy or confusion courtsey of the waiting staff. We wait with baited breath to see if some meat has been snuck in somewhere secret and I have been known to test some dishes just in case (which must look even stranger to the casual or not so casual observer) When he went to Russia he paid $7 (a lot of money considering everything else cost around 1 rouble) for a cabbage cutlet, coleslaw and side of cabbage - the only vegetarian option that wasn't bread. I have been entertained for hours with stories of what people have made him when he has gone round to their houses the top two being a sprout dhansak and raisin soup. I mean a sprout curry??? That's just asking for trouble and Fraser says he thinks it did permanent damage - as for raisin soup he took so long trying to force it down and not projectile vomit over the host that it went cold (I am laughing as I am typing this) so it was thick - glutenous was the exact word he used - cold, slimy, grainy and lumpy. Mmmmmmmmmm. And as it was a speciality in Finland Fraser got seconds.

'Call the Polis - there's been a murder'

2006-02-17T08:04:00.000+01:00

I am now addicted to Taggart - at 6pm every evening there is a murder in Glasgow and I need to know who did it. In England I wasn't too fussed with watching it mainly because Mark McManus is now dead and there are new 'polis' doing the job so it's lost its appeal - it's still called Taggart though as they would probably lose all their audience if they changed the name. Fraser occasionally likes watching it as he is from Glasgow and recognises a lot of the locations (but only when he is forced to because I am watching it!). Glasgow is such a beautiful city with fantastic architecture - but the main reason I like watching it is to listen to their accents - an accent which Fraser has been trying (in vain I might add) to teach me since we met - it's great.

Another kind of TV show that is imported from the UK and USA are the worst kinds of reality TV you can imagine. Teenage mothers with five children and their baseball cap wearing, spotty teenage delinquent partners - usually trying for more children as five isn't enough. They can hardly talk in sentences but have managed excel in the 'art' of breeding. And from America we have highly strung American-Italian brides from hell - and yes it really is hell. How can anyone want to marry a screaming banshee who demands the impossible because 'it's my *^?!!*! wedding day'? It's amazing how they miracuously change from gum chewing Bridezilla to Blushing Bride and 'butter wouldn't melt' when it's time to walk down the aisle (literally just before - remember the morning still holds opportunities for a few more screaming tantrums) I am ashamed to say I love this kind of TV show, whether it's the shock factor or the fact it makes me feel superior in some kind of self-satisfied smug way I dont know - but it's great entertainment!

I think its now time to get a hobby......

Bolig - residence, house, dwelling

2006-02-16T15:14:00.000+01:00

The lovely ladies in reception put the weekly, local paper aside for me as there is a section where they have apartments to rent. The Paper is called Kolding Ugeavis which is unpronouncable to me at the moment - lets hope with time Danish will come naturally.

I managed to find my way to the right section and with patience, a childrens dictionary and a pot of coffee I translated the advertisements little by little. Well kind of..... the thing is by the time I called the first number it had taken me so long to decipher the ad that the apartment had already gone - another place had a 'dense bus' that you could buy with it - unusual eh!!

Even though its slow its a great way to learn a few Danish words and I am enjoying the challenge :-) I saw three apartments yesterday and the agent who showed me around taught me a few more words - its was really nice. Its great to deal with straight forward people - yes even estate agents are straight talking!!

2006-02-15T08:17:00.000+01:00

We had our usual Valentines evening ritual last night - horror movie and a bottle of wine - it cant get more romantic than that.

Last nights movie was 'An American Werewolf in London'. Can you believe I have never seen this movie (except random clips here and there - which include the ending!) I saw it on a stand outside our local DVD / music store in Kolding and thought it would be perfect and it was - it was fantastic - it was great seeing old London and it was also very funny! It was before CG and the special effects were brilliant - amongst other things they used glass contact lenses - ouch...
A few questions though - does Jane Agutter always have to be in soft focus? Is it the law? Is she like that in real life??

And was it a full moon last night? Its just that I cant remember much...........oh hang on maybe it was the Rioja ;-)

Have a Hygge Valentines Day

2006-02-14T08:14:00.000+01:00

Today is a beautiful day, sunny and clear. I went for a walk around Kolding and got a few bits on the way - it was so lovely out. The town was busy, it seems that today was 'transport a random bit of furniture' day - people were carrying small tables on bikes, beds in cars and picture frames in car parks. The supermarket was really busy aswell - baskets were full of wine, chocolate, heart shaped goods and flowers. In Denmark the heart is like a national symbol anyway so Valentines day has them everywhere - or even more so I should say. (They have hearts on their coins!)
The other thing the Danes like are candles, candles everywhere, its lovely - outside shops in bars and cafes and always at home. Everything strives towards being 'Hygge'which means cosy, having a good time with friends and family really - there is no literal translation - which I like.

SB ♥ FL

Shopping on a Sunday

2006-02-13T10:47:00.000+01:00

We toddled along to the supermarket yesterday to get a few supplies and when we arrived there it was shut. Now every Sunday we forget whether it closes at 1, 3 or 5pm - last Sunday we went at 4.30 and were pleased so see it was still open.

I am not sure if it was a religious or national day yesterday but on the way to the supermarket there were people outside the townhall with big torches on fire and a lady was talking on a microphone - it was also being filmed. It was nice to see even though we had no idea what it was for! Maybe thats why the supermarket was shut?

Apparently the supermarkets may be open on Sunday this year but next year it will be closed. We did not believe this at first and even laughed but its true - if the supermarkets go above a certain profit line then they cannot open the next year on Sundays so the smaller traders get a chance. There is also a limit on how many big stores there can be and when a big store was built without permission it was declared illegal by an MP and closed down. They were hoping the government would just say 'Okay - its built now - heres a slap on the wrist dont do it again' (sound familiar?) its great that they werent allowed to get away with it although the MP was sacked later....

Now dont get me wrong I love Italy.....

2006-02-11T14:07:00.000+01:00

What can I say except 'WOW' how on earth did they come up with that?

We were about to go to bed when we flicked onto the Opening of the Winter Olympics in Torino and ended up watching it for an hour or so - most of the time with our mouths open.

We enjoyed watching all the countries parading past with their coordinating costumes and flag waving and we turned on just as Finland were coming out. Some countries had two or three representatives, some, like Russia, would have hundreds of them jostling past.

The big opening performance after all the countries had had their turn was very, very strange. A man read (Dante) from a book the size of a house and then a small child, who I mistook for Bjork initially, ran to a big cupboard type thing and a 17th Century parade unfolded with strange people, carts, attire and food. They also had trapeze artists, fireworks, flag throwing and huge balloons with people hanging off them which represented the sun and the moon - then came the modern dance.

I hate modern dance, its up there with experimental Jazz and Celine Dion as far as I am concerned.

Its hard, really hard, to describe it all but I will try. A court jester (one of Italys acclaimed ballet dancers) danced around and took off his outer clothes to reveal a body stocking with red and blue piping (Blood vessels? Electrics?) and a spiky orange fin on his head. Cue 3 or 4 huge model women being carried around by other dancers to a thumping trance tune (Fraser: 'very bad trance - the sort of thing that wouldnt make it onto a React compilation from 1995') - which I quite liked if I closed my eyes and pretended it was 1995 - more dancing but now with big model motorbike type things being ridden by the dancers - AND THEN - a Ferrari being put together and driven to another stage where it did 'donuts' for about 5 minutes. Ehhh?? Now I know it was supposed to represent the five olympic rings but it looked more like a boy racer (a very rich one) in the carpark of Tescos, Romford, at about 10pm on a Saturday night. Cue fireworks and a long speach. Now I am sure if you are Italian it all makes sense - I assume its an homage to all things Italian and even the 'really bad rave' bit was a celebration of Rimini or something - - but how could they have got it so wrong??? Even after all that we cant deny it was entertaining....

Ciao.

Cake Etiquette

2006-02-10T13:52:00.000+01:00

We have discovered there is a certain order in which to eat food in Denmark. In England 'cake in the office' is a random treat when someone will brings in sweet things to either celebrate a birthday, other occasion or just because it's a Friday, midweek or big meeting day. Any excuse really.

I am pleased to say cakes are taken very seriously here and it has to be done the right way. When cakes are bought for the afternoon (usually on a rota system) they have to be afternoon cakes, not Danish pastries, and a certain kind of cake at that. Being new here we have only managed to work it out to: the heavier the cake the later on in the day it is eaten. I am sure with a lot of research we can nail it ;-)

I like the fact that there is a certain order to things and that it is almost ritualised - there a customs still in place. In England anything goes really (dont get me wrong - I also love this attitude!) Take for instance the smørrebrød (big open sandwich - literal translation buttered bread) or Smörgåsbord (cold buffet - literal translation is cold table) there is a way to eat the food - an order and it's very important to get this order correct as it enhances the taste and appearance (I assume as I havent had one yet and havent been shown how to do it - so please leave comments if you can enlighted me) Things to choose from are for instance Veal, beef tartare, fried liver, liver paste, salmon, smoked eel, cod-roe, caviar, shrimp, herring, ham, roast beef, salad or cheese (for the veggies)

When reading up on Danish cuisine and customs the literature always said it's too complicated to explain the smørrebrød so of course I was intrigued! Both Fraser and I said how can it be that complicated?? Anyway someone explained all to Fraser so I asked him to tell me - 'it's too complicated!' was his answer.

Jackie this posting is for you :-)

Say Ost!

2006-02-09T16:09:00.000+01:00

I had to go and have some passport pictures taken today - it was all pretty easy except that it seems the camera DOES lie!! God what an awful picture and it was the best of about 5 taken - I had to stop after 5 because it was getting a bit embarrassing. Even the photographer seemed to agree he had a look on his face which seemed to say 'hey its not the cameras fault - or mine!' In fact I looked like a big 'Bawheid' - Fraser taught me this scottish insult, it means a head shaped like a ball.

We received our wedding invites a few days ago - its very exciting. We will at some point have to sit down and write them out with our best handwriting making no mistakes at all - its interesting that in high stress writing situations like this (also with really important form filling)I seem to get some kind of 'writing tourettes' - not where I write swear words but where I lose control of my hands now and again and I will write a hybrid word (and usually in the wrong place) or my spelling goes to pot. When I was younger I once wrote 'To Dear Sesame' on a birthday card to my dad - to my credit I just scribbled my name out and corrected the mistake. It was hardly noticeable :-)

The Sound of Children Playing

2006-02-08T14:00:00.000+01:00

I will never know how we managed to cook, clean and do 'stuff' when we were both working - I am so busy! (Although I am sitting here writing my blog with a jug of fresh mint tea and honey ;-)

I viewed a flat today which was unfortunately too small, the exterior had a New York feel to it - it was on a sloped street with red brick, big windows and opposite a primary school. I managed to do a complete circle around the town before finding it and realising it wasnt that far from where we are staying! The couple who showed me around were lovely and didnt mind me seeing it at short notice. I wonder whether its the tenants responsibilty to get someone else in the apartement before they leave?

There is something comforting about the sound of children playing in a playground, all the energy, excitement and noise. Maybe its takes me back to more carefree times when I was a child? Who knows - I know it makes me smile though.

A bus journey with the Weather Girls

2006-02-07T10:33:00.000+01:00

Today I went to work with Fraser as we have a meeting at the Tax office in another town near his office. The journey was great like a real country bus ride, although a little surreal as at one point as the radio played 'It's Raining Men' quite loudly and it went on for ageeessss. I got the giggles - I mean it was absurd!

Frasers colleagues are great - one of them gave me some website links to apartment and house rental sites so I have some more leads! I am really looking forward to learning Danish I must say, it will make things so much easier. Which is obvious really....

Riots and Rentals

2006-02-06T13:48:00.000+01:00

I have a cold today - it came on quite suddenly yesterday afternoon. It's so boring.

Watching the news over the last week has been surreal - Danish flags burning, riots, and embassies being targeted. We are okay here and, touch wood, will be. I saw the protesters in London on the news and its very strange to see I must say. The paper has apologised so hopefully it will all settle down. Why is there so much anger and hate in the world?

Answers on a postcard.

I need to get out there today and get all the local papers that have house / flat rentals in them and then try and translate and hopefully view some properties. It's really exciting but scary at the same time.

IT'S SNOWING!

2006-02-05T09:22:00.000+01:00

Woke up this morning and it's white - very excited indeed and especially when I realise I am not in a country that comes to a standstill when the first snow flake falls. Its 9am on Sunday and the carpark has been salted already....

We went for a walk this afternoon along the lake to the train station and then through the precinct. At the train station we picked up a few timetables - we can get to Copnehagen, Zurich, Rome, Geneva, Stockholm and Paris really easily. How great is that.

Painting the town rød

2006-02-04T14:47:00.000+01:00

We went to one of the local bars last night, we suspect it may be the trendy one in Kolding. We drank a dark carling ale which was really nice but my god am I paying for it - in more ways than one - they were just under a fiver a pop! One of the more expensive hangovers I have had. At about 8.30 ish mexican stylee accordian players came in - it made us feel right at home being Londoners. The well known tricks (as you ALL know) are - 1) dont make eye contact and 2) strike up deep conversations that cant be broken by lardy eastern europeans in black leather coats and caps who are practically standing on your shoulders and shoving an accordian in your ear. These methods work but dont fool anyone.
After 10 the buffet goes and a disco is set up. Danes usually eat and drink at home first, as its so expensive to eat out, and then go out after and stay out until god knows what time - usually when they lose the ability to see. Just as we were about to leave two young boys, they looked 17 but must have been early 20's, sat on the table near us and played backgammon with a whole bottle of Jack Daniels sitting proudly on the table with them. They were serious types and I had to ask if they bought it with them or bought it in the bar - they had bought it in the bar for .......dk650. £65!!!!!!! That was some statement. Remember in London thats a cheap night for two - in Denmark it must have been all their pocket money from 2005.

Its 4pm and we have just got back from feeding the ducks - it's addictive I tell you.
They are so sweet and a bit intense. I have a slightly delicate head today and having 50 ducks quacking (or kervacking as we say in Denmark) and staring at you is a bit intimidating and surreal but brings a smile to my face.

Fun? Excitement? Nope - tax...

2006-02-03T13:39:00.000+01:00

I had a bads night sleep last night - I was restless - thoughts just kept running around my little head and wouldn't let up. At one stage its was random danish words for things like jam and floor! I eventually slept in pockets of dreams where I would wake after one and then have a completely different one just as vivid. Like a comic strip where the frames and storylines are not connected if that makes sense. Remember I am tired ;-)

Fraser and I went to sort out our tax and residency today, the first steps at least, after going to the tax office they said we had to go to the townhall (glad to see red tape and noodley goverment systems are universally crap - very reassuring!) We ended up in the basement of the townhall which is amazing with great art and design spotted around. After being asked if I was Danish (usual assumption) the lady said we needed to ask permission to stay (which we know about) then took copies of our papers as necessary. She then gave us free passes to concerts, the design museum and the castle - fantastic! Not quite Croydon is it. Although - as inspiring Kent Thompson and the Rich Ones and Stormy Monday: Fingerprint sound the proof will be in the hearing!

Jackdaws and a castle

2006-02-02T09:24:00.000+01:00

Today I got up just after Fraser at 7.15 ish and walked with him to the bus stop - he had told me yesterday that on his way to work there were ducks crowding round his feet when he fed them them a (mistakenly bought) pastry and how the jackdaws were circling overhead in their hundreds. I had to see this.

We approached the deck on the lake where the ice had been broken below so the ducks can swim, and there were three men standing on it, which seemed unusual and annoying - I selfishly wanted the place to ourselves. We carried on regardless and the ducks went mad - quacking away and getting in a flap literally! They were lovely, some flapped up onto the deck and fed from Frasers hand and one female fell off the deck backwards in hilarious cartoon style - flapping wings desperately trying to keep balance. One of the three men asked what we were feeding them and then said we were spoiling them - all in good humour of course. They had obviously been out all night and were merry - we left them to the ducks and continued on our way.

The jackdaws were amazing, I love jackdaws they are so beautiful with their intelligent blue eyes and natural elegence unlike crows (who I also love) with their jurassic lope and intense shyness, both noisy buggers though. Fraser was indeed correct - hundreds of cawing jackdaws circling the castle and landing in the towers and in the trees nearby - it was incredible - and very spooky. If you can imagine jackdaws (and some crows) circling overhead while we walked on a path that has a frozen lake on one side and a 12th century castle on the other - its was cold, dark and deserted. I love it here.

Leaving London

2006-02-01T17:53:00.000+01:00

It was strange leaving my friends, work, home and London in general, as if it was happening to someone else and not me. I dont know where the time goes, its goes by in a flash these days, apparently its a sign of getting old and it gets worse as you get older. I cant imagine its going any faster it would be like me clapping my hands and then I am suddenly 80. I hope that doesnt happen - I wont clap my hands again just in case.

Since my leaving drinks from work on the 18/01 its all seemed to have stepped up a gear. The work drinks were great, my colleagues hired a room in a pub and loads of people turned up including people who didnt work for the company and people who worked with Fraser. On the 28/01 we had a more personal farewell in the Endurance pub in Berwick Street, Soho. We couldnt have chosen a more noisey and crowded pub if we tried (I think deliberate on our part so we could slip away at the end of the night without too many teary farewells) but it worked out perfectly its was buzzing and a great group of people turned up, met each other, drank and danced and said goodbye to us in style. We ran from the pub, grabbed a black cab and sped back to the hotel as we had a flight to catch at 10.45am the next day. We were so tired it was untrue, and its made it seem all the more surreal. Even though I had had enough of London and wanted out it was a sad departure, it had been good to me and I have had the most amazing times and met some incredible people - the most important being Fraser of course.

The Thursday before our leaving drinks we went to a pizza place in Gloucester Road for a quiet bite and then bed, as it happens there was a swedish man in a business suit talking with two other colleagues, he was obviously bored and drunk so he sang a song caught our eye and asked to join us. He had previously spoken a few words with the man next to him who was on his own and Fraser gestured him over to join us aswell and next to me was a man writing on small bits of paper in small writing (usually the sign of a nutter in my book) he joined in and it turns out he was Parisian (not a nutter) and had arrived in London that day. The other guy was from New York - a young banker - as yet unspoilt by the ways of the city. What a table - an English woman, Sotsman, Parisian, New Yorker and a pissed Swede. Do we ever have a 'normal' day? Oh and the pissed swede was the MD of a textiles company that made bullet proof vests and was at an arms conference.....!! It was interesting and if we didnt have so much to do we would have stayed until it got messy I am sure. I shook hands with his colleague while Fraser wished him 'good luck' -he announced that the pissed Swede was his boss and on shaking his hand to day goodbye I realised he only had two fingers. You could only get that kind of random, wonderful meeting in London.

And a quick note about Thamon, Padirac, France

2006-02-01T11:46:00.000+01:00

My Parents live on a farm in France called Thamon - it's in the lovely LOT region and they have holiday lets, B&B and icon painting holidays there. My mum Lynda is a self taught icon painter who paints in the traditional style on wood with gesso and gold leaf. These paintings have to be seen to be believed they are awesome.

The farm is idyllic and we have stayed there many times - in fact whenever we can! They grow their own produce and are surrounded by 50 acres of fields and woods. Its great to relax by the open fire in the kitchen with a glass of great local wine and listen to the owls and nightingales.

I have added a link to Thamon so you can see for yourselves:

http://www.thamon.com/

Have a good look round the site and you will see pictures of Thamon, information and Lyndas icons. It really is a place of peace and beauty.

Thinking going to France? Go here!

Also if you are considering buying a property Lynda and Howard can give you sound advice and help as they have almost 20 years of experience living and buying properties in France, you cant buy that kind experience!

From London to Denmark!

2006-02-01T10:09:00.000+01:00

Well its been a mad week - last Wednesday I was packing up our flat in Blackheath and getting it shipped to Denmark. Well I say 'I' what I really mean is we had a company come in and do it for us (a new and great experience for us) . Now we are installed our temporary accomodation in a lovely place called Kolding where we have a view of the lake and is just a few minutes away from the coffee shops and the shopping precinct. It is quite cold here but not as cold as I thought it would be - there is snow and the pond is frozen but its absolutely fine - although they say February is going to be really cold!! Its about -1 at the moment with windchill -4, which isnt that cold....

We havent had much time to explore yet but what we have seen so far we have liked. There are alot of shops including a cheese shop, lingerie shop, book shops, lots of charity shops, homeware shops and an amazing health food shop called Gron Amelie - to name but a few. The Danes are great, 99% speak English and extremely well at that and are very straighforward and helpful.

Today I looked for a more permanent home for us and am viewing one place tomorrow - its only the first day looking so I am not going to get my hopes up just yet but its sounds nice, is in the precinct and has 2 bedrooms.