Well, it's been quite a while. Since we last spoke, I completed my first year of my Master's at ASB, went home for the summer to visit friends and family and work for The Toronto Community Foundation and have again returned to Denmark for my final year as a student. My summer was pleasant, wish I had planned a little more downtime but was great to reunite with the crew and sleep in my own bed.
It's mind-numbing to think I'll have to enter the "real world" and become a contributing member of society within a year. One more semester of classes, then 6 months of thesis writing and then that's... it. Every night I fall asleep to thoughts of where I could "work" or "study" next - anything that would prolong the fact of moving back home and settling down in a 9 to 5 nightmare. Visions of London, Melbourne, Berlin and California all come to mind. Only time will tell, I suppose.
Anyways, Fall is upon us. My favourite season - warm colours and warm beverages. I promise to try to update more often.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Indisposable Disposables
About 2 months ago I found disposable cameras at the local grocery store for 10kr (about $2 CAD) a pop. The wannabe photographer and child in me bought 3 of them. It was actually quite exciting not knowing how the pictures turned out and the looks/laughs I got when I whipped them out were pretty great too. I got two of the rolls developed this past weekend and here are a few of my favourite shots.
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| You know it's Spring (or Foraar) in Denmark when daffodils just start growing wildly everywhere. |
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| The Danish flag, also known as the Dannebrog, is everywhere. It's used in every celebration imaginable. |
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| The canal in downtown Aarhus |
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| Candles and a Lisbeth Dahl jewlery rack are a necessity of every woman living in Denmark. |
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| Much prettier than the ones we have in Ontario. Nice to be reminded where you are. |
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| Aarhus School of Business (or Handelshojskolen) where I study. |
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| Thought this was an all-too-obvious contradiction of nature and technology |
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| Me enjoying an Easter picnic in the Botanic Gardens. |
Sunday, May 15, 2011
5 Danish Foods You Must Learn to Love
When I lived in Singapore, the food was one of the most shocking parts of the experience - curry, chili and fishballs threw my mild Canadian palette for a loop. Thankfully the food in Denmark is slightly more continental. Adjusting hasn't been too hard but there have been some foods that I have just had to learn to love over the past 10 months.
1. Pork
Don't get me wrong, I like pork and always have but the Danes consume at the same rate they do oxygen. Sausages, hotdogs (polser), pork meatballs (frikadeller) and bacon are all main staples of the Danish diet. It's the cheapest type of meat to buy here and as a student, that's pretty much all that needs to be said. It's one of Denmark's largest exports and the quality is really quite good for the price.
2. Danish Rye Bread or Rugbrød
During my first few weeks here I picked up a loaf after watching the locals the grocery store and made myself a sandwich. Little did I know, this is not your average rye bread that you would toast and put some pastrami on. It is heavy and insanely filling. After having two pieces of it, I wasn't hungry for the rest of the day. Danes tend to have it for lunch and breakfast as a part of "smørrebrød" where they load it up with cheese, deli meats, veggies and all types of spreads. It took a few months but I eventually bought a second batch and I now have it regularly.
3. Shrimp or Rejer
Itty bitty shrimps. On everything. Seriously. Ok, not everything. But obviously being a Nordic country, fish and seafood are a main staple of Danes' diets. The most common probably being rejer. They put them on salads, in pasta and on smørrebrød. In February, I visited with a friend's family and for an appetizer I was served half an avocado sprinkled with salt and pepper with a dollop of mayonaise and rejer on top. I was a little hesitant but I think I've made it once a week since. Simple, delicious and a relatively healthy snack.
4. Remoulade
To go with your polser or your smørrebrød, one must have remoulade. If I had to describe it, it tastes like mild mustard mixed with sauerkraut. Originally a French condiment, the Danes have put their own twist on it to include "finely chopped cabbage and pickled cucumber" (according to Wikipedia). Unfortunately, I over did it the first few months I was here and have yet to buy another bottle but I know friends who were on exchange here who took home a liter of it.
5. Carrots
I felt the need to include carrots because of an experience I had in September. I was down by the canal in Aarhus and saw a grown man sit down with a book and start chomping down on a raw carrot as if he were Bugs Bunny. At the time, it was the strangest sight to me. Since, I have noticed a lot of my Danish friends and room mates do the same thing. And quite frankly, I've started doing it as well. It's like the equivalent of the North American apple in the lunch box.
Honourable mentions: Muesli, Milk, Potatoes
1. Pork
Don't get me wrong, I like pork and always have but the Danes consume at the same rate they do oxygen. Sausages, hotdogs (polser), pork meatballs (frikadeller) and bacon are all main staples of the Danish diet. It's the cheapest type of meat to buy here and as a student, that's pretty much all that needs to be said. It's one of Denmark's largest exports and the quality is really quite good for the price.
2. Danish Rye Bread or Rugbrød
During my first few weeks here I picked up a loaf after watching the locals the grocery store and made myself a sandwich. Little did I know, this is not your average rye bread that you would toast and put some pastrami on. It is heavy and insanely filling. After having two pieces of it, I wasn't hungry for the rest of the day. Danes tend to have it for lunch and breakfast as a part of "smørrebrød" where they load it up with cheese, deli meats, veggies and all types of spreads. It took a few months but I eventually bought a second batch and I now have it regularly.
3. Shrimp or Rejer
Itty bitty shrimps. On everything. Seriously. Ok, not everything. But obviously being a Nordic country, fish and seafood are a main staple of Danes' diets. The most common probably being rejer. They put them on salads, in pasta and on smørrebrød. In February, I visited with a friend's family and for an appetizer I was served half an avocado sprinkled with salt and pepper with a dollop of mayonaise and rejer on top. I was a little hesitant but I think I've made it once a week since. Simple, delicious and a relatively healthy snack.
4. Remoulade
To go with your polser or your smørrebrød, one must have remoulade. If I had to describe it, it tastes like mild mustard mixed with sauerkraut. Originally a French condiment, the Danes have put their own twist on it to include "finely chopped cabbage and pickled cucumber" (according to Wikipedia). Unfortunately, I over did it the first few months I was here and have yet to buy another bottle but I know friends who were on exchange here who took home a liter of it.
5. Carrots
I felt the need to include carrots because of an experience I had in September. I was down by the canal in Aarhus and saw a grown man sit down with a book and start chomping down on a raw carrot as if he were Bugs Bunny. At the time, it was the strangest sight to me. Since, I have noticed a lot of my Danish friends and room mates do the same thing. And quite frankly, I've started doing it as well. It's like the equivalent of the North American apple in the lunch box.
Honourable mentions: Muesli, Milk, Potatoes
Monday, May 9, 2011
Simple Homemade Facial Exfoliant
There is no doubt that living in Denmark as a foreign student is pricey. I've especially noticed the high mark up on basic toiletries such as razors, deodorant and toothpaste - to the point where I've had family members mail them to me. Back in Canada, I was a complete sucker for a good face mask or body exfoliant but here I just can't bring myself to spend the money on the good stuff. So over the past few months I've tried out a bunch of homemade beauty remedies for a fraction of the price and I must say I've found a few gems.
The simplest and most effective recipe that I've found has got to be the Olive Oil & Sugar Face Exfoliant. It saved my skin during the dry and cold winter months. Did this once a week (on top of regular moisturizing of course) and goodbye dead skin cells - hello fresh face! I swear if you try this once, you will make it part of your regular beauty routine.
Olive Oil & Sugar Face Exfoliant
You will need:
If possible, use organic products to avoid added harmful chemicals that could further dehydrate the skin. Also, this can be used on your entire body but be sure to thoroughly rinse the bathtub/shower afterwords because the oil will create a slippery surface that could easily cause someone to slip.
Let me know how it works for you!
The simplest and most effective recipe that I've found has got to be the Olive Oil & Sugar Face Exfoliant. It saved my skin during the dry and cold winter months. Did this once a week (on top of regular moisturizing of course) and goodbye dead skin cells - hello fresh face! I swear if you try this once, you will make it part of your regular beauty routine.
Olive Oil & Sugar Face Exfoliant
You will need:
- 1 tsp. of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 2 tsp. of sugar
- 1 tsp. of honey (optional)
If possible, use organic products to avoid added harmful chemicals that could further dehydrate the skin. Also, this can be used on your entire body but be sure to thoroughly rinse the bathtub/shower afterwords because the oil will create a slippery surface that could easily cause someone to slip.
Let me know how it works for you!
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
The Bazillionth Times a Charm
Well, over the past decade I've probably created about a dozen different blogs. It all started with the ever-angsty LiveJournal (which I have subsequently deleted due to sheer embarrassment of the garbage I wrote about) and more recently, Tumblr. The same thing happened to every single one of them: frequent and "insightful" posts - with LiveJournal being the obvious exception - for about a month until I found something better to do with my time.
But now I'm committed. Hopefully.
Time will tell.
But now I'm committed. Hopefully.
Time will tell.
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