Speaking the Language

After being here for over a month, I have realized one or two things, one of the most important being that we as Americans are woefully lacking in our language skills. I have yet to encounter anyone here who can't carry on a pretty sophisticated conversation in English. This makes me feel quite gauche, so I've decided to do something about it. I picked up my phrasebook and all the linguistic goodness the internet had to offer and I began seriously to try and teach myself Danish.

Even the birds here have more linguistic skills than I do. Just look at the disdain in his eye...

It was actually kind of a fun thing to intersperse my school work with. I've started to recognize some written words that crop up in daily life and even to extrapolate the meanings of some of them. Auditory comprehension is still pretty much beyond me at this point, but at least after hearing the language spoken around me for a month it no longer sounds completely foreign. Pronunciation is also a major hurdle. But one of my RA's has been teaching me some important phrases when we're out at the bar. For example: Jeg vil gerne have en øl. (I would like a beer). I would try and spell that out phonetically, but it would be a mess, so I won't. Suffice it to say that it sounds nothing like it looks. 


I also found a magical website that has audio clips of words being pronounced by native speakers. It may be the most useful thing I've ever encountered on the internet. If anyone's trying to learn a language, I highly recommend it: http://www.forvo.com


So hopefully by the time I leave I will no longer be an English speaking embarrassment.

Running With the Vikings

One thing I'd like to say for the Danes as a whole is that they seem to be very fitness conscious. In other words, they're people after my own heart. As a result of this there is an entire area, known as the lakes that is entirely dedicated to runners and couples who want somewhere to go and romantically gaze out at some water with swans in it. 

This is actually the park that I run through to get to the lakes, but it's pretty nice too.

The lakes are what remain of the moat that used to surround and protect the medieval city of København. They have now been converted into a sort of park area that offers almost unlimited potential for running loops of all lengths. 

I don't run with a camera, for obvious reasons, so I apologize for the lack of pictures today.

A fun note: pop some headphones in and start running down the street and everyone will automatically assume you're a local and know everything there is to know about the city. I can't even begin to count the times that I've been stopped for directions by people while I'm waiting at a traffic light. And the great thing is, at this point, due to my extensive explorations, I can generally help them out. Which is a great feeling.

How I Spent My Wednesday

Let me just say, the architecture program here is excellent, if only for the reason that they drag you out of bed at ungodly hours in order to take you on site visits. Just such a thing was done yesterday when my 20th and 21st Century Danish Architecture class headed off to check out the buildings of Seeland. 


Typically, it was a whirlwind adventure, visiting five sites in eight hours: Gundtvigs Kirke, Bagsværd Kirke, Egebakken, the L.O. School and the Kingohusene. 


Rather than writing about all of these places, here are some pictures. I'll comment as necessary.

Grundtvigs Kirke. It looks very imposing outside...

But the inside is beautiful.

Inside Bagsværd Kirke. This was designed by Jorn Utzon, the same architect who designed the Sydney Opera House.

Egebakken, a community of elderly people designed by the Vandkunsten Group. The cool thing about this place is how involved the residents were in the design process. The initial concept for starting this housing project was initially thought up at a meeting of their dining club.

The stairs leading into the main entrance of the L.O. School. This is actually a large conference center, built and used by Denmark's largest union.

Inside the School.

The outside of a Kingo house. These were designed around the concept of privacy (as you can probably tell), also by Utzon. But while the outside might look like a prison, the interior courtyards are really quite nice and open looking.

The public spaces on this site are very wild. There are trees everywhere. In fact, there are so many that the residents set aside three days per year to go out and cut down trees. This is followed by a festive picnic.

Samsø, Part II

Welcome back folks. The saga continues...


After our sustainable gallivanting around the souther half of the island on Saturday, we returned to our hostel for an evening of jollity and delicious food. Dinner was apparently a very traditional Danish spread, and was one of the best things I've had since being here: fingerling potatoes, roast lamb, and brussels sprouts. Especially delicious given the appetite we had worked up all day.

Good morning hostel.

We then spent the rest of the day (and most of the next morning) enjoying all the great things the hostel had to offer, and reached the conclusion that Denmark is probably the best country ever to grow up in. The place was a lawsuit waiting to happen, which meant that it was actually fun instead of obsessed with safety. There was trail biking, soccer golf, go-karting, and enormous playground, a bouncy air-pocket thingamajig, an excruciatingly cold pool, and a fire pit complete with lean-tos.

Also, it was in a beautiful location. Which really isn't saying much since the entire island is very attractive.

A fellow DIS-er and I befriended a group of old Danish gentlemen who invited us to enjoy their fire with them and camp out in the lean-tos. Naturally I didn't need asking twice. An interesting side note: where we would roast marshmallows in America, here they cook bread dough on sticks. It's delicious!

After a chilly night outside we breakfasted and headed off to the northern end of the island for a hike. It was spectacularly beautiful. Rolling hills, green grass, blue sea, horses, cows, and the first woods I've seen since being here. 

Amazing is the only word that can describe this.

Flowers!

The view from the highest point on Samsø- 68m above sea level.

Several hundred kilometers of trekking across the countryside later, we arrived at our final stop of the trip: an organic brewery, where we heard about how they made various beers, what they used to flavor them, and how the recycling system here works. And of course we got to sample all their wares. Quite tasty.

Wheat, and a bunch of other things used to make brewskis.

Being around trees and hills again made me realize that, while København is an amazing place, and I have no complaints about it, I'm not really cut out for city life. It was glorious to get away from all the noise and light and rushing around for a weekend.

So long Samsø.

Samsø, Part I

Greetings fans. I'm back from a weekend on Samsø, and really all I have to say is "Wow!" For those who don't know, Samsø is a very small island between Fyn and Seeland. Pretty great sounding, right? Oh wait- I forgot the good part. Thanks to the combined delights of wind power and offset calculations, the island is not only independent when it comes to energy, but actually overall has a negative carbon footprint. 


There are 11 wind turbines on the island, which provide all the electricity needed by the island's residents. Then there are 10 offshore turbines that offset the carbon produced by the cars and ferries used by the residents. The power produced by these is exported to the rest of Denmark, bringing green power to the rest of the country. 

One of the 11 onshore turbines.

75% of the heating on Samsø is provided by district heating. This is a series of localized plants that burn biomass (generally straw bales) to heat an enormous boiler. The hot water is then circulated through a heavily insulated series of pipes, going through heat exchangers at every connection and giving every home or business access to heat that is essentially carbon neutral.


But enough of that boring factual stuff. Here's what we did this weekend:


Arrived at Samsø Friday after a two hour train ride and an hour and a half ferry, and walked to our hostel in essentially the dead of night. Very exciting. 

Looking off the wharf towards Samsø.

Saturday morning we hopped astride our rented bikes and pedaled off across the fantastically beautiful countryside to the Enrgieakademie on the other side of the island.

We look virtually indistinguishable from locals.

There we met Søren Hermansen, one of the spearheaders of the Samsø environmental movement. After talking us through the energy revolution of Samsø, he walked us though a district heating plant.

Søren and the boiler.

We ate lunch on the beach.

Delightful views and food. Doesn't get much better than this.

After that we cycled off to a farm to meet a local farmer that owns his own wind turbine, which he took us to the top of. Let me rephrase and repeat that in case you missed it: I stood on top of a 50 meter wind turbine. Just let that sink in for a moment. Now imagine you've just climbed about 73 ladders straight up and are crouching in a minuscule capsule jammed with gear boxes and generators and all sort of fun things like that, which is swaying gently back and forth in the gale-force winds. 

Inside a turbine.

You're just beginning to feel that you may have wasted a lot of effort climbing up there, when the roof splits open, your pod opens to the sky, and you're standing on top of the world. 

Ta-da!

The blissfully safety-disregarding farmer then invites you, one at a time, to stand unsupported on top of the generator, the master of all you survey. By far one of the most amazing things I've ever done. 

No explanation could do this feeling justice.

  And on that note, we'll pick up the story tomorrow.

One more look, just for good measure.

.

Good Morning Copenhagen

There's something mysterious about walking through the city at 6:15. It's still dark, there's steam billowing from the sewers, and if you're lucky, you'll catch the last hearty stragglers stumbling home from the bars. Strøget, the walking street is full of delivery trucks, street washers, and window cleaners. It's like being in an alternate dimension.

Good morning Rådhus.

Hi there, trumpeters on a pedestal.

Hello Strøget.

Walking out of the gym at 7:30, everything has changed. The sun is now creeping up over København H, the central train station, striking the clock on the tower of the Rådhus, and just generally changing the appearance of everything. People are appearing on Strøget, replacing the vans that were there before, and all still-drunk revelers have finally made it to bed.

Getting up early is good.

AD-D Does Western Denmark, Part III

And now, the moment you have no doubt all been waiting for: the conclusion of our adventures through Jylland.


Our first stop was the Århus Krematorium. It's a morbid concept, but the building itself was very beautiful.

Thanks to the windows, it was very bright inside, despite the omnipresent rain.

 Then it was on to the HEART Museum. To be honest, I wasn't very impressed with it. Very limited exhibit space, and poor flow between rooms.

This was by far the coolest thing on display.

I didn't think much of the exterior either. Very bland.

 On the way back, Alan, the best bus driver ever suggested a stop at a bridge that is the longest span on the Great Belt. All together it is a 6.8 km series of bridges. This particular one is 1.6 km long.

An arsty beach shot.

AD-D, dramatically silhouetted against the bridge.

And the best part about getting home? Doing laundry of course.

AD-D Does Western Denmark, Part II

Picking up where we left off, day two of the trip consisted of stops at Lærkehaven, Århus Rådhus, and the ARoS Art Museum.

Lærkehaven is a relatively recent housing development in Lystrup, and is one of the first attempts at sustainable housing in Denmark. Within the development there are several enclaves, each designed by different architects and affording varying degrees of sustainability. 

It might not be much to look at, but it's definitely organized.

 Funnily enough, all these houses, no matter who the architects were, were built by German contractors. Those Deutschers must know what they're doing when it comes to construction.

These are the most sustainable group of homes, known as the 'Passive Houses'.

 Århus Rådhus was designed by Arne Jacobsen, one of the most famous Danish architects and designers. From the outside it's not a very attractive building- in fact it looks kind of like a prison. But the inside is quite beautiful.

The Council Chamber. Notice that the carpet is actually a map of Århus.

The main hall. An absurdly imposing space, due to its being four stories high.

 From there we walked all the way across the street to ARoS, an almost brand new art museum. Sketching this building was almost impossible due to the wide variety of lines, as well as the distraction afforded by all that gosh-darn art.

The central space, as seen from the 8th Floor. My drawing looks nothing like this.

We stayed in a hostel in Århus that night, which was not nearly as nice as our first accommodation- full of mosquitoes. As it was Friday night in the second largest, my roommates and I naturally decided to go out and explore.

Three-quarters of our wonderful room, with orange juice. 

During our travels we discovered a great little Danish bar, in which we met an Icelander named Magnus, as well as a horde of youthful Danes who attempted to teach us some traditional songs. Unfortunately we failed miserably, both at pronouncing the words and remembering them.

AD-D Does Western Denmark, Part I

The AD-D whirlwind tour of western Denmark has concluded, and a grand time was had by all. The synopsis shall be delivered in installments, partly because it is very long, and partly to build suspense.


Our itinerary for Day 1: Frauge Kirke, Trapholt Art Museum, Nicolai Børnkulturhus, and Koldinghus Castle.


We'll skip over Frauge Kirke because it wasn't terribly exciting; just your typical run of the mill northern Gothic church. 

Skylights at Trapholt.

 The art museum however was great. There was an entire wing devoted to chairs; the largest collection of Danish designed chairs in the world.

An particularly interestingly laid out room. 

 And on to Koldinghus...

An octagonal column supporting eight pointed arches. Very graceful looking.

 There has been some form of Danish installation on the site of this castle since 1268. It contains the first Protestant chapel in western Denmark, which was constructed in 1536. In 1808, almost the entire structure burned down, and following extensive restoration, it was opened to the public as a museum.

AD-D walking across the courtyard.

As outstanding as the architecture in this building was, it was blown away by the main exhibit. We had somehow managed to gain entrance to the invitation-only opening party for a huge exhibit on the Beatles. As soon as we walked into the main hall, we were handed glasses of wine and serenaded by a live band covering the Beatles' hits.

A replica of one of George Harrison's innumerable guitars.

This large dose of excellence may have distracted us a bit from our architectural analysis of the renovation... But actually, it was great to get to see the main exhibition space when it was full of people.

Sgt. Pepper's anyone?

That night we stayed in an extremely nice hostel in Kolding. The more adventurous members of our group went to the local swimming pool. Sadly it was "quiet adult night" so we couldn't use the diving boards. But Kolding redeemed itself when we stumbled across You'll Never Walk Alone, the local English Pub. This was a truly hyggelig place, with 318 beers available. The ten of us who made it there proceeded to enjoy a beer tasting of the ten most unusual beers we could find. Nothing like some Architectural Design program bonding.


Tune in tomorrow for Part Two of the AD-D saga.

Go West Young Man

Today I shall, for the first time since my arrival, be venturing off the island of Zealand. All of D.I.S. is departing on study tours to the western part of the country; the main peninsula known as Jylland of Jutland. Now I've heard rumors that this area is completely different than where I'm located now, but that to me is like saying southern Vermont is completely different than northern Vermont. I'm sure it's true, just not how true. 

Luggage for the next 3 days.

In keeping with my vow to travel light, I will be bringing only a backpack on this trip. Seems easy, no? Ah, but in there, besides the requisite sketchbooks, and clothes, there is also a full set of sheets (necessary for staying in hostels) as well as Sven, my faithful towel. 

Field Trip

Yesterday the studio architecture classes went on a bike trip to Christianshavn. The weather continues to cooperate, so our professor took us on the scenic route to get there.

Riding into Christianshavn.

Not surprisingly this gave me even more places that I want to explore: for example, the church in the background of the above picture. The staircase to the steeple, rather than being built in the conventional manner, is on the outside of the building. Cool beans.

Looking across the harbor to the central city.

The harbor also looks like a fun place to spend more time. Many people take berths along the edges and simply live there on their boats. And then, if the spirit moves them, they untie and go for a sail. That sounds like the live to me.

Christiania.

And finally, Christiania. Yes, I know the stigma surrounding Christiania, but just look at it. It's beautiful. And as a social experiment it's just way too good to pass up seeing.