It's been too long, non?

Well hey,

The Obama win has left me thinking of home a lot these last couple of days and I decided it's about time I send you all another email. I must say I haven't missed home like I did on November 4th (and 5th for me) since my first few days in Aalborg. I wish I could have been in the midst of election day chaos, passion and celebration. Don't get me wrong, I had a fantastic celebration with my American and international friends. A small group of us camped out at a friend's flat, stayed up all night watching the results of the campaign on a laptop and celebrated every time we moved a little closer to victory. The final results for the presidential race came at about 5:30am and that's when the real celebration began. My American friends and I put on a silly show for the others in the room--dancing, jumping up and down, hugging, laughing, screaming, crying--for about two hours straight. We watched McCain's concession speech, which I was impressed by. The only thing that irked me, was when his crowd booed at the mention of Obama's name. For such a powerful moment in history, I felt it was a little immature and harsh. But Barack Obama's acceptance speech, as cliche as it may sound, moved me. I have never in my life felt so proud of Americans. I have never felt proud of BEING an American until now, though I have always wanted to be. I completely understand that the change we need isn't miraculously here because Barack Obama is our new president, but the man inspires me and he has obviously inspired so many other Americans. That is what will bring about change. He builds the will in people and the people make the change. He has also--overnight--lifted such a scarred reputation off the shoulders of our country. The world was holding its breath and is now so happy with our choice. People everywhere are celebrating. Kenya even made (Thursday) a national holiday for what Obama has accomplished. I've witnessed it myself. I'm around international students all day long and am constantly questioned about my country's politics. Usually I feel a bit embarrassed or wary of saying that I'm an American, but already (two days after the election) I'm seeing people's faces brighten when they hear it. Anyway, I'm proud of the way he campaigned and I'm proud of Americans for electing him (by a landslide). Though I don't envy the man; he's got a lot of work to do.

As for everything else, the Danish life has settled inside of me. I like it here. During the first couple of weeks, as I watched international students trickle into Aalborg, I began to realize that I was not alone in my stresses over adjustment to the new life. The confusion and homesickness I recognized in everyone around me made me understand that it's just a phase you go through when you move away from everything familiar and things do pick up quickly. I learned that I was placed in a very lucky spot--right downtown. The uni is about 5 km from my flat and most people live out there. That means that they have to take the bus into town to do anything, and the busses don't run very late. My four flatmates are all beautiful, warmhearted and fun. One is from Italy (she and I love to exchange recipes..mm Italian cooking), one from Russia and two from Norway. We've grown into a sort of family at this point and are always watching out for each other. I've learned that I can't leave for the weekend without telling them or they'll practically send out a search mission. 

I've made great friends from all over the world and have learned much more from conversations with them than I have in the classroom. We are constantly asking about each other's home country, or traditions or even use of language. My Aussie friend has a different word for everything: counter=bench, dinner=tea, hick=bogan, to lift is to hoik and so on; Italians take their food very seriously and the Danish love to drink. I've also learned a lot about the U.S. by simply explaining it to others. At home, when I was surrounded by Americans, I never felt confident that I knew much about the system or the nation's history. I think in the U.S., we aren't constantly discussing or thinking about the everyday aspects of American life. Here I find myself describing the political system, the traditions and history to my international friends who are always inquiring and I realize that I know more than I thought. So, I spend most of my time meeting new people and learning about the world (or taking a walk around the city). One very popular thing to do here among international students is to throw dinner parties. Almost every other day I am invited to or hosting an international dinner for friends. I've had everything from Norwegian porridge to authentic Italian lasagna to moose (my vegetarianism has definitely suffered here) and I've made plenty of dishes for everyone as well. The funny eggs and chocolate chip cookies were a big hit. 

The Danes are another story. I found that their community is much harder to breech than expected. Then Danes are a very comfortable and content people. When they have found their niche, they don't feel the need to branch out. This isn't to say they are mean or selfish people. They are just shy in a sense and if you take the first step in getting to know them, they are very kind and welcoming. In fact, the Danes describe themselves with the word hygge, which means cozy, content, secure, familiar, etc. About a month ago I was invited on a trip out to a beach cabin that the university arranges for new Danish students every year. On this trip, I got to know many Danes and finally understood the meaning of hygge. Though I am generalizing, it's proved true with all of my Danish friends. They are very friendly, but you have to break into their niche to know it.

I have travelled a bit already. In the beginning I went somewhere every weekend. I don't think I spent one weekend in Aalborg for about a month straight. I went to Germany twice; one story you know, and the other trip was to visit a very good friend (Felice DuBois for those of you who know her). Another friend of mine stopped by on his trip around Europe and we spent a weekend in Amsterdam, which was incredible. We took a tour of the beautiful city and then a night tour of the Red Light District which was my favorite part of the trip. I learned so much about how prostitution works in The Netherlands, and have a completely different perspective on it than I did before. We also visited the Anne Frank House, the Van Gogh Museum, a Sex Museum and other places. Another weekend I spent discovering Denmark's hip and artsy city Arhus where I checked out a great exhibit called Music To See (a compilation of music videos from famous producers), the Old Town and some great festivals. I also visited the very tip of Denmark, a beautiful coastal town called Skagen, where I climbed in old German bunkers from WWII and stood at the point where the Baltic Sea and the North Sea meet. I didn't expect to actually see two bodies of water colliding, but I swear the waves ran right into each other from either side. For our Fall Break, six friends and I road-tripped through Norway, which at this point was my favorite trip of all. We spent the entire week in little cabins and hiking through magnificent scenery. Picture Glacier National Park in the fall--the mountains were on fire. Norway in a nutshell is mountains, fjords, massive waterfalls and tunnels. Absolutely beautiful. However, the Norway trip is a long story that would make this already ridiculously long email much much longer. So ask me about it sometime if you're interested. This month I've got way too much school work to be traveling, but I will again in December. I have plane tickets to London where I will spend a day and then take a train to Edinburgh (to see Ian!) for three days. On the 20th I am flying to Prague where I'll be for a few days. Then I'm going to Brittany, France (to see Genna Hall!!) for Christmas and Paris for New Years. Yes, I am excited!

But, again, this email is much too long. I'll try to update more often, because there is so much to tell. I miss you all very very much and I'm looking forward seeing all of you in a couple of months. For now, I'm going to enjoy the hygge of Danish wintertime and get back to writing my papers!

One last note..GOBAMA!!!

Ciao.

P.S. my friend made this great joke about Norway: one person says to the other "You going to Norway?" and the other says "No(r)way! I can't afjord it!!"